BigNerdGaming’s Top 10 Playstation 4 Games

One thing I love about video game consoles is the incredible memories that can be made with them. I have had fond memories of every single console that I’ve made a top 10 list for in the past few years. As I make these lists, those memories come rushing back to me all over again. But sometimes, the console itself is part of the story.

For me, the Playstation 4 was probably the most memorable console I ever acquired.

Throughout my entire life, whenever I wanted a new video game console, it was pretty much on my parents, which is why I’d always end up getting certain consoles once the next generation came and I could get them for super cheap. This was my experience with the PS1 through the PS3. I always got them once they were technically dead. Once I was old enough to work a job, I still really didn’t make enough money to easily save for them, so every video game console was usually a mix of my parents making it a Christmas gift while I contributed a little bit to it.

But finally, at around 25, after a lot of ups and downs, I found my way into a real career and was making actual money. Around that same time is when I was getting pretty serious with my girlfriend (and now wife). She had moved into an apartment nearby and wanted me to move in with her. However, I’ve been scared of making big leaps my whole life, and this was no different. I decided that I’d be there a lot, but I wasn’t going to fully move in. I’d still go back to my parents’ place after work and such, but then I’d go there most of the time otherwise (this arrangement lasted like 6 days before I pretty much just said “eff it” and moved in).

Since I didn’t think I was moving in, my plan was to keep my Xbox One at my parents house. This meant that I really needed a video game console to be at my girlfriend’s place. Meanwhile, this was her first place on her own and she still needed pretty much everything. Right after we got her moved in, I made a trip to Best Buy. I purchased a nice entertainment center, the biggest TV that I had ever bought before, and a PS4. I also purchased Infamous: Second Son.

Coming home with all of that stuff was genuinely one of the greatest feelings of my entire life. I think we all probably have the “I made it” moment in some capacity once we are able to support ourselves, and this was very easily the one for me. The idea of just buying a console because I wanted it and not having to wait for some holiday or birthday was insane to me. I’ll never forget it.

Also, the PS4 was pretty sweet! While several of these games eventually came to the Xbox, the console actually had a really nice variety of exclusive or timed-exclusive games that made me very glad that I didn’t have to wait until the PS5 came out to play them. Here are my top 10 games from the system. Only one more list after this before I reveal my top 25 games of all time.

If you read my Xbox One list a few weeks ago, there’s a bit of overlap here. I reused my write-ups from games that were on that list.

10. Yakuza 0

One of my favorite games from the original Xbox was Shenmue 2. I spent decades wanting a Shenmue 3, and feeling sad that it would probably never exist.

Meanwhile, the successor was right under my nose for years, and I finally discovered it with Yakuza 0 in the late 2010s. While it is a very different game narratively, and I honestly prefer the general tone and themes of the Shenmue series, Yakuza 0 basically takes the Shenmue formula to 1000 gameplay wise, and it hits like almost nothing else.

Yakuza 0 introduces many of the most important characters in the series. Its combat felt fresh and fun, and of course, there are dozens of minigames and side stories to keep you occupied in between the main course. This is a total thrill ride, and there’s so much here to enjoy.

9. The Last of Us Part 2

I’ve said this before, but some of the discussion around The Last of Us Part II drives me nuts because it almost exclusively centers around the story. Of course, the story is very important to this series. Until recently, the first game had my favorite video game story of all time. But to me, this series is also very much about the gameplay, and The Last of Us Part II delivers there once again. There is such a fantastic mix of zombie and human encounters here. There are multiple memorable set pieces and boss fights. The ammo management is balanced out well, and the enemy AI is some of the best in any third-person shooter out there. I love *playing* this series.

And you know what? The story is still really good too! I didn’t click quite as much with the first half of the game storywise. I think it gets stuck in a rut that fits thematically with what they were going for, but got kind of uninteresting. But the second half of the game constantly surprised me and had me absolutely engaged. It’s weird to say this for a game that won “Game of the Year” at The Game Awards, but The Last of Us Part II is underrated! This was another fantastic showing from Naughty Dog.

8. Final Fantasy 7 Remake

I’ll never forget how quickly I went from thrilled to disappointed when I first learned about the Final Fantasy 7 Remake. It was something that I had wanted to happen for a long time, but I had no idea how they were going to make it work over three parts. I am someone who loves the Midgar section of Final Fantasy 7 more than any other part of that game, but I didn’t see a path for it to be a standalone game.

Luckily, I was very wrong. In the end, the Midgar section has so many iconic moments that, of course, the pacing could still sustain itself over a 30+ hour game. The new graphics, the excellent voice acting, and the expanded character development also help carry the game.

But more than anything else, the remake works because the combat is so good. They made a few mistakes that make a couple of encounters obnoxious, but the mix of turn-based and action fits so well, and was the perfect way to honor the past while pushing the game ahead for the future. I don’t think I’ll ever get over how they actually managed to make a 7 hour section of a game into a 30+ hour game that actually rules.

7. Death Stranding

Much like Final Fantasy 7 Remake, I was incredibly disappointed when I first learned of the existence of Death Stranding. I couldn’t believe that Kojima was making some weird walking simulator as his big thing after the Metal Gear Solid games. I hated it. And I hated it even more after spending 20 minutes with the opening. I just didn’t see a world where I could click with it.

Years later, after seeing how many people loved it, I decided to give it one more go, and I finally saw the light. Death Stranding is a journey unlike just about anything else in all of the best ways. The gameplay loop is serene, yet intense and challenging. The story is bizarre, but it also has tons of heart. A few of the treks you go on at the end of the game are absolutely iconic and will live with me for a long time to come. It’s truly amazing that Kojima had this vision, was able to get it funded, and then delivered on it. I genuinely don’t think there is another developer who could have pulled all of that off. This is an absolute achievement.

6. Stardew Valley

I have talked before about how much Harvest Moon 64 meant to me as a kid. I loved pretty much every element of that game. It was farm and life-sim perfection. I played it for something like a year on and off and thought it did everything right. I mastered every element of that game.

I tried so hard to capture that feeling again over the next decade and on. I played more Harvest Moon games, I played Rune Factory, I played Story of Seasons, and plenty of others, but nothing ever quite did it for me the same way.

Finally, along came Stardew Valley, and I was in love with a farm sim in the same way I was when I was 12 all over again. Stardew Valley just nails every element of the formula. It gives you so much freedom to build up your farm, and it has a fun town with great characters and festivals. But I think the real “x” factor is the community center, which gives you that one extra thing to work toward that really ties the entire experience together. Also, while these games are always about escaping city life, I think Stardew Valley actually has a few narrative elements that make this theme a bit more interesting.

As soon as my daughter wants to play video games with me, this is the one I really want to introduce her to first. I think it’s timeless, has something for everyone, and selfishly, I want a good reason to experience it one more time.

5. Slay the Spire

Slay the Spire had me in its grasp for months, and much like I discussed with Harvest Moon 64, it had me chasing that same high from other games in the genre for years afterward.

Simply, this is roguelike deckbuilder perfection. I’ve played tons of other roguelike deckbuilders since this one, and while I’ve loved plenty of them, nothing has been able to capture me the same way since. The pacing, the builds, and the in-game decision-making are all top-notch. This is as good as it gets.

I have a feeling that the only game that might surpass this one for me is Slay the Spire 2, which I can’t wait to play when it comes out of early access.

4. Celeste

Even with many of my favorite games of all time, I can find a few faults in them. Nothing is perfect. Well, except maybe for Celeste. I genuinely have no idea how this game could be any better. This is as good as it gets with 2D platforming.

Celeste has phenomenal, responsive platforming with great level design that allows pros and novices to experience the game the way they want. The art is so good, and the story is actually pretty deep and heartfelt. It literally hits on every note that it possibly could. This is considered one of the greatest indie games of all time for very good reason.

3. Overwatch

Pretty much ever since I got my first real adult job, multiplayer games became far less important to me. It was harder to coordinate playing with friends, and also, since I had less time than in the past, I didn’t want to lose out on time with single-player games.

Also, I kind of just fell out of them in general. I used to play every multiplayer FPS that I could get my hands on, and they just slowly lost their appeal over time. No one was doing anything drastically different anymore, and being able to play online on consoles wasn’t a big deal anymore like it was when I was a teen.

But I think more than anything, Overwatch made me understand that the biggest thing missing from team multiplayer games for me was the actual “team” element. Of course, there’s strategizing and teamwork with most games in this genre, but the average person isn’t playing that way. Even when I play with friends, a lot of “team deathmatch” modes mostly involve people operating on their own and just contributing their stats to the team, with occasional bits of cooperation spaced in between.

Overwatch changed everything for me because it truly brought teamwork into the fold. You genuinely can’t play this game without very closely working with others, and it made it feel unlike anything else out there. I felt like the community really took this to heart too, as when I played the game in its launch year, almost everyone had a mic and was communicating with the group.

I spent something like 800 hours on Overwatch over a year. I played it damn near every day. All of the different characters also made it easy, as the game could pretty much be a completely new experience any time you picked it up. Thanks to my consistent mic usage, I was quickly able to meet a solid rotation of people to play with. We weren’t anything special; we usually fluctuated between Platinum and Diamond, but every night there was a great mix of intensity, teamwork, and laughs.

As a parent, multiplayer games are tricky because I’m almost always at least somewhat “on call.” Maybe in 20 years, when my kids are out of the house, I will find another multiplayer game that hooks me like Overwatch, but the odds are that this was the kind of multiplayer addiction that I will never experience again.

2. God of War (2018)

I was honestly not all that hyped for this game. I enjoyed the original God of War games well enough, but they never really stuck with me, and I wasn’t a big fan of Kratos. Regardless, the strong reviews compelled me to give it a go.

Within 20 minutes, I was all in. The first boss fight of the game made me realize that anything would be possible with this one, and sure enough, it delivers every moment all the way to its unexpectedly touching conclusion.

The combat feels so impactful and fun. It somehow perfectly blends being an open-world game of sorts with a slightly more linear design. The exploration is excellent, and the story delivers from start to finish. It also does an amazing job of showcasing the transformational power that fatherhood has. I am so glad that Sony Santa Monica had this bold vision and was able to pull it off. It suddenly made me a huge fan of a series I barely cared about for over a decade.

1. Persona 5

I’ve said this many times, but I hate replaying games. I’ve only replayed one game on this list, and it was one of the shorter ones (FF7 Remake). The odds of me replaying a game go down drastically the longer the game is.

So let me tell you, it’s a big freaking deal that after spending almost 100 hours with Persona 5, I went and did it all over again with Persona 5 Royal a few years later. That is pretty much inconceivable, and yet it happened here.

It’s funny because I wrote an article about all the ways that Metaphor: ReFantazio is better than Persona 5. And I think as standalone experiences, Metaphor has some better individual cast members and way deeper gameplay. But when I look at impact in the moment, and just how the whole package comes together, I still would rank Persona 5 higher.

First off, Persona 5 was my first true experience with the calendar system and social links that the series is famous for. While I played Persona 3, I got turned off by it pretty fast. That formula is addictive, and it gives you a freedom that a lot of games in this genre don’t.

The combat is snappy, and it’s one of the only modern JRPGs that really makes the classic “MP” battle system work. The plot keeps you engaged from moment one with its iconic intro, and while I feel like most of the characters are a bit stereotypical, the cast as an entire unit is special in a way that few are. They just all work together as a team to be much greater than the sum of their parts.

Also, funny enough, the biggest reason that I fell off of Persona 3 was the dungeon design. Tartarus is dreadfully boring. Meanwhile, Persona 5 has some of the greatest dungeon design in all of JRPG history. This is an incredible package, and I think it caught lightning in a bottle in a way that I’m not sure if a high school setting game ever could for me again. This is considered one of the greatest games of all time for very good reason.

Past Lists:

My Top 10 SNES Games

My Top 10 GB/GBC Games

My Top 10 PS1 Games

My Top 10 N64 Games

My Top 10 Original Xbox Games

My Top 10 Playstation 2 Games

My Top 10 Game Boy Advance Games

My Top 10 Xbox Live Arcade Games

My Top 10 Xbox 360 Games