Best 2025 Video Games for onboarding experience

#1 The Alters
5.0

Onboarding was praised for introducing many systems without overwhelming the player.

Pros: controls responsiveness, onboarding experience

Cons: crash stability, grind level

#2 Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
4.9

The opening was widely praised for establishing stakes quickly and delivering unusually strong early context.

Pros: monetization fairness, microtransaction impact

Cons: platforming precision, menu usability

#3 Hades II
4.8

The game introduces its many systems at a steady pace, with one reviewer explicitly saying it avoids overwhelming players too early.

Pros: skill tree depth, dialogue quality

Cons: emotional impact, economy and resource balance

#4 Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter
4.8

Reviewers consistently considered this remake an approachable starting point for newcomers to the Trails series.

Pros: protagonist appeal, art direction

Cons: camera behavior, tutorial quality

#5 Digimon Story Time Stranger
4.8

The game was repeatedly described as newcomer-friendly, with reviewers saying prior Digimon knowledge was not required.

Pros: atmosphere, world-building

Cons: HUD clarity, fast travel convenience

#6 Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles
4.7

Onboarding was much better than older versions thanks to clearer systems, retries, State of the Realm, and more newcomer-friendly presentation.

Pros: emotional impact, polish

Cons: bug frequency, crash stability

#7 Arc Raiders
4.6

Many reviewers called Arc Raiders unusually approachable for an extraction shooter thanks to free loadouts, solo matchmaking, and forgiving progress.

Pros: frame rate stability, platform-specific feature support

Cons: voice acting, writing quality

#8 Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
4.5

Onboarding is praised for clearer instructions, a stronger opening, and a better job of pulling players into the systems.

Pros: animation quality, facial animations

Cons: quest design, AI behavior

#9 Doom: The Dark Ages
4.5

Onboarding was praised for welcoming new players and easing them into the revised systems.

Pros: environmental detail, polish

Cons: camera behavior, value for money

#10 Capcom Fighting Collection 2
4.5

The collection’s onboarding is praised for making it easy to start learning mechanics through clear tools and approachable options.

Pros: emotional impact, sound design

Cons: cross-play support, boss design

#11 Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves
4.5

Onboarding is helped by shared command layouts, smart controls, and quick-to-learn basics, though advanced mechanics still demand study.

Pros: emotional impact, animation quality

Cons: enemy variety, server reliability

#12 Goodnight Universe
4.5

The onboarding was praised for easing players into Isaac’s powers through natural tutorialization.

Pros: side character depth, visual effects quality

Cons: user interface design, handheld play suitability

#13 Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
4.5

Onboarding is praised for easing the player into each move rather than overwhelming them with the full combat kit at once.

Pros: graphics quality, environmental detail

Cons: bug frequency, dialogue quality

#14 The Outer Worlds 2
4.2

Onboarding and character setup were mostly praised for immediately expressing background, traits, and build identity.

Pros: world-building, mission design

Cons: mission variety, enemy variety

#15 Monster Hunter Wilds
4.2

Onboarding was generally praised as more approachable and newcomer-friendly, though some reviews still found the first steps confusing.

Pros: art direction, cross-play support

Cons: dialogue quality, monetization fairness

#16 Kirby Air Riders
4.0

Onboarding was seen as helpful and robust overall, though some reviewers still warned that new players need time to adjust.

Pros: flying mechanics, exploration quality

Cons: AI behavior, boss design

#17 Battlefield 6
4.0

guide-style evidence found the game explainable despite many systems.

Pros: haptic feedback integration, performance optimization

Cons: pacing, microtransaction impact

#19 Ghost of Yōtei
4.0

Onboarding is initially intimidating for some, but reviewers say the discovery and indicator systems become enjoyable once learned.

Pros: movement feel, environmental detail

Cons: puzzle design, age appropriateness

#20 Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment
4.0

Onboarding experience was positive where prior knowledge was said not to be required.

Pros: animation quality, multiplayer design

Cons: save system reliability, companion AI

#21 Avowed
3.8

Onboarding was praised when it taught by doing, though lore-heavy openings could feel steep for newcomers.

Pros: tutorial quality, level design

Cons: stealth mechanics, endgame content

#22 Civilization VII
3.8

Onboarding was split: some reviewers called VII welcoming and well tutorialized, while others warned casual players could struggle with the changed systems.

Pros: animation quality, controls responsiveness

Cons: matchmaking quality, user interface design

#23 Borderlands 4
3.8

Onboarding is mixed: one reviewer praises menu tutorials, while another says important level and difficulty information is poorly communicated.

Pros: sandbox freedom, art direction

Cons: polish, save system reliability

#24 Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
3.7

Onboarding divided reviewers: returning and new-player recaps helped, but some found the opening overloaded or blunt.

Pros: soundtrack quality, fun factor

Cons: checkpoint system, family friendliness

#25 Split Fiction
3.4

Onboarding was praised for intuitive design but criticized on Switch 2 crossplay setup for poor in-game explanation.

Pros: puzzle design, level design

Cons: exploration quality, side character depth

#26 South of Midnight
3.3

Onboarding split reviewers: one praised the narrative framing of Hazel learning powers, while another felt the game over-explained and mistrusted the player.

Pros: atmosphere, voice acting

Cons: world interactivity, camera behavior

#27 Atomfall
3.0

Onboarding divided reviewers: one struggled through a poor first two hours, while another felt the opening quickly communicated the game's freedom.

Pros: art direction, frame rate stability

Cons: boss design, camera behavior

#28 Hollow Knight: Silksong
2.8

Onboarding is a weak spot for some, especially in the opening hours where resources, checkpoints, and tutorial clarity are less generous.

Pros: core gameplay loop, world interactivity

Cons: loot system, accessibility options

#29 Lego Voyagers
2.8

Onboarding could be sparse; at least one reviewer noted early annoyance from little explanation about what to do or where to go.

Pros: writing quality, checkpoint system

Cons: menu usability, user interface design

#30 Pokémon Legends: Z-A
2.8

Onboarding drew repeated criticism for slow or restrictive openings, though a few found the tutorial quicker or integrated well enough.

Pros: crash stability, gameplay mechanics

Cons: AI behavior, monetization fairness

#31 Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
2.5

Onboarding is a concern for newcomers in at least one review, which found the faithful structure not modernized enough to be approachable.

Pros: world interactivity, sandbox freedom

Cons: crash stability, learning curve

#32 Elden Ring Nightreign
2.3

Onboarding was considered obtuse or too demanding, especially for players without deep Elden Ring knowledge.

Pros: emotional impact, visual effects quality

Cons: crash stability, cross-play support

#33 The First Berserker: Khazan
2.3

Onboarding is uneven: tutorials can work, but some reviewers say the intro and early ramp fail to showcase or teach the best systems well.

Pros: core gameplay loop, controls responsiveness

Cons: mission design, learning curve

#34 Little Nightmares III
2.0

Onboarding evidence was negative, with one reviewer saying newcomers are thrown in without enough guidance.

Pros: load times, haptic feedback integration

Cons: save system reliability, aiming precision