Best Of
10 Best Platformers on PS5
Find ten PS5 platformers for solo adventures, exploration and two-player co-op, including Astro Bot, Split Fiction and Hollow Knight: Silksong.
Add Gaming.net to your preferred sources on Google
The best platformers on PS5 don’t all ask for the same kind of skill. Some are playful adventures about poking around colorful worlds; others make a tricky jump feel like a small personal achievement. This selection includes native PS5 releases and compatible PS4 games, with solo adventures alongside games designed for two people. Story setups stay light, and the descriptions explain where exploration, combat, or cooperative problem-solving changes the experience. Whether you want a relaxed evening, a demanding challenge, or a reason to hand someone a second controller, these ten offer a useful place to begin.
For another direction, our Best Mario Games to Play guide offers a useful comparison.
10. Sackboy: A Big Adventure
Sackboy heads across Craftworld to rescue his friends from Vex, who has rather unpleasant plans for their cheerful home. The story is simple enough to stay out of the way of textured, toy-like stages full of collectibles and playful obstacles. It works as a solo adventure, but its shared-screen multiplayer also makes it a useful family or group choice. Pick it for approachable movement and a welcoming presentation rather than an enormous ability tree. Later challenges still give more confident players something to work toward.
Official game promotional video — PlayStation. Watch on YouTube.
9. Yooka-Replaylee
Yooka-Replaylee revisits the adventure of a chameleon and a bat trying to stop a corporate villain from stealing the world’s books. Its spacious levels are built for wandering, collecting, and spotting places you’ll want to revisit. The remade presentation and revised systems make this the version to assess alongside newer platformers rather than treating the original Yooka-Laylee as the only option. Choose it if you enjoy the unhurried business of investigating every corner, with plenty of odd characters interrupting the journey.
Official game promotional video — PlayStation. Watch on YouTube.
8. Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time
Crash and Coco have another dimensional disaster to deal with, giving It’s About Time a reason to send them through wildly different stages. The masks introduce new ways to interact with platforms and hazards without abandoning the precise running and jumping at the series’ core. The PS5 edition is the one to compare here, and this is one of the more demanding traditional platformers on the list. Finishing a stage and completely clearing it are very different commitments, so don’t feel obliged to chase every collectible immediately.
Official game promotional video — PlayStation. Watch on YouTube.
7. It Takes Two
Cody and May become tiny dolls and must work together to navigate a home that suddenly feels enormous. It Takes Two uses that premise to keep changing the tools each player brings to a problem, from traversal abilities to elaborate cooperative set pieces. It requires two players; there is no solo campaign to substitute for the partnership. Choose it when you have someone willing to communicate, experiment, and occasionally laugh at a failed plan. The relationship story supports the journey, but the constant variety is the bigger attraction.
Official game promotional video — Electronic Arts. Watch on YouTube.
6. Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown
Sargon enters Mount Qaf to rescue a kidnapped prince, only to find a place where time behaves very strangely. The Lost Crown combines responsive side-scrolling movement with combat, puzzles, and a map that opens as your abilities grow. It suits players who enjoy returning to an earlier obstacle with exactly the tool they were missing. The story gives the search momentum without being the only reason to continue. Pick it for a satisfying balance of platforming precision, exploration, and action rather than a sequence of isolated stages.
Official game promotional video — Ubisoft. Watch on YouTube.
5. Sonic X Shadow Generations
This package contains Sonic Generations alongside a separate Shadow adventure, giving you two related approaches to fast platforming. Sonic’s side revisits familiar locations through different styles of play, while Shadow’s campaign adds its own abilities and a darker story setup. The distinction matters: it is a collection of connected experiences rather than a single uninterrupted campaign. Choose it if speed, replaying stages, and finding a cleaner route are the main appeal. You can enjoy the movement without needing to decode every reference to earlier games.
Official game promotional video — Sonic the Hedgehog. Watch on YouTube.
4. Split Fiction
Mio and Zoe are writers whose stories become places they have to survive together. Split Fiction moves between science-fiction and fantasy ideas, using their contrasting imaginations to introduce new cooperative problems. Like It Takes Two, it is designed around two players rather than a solo mode. The pleasure comes from discovering how the next pair of abilities fits together, so the less you know about individual sequences, the better. Choose it for a shared adventure that keeps changing its scenery and the way you move through it.
Official game promotional video — Electronic Arts. Watch on YouTube.
3. Hollow Knight: Silksong
Hornet arrives in the unfamiliar kingdom of Pharloom and begins a climb through a dangerous, interconnected world. Silksong mixes agile movement with combat and exploration, making it a different proposition from a breezy mascot platformer. New routes often demand attention to the tools you have and the places you could not previously reach. Pick it if you want the satisfaction of learning a hostile world, and expect some resistance along the way. Its atmosphere and mysteries are best discovered without a detailed plot rundown.
Official game promotional video — Team Cherry. Watch on YouTube.
2. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart
Ratchet and Clank become separated as dimensional trouble opens a path to another version of their universe. Rift Apart uses that premise for a colorful action adventure full of unusual weapons, busy worlds, and another playable Lombax named Rivet. Shooting shares the spotlight with jumping and exploration, so it is a better fit for someone who wants a platforming adventure with substantial combat. The presentation is a major attraction, but the inviting tone also makes it an approachable starting point without extensive knowledge of the series.
Official game promotional video — PlayStation. Watch on YouTube.
1. Astro Bot
Astro sets out to reunite his scattered crew after their ship is attacked, turning a rescue mission into a tour of inventive platforming worlds. The appeal is how quickly each stage gives you something new to investigate, without making the controls feel overloaded. It is a separate, full adventure from Astro’s Playroom, the game included with PS5 consoles. Pick Astro Bot first if you want a broadly welcoming solo platformer that still rewards careful exploration. Familiar PlayStation faces add flavor, but recognizing them is a bonus rather than homework.
Official game promotional video — PlayStation. Watch on YouTube.
Which Should You Play First?
Astro Bot is the easiest starting recommendation for a solo adventure, while Sackboy suits a more social evening. Choose Split Fiction or It Takes Two only when you have a second player ready to join. For a tougher challenge, Crash 4 and Silksong offer very different tests of timing and persistence. Rift Apart is the better match if an imaginative arsenal matters as much as the jumping.
For more options, see Best Sonic Games to Play.
