Top Stealth Games On PC and PS4 You Need To Play

Before stealth games really blew up, action games were more about running face-first into enemies. However, when stealth games became more popular, developers created high-octane experiences focused on sneaking around avoiding conflict. How does the genre look in this day and age? Let’s check out 15 of the best stealth games on PlayStation 4 (with some titles also being available for Xbox One, PC and Nintendo Switch).

Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain

Yes, the story-telling was uneven and the ending was kind of disappointing. However, Kojima Productions’ Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain absolutely delivers on the promise of systemic stealth gameplay. Guide a robot arm into a guard’s face. Sabotage convoys with horse dung. Wait till dark for more cover and exploit every aspect of the environment to succeed. All of this only scratches the surface of what’s possible with Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain.

Hitman 2

Sandbox settings have always been the forte of Agent 47. IO Interactive’s Hitman 2 is no different, expanding on the previous game’s fundamentals with new gadgets, opportunities, disguises, tools and challenges. If you own the first season, then those missions will be available in Hitman 2 but slightly different and supporting all the new toys. What more could a stealth fan?

Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

Though more of an immersive sim and RPG, Deus Ex: Mankind Divided supports a wide range of play-styles. Stealth is, of course, one of them and you can augment Adam Jensen with tools like Smart Vision to see through walls, Glass-Shield Cloaking to turn invisible and the Stealth Avatar to see your last known position. The game’s accommodation of hacking and non-lethal take downs along with stealth allows for a wide variety of solutions to missions.

Dishonored 2

Much like the original, Dishonored 2 is less of a stealth game and more of a stealth sandbox. You’re encouraged to get creative with your kills, killing rows of enemies with abilities like Domino or teleporting around with Blink. The game is built to support those flights of murderous fancy, balancing dark traipses of sneaking with time-travel shenanigans and new mechanical foes. With two characters to choose from, there’s no reason not to get stabby with it.

Alien Isolation

Robots and human foes may form a part of the Alien: Isolation experience but let’s be honest. The game is built around avoiding and outsmarting one intelligently ruthless life-form – the Xenomorph. It ambushes you from air-vents. It’s nigh indestructible too – using the flamethrower and setting it ablaze will buy you time but ammo is limited. Using the motion detector to know its position without giving yours away, staying one step ahead, watching the shadows and staying hidden in lockers are all essential to survival. Try not to cry when it inevitably sneaks up behind you though.

Invisible Inc.

Klei Entertainment may be better known for its Don’t Starve series but it has an incredible pedigree in stealth. Take Invisible Inc., a top-down turn-based stealth title that functions much like X-COM. Instead of cover-based combat, you’ll be using your surroundings to avoid detection, disable alarms, recover intel and rescue other agents. The procedurally generated nature of the missions, from their layouts to other conditions, keeps the experience fresh as you plan towards the one final mission.

Mark of the Ninja

We’d be remiss not to mention Klei’s all-time great stealth title Mark of the Ninja which was recently remastered for Xbox One, PS4, PC and Nintendo Switch. Don’t let its sleek cartoon cutscenes fool you. As a side-scrolling platformer, your job is to remain undetected and take out enemies. Many enemies can be shrouded in darkness, thus leaving you to rely on sound for dealing one-hit kill justice. Of course, none of those instant kills are possible if you don’t stay hidden so learning how to balance sneaking with combat and harassing the enemy is key.

The Last of Us Remastered

There’s plenty of shooting to be had in The Last of Us but stealth is often your best ally. Out-numbered by roving gangs? Bash their heads in, one by one, with a brick. Need to avoid detection from the Infected, especially those irritating Clickers? Stealth is the answer. Naughty Dog has nailed the balance between survival and horror in The Last of Us, creating an experience where you can feel truly fragile.

Assassins Creed Origins

While decidedly less sneaky than previous titles, Assassin’s Creed Origins isn’t in full-fledged looter RPG territory like its successor, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. That being said, the stealth consists less of scaling enormous buildings and running across rooftops and more about sabotaging braziers, taking down enemies one by one and using captured beasts as distractions. Even choosing between different bows will dictate your degree of success when it comes to stealth. Again, while Assassin’s Creed Origins is meant as more of an open world RPG, it still has some sneaky blood in it (and tons of content to explore).

ECHO

One of the more low-key games of 2017 is also an unusually captivating stealth title. The concept revolves around a palace containing Echoes or copies of the player. Depending on the actions performed in a single cycle, it’s possible for the Echoes to learn those in the next as they hunt you down. There is a “Blackout” period in which the player can act freely though. Part mind games, part cat-and-mouse and always a fight for survival, ECHO is definitely worth playing.

Sniper Elite 4

The sniping game with the best – and perhaps only – X-Ray kill cam that shows you exactly how many ribs your bullet shattered. Sniper Elite 4 expands on the series further with much larger maps, better movement and improved AI enemies that will react better to their comrades falling. Sneaking about and finding the ideal position to snipe is only one part of the puzzle. You can also spot out officers and kill them to force a retreat. Even if open world games aren’t your thing, Sniper Elite 4 may have something for you.

Volume

Mike Bithell’s Volume is what happens when Robin Hood meets Metal Gear Solid, with a good amount of puzzles thrown in. Players control Robert Locksley as he streams himself committing crimes within advanced simulations to overthrow the corporate government of Guy Gisborne. The gameplay is from a top-down perspective as the player collects gems to unlock the exit while avoiding guards in the process. There’s even a nifty level editor to let players create their own highly detailed stealth simulations.