Updated September 2026
This is the ranking of the best Action Games, sorted by NextGameLike Score: a 0-100 metric blending Steam reviews, IGDB ratings (community and critic), Metacritic, OpenCritic and the NextGameLike community votes into a single number. Unlike opinion-based editorial lists, this order is computed from real data and applies a Bayesian shrinkage adjustment so games with few reviews can't inflate the top of the chart. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Ori and the Will of the Wisps lead the chart — the highest-rated titles in the genre according to our data. The top-25 average NextGameLike Score is 89/100, out of 183 games catalogued. The ranking updates continuously as new reviews and votes come in.
Top 3
Top of “The 20 Best Action Games of All Time (2026)”: Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (92.4/100). Close behind: Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and Ori and the Will of the Wisps.
Ranked by NextGameLike Score · 183 games catalogued
Players and critics agree on Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Games. It holds the best critic score on the whole list, 94/100. That is why it tops the ranking.
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is one of the few Action Games where players and critics say the same thing. Enough for the podium: number 2.
No argument here: Ori and the Will of the Wisps wins over players and critics alike. Enough for the podium: number 3.
No argument here: Grand Theft Auto IV wins over players and critics alike. It is the most reviewed of the 20: 195,043 Steam reviews. That gets it into the top 10, at number 4.
No argument here: Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered wins over players and critics alike. Number 5, inside the top 10.
Players and critics agree on Mark of the Ninja, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Games. That gets it into the top 10, at number 6.
Players and critics agree on Grand Theft Auto III, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Games. That gets it into the top 10, at number 7.
Players and critics agree on Resident Evil Village, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Games. It is the newest on the list (2021), and has already earned its place. That gets it into the top 10, at number 8.
Critics were lukewarm on Assassin's Creed II; players were not. That gets it into the top 10, at number 9.
Gunpoint is one of the few Action Games where players and critics say the same thing. No other entry of the 20 has a higher share of positive reviews: 98%. That gets it into the top 10, at number 10.
Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun is one of the few Action Games where players and critics say the same thing. It lands at 11 of 20.
Players and critics agree on Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Games. It lands at 12 of 20.
Players and critics agree on Desperados III, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Games. It sits at 13 of 20.
Players and critics agree on Hitman: Blood Money, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Games. It lands at 14 of 20.
No argument here: Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Chaos Theory wins over players and critics alike. It lands at 15 of 20.
Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines is carried by its players more than by its reviews. It is the oldest game in the ranking (1998) and still here. It lands at 16 of 20.
Players and critics agree on Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell, which is rarer than it sounds in Action Games. It sits at 17 of 20.
Far Cry 3 is here because of its players — they are who it won over. It sits at 18 of 20.
Rise of the Tomb Raider is one of the few Action Games where players and critics say the same thing. It sits at 19 of 20.
One Finger Death Punch is carried by its players more than by its reviews. It sits at 20 of 20.