Teen games: 45 Catalogued (2026)
Which games suit a teenager?
Games with a store age gate in the twelve to sixteen range, or a teen rating from a ratings board.
45 games, top 25 ranked below
How this list is built. Store age gate between 12 and 16, and no adult content descriptors. Membership is that rule, nothing assigned by us, so you can check any entry against its own store page. The order below is the GamingPickz Score, the same one every ranked list uses.
Read this before relying on it. Age gates on store pages are set by publishers and are frequently left at zero even for violent games. Treat this as a filter, not a rating.
The teen games on a map
Compare the whole catalogueThe same 25 games, plotted rather than listed. The two axes below are the ones the ranking is built from, so a game sitting high and right is a game the formula placed near the top. Change either axis to see the field a different way. Where we hold a publisher wordmark, the game is drawn as its mark rather than a dot.
25 games have both
Axes are fitted to these 25 games rather than the full 0 to 100 scale, because a filtered list shares a narrow band and would otherwise sit in one corner. End values are marked. A point on the left edge is the lowest of thesegames, not a low score.
Players. The share of Steam reviews marked positive, pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it. A game with 200 reviews moves a long way toward the average; one with 200,000 barely moves at all. Without this a title sitting at 100 percent on nine reviews outranks Half-Life 2 at 98 percent on 278,000.
Popularity. A blend of two things that are not the same. Audience is how many people wrote a Steam review, which is a floor on how many played it. Reach is how many language editions of Wikipedia document the game, which is cultural footprint rather than sales. A game can score high on one and low on the other: a huge free-to-play title has audience without reach, and a landmark console exclusive has reach without a Steam audience at all. Where both exist they are averaged; where only one does, that one carries it.
- Mobile
- Multi-platform
- PC
- PlayStation
- Xbox
Every point links to that game's entry. The value map and the reception map are fixed views of the same data.
How positions are decided
No paid placement, no favouritism, live third-party data
- Placed by the published method, not by us. Every coordinate is computed from the axis definitions and weights printed on this site. Nobody moves a point. See the axes.
- Nothing here is paid for. No sponsored placements, no promoted slots, no arrangement of any kind affects a position. If that ever changes it will be labelled and sit outside the ranking.
- No favouritism, including our own. The 16 games we have written full reviews of are scored by exactly the same formula as the other 1,510, from the same third-party inputs, and they land where it puts them. Our own opinion of a game does not enter its coordinates.
- A position is not an endorsement. It says how a game was received and what it costs, not that we recommend it. Where we do recommend something, it carries a written review with a name on it.
- Fetched from live third-party data. Player sentiment from Steam, critic aggregates as published on store pages, prices checked hourly, attention from Wikipedia. Each figure carries its source and the date it was read, and we do not adjust any of them.
25 best teen games, ranked
Ordered by GamingPickz Score. Every figure links back to the source that produced it.
- 1
Elden RingWe reviewed this
Best for: The safest bet on this list, by weight of evidence
9.0GamingPickz ScoreOur review: 9.5/10high confidenceElden Ring at a glance Released 2022 Studio fromsoftware Player sentiment 93% positive of 1,151,628 Critics 94/100 Price $59.99 Steam Deck verified Install size 60 GB Accessibility 7 declared features Raw 93% shrinks to 93.0 on 1,151,628 reviews, then blends with the 94 critic aggregate, giving 9.0.
What the data supports- 93% positive across 1,151,628 reviews is a strong signal at that volume, where a few enthusiasts cannot move the number.
- Valve has tested it and rates it Verified on the Steam Deck.
- Declares 7 accessibility features, well above the catalogue norm.
Worth checking first- Flagged for mature content on its store page.
PlayStation 5PlayStation 4Xbox Series X and Series SXbox OnePC
- 2
Fallout: New Vegas
Best for: The safest bet on this list, by weight of evidence
8.4GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceFallout: New Vegas at a glance Released 2010 Studio Obsidian Entertainment Player sentiment 96% positive of 261,194 Critics 84/100 Price $9.99 Steam Deck playable Install size Not stated Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 96% shrinks to 96.0 on 261,194 reviews, then blends with the 84 critic aggregate, giving 8.4.
What the data supports- 96% positive across 261,194 reviews is a strong signal at that volume, where a few enthusiasts cannot move the number.
- 3
Fallout: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
8.2GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceFallout: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game at a glance Released 2015 Studio Interplay Inc. Player sentiment 94% positive of 25,164 Critics 89/100 Price $9.99 Steam Deck playable Install size Not stated Accessibility 0 declared features Raw 94% shrinks to 93.8 on 25,164 reviews, then blends with the 89 critic aggregate, giving 8.2.
- 4
Fallout 2: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
8.1GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceFallout 2: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game at a glance Released 2009 Studio Black Isle Studios Player sentiment 94% positive of 17,454 Critics 86/100 Price $9.99 Steam Deck playable Install size Not stated Accessibility 0 declared features Raw 94% shrinks to 93.8 on 17,454 reviews, then blends with the 86 critic aggregate, giving 8.1.
- 5
FINAL FANTASY IX
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
8.1GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceFINAL FANTASY IX at a glance Released 2016 Studio Square Enix Player sentiment 95% positive of 14,266 Critics 84/100 Price $20.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 7 GB Accessibility 3 declared features Raw 95% shrinks to 94.7 on 14,266 reviews, then blends with the 84 critic aggregate, giving 8.1.
What the data supports- Small install at 7 GB.
- 6
Horizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
8.0GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceHorizon Zero Dawn Complete Edition at a glance Released 2020 Studio Guerrilla Player sentiment 88% positive of 128,210 Critics No aggregate Price Not listed Steam Deck verified Install size 100 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 88% shrinks to 88.0 on 128,210 reviews, giving 8.0. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
What the data supports- Valve has tested it and rates it Verified on the Steam Deck.
GUILTY GEAR -STRIVE- at a glance Released 2021 Studio Arc System Works Player sentiment 88% positive of 66,791 Critics 85/100 Price $39.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 26 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 88% shrinks to 88.0 on 66,791 reviews, then blends with the 85 critic aggregate, giving 8.0.
- 8
Command & Conquer Remastered Collection
Best for: Playing with other people
8.0GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceCommand & Conquer Remastered Collection at a glance Released 2020 Studio Petroglyph Player sentiment 91% positive of 34,961 Critics 82/100 Price $19.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 32 GB Accessibility 0 declared features Raw 91% shrinks to 90.9 on 34,961 reviews, then blends with the 82 critic aggregate, giving 8.0.
- 9
FINAL FANTASY XIV Online
Best for: Playing through with a friend online
7.9GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceFINAL FANTASY XIV Online at a glance Released 2014 Studio Square Enix Player sentiment 87% positive of 85,571 Critics 83/100 Price $19.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 140 GB Accessibility 6 declared features Raw 87% shrinks to 87.0 on 85,571 reviews, then blends with the 83 critic aggregate, giving 7.9.
- 10
HELLDIVERS Dive Harder Edition
Best for: Playing through with a friend online
7.9GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceHELLDIVERS Dive Harder Edition at a glance Released 2015 Studio Arrowhead Game Studios Player sentiment 90% positive of 33,376 Critics 83/100 Price $19.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 7 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 90% shrinks to 89.9 on 33,376 reviews, then blends with the 83 critic aggregate, giving 7.9.
What the data supports- Small install at 7 GB.
- 11
DARK SOULS II: Scholar of the First Sin
Best for: Handheld play, small install and Deck verified
7.8GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceDARK SOULS II: Scholar of the First Sin at a glance Released 2015 Studio FromSoftware, Inc. Player sentiment 84% positive of 131,673 Critics 79/100 Price $39.99 Steam Deck verified Install size 23 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 84% shrinks to 84.0 on 131,673 reviews, then blends with the 79 critic aggregate, giving 7.8.
What the data supports- Valve has tested it and rates it Verified on the Steam Deck.
Command & Conquer at a glance Released 1995 Studio Westwood Studios Player sentiment 91% positive of 34,959 Critics 82/100 Price $19.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 32 GB Accessibility 0 declared features Raw 91% shrinks to 90.9 on 34,959 reviews, then blends with the 82 critic aggregate, giving 7.8.
- 13
Batman: Arkham Origins
Best for: Sinking a long time into one world
7.7GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceBatman: Arkham Origins at a glance Released 2013 Studio Warner Bros. Games Player sentiment 90% positive of 65,305 Critics 74/100 Price $19.99 Steam Deck unsupported Install size Not stated Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 90% shrinks to 90.0 on 65,305 reviews, then blends with the 74 critic aggregate, giving 7.7.
Worth checking first- Players rate it well above critics, 90 against 74. Usually a sign it improved after launch, or that it delivers something reviewers undervalued.
- Valve rates it Unsupported on the Steam Deck.
Star Wars Battlefront II at a glance Released 2017 Studio DICE Player sentiment 88% positive of 99,746 Critics No aggregate Price $39.99 Steam Deck unsupported Install size 60 GB Accessibility 0 declared features Raw 88% shrinks to 88.0 on 99,746 reviews, giving 7.6. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
Worth checking first- Valve rates it Unsupported on the Steam Deck.
- 15
Horizon Forbidden West Complete Edition
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
7.6GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceHorizon Forbidden West Complete Edition at a glance Released 2024 Studio Guerrilla Player sentiment 88% positive of 30,267 Critics No aggregate Price $59.99 Steam Deck unsupported Install size 150 GB Accessibility 8 declared features Raw 88% shrinks to 87.9 on 30,267 reviews, giving 7.6. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
What the data supports- Declares 8 accessibility features, well above the catalogue norm.
Worth checking first- Valve rates it Unsupported on the Steam Deck.
- 16
FINAL FANTASY X/X-2 HD Remaster
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
7.6GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceFINAL FANTASY X/X-2 HD Remaster at a glance Released 2016 Studio Square Enix Player sentiment 88% positive of 23,525 Critics No aggregate Price $29.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 37 GB Accessibility 4 declared features Raw 88% shrinks to 87.9 on 23,525 reviews, giving 7.6. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
Star Wars: Battlefront II at a glance Released 2005 Studio Pandemic Studios Player sentiment 88% positive of 99,746 Critics No aggregate Price $39.99 Steam Deck unsupported Install size 60 GB Accessibility 0 declared features Raw 88% shrinks to 88.0 on 99,746 reviews, giving 7.5. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
Worth checking first- Valve rates it Unsupported on the Steam Deck.
- 18
FINAL FANTASY XV WINDOWS EDITION
Best for: Players who need accessibility options that actually exist
7.5GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceFINAL FANTASY XV WINDOWS EDITION at a glance Released 2018 Studio Square Enix Player sentiment 83% positive of 57,999 Critics No aggregate Price $34.99 Steam Deck verified Install size 100 GB Accessibility 9 declared features Raw 83% shrinks to 83.0 on 57,999 reviews, giving 7.5. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
What the data supports- Valve has tested it and rates it Verified on the Steam Deck.
- Declares 9 accessibility features, well above the catalogue norm.
- 19
Injustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition
Best for: Playing with other people
7.5GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceInjustice: Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition at a glance Released 2013 Studio NetherRealm Studios Player sentiment 86% positive of 20,131 Critics 79/100 Price $19.99 Steam Deck unsupported Install size 21 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 86% shrinks to 86.0 on 20,131 reviews, then blends with the 79 critic aggregate, giving 7.5.
Worth checking first- Valve rates it Unsupported on the Steam Deck.
- 20
Final Fantasy VIII
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
7.5GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceFinal Fantasy VIII at a glance Released 1999 Studio Square Player sentiment 88% positive of 9,497 Critics No aggregate Price $11.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 4 GB Accessibility 2 declared features Raw 88% shrinks to 87.8 on 9,497 reviews, giving 7.5. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
What the data supports- Small install at 4 GB.
- 21
Tomb Raider: Legend
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
7.5GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceTomb Raider: Legend at a glance Released 2006 Studio Crystal Dynamics Player sentiment 88% positive of 6,103 Critics 82/100 Price $0.97 Steam Deck playable Install size Not stated Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 88% shrinks to 87.7 on 6,103 reviews, then blends with the 82 critic aggregate, giving 7.5.
Nintendo GameCubePlayStation PortablePCPlayStation 2PlayStation 5Xbox
Tropico 6 at a glance Released 2019 Studio Limbic Entertainment Player sentiment 88% positive of 29,431 Critics 78/100 Price $39.99 Steam Deck playable Install size 16 GB Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 88% shrinks to 87.9 on 29,431 reviews, then blends with the 78 critic aggregate, giving 7.4.
- 23
Crysis 2 - Maximum Edition
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
7.3GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceCrysis 2 - Maximum Edition at a glance Released 2011 Studio Crytek Studios Player sentiment 85% positive of 13,866 Critics No aggregate Price $29.99 Steam Deck playable Install size Not stated Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 85% shrinks to 85.0 on 13,866 reviews, giving 7.3. No critics data, so that weight was redistributed across the rest rather than counted as zero.
- 24
The Evil Within
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
7.2GamingPickz Scorehigh confidenceThe Evil Within at a glance Released 2014 Studio Tango Gameworks Player sentiment 85% positive of 33,579 Critics 68/100 Price $19.99 Steam Deck verified Install size 50 GB Accessibility 4 declared features Raw 85% shrinks to 85.0 on 33,579 reviews, then blends with the 68 critic aggregate, giving 7.2.
What the data supports- Valve has tested it and rates it Verified on the Steam Deck.
Worth checking first- Players rate it well above critics, 85 against 68. Usually a sign it improved after launch, or that it delivers something reviewers undervalued.
- 25
Tomb Raider: Anniversary
Best for: A consistently well-received pick in this category
7.2GamingPickz Scoremedium confidenceTomb Raider: Anniversary at a glance Released 2007 Studio Crystal Dynamics Player sentiment 82% positive of 7,403 Critics 83/100 Price $0.98 Steam Deck playable Install size Not stated Accessibility 1 declared feature Raw 82% shrinks to 82.1 on 7,403 reviews, then blends with the 83 critic aggregate, giving 7.2.
How to choose between these
25 entries, six things that separate them
The ranking answers "which is best received". It cannot answer "which is best for you", because that depends on things no formula knows. Here is what actually separates these 25 teen games, in the order worth thinking about it.
Check the sample size before the score
A score is only as good as the evidence under it. 10 of these have more than 50,000 player reviews, which makes their number very hard to move.
Look at where critics and players disagree
The widest gap here is The Evil Within, where players sit above critics by 17 points. A gap that size usually means the game changed after launch, or that it does something critics undervalue. It is worth reading why before deciding which number you trust. The disagreement map plots this across the catalogue.
Decide what you are actually willing to spend
The median here is $19.99, and the cheapest paid entry is Tomb Raider: Legend at $0.97. Prices move constantly, so a game a place or two down the list is often the better buy this week. Filter by price below rather than assuming the top pick is the right purchase.
Match it to the hardware you own
5 of these are Steam Deck Verified by Valve's own testing, and install sizes vary by more than an order of magnitude. If you are choosing for a handheld or a drive that is nearly full, that narrows the field faster than any score.
Check it supports how you want to play
Solo, with a friend online, or two people on one sofa are different requirements, and a well-reviewed game that does not support yours is the wrong game. The filters below answer this directly.
Look for the things a score hides
4 declare six or more accessibility features, and 0 carry in-game purchases. Neither shows up in a review score, and both change the experience substantially. Each entry lists its own.
Choose one if…
Tick what matters to you. This filters the ranking above rather than reordering it, so the order you see is still the order the formula produced, minus the games that do not fit. Every filter reads a field from the game's own store listing.
Nothing selected, so all 25 teen games are shown below. Pick one or more above to narrow it.
teen games by the numbers
The figures below describe all 25 entries on this page together, not the top pick. They are recomputed on every build, most recently on 19 October 2026, from 2,481,845 player reviews.
What the pricing looks like
24 of the 25 carry a listed US price, with a median of $19.99 and a mean of $25.82. The mean sitting above the median tells you the field is pulled up by a few expensive outliers. The cheapest is Tomb Raider: Legend at $0.97, the most expensive Elden Ring at $59.99. Prices are read hourly from the US Steam storefront and move constantly.
How much this field agrees with itself
Player sentiment spans 14 points across these 25 entries. That is a narrow band, which means the ranking is separating good from good, and the entries below the top few are not meaningfully worse. 17 carry a critic aggregate, averaging 82 out of 100. Players rate this field 7 points higher than critics on average, which is worth knowing before you weigh either number. See where the two diverge.
Who makes them, and what they overlap with
The studios appearing most often here are Square Enix (4), Crystal Dynamics (2), Guerrilla (2), Arc System Works (1) and Arrowhead Game Studios (1). The genres these entries also sit in are open-world (14), rpg (13), action-rpg (7), fps (5), jrpg (5) and sandbox (5), which is a fair map of what you are actually choosing between.
Which way attention is moving
We track Wikipedia pageviews over 28 days for 10 of these. 2 are gaining attention and 1 are losing it, with the rest flat. Attention is not quality, and we do not feed it into the ranking. The full monitor shows the movements across the catalogue.
Common questions
What is the best teen game in 2026?
Elden Ring ranks first, with a GamingPickz Score of 9.0 out of 10. That score is computed from player sentiment adjusted for sample size, critic reception and popularity, using the weights published on this page.
How many teen games are there?
We track 45 teen games. Games with fewer than 50 player reviews are excluded from the ranking, because a percentage with no sample behind it is not a measurement.
How is this list ranked?
By a published formula, not by editorial preference. Player sentiment is pulled toward the catalogue average in proportion to how few reviews stand behind it, then weighted against critic scores and popularity. Nothing on this page is paid for and no placement can be bought.
How often is this updated?
Recomputed on every build from data read on a stated date. Player review counts move daily, so positions in the middle of the list shift more than the top or bottom.
Reader comments
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Also catalogued
16 more teen games, not yet reviewedNone of these carry a review yet. The rest are catalogue records: title, year, studio and platforms, sourced from Wikidata. They are not indexed by search engines, because a record is not a review.
- Final Fantasy XIIIsource
- Tomb Raider IIsource
- Need for Speed Paybacksource
- Tomb Raider: Underworldsource
- Star Wars Jedi: Survivorsource
- Populoussource
- SEGA Mega Drive and Genesis Classicssource
- Resident Evil 6source
- Remember Mesource
- Villagers and Heroessource
- MOBIUS FINAL FANTASYsource
- Session: Skate Simsource
- STAR WARS: Squadronssource
- Returnalsource
- Age of Wonders 4source
- Castlevania: Belmont's Cursesource