Best Offline PC Games

In terms of flexibility in gaming, no other platform can match the PC. The hardware comes with many advantages for those who can overcome the often-daunting price of setting up a computer. As a bonus, while consoles require a subscription fee for online gaming, the majority of PC games can be played online without any additional cost. Regardless, many people find the most enjoyment in offline PC games.

Whether searching for triple-A open-world behemoths or indie darlings that use pixel art, PC players are spoiled for choice. New games are released daily on services such as Steam, and while they might not all be classics, there is never a shortage of great titles. What are the best offline games for PC?

Updated December 23, 2024 by Mark Sammut: The year is almost over, and 2024 will likely be remembered relatively positively when it comes to releases. Sure, not everything hit the mark or lived up to its potential, but the success stories reached such impressive highs that they mostly overshadowed the negatives. An offline PC game released in December 2024 has been added as a recommendation.

Indiana Jones and the Great Circle

Steam User Rating: 91%

MachineGames' Indiana Jones and the Great Circle was revealed to a somewhat mixed reception, mainly due to the decision to utilize a first-person perspective. While that might not be to everyone's taste, the angle plays to the developer's strengths, along with providing a pretty immersive opportunity to step into Indy's shoes.

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Garnering near-universal praise, the December 2024 game does a stellar job of capturing the original movie trilogy's sense of adventure and wit, all the while presenting players with plenty of puzzles, stealth, and whip-based action to keep them engaged for roughly 15 hours. The gameplay is rock-solid, and the story is one of the best of 2024. With no multiplayer element at all, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is 100% designed to be a single-player experience, which means there is no need to go online (except to download the game through PC Game Pass or Steam).

Silent Hill 2 Remake

Steam User Rating: 95%

Bloober Team had a seemingly insurmountable task – recreate a legendary psychological horror game in a franchise that has been largely ignored for the best part of a decade. A decent remake would not have been good enough to carry the Silent Hill 2 name, and the project's earliest showcase did not inspire too much confidence. However, as new footage emerged, the game started to look better, at least to the point of encouraging cautious optimism. Then, on October 8, 2024, a new Silent Hill 2 hit store shelves, allowing PC and PS5 players to once again experience James Sunderland's haunting story.

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As replicating the original game's influence or innovation is near-impossible, there is no point in contemplating whether the remake is superior or not. They both have the right to exist, and the 2024 version pays respectful tribute to its predecessor while still having the confidence to carve a fresh path in a few key areas. Silent Hill 2 is chilling. Even with the modernized controls, camera, and improved combat, the remake still manages to be constantly terrifying due to its fantastic sound design and smart use of fog. Narratively and thematically, the game hits the mark by mostly sticking to the original blueprint, albeit with a few tweaks and turns.

Silent Hill 2 is a horror masterpiece, and that statement now holds true for two games separated by more than two decades.

Hades & Hades 2 (Early Access)

Steam User Rating: 98% (Hades) & 95% (Hades 2)

Despite being very much an indie company, Supergiant Games has amassed such a positive reputation that every release is deemed an event, and Hades 2 is arguably the developer's biggest project to date. Released into early access on May 6, 2024, the highly-anticipated sequel is still a work in progress, a fact interested customers should keep in mind; however, the game is already very promising, with the main campaign being largely playable. In its present state, Hades 2 has enough content to match its (fantastic) predecessor, and the gameplay is generally fun, even if it will likely receive some tweaks in the next few months.

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Still, if someone would rather play a 100% complete project, they can just pick up the original Hades. The 2020 game sits among the best roguelites on the market, and it does a brilliant job of blending the genre's traditional repetitive loop with a narrative that allows for a sense of constant progression. As Zagreus, players need to work their way through four areas (and bosses) to escape the Underworld. Naturally, this process is anything but simple, and Zagreus will need to experiment with boons and weapons to get the job done.

Balatro

Steam User Rating: 98%

One of 2024's biggest indie success stories, Balatro offers a creative twist on Poker that turns the classic card game into a difficult-to-put-down deck-builder with roguelike elements. Generally, players have to try and get the required score to proceed to the next match, and getting there requires smartly building a deck consisting of cards with a range of unique abilities (based on their risk value).

It is a simple system that has way more depth and replay value than might initially seem to be the case, and there is a reason the game has remained popular for so long after its debut. Balatro does not expect players to be familiar with Poker, and the game teaches its mechanics pretty darn well. If someone is craving a 2024 game they can play in bursts in between longer campaigns, Balatro is about as good of an option as anything on the market.

Alan Wake 2

Great Survival Horror Sequel

Alan Wake 2 took a long time to materialize, but it was largely worth the wait. Remedy delivered a sequel that expands on its predecessor's ideas while never coming across as a retread. Along with the titular character, the game features a second protagonist named Saga Anderson, who is an officer investigating a series of murders. Outside a few sequences, players are free to swap back and forth between both characters, and their halves of the campaign are fairly different from each other.

Firmly falling within the survival-horror genre, Alan Wake 2 succeeds in creating a sustained sense of anxiety that a threat could be present around every corner. The game uses light as a weapon; in turn, nothing is scarier than the dark. The story is not only fantastic but also does a great job of differentiating Saga and Alan's sections while still making them feel like they are part of a cohesive whole.

Baldur's Gate 3

Stean User Rating: 96%

Larian Studios' Baldur's Gate 3 launched in Steam early access in 2020, and the developer used this time wisely. Although the franchise has remained somewhat active thanks to enhanced editions and spin-offs like Dark Alliance, Baldur's Gate's last mainline entry came out in 2000, with its expansion debuting a year later. BioWare's original two games are still regarded as some of the greatest RPGs of all time, and they set a bar that seemed almost impossible for a sequel to surpass. Baldur's Gate 3 not only leaps over this bar but also confidently carves a new path that sets it apart from everything that came before it, at least in the D&D franchise.

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Deep customization, a fully realized world, and flexible storytelling are just a few of the game's strengths, and they are really just the tip of the iceberg. Utilizing a turn-based combat system reminiscent of Larian's Divinity: Original Sin 2, Baldur's Gate 3 focuses on strategic and calculated play that rewards forward-thinking and big-picture tactics, all the while incorporating an element of luck as a reflection of its tabletop roots. While the title supports co-op multiplayer and shines in the mode, the campaign can be played offline as a traditional single-player RPG.

Red Dead Redemption 2

Steam User Rating: 91%

Rockstar might not release new games all that often, but each debut is an event. Following its console launch, Red Dead Redemption 2 took more than a year to come to PC, and while the transition was not seamless, the game nevertheless offers a premium single-player experience. While Red Dead Online obviously requires internet, the main game can be played offline, although players will need a connection when they are signing up for the first time.

Set toward the end of North America's Wild West era, RDR2 follows Arthur Morgan as he deals with internal tension as part of the Van der Linde gang. Boasting a gorgeous and detailed open-world, the game is a technological tour de force with precious few peers in the gaming industry. Narratively, RDR2 is constantly emotionally captivating, which is hardly an easy feat considering the campaign's length.

Core Keeper

Steam User Rating: 91%

Core Keeper not only supports 8-player online co-op but also implements the feature really well, so it is a great multiplayer option. That said, players are not forced to go online, and they can opt for a solo offline adventure if that is their preferred speed. Fortunately, Core Keeper is also fantastic as a single-player survival sandbox game, particularly if players simply want to get lost in a fairly expansive map as they steadily collect resources, set up a base, and bring light to the surrounding darkness.

Although not completely lacking goals or progression, Core Keeper mostly leaves players to their own devices after they pick a starting background, which can be overwhelming during the first few hours of a playthrough. As they grow more familiar with the mechanics and finally discover a place suitable to set up their home, players will find themselves growing more comfortable and willing to venture further away from safety.

Animal Well

Steam User Rating: 95%

Metroidvanias are all over the indie scene. While most of the genre's biggest names focus on combat, exceptions exist, and Animal Well is among the very best deviations. Shared Memory's project revolves almost entirely around exploration and puzzles, with each screen/room effectively serving as self-contained brainteasers that, more often than not, require lateral thinking to solve. Platforming is a central part of the campaign, but these sections are not particularly difficult and mostly exist to facilitate puzzles.

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Along with consistently great level design, Animal Well is also surprisingly haunting, courtesy of beautiful but eerie environments and minimal music. The game feels otherworldly in the greatest possible way. While generally an easy recommendation for people who love puzzle Metroidvania, genre newcomers should be aware that Animal Well can be quite difficult.

Fields Of Mistria

Steam User Rating: 98%

Steam does not have a shortage of farming sims; in fact, someone could easily spend a whole year just going through these types of releases, and they would be constantly playing catch-up since new titles seem to debut every other week. For the most part, they tend to fade from the spotlight fairly quickly, becoming just another cozy project that is fun for a few hours but might struggle to stand out long-term in a genre dominated by a few colossal names. That said, Fields of Mistria seems different. While still in early access, NPC's game is already in impressive shape, delivering a charming escape from reality filled with lovable characters and accessible mechanics.

In many ways, Fields of Mistria feels like a greatest hits project that combines most of the popular mechanics associated with farming sims and, especially, Stardew Valley. However, it combines familiar parts to create a surprisingly refreshing whole, one that is elevated by a beautiful and nostalgic art style with proven longevity. As has become customary, the game includes farming, combat, town renovation, cooking, fishing, animal raising, and festivals. Romance is also part of the equation, and marriage is on the cards.