Best 2025 Video Games for progression system

#1 Hades II
4.9

Progression is widely praised for making failed and successful runs feel useful, with steady unlocks, resources, arcana, and new systems.

Pros: skill tree depth, dialogue quality

Cons: emotional impact, economy and resource balance

#3 Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
4.7

Progression was praised when upgrades opened new routes and improved movement, though some disliked overly linear or lock-and-key usage.

Pros: world-building, frame rate stability

Cons: companion AI, upgrade system

#4 Kirby Air Riders
4.7

Reviewers strongly praised the checklist, achievements, unlocks, and constant rewards, though one negative review felt too many rewards were cosmetic.

Pros: flying mechanics, exploration quality

Cons: AI behavior, boss design

#5 The First Berserker: Khazan
4.7

Progression is broadly praised, especially boss-attempt rewards, free skill respecs, and multiple growth systems that keep failures productive.

Pros: core gameplay loop, controls responsiveness

Cons: mission design, learning curve

#6 Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter
4.7

The Orbment/progression systems were praised for flexible character building and rewarding experimentation.

Pros: protagonist appeal, art direction

Cons: camera behavior, tutorial quality

#7 Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
4.6

Progression is praised for steadily adding moves, abilities, upgrades, and customization that keep combat and traversal evolving.

Pros: graphics quality, environmental detail

Cons: bug frequency, dialogue quality

#8 Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
4.6

Progression was widely praised for turning early friction into rewarding growth through skills, perks, equipment, and player learning.

Pros: soundtrack quality, fun factor

Cons: checkpoint system, family friendliness

#9 Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
4.5

Progression earned strong marks for build preparation, Pictos/Lumina, customization, and viable options, with only occasional complexity caveats.

Pros: monetization fairness, microtransaction impact

Cons: platforming precision, menu usability

#10 Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment
4.5

Progression was praised for a rewarding map loop, meaningful unlocks, and steady character growth.

Pros: animation quality, multiplayer design

Cons: save system reliability, companion AI

#11 Digimon Story Time Stranger
4.5

Progression was one of the strongest areas, with Digivolution, Agent Rank, personality growth, and team-building repeatedly called gratifying, flexible, and deep.

Pros: atmosphere, world-building

Cons: HUD clarity, fast travel convenience

#12 Arc Raiders
4.4

Progression was widely praised for maintaining forward momentum, though some skill-tree and grind complaints remained.

Pros: frame rate stability, platform-specific feature support

Cons: voice acting, writing quality

#13 Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
4.4

Progression is praised for faster unlock pacing and more forgiving advancement that keeps deliveries rewarding.

Pros: animation quality, facial animations

Cons: quest design, AI behavior

#14 The Outer Worlds 2
4.4

Progression, perks, flaws, and no-respec commitment were widely praised, though level-cap and respec complaints created some friction.

Pros: world-building, mission design

Cons: mission variety, enemy variety

#15 Ghost of Yōtei
4.4

Progression is praised for tying upgrades to exploration and skill shrines, though some reviewers want more depth or nuance.

Pros: movement feel, environmental detail

Cons: puzzle design, age appropriateness

#16 Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake
4.3

Scrolls and character growth were praised for adding light customization and clearer progression without becoming overly complicated.

Pros: visual effects quality, environmental detail

Cons: AI behavior, level design

#17 Silent Hill f
4.3

Progression was viewed positively when upgrades and New Game+ rewards encouraged exploration and gave players more reasons to revisit areas.

Pros: voice acting, emotional impact

Cons: family friendliness, menu usability

#18 Hollow Knight: Silksong
4.2

Progression is generally praised for fresh upgrades and satisfying forward motion, but one review criticizes opaque true-ending requirements.

Pros: core gameplay loop, world interactivity

Cons: loot system, accessibility options

#19 Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time
4.1

Progression is mostly praised for satisfying loops and steady improvement, though early paths can feel irksome or uneven.

Pros: load times, crash stability

Cons: originality, voice acting

#20 Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
4.1

The relationship and choice systems were often praised for reactivity, especially in Tape 2, though at least one review felt dialogue choices lacked meaning.

Pros: character roster, animation quality

Cons: core gameplay loop, polish

#21 Cronos: The New Dawn
4.0

Progression through essence buffs and character shaping was considered interesting, though not always transparent.

Pros: core gameplay loop, emotional impact

Cons: checkpoint system, bug frequency

#22 Borderlands 4
3.8

Progression is often praised for customization and character growth, but some reviewers dislike slow early growth, RNG layers, or Ultimate Vault Hunter progression friction.

Pros: sandbox freedom, art direction

Cons: polish, save system reliability

#23 Donkey Kong Bananza
3.8

Progression received mixed-to-positive notes: skill points gave short-term goals, though some reviewers questioned whether the systems were necessary or evenly useful.

Pros: gameplay mechanics, world interactivity

Cons: economy and resource balance, enemy variety

#24 Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4
3.6

Progression was viewed as useful and content-rich, but some reviewers disliked simplified goals or locking endgame challenges behind completion layers.

Pros: core gameplay loop, controls responsiveness

Cons: crash stability, cross-save support

#25 Assassin's Creed Shadows
3.6

Progression usually feels rewarding through knowledge, skills, and character growth, but some reviewers found it only decent or half-hearted.

Pros: environmental detail, cross-save support

Cons: writing quality, enemy variety

#26 Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves
3.3

Light RPG progression is welcomed by several reviewers, but others say it becomes shallow or grind-driven.

Pros: emotional impact, animation quality

Cons: enemy variety, server reliability

#27 Civilization VII
3.3

The age, civ-switching, legacy, and meta-progression systems were the product’s central split, praised as fresh by some and criticized as disjointed or anti-Civ by others.

Pros: animation quality, controls responsiveness

Cons: matchmaking quality, user interface design

#28 Pokémon Legends: Z-A
3.2

Progression through the Z-A Royale was enjoyable for some, but rank skipping and façade-like structure disappointed several reviewers.

Pros: crash stability, gameplay mechanics

Cons: AI behavior, monetization fairness

#29 Elden Ring Nightreign
3.1

Progression was mixed, with useful relics and quests praised but meta-progression often criticized as thin, random, or too limited.

Pros: emotional impact, visual effects quality

Cons: crash stability, cross-play support

#30 Avowed
3.1

Progression systems were divisive: some liked flexible builds and added points, while others found midgame growth stagnant or too gear-dependent.

Pros: tutorial quality, level design

Cons: stealth mechanics, endgame content

#31 Monster Hunter Wilds
3.0

Progression was mixed: several reviews liked smoother systems, but others thought unlocks dragged or progression became too fast to matter.

Pros: art direction, cross-play support

Cons: dialogue quality, monetization fairness

#32 Split Fiction
3.0

Progression was intentionally minimal, with no score tracking or skill leveling, which some players may find limiting.

Pros: puzzle design, level design

Cons: exploration quality, side character depth

#33 Battlefield 6
3.0

progression was divisive: straightforward or rewarding for some, but slow, grindy, or frustrating for others.

Pros: haptic feedback integration, performance optimization

Cons: pacing, microtransaction impact

#34 Absolum
2.6

Progression was the most divisive system: some liked the steady growth, while others felt it over-relied on grinding and numbers.

Pros: mission design, world interactivity

Cons: quest design, endgame content

#35 The Alters
2.5

Progression drew criticism from one reviewer who felt unlocks mostly reduced earlier friction rather than adding exciting new capabilities.

Pros: controls responsiveness, onboarding experience

Cons: crash stability, grind level

#36 South of Midnight
2.4

Progression was mostly viewed as weak or standard, with upgrades often described as unimportant to how combat actually plays.

Pros: atmosphere, voice acting

Cons: world interactivity, camera behavior

#37 Mario Kart World Review
2.2

Progression was one of the clearest weak points, with stickers, RNG character unlocks, limited rewards, and confusing costume acquisition drawing complaints.

Pros: animation quality, sound design

Cons: difficulty balance, AI behavior

#38 Atomfall
2.2

Progression system evidence was limited and negative, with one reviewer calling the overall progression very slim.

Pros: art direction, frame rate stability

Cons: boss design, camera behavior