10 Video Games That Are Bangers From Start to Finish

Published Sep 25, 2026, 7:22 AM EDT

Lucas Kloberdanz-Dyck is a writer for Collider. He grew up creating lists, stories, and worlds, which led to his love of anime and video games. He attended Sheridan College where he earned an Honours Bachelor of Game Design. Lucas and his group won 1st place for technical innovation at LevelUp Toronto 2023, and he was also an intern for the Oakville Film Festival of Arts. 

Sign in to your Collider account

It is rare for a video game to be perfect; even some of the greatest of all time, like The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Red Dead Redemption 2, have noticeable flaws. However, a game doesn’t need to be a masterpiece in order for fans to have fun from start to finish; sometimes they can simply be bangers.

Too many fans focus on video games being perfect, when in reality some of the best titles have good quality and better consistency. That is why this list will feature ten video games that are bangers from start to finish based on aspects such as gameplay, design, narrative, visuals, originality, consistency, entertainment value, fan opinion, critical acclaim, and overall quality.

10 ‘Doom’ (2016)

Image via Bethesda Softworks

Video games get revivals all the time, but it is more common now, and while they don’t always turn out well, sometimes they are better than before, as was the case with Doom 2016. After a breach in a scientific facility on Mars lets demons from Hell take over the planet, the only hope for humanity is the Doomslayer, who must kill as many demons as possible.

Doom is a fantastic game and a prime example of how to revive a franchise successfully, but more than that, it is a banger from start to finish. It covers this through its fast-paced action and rushed pacing that forces the player to be ambitious and bold, constantly pushing through enemy lines and having a blast while doing so.

9 ‘Pokemon HeartGold & SoulSilver’ (2009)

Image via The Pokémon Company

To be one of the biggest franchises of all time, a series needs to have some banger games, and that is exactly how Pokémon became so popular. Pokémon HeartGold & SoulSilver is a remake of the classic Johto experience, with trainers setting out into the region to defeat the Gym Leaders, Elite Four, Champion, and take down Team Rocket while catching as many Pokémon as possible.

The best Pokémon video game is up for debate, but it isn’t an unpopular opinion that it is HGSS, especially since multiple fans got to experience it. The title features timeless gameplay of catching and battling, and when paired with the nostalgic Johto region and well-paced moments, HGSS is easily one of the best Pokémon games ever.

8 ‘Half-Life 2’ (2004)

Image via Valve

One of the biggest video game companies is Valve, and they are one of the best video game companies of all time. Sadly, they don't release games anymore, because they used to be known for masterpieces such as Half-Life 2. Set after the first game, Gordon Freeman leads the remnants of humanity in a revolution against their alien oppressors in City 17, hoping to take back their planet.

Half-Life 2 boasts an impressive narrative, but the best part is that it works in tandem with the gameplay, which keeps the flow intact and the entertainment going from start to finish. This masterful storytelling method is only the start, because this video game maintains its banger status because of its physics engine, which is a total blast to experiment with, whether or not you play the main campaign.

7 ‘Uncharted 2: Among Thieves’ (2009)

Image via Sony Computer Entertainment

Everybody can get behind an adventure video game, and while the 2000s were home to some of the best, none have beaten Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. Nathan Drake is a treasure hunter, and his nose for finding new artifacts leads him to find Marco Polo’s fleet, which is rumored to contain a precious artifact, but the journey will be filled with many twists and turns.

Even though Uncharted 2 is a rather short game compared to modern titles, it is a game fans can play forever because it is so engaging from start to finish. It boasts some of the best set pieces in gaming history, which builds an exhilarating experience that heightens the drama, excitement, and action. This is a joy to play through and doesn't get old no matter how many times fans have played it.

6 ‘Super Mario Odyssey’ (2017)

Nintendo knows how to deliver good games, and they do this by maintaining the quality throughout, and this is seen firsthand in Super Mario Odyssey. After Bowser kidnaps Princess Peach and forces her to marry him, Mario must set out on an adventure through different kingdoms to save her while using the abilities of other enemies.

Fans are still waiting for another new 3D Mario game, but for the time being, Super Mario Odyssey is the newest one they have, but at least it is a banger from the beginning to the very end. The capture mechanic is one of the most innovative and creative, allowing for so many inventive puzzles and platforming moments that prove it is one of Nintendo's best modern video games.

Collider Exclusive · Universe Personality Quiz Which Iconic Universe Do You Belong in the Most? Star Wars · Lord of the Rings · Harry Potter · Game of Thrones · Star Trek

Five legendary universes. Five completely different visions of what the world could be — or already was. One of them is the world your instincts, your values, and your particular way of existing were built for. Eight questions will tell you which one.

🚀Star Wars

💍Lord of the Rings

🧙Harry Potter

👑Game of Thrones

🖖Star Trek

FIND YOUR UNIVERSE →

01

What gives your life its deepest sense of meaning? Every universe is built around a different answer to this question.

ABeing part of something larger than myself — a cause, a rebellion, a fight for freedom that outlasts me. BThe journey itself — the places I'll go, the companions beside me, the world I'll discover on the way. CLearning — unlocking what I'm capable of, understanding the world's hidden mechanics, growing into something more. DLegacy — the name I leave behind, the power I build, the mark I make before the world moves on without me. EUnderstanding — exploring what exists beyond the horizon and asking what it means to be alive in a universe this vast.

NEXT QUESTION →

02

Which kind of world do you most want to inhabit? The environment shapes who you become. Choose carefully.

AA galaxy of planets, each with its own culture — connected by conflict, trade, and the Force. BAncient lands of breathtaking beauty, deep history, and a creeping darkness at the edges. CA world hidden inside our own — full of wonder, community, and magic waiting to be learned. DA brutal, beautiful continent where power is everything and every alliance is a calculation. EA future where humanity has reached the stars — and must decide what kind of species it wants to be.

NEXT QUESTION →

03

How do you prefer your conflicts resolved? The shape of a world's conflicts tells you everything about its soul.

AThrough sacrifice and courage — someone has to make the impossible choice so others don't have to. BThrough fellowship — the impossible becomes possible when the right people walk the same road. CThrough growth — confronting what you fear, understanding what you lack, and becoming equal to the challenge. DThrough strategy — outthinking, outmaneuvering, positioning yourself so the outcome was never in doubt. EThrough dialogue — finding the third option, the peaceful resolution, the answer that doesn't require a body count.

NEXT QUESTION →

04

Who do you want beside you when things get difficult? Your ideal companions reveal the world you were made for.

AA small crew — a pilot, a rogue, a warrior — each broken in their own way, unbeatable together. BA fellowship of different kinds of people, bound by purpose and deepened by the long road. CFriends who grew up alongside me — who knew me before I knew myself, and stayed anyway. DAllies whose loyalty I've earned — and tested — and whose ambitions align with mine, for now. EA crew of brilliant, curious, principled people from every corner of known space.

NEXT QUESTION →

05

What is your relationship with power? How you seek, wield, or resist power is the map of who you are.

AI want to use it to protect — and I'm terrified of what I might become if I'm not careful. BI distrust it. The most important power in this story is the courage to give it up. CI want to earn it — through knowledge, through effort, through becoming someone worthy of it. DI want to wield it. Preferably before someone else decides to wield it against me. EI want to understand it — its structures, its limits, its ethical dimensions. Power without accountability is the real threat.

NEXT QUESTION →

06

How does your universe treat good and evil? A world's moral architecture tells you more about it than any map.

AThere is a dark side and a light side — and the choice between them is always present, always personal. BEvil is real and ancient and patient — and goodness, however small, is the only thing that can undo it. CGood and evil are real, but they live inside people — and people are complicated, always capable of both. DGood and evil are mostly a matter of perspective and proximity. Power is the only honest currency. EEvil is usually the result of ignorance, fear, or broken systems — and understanding it is the first step to solving it.

NEXT QUESTION →

07

What role would you naturally fall into? Every universe has archetypes. Which one fits you without trying?

AThe reluctant hero — ordinary origins, extraordinary moment, changed forever by the choice to act. BThe unlikely carrier — the one nobody expected to matter most, quietly bearing the weight of everything. CThe student — not yet who I'll become, learning through every mistake, growing into something the world needs. DThe player — sharp enough to see the game for what it is, ambitious enough to try to win it. EThe explorer — drawn to the unknown, driven by curiosity, most alive when standing somewhere no one has stood before.

NEXT QUESTION →

08

What do you ultimately believe about the future? The answer to this is the clearest window into which universe already lives inside you.

AThat hope is real — that even in the darkest galaxy, a new hope is always possible. CThat even the smallest person can change the course of the future, if they have the courage to try. CThat love and friendship and doing what's right will matter in the end, even when everything says otherwise. DThat the wheel keeps turning — that power shifts, winters end, and what endures is those willing to fight for it. EThat humanity — or whatever we become — is capable of extraordinary things, if we choose to be.

REVEAL MY UNIVERSE →

Your Universe Has Been Chosen You Belong In…

Your answers point to the iconic universe your values, your instincts, and your particular way of seeing the world were built for. This is where you would find your people — and your purpose.

Star Wars

You believe in the cause — in the idea that freedom is worth fighting for even when the odds are impossible and the empire is vast.

• You are drawn to the moral clarity of a universe where hope itself is a form of resistance.
• You'd find your people in the Rebellion — a ragtag coalition of true believers held together by conviction more than resources.
• Star Wars is fundamentally a story about ordinary people choosing to matter in an extraordinary conflict — and that is exactly your kind of story.
• The Force may or may not be with you. But the will to use it for something larger than yourself certainly is.

Lord of the Rings

You understand, in the deepest part of yourself, that the journey matters as much as the destination — and that the world's beauty is worth protecting even at great cost.

• Middle-earth is a world of ancient wonder, deep friendship, and a darkness that only retreats when enough small acts of courage accumulate.
• You would thrive here because you value the fellowship more than the glory — the road more than the arrival.
• Tolkien's universe rewards patience, loyalty, and the willingness to carry something heavy across a very long distance.
• Those are not burdens to you. They are simply how you move through the world.

Harry Potter

You believe that love, loyalty, and doing what's right are not naive sentiments — they are the most powerful forces in any world, magical or otherwise.

• The Wizarding World is a place of wonder hidden in plain sight, where learning is transformative and the bonds you form at school follow you into every battle.
• You would flourish here because you take both the magic and the friendships seriously — and you understand that one without the other is incomplete.
• Harry Potter's universe ultimately rewards those who choose to stand for something even when standing is terrifying.
• That choice — made quietly, without guarantee — is something you understand completely.

Game of Thrones

You see the world clearly — its power structures, its hypocrisies, its brutal arithmetic — and you are not paralysed by that clarity. You use it.

• Westeros is a world that rewards intelligence, adaptability, and the willingness to understand that every alliance is also a negotiation.
• You would survive here — possibly thrive here — because you don't confuse the world as it is with the world as you'd like it to be.
• Game of Thrones is a story about what happens when the idealists and the realists collide. You are sharp enough to know which one lasts longer.
• Winter always comes. You are already prepared.

Star Trek

You believe the future is worth building — that curiosity, cooperation, and the expansion of understanding are not just ideals but the most practical path forward for any civilisation.

• Star Trek is a universe where the questions matter as much as the answers, and where encountering something utterly alien is cause for wonder rather than fear.
• You would belong here because you are fundamentally optimistic about what intelligence and decency can achieve — while being honest about how hard that achievement is.
• The Federation is the universe's most ambitious thought experiment: what if we actually got better?
• You don't just hope that's possible. You think it's the only thing worth working toward.

↻ RETAKE THE QUIZ

5 ‘Resident Evil 4’ (2005)

Image via Capcom

Resident Evil is celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2026, and while the new game is spectacular and the movie has received rave reviews, the best project in the franchise is still Resident Evil 4. After a cult in Spain kidnaps the daughter of the President of the United States, Leon S. Kennedy is on the case to bring her back. However, when a parasitic virus infects the cult, escaping becomes even more dangerous.

Resident Evil 4 was a game changer for the franchise, and while it started out as controversial for changing the formula, it is now a beloved game because of its ambition. As one of the best video games of the 2000s, Resident Evil 4 used its many influential mechanics, like inventory management and the over-the-shoulder camera, to cement itself as a definitive action-horror game.

4 ‘Outer Wilds’ (2019)

Image via Mobius Digital

Indie video games continue to get more popular every year, and one of the greatest modern titles of the genre is Outer Wilds. Players are trapped in a solar system while investigating the ruins and lore of the civilization. However, they are trapped in a 22-minute time loop, slowly piecing together the ancient history before time runs out for them and the galaxy.

Outer Wilds is one of the most fascinating new video games that prove indie titles are the way of the future. Players don't progress through the game with combat, locks, and keys, but rather with knowledge. This system, which prioritizes intelligence and ingenuity, favors those who experiment with the game. Outer Wilds became a modern classic that gets better the more gamers play.

3 ‘Portal 2’ (2011)

Image via Valve

As mentioned earlier in this list, Valve is a prolific video game studio, and they have multiple entries on this list, with the second being Portal 2. Set years after the first game, Chell wakes back up in the same scientific facility, except this time it is run down. With the help of a robot, players need to escape the facility without being caught by GLaDOS.

Like Half-Life 2, Portal 2 also features one of the greatest physics engines in video game history. The portal gun is one of the most fun main mechanics in gaming, making the puzzles and solutions stimulating to tinker with. What's more, Portal 2 features a charming style and witty writing that made it one of the best video games of the 2010s.

2 ‘God of War’ (2018)

Sony has recently come under fire for some of their bad decisions, but no one can complain about the Game of the Year winner in 2018, God of War. Kratos has made a new peaceful life in Midgard, but after his wife passes away, he and his son, Atreus, set out on an adventure to scatter her ashes, only to be met by the angry wrath of the gods who want something from Atreus.

God of War comes right out of the gate with a remarkable boss fight that immediately hooked fans. And things only get better after that, with incredible fights and levels that slowly progress the narrative and dynamics between Kratos and Atreus. God of War also ends with a bang with its shocking plot twist that proves why the video game is a banger at every level.

1 ‘BioShock’ (2007)

Image via 2K

There are so many perfect video games on this list that are great throughout, but one of, if not the best, is BioShock. When the protagonist, Jack, crash-lands in the ocean, he finds refuge on a lone lighthouse. However, when descending further into it, he discovers a failed Utopia plagued with political strife and terrifying genetically spliced monstrosities.

2007 was an amazing year for video games, and the best of this era was BioShock, which used its political critique of Randian objectivism to create an intriguing philosophical narrative. The story is hailed as one of the greatest, especially because of the plot twist, but this game is also known for its striking atmosphere and aesthetic. BioShock also features engaging gameplay that mixes horror with action and puzzles to show why it is a banger.

BioShock Infinite