While video games are primarily a form of entertainment, some titles require maximum reflexes from the player. These ultra-fast-paced games are not for everyone, as they are demanding and intense at every moment. Speed in gaming can be found in different ways, and that's exactly what we're going to discover in this selection of the best fast-paced games.
The title that best represents speed in a video game is undoubtedly DOOM Eternal. It's not a Fast-FPS for nothing! The title by id Software gives us no respite. Here, you have to move constantly, and taking cover often leads to certain death. This episode also brings astonishing platforming to a game of this type. You have to quickly perform precise jumps without forgetting to shoot all the demons that try to block your path. If there's one fast-paced game that puts your reflexes to the test, it's this one.
Of course, racing games also deliver a good dose of adrenaline. Despite its age, the F-Zero series is timeless in this category! Aboard futuristic racing cars, players are launched at high speed onto circuits that are very difficult to master. Quite distinct in its approach, Burnout gives rise to totally crazy battles behind the wheel of ever faster vehicles. The goal is not only to finish first, but also to finish the race in one piece, as accidents can happen at every turn.
The older Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance features intense combat. What makes it a fast-paced game is undoubtedly the sequence of combos and the ability to cut through everything in your path with your katana. During the PS3/Xbox 360 generation, Vanquish also made a lasting impression. This shooter is set in a science fiction universe where you have to take down hordes of enemies using a vast arsenal. All this without ever stopping and leaving very little room for planning your actions.
As for more recent productions, it's impossible to overlook PlayStation's roguelike Returnal.
While it may not have the intensity of DOOM, the game created by Housemarque is an impressive third-person shooter thanks to its fast pace and well-designed structure. The narrative dimension can also boast of being completely mastered. The same goes for Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon from FromSoftware. This action game, created by the makers of the “Souls” series, delivers frenetic, multidirectional battles using mechs. Everything is fast, intense, and above all highly explosive.
Thus, fast-paced games can come in many different forms. Sometimes very difficult, like Cuphead or Sekiro, and original in their form, like Katana Zero or Post Void, these titles emphasize gameplay by challenging the player's skills. They are clearly not relaxing experiences, as they project a raw vision of what a video game is at its core. That is to say, a medium that requires patience, skill, and ever-faster reflexes to cope with the most tense situations.
In any case, here are the fast-paced games you absolutely must play in 2025!
1. DOOM Eternal
- Available on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch and PC
2. Sonic Unleashed
- Available on PS2, PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii
3. Cuphead
- Available on PS4, Xbox One, Switch and PC
4. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
- Available on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC
5. Minit
- Available on PS4, Xbox One, Switch and PC
6. Vanquish
- Available on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC
7. WarioWare: Get It Together!
- Available on Switch
8. Hard Corps: Uprising
- Available on PS3 and Xbox 360
9. Returnal
- Available on PS5 and PC
10. Katana Zero
- Available on Xbox One, Switch and PC
11. Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon
- Available on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PC
12. Time Crisis 2
- Available on PS2 and Arcade
13. Pizza Tower
- Available on Switch and PC
14. F-Zero GX
- Available on GameCube and Switch 2
15. Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
- Available on PS4, Xbox One and PC
16. Ghostrunner
- Available on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch and PC
17. Burnout Paradise Remastered
- Available on PS4, Xbox One, Switch and PC
18. Trepang2
- Available on PC
19. Turbo Overkill
- Available on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch and PC
20. Post Void
- Available on PS4, PS5, Switch and PC