Table of Contents
Our selection of the best Xbox 360 games includes the most memorable and pleasant titles to hit Microsoft’s gaming console. Given how many games have found a home on the Xbox 360 since its first release in 2005, narrowing it down to just 30 is no easy job. And, thankfully, because to Microsoft’s push for backward compatibility and recent remasters, many of the games in this list are still playable on the current-gen Xbox Series X/S consoles and Xbox One. Even after 17 years, the Xbox 360 remains one of the most popular gaming consoles of all time.
It’s the system that cemented Microsoft’s place alongside powerhouses Sony and Nintendo in a seemingly impenetrable console industry, thanks in part to its massive, genre-spanning library of iconic titles. The selection committee considered each game’s longevity, influence, creativity, and, most importantly, how much fun it was to play. The Xbox 360 was home to some of the best shooters, RPGs, indies, platformers, and adventures of all time. It was nearly tough to narrow down this list, but after much good-natured argument, here it is: the top Xbox 360 games of all time.
Best Xbox 360 Games
Mass Effect Trilogy
The truth is that you can get all three Mass Effect games in a single box, and if you’re just getting an Xbox 360, there’s nothing else you should get first. This trilogy is many things, but most importantly, it is unique. You will design your Commander Shepard, and over the course of about 100 hours, you will make decisions, form relationships.
Embark on galaxy-spanning adventures that you will remember above all things. Each game is distinct, however they are part of the same series. Everyone has a different favourite out of the three games, but you’re likely to leave with your own memorable memory. BioWare set out to create a “space opera,” and they succeeded.
Grand Theft Auto V
Rockstar’s latest magnum opus demonstrates that when the best video game developers are given practically infinite time and resources to accomplish their creative vision, they are capable of incredible things. GTA 5 goes so far beyond where 99%, if not 100%, of all other games would stop that it’s a triumph for both players and the medium as a whole, and it merits its meteoric popularity.
Los Santos and the greater San Andreas region are actually living places where anything is conceivable. Everything from flying a passenger airliner from one end of the world to playing a mean round of golf is doable. Furthermore, GTA Online’s open-world mayhem extends the distance between Grand Theft Auto and practically everything else.
Red Dead Redemption
The spiritual successor to Red Dead Revolver, this 2010 action-adventure game sends players to the old west. Following in the footsteps of erstwhile outlaw John Marston, players are obliged to track down gang members for the growing government in order to release his wife and son. Red Dead Redemption had an understandable morality system that responded to how players interacted with the world and places a strong emphasis on exploring the enormous open-world setting.
Dark Souls
Because it was released on Microsoft’s legendary machine, our choice for greatest video game of all time was always going to grab the top spot for best Xbox 360 title. The GOAT is Dark Souls. It’s the GOAT of all GOATS. A flawless masterpiece, and the soul reason – forgive the pun – that Elden Ring, the most current all-time masterpiece, exists, this is a wonderful video game.
Dark Souls popularised the Soulsborne genre, and our love for it is why some users are currently on their 27th attempt to overcome Elden Ring’s Starscourge Radahn. Before From perfected the open-world style, they built Dark Souls’ Lordran, a perfectly self-contained, continually twisted realm.
Mass Effect 2
The Mass Effect trilogy delivers a compelling story set in a fascinating, completely realised universe where morality, politics, and love between lifeforms all play a role in a much larger picture. Mass Effect 2 is the series’ Empire Strikes Back, delivering more of what you enjoyed from the previous game while avoiding the tonal shifts of the third.
Commander Shepard seems like an extension of you, both in terms of the ethical decisions she or he takes and in the riveting third-person shootouts, in which bullets, lasers, and orbs of biotic energy zip around. The ensemble of fascinating people, each on their own personal journey of absolution and self-discovery, is the crown jewel in this N7 helmet.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is a phenomenon unto itself and it has been going strong for almost a decade now, or as Tod Howard explains, “The popularity just didn’t diminish”. Skyrim, which was published in 2011, introduced players to the Dragonborn and Tamriel’s northernmost province. By 2016, this game had sold over 30 million downloads, forcing Bethesda to develop a Special Edition, a VR Edition, an Anniversary Edition, and even a free Alexa game.
Portal 2
The original Portal was praised by critics as one of the best puzzle games of its time, combining brain-teasing puzzle mechanics with dark, biting comedy and an entertaining tale. Portal 2 somehow outperformed the first in every aspect. As in the original game, player-character Chell solves a series of diabolical puzzles with the renowned Handheld Portal Device, this time with the purpose of escaping Aperture Science, a labyrinthine underground complex.
New characters with fantastic voice acting and a slew of new skills assist guide you at the ideal pace: The game never feels unduly demanding, and each victory propels you through to more difficult puzzle chambers. The sequel also has a powerful cooperative campaign that lets two players to place four portals at the same time, allowing developer Valve to experiment with some inventive puzzle design.
Batman: Arkham City
Easily one of the best Xbox 360 Games available on the Amazon, the Batman: Arkham City is possibly the best superhero game ever created. The captivating plot draws you in from the moment you hear Mark Hamill as the Joker, followed by outstanding puzzles and battle mechanics that use a variety of famous Batman weapons.
The sequel to 2009’s Arkham Asylum finds the Dark Knight stuck in a sector of Gotham City that has been condemned, abandoned, and occupied with jail prisoners, including several classic Batman villains, each with their own plots for the Bat to foil. Arkham City follows the same “one-night game” formula, with Batman poisoned by the Joker and needing to discover a cure by the end of the night.
Final Words
We’ve compiled a thorough list of the best Xbox 360 games so you can relive old favourites, add new classics to your collection, or get a sense of where to begin if you’re new to the platform. The Xbox 360 console defined a generation of players and influenced some of the best Xbox One games. The console is approaching its 20th birthday, yet there are still plenty of games to enjoy.