Best 2025 Video Games for sound design

#1 Donkey Kong Bananza
5.0

Sound design was a standout, with material-specific impacts, rumble-like feedback, voice, and destruction audio repeatedly praised.

Pros: gameplay mechanics, world interactivity

Cons: economy and resource balance, enemy variety

#2 Absolum
5.0

Sound design was praised for punchy hits, crunchy feedback, and strong audiovisual pairing.

Pros: mission design, world interactivity

Cons: quest design, endgame content

#3 Hades II
5.0

Sound design is praised for dynamic musical interaction, strong audio identity, and music that changes with combat events.

Pros: skill tree depth, dialogue quality

Cons: emotional impact, economy and resource balance

#4 The Alters
5.0

Sound design evidence was strongly positive, emphasizing exceptional audio, tension-building environmental sound, and fantastic sound design.

Pros: controls responsiveness, onboarding experience

Cons: crash stability, grind level

#5 Hollow Knight: Silksong
5.0

Sound design earns strong support from praise for surface-specific details and top-notch audio touches.

Pros: core gameplay loop, world interactivity

Cons: loot system, accessibility options

#6 Capcom Fighting Collection 2
5.0

Sound design gets positive preservation-focused praise because the original arcade sounds are retained.

Pros: emotional impact, sound design

Cons: cross-play support, boss design

#7 Mario Kart World Review
5.0

Sound design had limited but very positive evidence, with one review praising nuanced audio across items and environments.

Pros: animation quality, sound design

Cons: difficulty balance, AI behavior

#8 Arc Raiders
5.0

Sound design was the most consistently praised attribute, repeatedly described as excellent, informative, immersive, and tension-building.

Pros: frame rate stability, platform-specific feature support

Cons: voice acting, writing quality

#9 Cronos: The New Dawn
5.0

Sound design was one of the strongest areas, repeatedly praised for unsettling effects, directionality, ambience, and its role in horror tension.

Pros: core gameplay loop, emotional impact

Cons: checkpoint system, bug frequency

#10 Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
5.0

Sound design is very highly rated for immersive environmental audio, rain, wind, footsteps, and overall atmosphere.

Pros: animation quality, facial animations

Cons: quest design, AI behavior

#11 Goodnight Universe
4.9

Sound design was a major strength, especially spatial thought-reading audio, headphones, foley, and soundscapes that support the story.

Pros: side character depth, visual effects quality

Cons: user interface design, handheld play suitability

#12 Ghost of Yōtei
4.9

Sound design is consistently praised for environmental audio, combat effects, and the way it supports immersion.

Pros: movement feel, environmental detail

Cons: puzzle design, age appropriateness

#13 Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
4.9

Sound design was praised for supporting atmosphere, alien spaces, and the Prime identity.

Pros: world-building, frame rate stability

Cons: companion AI, upgrade system

#14 The First Berserker: Khazan
4.9

Sound design is praised for impact, weapon clashes, parry sounds, and matching the game’s brutal tone.

Pros: core gameplay loop, controls responsiveness

Cons: mission design, learning curve

#15 Silent Hill f
4.8

Sound design was consistently strong, with reviewers praising enemy audio, ambient terror, and atmospheric cues that heighten tension.

Pros: voice acting, emotional impact

Cons: family friendliness, menu usability

#16 Pokémon Legends: Z-A
4.8

Sound design earned strong praise for Pokémon-specific footsteps, cries, and small audio details.

Pros: crash stability, gameplay mechanics

Cons: AI behavior, monetization fairness

#17 South of Midnight
4.8

Sound design was consistently praised for environmental grounding, atmosphere, and integration with movement and effects.

Pros: atmosphere, voice acting

Cons: world interactivity, camera behavior

#18 Monster Hunter Wilds
4.7

Sound design was praised for combat impact, monster audio, and the overall sensory presentation of hunts.

Pros: art direction, cross-play support

Cons: dialogue quality, monetization fairness

#19 Little Nightmares III
4.7

Sound design was strongly praised for syncing with art, building tension, and enhancing atmosphere.

Pros: load times, haptic feedback integration

Cons: save system reliability, aiming precision

#20 Battlefield 6
4.6

sound design was one of the strongest points, repeatedly praised for weapons, vehicles, and explosions.

Pros: haptic feedback integration, performance optimization

Cons: pacing, microtransaction impact

#21 Lego Voyagers
4.5

Sound design was praised for cute brick vocalizations, satisfying LEGO noises, and music/sound cues that convey character.

Pros: writing quality, checkpoint system

Cons: menu usability, user interface design

#22 Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater
4.5

Sound design receives praise for 3D audio, immersion, and effects that strengthen encounters.

Pros: world interactivity, sandbox freedom

Cons: crash stability, learning curve

#23 Kirby Air Riders
4.5

Sound effects and audio presentation drew positive comments, including one review calling the whole presentation beautiful.

Pros: flying mechanics, exploration quality

Cons: AI behavior, boss design

#24 Assassin's Creed Shadows
4.5

Sound design receives direct praise in one review for fantastic effects alongside strong voice work.

Pros: environmental detail, cross-save support

Cons: writing quality, enemy variety

#25 Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment
4.5

Sound design was praised where discussed, especially for recreating the Tears of the Kingdom aesthetic through familiar effects.

Pros: animation quality, multiplayer design

Cons: save system reliability, companion AI

#26 Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
4.5

Sound design was praised for supporting immersion and helping players identify attacks or stealth-relevant cues.

Pros: soundtrack quality, fun factor

Cons: checkpoint system, family friendliness

#27 Avowed
4.4

Sound design was praised for impactful effects, combat feedback, and strong weapon audio.

Pros: tutorial quality, level design

Cons: stealth mechanics, endgame content

#28 Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves
4.4

Sound design is praised for crisp effects, vicious attacks, and useful audio feedback.

Pros: emotional impact, animation quality

Cons: enemy variety, server reliability

#29 Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
4.3

Sound design was praised in combat and timing feedback, though one review criticized mundane traversal sounds.

Pros: monetization fairness, microtransaction impact

Cons: platforming precision, menu usability

#30 Doom: The Dark Ages
4.3

Sound design was generally strong, with praise for heavy feedback and crunchy effects, though one reviewer found effects too soft.

Pros: environmental detail, polish

Cons: camera behavior, value for money

#31 Elden Ring Nightreign
4.2

Sound design was generally praised as strong and in line with Elden Ring quality.

Pros: emotional impact, visual effects quality

Cons: crash stability, cross-play support

#32 Borderlands 4
4.1

Sound design is mostly praised for clean combat readability, strong audio mix, and punchier weapon sound, with one audio-cutting complaint.

Pros: sandbox freedom, art direction

Cons: polish, save system reliability

#33 Digimon Story Time Stranger
4.0

Sound design received positive notes for memorable effects and environmental detail, with one small caveat around missing ride sounds.

Pros: atmosphere, world-building

Cons: HUD clarity, fast travel convenience

#34 The Outer Worlds 2
4.0

Sound design and radio presentation were praised for adding flavor and helping scenes land.

Pros: world-building, mission design

Cons: mission variety, enemy variety

#36 Lost Records: Bloom & Rage
3.8

Sound design was mostly positive for soundscape and cinematic effect, though one review reported overlapping audio issues.

Pros: character roster, animation quality

Cons: core gameplay loop, polish

#37 Civilization VII
3.7

Sound design was more mixed: some reviewers praised satisfying effects, while one found audio cues flat or missing.

Pros: animation quality, controls responsiveness

Cons: matchmaking quality, user interface design

#38 Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
3.5

Sound design is mixed: impact feedback and combat audio are praised, but one reviewer strongly disliked the harsh radio or speaker filter.

Pros: graphics quality, environmental detail

Cons: bug frequency, dialogue quality

#39 Atomfall
3.3

Sound design was mixed, with one complaint about off-putting audio and another positive note on environmental sound.

Pros: art direction, frame rate stability

Cons: boss design, camera behavior

#40 Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time
3.0

Sound design is mixed, with cozy effects and soundtrack praise offset by harsh criticism of repeated soundbites.

Pros: load times, crash stability

Cons: originality, voice acting

#41 Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4
3.0

Sound design had limited evidence, with one reviewer noting odd audio dips that disrupted flow.

Pros: core gameplay loop, controls responsiveness

Cons: crash stability, cross-save support