Summary
Although there are other launchers out there,Steamis generally considered to be the number one platform when it comes to PC gaming. There are more than fifty thousand titles for players to choose from, including an excellent selection of indie games that owe much of their success to the sheer size of Steam’s user base.
However, while having more choices is undoubtedly a good thing, it could make choosing what game to play next a little tricky. Thankfully, the platform allows users to rate and review titles, making it fairly easy to identify the best Steam games simply by looking for the ones that are the most highly rated by other players.
The following list is made up of the most highly-rated games on Steam based on user scores and uses data fromSteamDB. Only games with more than 25,000 total Steam ratings will be considered.
15Slay the Spire
Steam Rating: 96.5% Positive (150k+ Reviews)
There are plenty ofgreat deck-building gameson Steam, though few are able to hold a candle to Mega Crit’sSlay the Spire. Released in early 2019, the game helped to drag the genre into the mainstream, with its roguelike elements and sleek presentation proving popular with manyHearthstoneplayers in particular.
Several years after its release,Slay the Spireremains one of the best games on Steam and still boasts a healthy player base in spite of its advancing years. For fans of the genre, it’s something of a must-play title, but also an excellent place to start for those who are new toroguelike deck-building games.
14Euro Truck Simulator 2
Steam Rating: 96.6% Positive (750k+ Reviews)
Being a truck driver may not be the most glamorous job in the world, but there’s something strangely therapeutic aboutdriving around the streets and highways of Europe inEuro Truck Simulator 2. So much so, in fact, that the game has accumulated more than 650 thousand positive ratings on Steam, making it one of the platform’s most popular and well-received titles.
Despite being more than a decade old, the game still maintains a fairly sizable user base thanks in large to its regular updates and expansions. As of the time of writing, players are able to explore 34 different European countries, which works out to be more than half the continent. Fans of digital tourism will love whatEuro Truck Simulator 2 has to offer, as too will those who enjoyrelaxing and repetitive games.
13Pizza Tower
Steam Rating: 96.7% Positive (50k+ Reviews)
Released in early 2023,Pizza Toweris one of the newest titles to find itself among the highest-rated games on Steam. It’s a 2D platformer inspired by theWario Landseries and looks more like aforgotten nineties cartoonthan a modern indie game. When it comes to gameplay though, it’s entirely unique.
The fast-paced over-the-top action really helps to set the game apart from its peers, as too do its striking visuals and bombastic soundtrack. It may be a little too wacky for some people’s tastes, but that’s arguably all part of the game’s charm. As far asrecent platformersgo this is easily one of the best and a must-play title for fans of the genre.
12The Henry Stickmin Collection
Steam Rating: 96.7% Positive (40k+ Reviews)
Innersloth is best known for its hugelypopular imposter gameAmong Us, but that’s not the only popular game that the indie studio has under its belt.The Henry Stickmin Collectionserves as a modern-day remaster of one of the company’s founders' early flash games, with a new chapter in the titular character’s story also included with the release.
With an all-time peak player count of just 2,812,The Henry Stickmin Collectionis nowhere near as popular as some of the other top Steam games. However, the overwhelming majority of those who did play it liked it enough to leave a positive rating, suggesting that those able to look past the game’s basic visuals will more than likely find some enjoyment with this charmingchoose-your-own-adventure game.
Steam Rating: 96.7% Positive (850k+ Reviews)
When it comes to co-op multiplayer games, they really don’t come much better thanLeft 4 Dead 2. The 2009 title builds brilliantly upon the strong foundations laid down by its predecessor, offering up one of the most exhilarating and fun-filled FPS adventures of the 21st century.
Set in a world that has been overrun by flesh-hungry zombies, players are placed into the shoes of a survivor and must work with three others in order to stay alive. It helped to inspire countlessother zombie-themed co-op gamesand is well worth its place among the best games on Steam.
10Half-Life: Alyx
Steam Rating: 96.8% Positive (75k+ Reviews)
There are plenty of incredible virtual reality games, but not too many that have been developed by large, well-established studios like Valve.Half-Life: Alyxis one of those rare exceptions and an excellent example of what the technology is capable of when enough time and money is thrown at a project.
Set some five years on from the events ofHalf-Life 2: Episode Two,Half-Life: Alyxsees players take control of 19-year-old Alyx Vance as she ventures through the quarantine zone to learn the truth about a Combine superweapon known as The Vault. It’s a stunning title from start to finish anda must-play for any and all VR enthusiasts.
9RimWorld
Steam Rating: 96.8% Positive (175k+ Reviews)
RimWorldcame about following a Kickstarter project, with developer Tynan Sylvester successfully raising a little over $200,000 to bring their vision to life. Around two and a half years later, the game was released on Steam, with a console port arriving some four years after that.
Thisconstruction and management simulation titleproved to be incredibly popular with players, with its AI-powered story generator helping to ensure that no two playthroughs are alike. It’s been reviewed by more than 160 thousand people on Steam, with the overwhelming majority of players recommending it.
8Terraria
Steam Rating: 96.9% Positive (1.25m+ Reviews)
Terrariadeserves a special mention due to the sheer number of times that it has been rated or reviewed. It has more than 1.1 million positive ratings, which is more than five of the six most highly-rated Steam games combined. Granted, the proportion of positive to negative ratings is a little lower, but it’s an incredible achievement nonetheless.
Developed by Re-Logic and published by 505 Games,Terrariais a procedurally-generated 2Dsandbox title with crafting mechanicsand a heavy emphasis on exploration. ItsMinecraftmeetsMetroidformula has proven to be incredibly successful over the years, with more than 44 million copies sold since its release back in May of 2011.
7HoloCure - Save the Fans!
Steam Rating: 97.1% Positive (25k+ Reviews)
Some may disputeHoloCure - Save the Fans!’s place among the best Steam games, particularly with fewer than 15,000 players having rated it at the time of writing. However, it’s difficult to ignore the game’s positive review ratio, with the overwhelming majority of players having recommended the freeVampire Survivors-inspired fan game.
Those who enjoygames likeVampire SurvivorsandHalls of Tormentshould love whatHoloCurehas to offer, providing, that is, that they like anime waifus. It’s one of the genre’s more relaxing offerings, with its bright and colorful visuals and upbeat soundtrack offering up a refreshing change of pace. There’s still plenty of depth though, which in turn allows for tons of replayability.
6Portal
Steam Rating: 97.1% Positive (150k+ Reviews)
From its fantastic writing to its well-thought-out puzzles, there’s an awful lot to like aboutPortal. As the title might suggest, the core premise of the game involves using two-way portals in order to solve a series of puzzles, with physics and momentum also playing an important role in proceedings.
Unlike a lot of other turn-of-the-century video games, the plot ofPortalis incredibly straightforward. Players control a test subject named Chell and must complete a series of tests to appease a sharp-tongued rogue AI system named GLaDOS. It’s a lot of fun though, andan easy recommendation for any puzzle game fan.
