What are the best arcade games on PS5? The arcade may not be the defining destination that it once was in the 80s and 90s, but the spirit of arcade games is very much alive – even on the latest crop of consoles. While you may not need a collection of quarters to play the titles on this page, we’re categorising these releases as accessible and easy-to-play, with plenty of hidden depth.
Arcade games span a number of genres, whether it’s the extreme sports of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 or the forgiving handling model of toy car racer Hot Wheels Unleashed. Almost all of the releases on this list can be enjoyed in both single player and local multiplayer with a friend, and you’ll probably get the most fun out of them playing alongside someone else.
This list has been determined by the Push Square community and will continue to grow and evolve with your ratings and votes. If you have a different opinion on the best arcade games on PS5, then it’s up to you to do something about it: you can use the search box below to find your favourites, or simply click the star next to a game to submit your opinion.
Please do keep in mind that in order to appear on this list a game will need at least 15 ratings, so that may explain why your personal favourite is missing from the leaderboards. Of course, we encourage all of you to vote regularly for the games you’ve played, so that this page can continue to grow and evolve as the PS5’s software selection expands.
With all that said, it’s time to list out the best arcade games on PS5, as voted for by you. Which title do you think will take the top score?
10. Riders Republic (PS5)
Publisher: Ubisoft / Developer: Ubisoft Annecy
A game that brings something a little different to the sports genre on the PS5, Riders Republic is a Ubisoft open world game with a cycling/skiing/wingsuiting skin. A massively multiplayer online sandbox, filled with both silly and serious challenges, this game is colossal in scale – something it underpins with its outrageous Mass Race competitions. It can look a little ugly and its too-cool-for-school style will grate, but cycling down mountains at 100kmph is still an exhilarating experience.
9. Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania (PS5)
Publisher: SEGA / Developer: Yakuza Studio
As gameplay concepts go, Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania is not especially complex. This remaster of Super Monkey Ball Deluxe – itself a compilation of Super Monkey Ball and Super Monkey Ball 2’s impressive 300 stages – sees you rolling apes through increasingly challenging environments, collecting bananas and attempting to reach the goal in record time. While this is unquestionably entertaining, the real longevity comes from the Mini Games, which can be played by up to four players, and span everything from soccer through to baseball and much, much more. It’s vibrant and accessible, with a ton of depth – the perfect arcade party game, then.
8. Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 (PS5)
Publisher: SEGA / Developer: Sonic Team
Two of the industry’s puzzle titans clash in Puyo Puyo Tetris 2, the sequel to SEGA’s absurdly addictive block-stacking mash-up. With support for up to four different players, and a variety of curiously compelling modes – including the bonkers Fusion, which sees you managing a board of Tetraminos and Puyos simultaneously – this vibrant outing will have you hooked from the very first line you clear. If you’re a fan of single player campaigns, then there’s even a cute story you can play through, and you can collect cards to boost your abilities in the brand new Skill Battle mode.
7. DIRT 5 (PS5)
Publisher: Codemasters / Developer: Codemasters
DIRT 5 comes from a Codemasters team made up of many Evolution Studios alumni, giving this off-road racer a slight MotorStorm flavour. The festival vibes are alive and well here, with colourful presentation and a great soundtrack providing the background for a varied and fun racing calendar. Unlike its DiRT Rally cousins, this game is unabashedly arcadey, putting the emphasis on sliding sideways through the mud, across the ice, and into clouds of dust. An unintrusive storyline featuring characters voiced by Nolan North and Troy Baker carries you through the single player, while a level editor and some neat multiplayer modes are waiting for you too. A slick, well presented racing game with real energy.
6. OlliOlli World (PS5)
Publisher: Private Division / Developer: Roll7
OlliOlli World is the third entry in Roll7’s side-scrolling skateboarding series, and it takes things in a brilliant new direction. The gameplay is about the same, tasking you with pulling off tricks with the left stick as you speed through each level. However, the addictive, score-chasing core that keeps you hooked is wrapped in new layers that make it far more appealing. A cel-shaded look is complemented by a chilled out soundtrack and an eclectic range of characters, making for far more pleasant presentation. Full customisation gives you much more control of your skater’s look, and asynchronous multiplayer gives you a practically limitless supply of stages to master. A compulsive and fun-loving take on the extreme sport.
5. Hot Wheels Unleashed (PS5)
Publisher: Milestone / Developer: Milestone
If you’ve ever owned a toy car or two, Hot Wheels Unleashed will hold some appeal. Coming from Milestone, the studio known for its motorbike racing titles like MotoGP and RIDE, this game sees the Italian team go in a brand new direction. This is a colourful arcade racer, pitting those die-cast vehicles against each other on that famous bright orange track across various settings. The handling is excellent and provides some surprisingly competitive and gratifying racing, while the courses are treacherous, winding things that see you driving on the ceiling and through the air. The game is impressively robust too, with a big campaign, split-screen and online multiplayer, a full track editor, and hundreds of cars to collect. If you’re a fan of Hot Wheels, or just arcade racing games generally, this is worth checking out.
4. Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate (PS5)
Publisher: Warner Bros / Developer: NetherRealm Studios
There’s a snobbery among enthusiasts that suggests Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate, without tightly animated sprites and mind-boggling button combos, is a lesser fighting title. Be that as it may, few brawlers have the sheer scope and scale of what’s on display here. With an ever-rotating ladder of inventive towers to tackle, a sprawling single player campaign, and an RPG-inspired loot system that lets you tailor all of the title’s characters to your tastes, NetherRealm Studios may not have produced an audience-attracting e-sport here, but it has delivered a damn good time.
3. Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 (PS5)
Publisher: Activision / Developer: Vicarious Visions
Available On:
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2 is a brilliant remake of two incredibly impactful games. The skateboarding series might have been scraping its knees for a while, but this new version puts it right on track, updating the PS1 classics to modern standards while keeping that old-school, arcadey magic alive. The PS5 version is a great update, too, enhancing the title with super smooth performance, 4K resolution, reduced loading, and some subtle usage of DualSense’s features. If you’re a long-time fan, this is pure joy.
2. Guilty Gear Strive (PS5)
Publisher: Arc System Works / Developer: Arc System Works
The PS5’s first native fighting game has set the bar very, very high. Guilty Gear Strive is a superb brawler, bolstered by jaw-dropping visuals and the best online netcode that we’ve ever experienced in a fighting game. A relatively small but brilliantly diverse character roster allows for a deep and hugely rewarding experience, while accessible gameplay mechanics on a base level pave the way for new players. A stunning beat-’em-up backed by an incredible heavy rock soundtrack.
1. Returnal (PS5)
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment / Developer: Housemarque
Not that it needed to, but with Returnal, Housemarque has proven itself an incredibly capable studio. This PS5 exclusive is a frantic, ultra-tight third person shooter dressed up with some rogue-like elements to add variety and unpredictability to the mix, and the result is wonderful.
Trapped in a loop on a hostile alien world, Selene is forced to relive her fateful crash landing each time she dies. There’s an amazing sense of accomplishment as you slowly progress through challenging boss encounters and explore six diverse environments full of randomised weapons, perks, and power-ups. It feels amazing to play, especially with amazing support for the DualSense’s features, and the addictive gameplay is complemented by an enigmatic story that will leave you guessing.
The best part is that’s just the start. A slew of additional modes flesh out Returnal, giving you a few extra ways to play when you’re done with the single player campaign. The daily challenge mode provides all players with a fixed loadout and room layouts, with the goal of amassing the highest score possible by exploring and playing skilfully. Beyond that is the Tower of Sisyphus, an endless arcade mode that similarly tasks you with getting the highest score you can, only there’s more of a sense of urgency. You’re rewarded not just for skilled play but for fast play — your multiplier will start to tick down if you loiter for too long. The Tower also contains additional story, adding more layers to the mysterious narrative the main game offers.
Finally, there’s two-player online co-op. This allows you to join or invite another player and go through the main campaign with a companion, potentially alleviating some of the challenge. While it isn’t the primary focus of Returnal, the co-op works splendidly; resources are shared between you, forcing you to make decisions on who gets what, and a revival mechanic lets you bring each other back into the fight. It’s just as much fun taking on the world of Atropos with a friend as it is alone, if not more so.
Whether you’re in it for the world class gameplay, the atmospheric sci-fi setting, the intentionally mysterious story, or the variety of extra modes, Returnal is among the most robust, rewarding, and addictive games on PS5.
Did we earn a top score with our list of best arcade games on PS5? Remember, this is voted for by the Push Square community, so if you don’t agree, then it’s up to you to do something about it. You can find a search box at the start of this article which will help you to rate your favourite, or, alternatively, you can click on the star next to any of the above games to add your opinion. And if a game is missing from our PlayStation Game Database, be sure to let us know.
In the meantime, all that’s left for you to do is to share some of your comments and opinions on the best arcade games on PS5? Which is the title that you keep coming back to? Imprint your initials below.
