Looking for head scratching strategy titles where brains beat brawn? You’ve come to the wrong list. These games are for the button mashers, the combo stringers, gamers with an internalized, seething rage that only gratuitous video game violence can solve. If you’re looking for close quarters combat, for action that you can really sink a sword into, you’re in luck. These are the 10 best hack and slash games of all time – where you’ll spend 99.99% of your time doing exactly what the genre’s name suggests. Oh, there will be plenty of stabbing too. And punching. Maybe some below the belt kicks here and there? “Hack and slash” is just a suggestion – when it comes to combat, you’ve got plenty of options.
Nier: Automata
You expect a hack and slash title to make you stab, cut, impale, punch, kick etc. – but you don’t expect it to make you think now, do you? Nier: Automata is an exception to the rule, a sci-fi adventure where the hardest hits come from the philosophical questions this game asks. The game takes place tens of thousands of years in the future, and follows a proxy war fought between alien robots and humanoid androids fighting for humankind. 2B is one of these androids, impeccably dressed in a chic gothic style while swinging swords larger than she is – an icon, to say the least. With a plethora of weapons at her disposal, 2B cuts a swath through the machine menace, but slowly begins to question if her killing spree is morally justified. The robots she slays seem less like emotionless automatons as the never ending war drags on – how many can she hack to bits before she’s got a full blown existential crisis on her hands?
No More Heroes
A flawed masterclass in style over substance, No More Heroes is one of the few Wii games ever made with adults-only levels of hack and slash violence. The plot centers around Travis Touchdown, a 27 year old otaku who wins a laser katana in an online auction – unwittingly putting himself in the crosshairs of a covert league of assassins. After killing a high ranking member of the United Assassins Association in an impromptu struggle, Travis sets out on a murderous quest to become the organization’s top ranked member – by slaughtering the competition. The game delivers camp and carnage in equal measure, pitting Travis against equally eccentric characters in pop-up death matches around the city. While the combat isn’t as sophisticated as genre greats like Devil May Cry or God of War, No More Heroes makes up for its simplicity the way many unqualified people do – with ludicrous levels of self confidence and charm.
Bayonetta
The office siren glasses, the witchy black body suit, the six shooter high heels, the titular protagonist of Bayonetta is a queer gaming icon. Ferociously high femme, Bayonetta is a pistol packing witch who fights foes with her bullets and her magic hair. The game takes place in a world caught between the forces of Heaven and Hell, where Umbra Witches and Lumen Sages struggle to maintain the respective balance of darkness and light. After invading angels tip the scales in Heaven’s favor, Bayonetta sets out on a quest to restore balance with Old Testament levels of divine destruction. Capable of summoning demons with her updo, Bayonetta cuts a swath through the biblically accurate forces of Paradise with shonen anime levels of over-the-top violence. A fast paced theological thriller centered around one of the most impactful female characters in gaming history, the Bayonetta series can’t be missed.
Kingdom Hearts
While genre purists will say that Kingdom Hearts lacks the intricate combat that distinguishes hack and slash games from other titles, anyone who survived going toe to toe with Sephiroth will tell you otherwise. Though its plot is famously convoluted, I’ll try to sum up as simply as I can: a fourteen year old boy teams up with Disney characters in order to fight a universe-devouring darkness. While much of the early game combat can be solved with simple button mashing, any longtime player of the franchise knows that its late game foes require nigh-impeccable reaction times to beat. Despite being a game primarily marketed for children and teens upon its first release, the Kingdom Hearts franchise’s punishing difficulty level proves that you don’t need Devil May Cry demonic design choices for truly heavy metal combat. Whatever you do, just don’t rely on Donald Duck to heal you in a tight spot – many a player has died that way. In these Disney worlds, you gotta fend for yourself.
God of War
The God of War franchise arguably became the pinnacle of hack and slash when it was first released, Greek warrior Kratos’ bloody story of vengeance made for a thing of genre greatness. Featuring a deceptively sophisticated combo system, God of War‘s combat was easy to learn but hard to master. You could devote Devil May Cry levels of time to learning its intricacies, or button mash your way through to the next quick time event. As the years passed, the game matured, with the recent reboot offering a more grounded combat experience with an equally deep story. The franchise begins with blood and brutality, then questions if the violence was worth it as the series goes on. Combat to make your heart pound and a story to break it entirely, the God of War series is hack and slash divinity.
Bloodborne
Like with Kingdom Hearts, the genre purists may say that Bloodborne‘s combat system isn’t combo centric enough to be considered true hack and slash – but those people haven’t fought Vicar Amelia now, have they? Set in a dark, Victorian world that has come under a plague of beasts, you take control of a hunter who sets out to slay the threat. Decked out in patent leather packing weapons of torture, you’ll feel like you’re about to enter a BDSM club with the amount of pain your character is prepped to dish out. The game differentiates itself from other FromSoftware releases with its high risk/high reward combat system that favors aggression over caution. There are virtually no ranged weapons in this game, beast killing is an up close and personal affair.
Devil May Cry
The golden child of the genre, the Devil May Cry series is arguably the greatest hack and slash franchise ever made. The games center around Dante, a cocky demon hunter who is the son of one of Hell’s most powerful devils. While each game in the series is a masterclass in slash, the franchise broke new ground with Devil May Cry 3: Dante’s Awakening – which perfected the intricate, stylish, combo-based combat system for which the series is famous. Featuring a bevy of complicated weapons and fighting styles, The Devil May Cry combat system takes a lifetime to master. It’s one of the most sophisticated ever conceived, paired with one of the most stylish and fun stories in gaming – hellishly good.
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice broke the hack and slash mould by creating a deeply psychological story centered around mental illness and trauma. The plot revolves around Pict warrior Senua, who journeys through the gates of Norse mythology Hell in order to resurrect a dead lover. As Senua navigates the nightmarescape, she’s plagued with visions and voices – hallucinations that both protect and persecute her. The game’s combat is a harrowing affair, trading the zero-gravity feeling of Devil May Cry and early God of War for heavy and claustrophobic encounters. You can feel the weight behind Senua’s swings, the fear, exhaustion and adrenaline combining in a last ditch effort to save the one she loves.
Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
The alternate military history franchise Metal Gear Solid maintains a tenuous relationship with realism, but Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance transforms it into a thing of over-the-top anime combat beauty. You take control of Raiden, cyborg on a quest to stop an evil private military corporation from destabilizing world peace and profiting off of endless war. Armed with a katana that can slice through, well, pretty much anything, Raiden hacks and slashes his way through synthetic ninjas, giant robots, and other cybernetic warriors like himself. Combining the soap opera war drama of Metal Gear Solid with shonen anime combat antics, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is a must play for franchise fans and newcomers alike.
Ninja Gaiden
The great grandaddy of hack and slash, Ninja Gaiden walked so every other entry on this list could fly – and then cut, stab, decapitate, etc. First released as an arcade game in 1988, the franchise centers around the ninja Ryu Hayabusa – who comes from a long lineage of ninjas who battle against the forces of darkness. Arguably the crown jewel of the series, Ninja Gaiden Black serves as the definitive origin story of Ryu, chronicling his fight against a rival clan who would use the evil power of an ancient sword to plunge the world into darkness. The game is infamous for its intricate combat system, focused on flashy and complex combos that allow Ryu to reduce his enemies to a bloody pulp. A pivotal franchise in the genre, Ninja Gaiden elevated hack and slash to blood spattered glory.
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