What are the best platformers on PS5? Platformers have been part of the fabric of video games since the medium’s infancy, with many of gaming’s most famous faces originating from this genre. These games are primarily concerned with testing your ability to traverse tricky environments, but within that definition is a huge variety of experiences, and that includes on PS5.
Of course, platformers can generally be split into 2D and 3D variants. While the former is less common these days, side-scrolling platformers do still come around every now and then. You have games like Cyber Shadow that purposefully apes the stylings of yesteryear, and then there are 2D platformers that push to provide something new, like The Pedestrian.
3D platformers are what you’ll predominantly find on PS5, though, and there are some very strong examples. Every PS5 owner has access to Astro’s Playroom, for instance, but titles like Solar Ash and Sackboy: A Big Adventure provide the console with a diverse range of platforming goodness. One of PlayStation’s most enduring platformer franchises is also present and correct on PS5 with Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart.
There’s a great mix of scale and scope within the genre, so we could do with a hand getting them all in order. The games on this list are ranked based on your votes and ratings, meaning that you are directly influencing the shape of this article. If you want to have your say, you can search for your favourite PS5 platformers using the box below, or simply rate any of the titles you find on this page. Over time, this list will evolve so that it always represents your views on the best platformers on PS5.
A game will need at least 10 ratings before it makes its way onto this page. If your personal favourite platformer is missing, it could be that it just hasn’t been rated enough times yet.
Best PS5 Games
So, here’s our list of best platformers on PS5, as determined by you.
10. Cyber Shadow (PS5)
Publisher: Yacht Club Games / Developer: Mechanical Head Games
Do you have a fondness for side-scrolling action games that kick your arse? Cyber Shadow fulfils that role with gusto. Playing as a cyborg ninja, it’s up to you to rescue the rest of your clan and fight back against a metallic menace. It’s a pretty challenging game, but it does afford you new powers and abilities at a good pace to deal with all those blasted bots. Despite one or two small issues holding it back from true greatness, this is a fun, no-nonsense title with excellent pixel art visuals to boot.
9. Fall Guys (PS5)
Publisher: Epic Games / Developer: Mediatonic
What if there was a platformer in which up to 60 players compete in chaotic obstacle courses simultaneously? Turns out this madcap idea is genius, because Fall Guys is a cracking online multiplayer madhouse. Playing as a jellybean-shaped clutz, you’re up against numerous others through a series of randomly chosen stages, featuring all kinds of platforming challenges. By process of elimination, the winner will be the last one standing, and success earns you lots of excellent costumes and bragging rights. Whether you play solo or team up with friends, this is a hilarious title for all ages, and the best bit? It’s free-to-play.
8. Solar Ash (PS5)
Publisher: Annapurna Interactive / Developer: Heart Machine
Solar Ash is the follow-up to Heart Machine’s first game, Hyper Light Drifter, and it’s a pretty big departure on all fronts. Unlike its predecessor, this title is fully 3D and has a much larger emphasis on traversal and fluid motion. While you do engage in some combat, it’s fleeting and purposely straightforward, again keeping you moving as you tackle each area and their huge bosses. The result is a stylish, slick platformer that feels wonderful to play. It might lack a touch of variety in places, but it’s ultimately fun just flitting about in its surreal setting.
7. Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time (PS5)
Publisher: Activision / Developer: Toys for Bob
Crash Bandicoot is one of PlayStation’s most iconic platforming heroes, and now that he’s double-jumped onto PS5, there’s no excuse for skipping Crash Bandicoot: It’s About Time. This sequel stays true to the series’ origins, but it’s bursting with brand new ideas and jaw-dropping set-piece moments. Running at a flawless 60 frames-per-second in sparkling 4K resolution — and cutting those load times to almost nothing — this release is at its absolute best on Sony’s next-gen console.
6. Kena: Bridge of Spirits (PS5)
Publisher: Ember Lab / Developer: Ember Lab
This is the debut game from developer Ember Lab, and it’s a strong first effort. Kena: Bridge of Spirits gets top marks for its animation and visual flair, but it’s also a very enjoyable action platformer. It puts us in mind of PS2 classics such as Jak & Daxter; you’re traversing a sort-of open world environment, collecting things, solving puzzles, and engaging in simple yet surprisingly challenging combat. Those lovable Rot creatures and some tricky boss battles further cement this as a cult hit.
5. Sackboy: A Big Adventure (PS5)
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment / Developer: Sumo Digital
With creator Media Molecule focusing its attention on PS4’s boundless sandbox Dreams, LittleBigPlanet’s whimsical weaved hero deserved his Super Mario 3D World moment. Sackboy: A Big Adventure doesn’t pull up any trees like its predecessors, but is instead a robust co-operative platformer with some memorable musical moments. With a cutesy DIY aesthetic and some surprisingly tight action, it excels in an area that Sony has often been accused of overlooking: fun for the whole family.
4. LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga (PS5)
Publisher: Warner Bros / Developer: TT Games
The force is strong with this one. While there have been several instalments in the past, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga is the culmination of TT Games’ previous efforts. Encompassing all nine mainline movies, this is a huge platformer adventure featuring all the most iconic sequences you remember from the big screen. When you’re not progressing the story, it turns into a sandbox, letting you explore myriad locations from the films and play as one of hundreds of characters. Its gameplay is also more modern than the older LEGO Star Wars titles, sharpening up shooting and making combat more exciting. There’s so much to see and do here that Star Wars fans need not play anything else for a while.
3. It Takes Two (PS5)
Publisher: Electronic Arts / Developer: Hazelight
When you think of co-op games, one should spring to mind immediately: It Takes Two. This action adventure is from the makers of Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons and A Way Out, and sees you and a partner take on the role of an estranged couple. Turned into dolls by their daughter’s tears, you and a friend must go on a wildly imaginative, endlessly varied, adventure to return to normal. Constantly presenting you with new puzzles and ideas, each as good as the last, you’ll never grow weary of this brilliant game, playable locally or online.
2. Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (PS5)
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment / Developer: Insomniac Games
Up until Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart released, Insomniac Games’ dynamic duo had been wilting in the wilderness a little bit. The PS4 reboot, Ratchet & Clank, was well-received – but it felt lightweight compared to classic series entries, like Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time. Fortunately, while Rift Apart doesn’t necessarily reinvent the wheel, it does deliver the series’ first full-scale adventure in well over a generation. This is a game that feels great to play, thanks in part to stunning DualSense integration and some of the glitziest special effects this side of the galaxy. It’s a little more throwaway than many of the PS5’s other exclusives, but its thoroughly entertaining while it lasts, and the introduction of new characters like Rivet mean there’s a lot of life left in this series yet.
1. Astro’s Playroom (PS5)
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment / Developer: Team Asobi
As far as pack-ins go, Astro’s Playroom is exemplary. Inspired by Team Asobi’s critically acclaimed PSVR platformer Astro Bot Rescue Mission – itself originally introduced in The Playroom VR – this short-form platformer serves as an introduction to the PS5, specifically the DualSense controller. As you explore cutesy character Astro’s vibrant world, you’ll physically feel it in your fingertips, from the sensation of rain falling on the hero’s hard, steel exterior to the slippery surfaces of ice. All of this, alone, would make it a truly memorable experience – but the game also doubles as a kind of history lesson, exploring many of the most famous moments from PlayStation’s past. Simply put, it’s an extraordinary four to five hour escapade, and one that every new PS5 owner must play.
So, that’s your lot — the best platformers on PS5, as dictated by the Push Square community. Does the list align with your tastes, or are there some titles you feel are in the wrong spot — or maybe not represented at all? It’s down to you to make changes, so if you think something’s amiss, use the search bar at the top of this article to leave your ratings on any PS5 platformers. Alternatively, you can navigate to any game’s page and use the star to rate them. If you can’t find a game to rate it, let us know, and we’ll get it added to our PlayStation Games Database. All that said, tell us what you think in the comments section below.
