Before I get started I’d like to point out that there are many PlayStation 3 games I haven’t played yet. I’d also like to give an honorable mention to the BioShock franchise as the first one narrowly missed out 5^th place, but unlike BioShock, the Little Big Planet franchise (including the karting one) hasn’t had so many bumps.

So, let’s start from the bottom and work our way up! This is my Top 5 PlayStation 3 games:

#5: Little Big Planet 2

First off those sack things are cute! I’ve always wanted to be a cupcake-belly dancer with high-tops. Also it’s narrated by Stephen Fry so what more do you want.

It’s a really fun game. It’s got the right amount of competition whilst still maintaining the fact that if you’re playing multiplayer then ultimately you’re working together. There is a lot of effort put into the game and that’s reflected in everything from the totally wacky weapons that have genuine use (using cake to attack people is definitely in my suggestions for armies everywhere) to the themed worlds that have different focuses on each level.

Everything runs smoothly and you could probably run through a level a few times before you’ve discovered all the little nooks and crannies. There’s nothing better than a level having so many levels (or little popping balls filled with customisable stuff).

It’s a less intense multiplayer. Now not really having played Call of Duty or Battlefield I can only speculate, but I imagine if you’re playing online there is a precise and professional way you strike as a team and your men’s lives depend on you doing your part. Should you fail, the consequences are dire both on and off the screen. Little Big Planet 2 still promotes these things, you need communication to make sure you get the highest score and sometimes one of you will be better at using the grapple and the other at killing enemies or spotting hiding bonuses. The only difference is that if you end up failing or dying you die in such a cute way that you’d enjoy going back and playing the level again.

It’s got a great community where people have made entirely new worlds based on anything they like, Snakes and Ladders, Alice in Wonderland, Batman, all customisable and the best ones are what a good mini game for any franchise should be.

#4: God of War 3

This entry may have been skewed by the fact I got the game for under £3 and as such found it more enjoyable because it didn’t stop me from being able to eat or pay rent.

However this is the best one in the series so far. Kronos really became a badass. From the very start as you’re shifting from normal running, to climbing up a Titan, to hanging from a Titan. God of War really makes use of the entire world! The different weapons you pick up along the way each serve a purpose but it’s also lots of fun to use them all in one battle to create chaos and awesome combos.

The art is pretty awesome too, fusing ancient Greece with its mythical history as you travel from Hell to Earth and eventually end up in Olympus. Each of the major levels brings a different way to fight.

The game is bordering on disgusting (in the first 10 minutes you rip the legs of a God off) and then there is the much-anticipated scene of Kronos proving to Athena just how god-like he is but it’s all pretty realistic to how the Greek God’s and Goddesses acted in mythology (oh god, you’re playing *and* learning)!

It can get a bit repetitive at times, just like any game, and sometimes the puzzles can prove to be more irritating than intriguing but overall it’s a game that you’ll play constantly until completion.

#3: Batman: Arkham City

It would be against who I am as a person to not have a Batman game in here, but even if I weren’t a little biased it still very much deserves to be on this list. I found the mechanics of Arkham City had greatly improved from Arkham Asylum and Batman had some new and improved gadgets on him.

One of the things I liked about this was that each ‘boss’ you fought expected you to use a different fighting method. In fact when you face Dr Freeze you can only attack him in a certain way once, meaning you need to adapt multiple times resulting in very rewarding gameplay.

Another good point is that the game doesn’t force you to go through every mission and every bad-guy from the Batman archives. There is the base game and before, during or after you’ve completed it you can complete the side missions. Your skills and abilities are not affected by whether you complete them or not and it’s nice to get that choice.

You also get to play at Catwoman and Robin if you choose and there’s a special edition with a hard metallic case. On one side there’s Batman and the other there’s the Joker. If you’re a real collector there’s also the chance to get an all-in pack that has lots of goodies including a Batman statue.

The game looks beautiful and it plays true to the Batman lore (though the Joker does seem to wear make-up at least partially). It involves so many of the integral characters and is really technical, which is what we expect of the world’s best detective. The voice actors for Batman and the Joker are brilliant as there have been some hits and misses in the Batman universe. And on top of all that it has a pretty good story and definitely a shocking twist at the end!

One niggle I have for this game is that when you come across a group of thugs and you’re on the ground, it can get a bit repetitive how you attack them. The developers clearly see this and that’s why they give you the opportunity to use your gadgets but they aren’t a complete way to defeat them.

That and the scene where you have to throw a batarang through a small hole in a gate and then fly it through some electricity and then all the way back to a control pad to blow the circuit, all whilst doing this with inverted controls.

#2: The Last of Us

I’ve already written a review on why this game is so awesome (read it here) but I’ll briefly recap:

Visually stunning, bad-ass girl with the cure for zombie bites, butt-clenching tension, creepy, scary and down-right crazy enemies, varied weapons and fighting styles, heart wrenching deaths and 3D characters. This game has a true story to be found in the ruins of houses and scribbled on the last testaments of a plethora of Americans.

However, it can get a little depressing and the idea that the world may never be returned to its former glory can give you a defeatist attitude. But you have to carry on, for Ellie!

#1: Borderlands 2

If you don’t know why Borderlands 2 is at the top then you either haven’t played it or you have no sense of murderous, looting humour.

It builds a lot from the first one and it’s nice to see improved aspects of a game you thought didn’t need improving in the first place. The characters are different even though they are the same classes, it’s customisable in almost every aspect (a gazillion guns just aren’t enough) and there’s the welcomed return of Claptrap.

Instead of just beating (both in the physical sense and the time sense) everyone to a vault, only to find that it’s guarded by a giant kraken-like monster, you actually have a psychotic enemy named Handsome Jack to fight against. It is great to see the cast of the first Borderlands and to re-visit some of the old places for different reasons. Also, the cars have improved.

The characters have some hilarious and memorable phrases, there is so much to add on to the game and the little side quests have some interesting stories.

The main reason this won over The Last of Us is because, as much as I like a gripping and ground-breaking survival game, I like one with all that plus humor. Borderlands 2 has its serious moments and there’s nothing more frustrating than getting killed in the middle of a battle (bad-ass psychos are a b***h) however it knows to make a potentially horrific scenario funny. In a world of sequels that are unnecessary and full of flaws that you know means they are just cash cows for the company or fan boys were given control (BioShock 2 or Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag), this is refreshing. It keeps the core elements of the first Borderlands and improves mechanics whilst building more on the foundations.

Also if you weren’t aware, Claptrap becomes an interplanetary ninja assassin. If your game don’t have that, then your game ain’t the best!

Well that’s all folks, anything you think I missed out or do you want to contest the order? Let me know in the comments below!

Holly King
Editor