People love to do things in video games that they cannot or find difficult to do do in real life. One of the best examples of this is parkour. Climbing buildings, jumping across rooftops and scaling skyscrapers might sound like the perfect way to live for select few people, but the remaining majority would rathersit at home and watchparkour videos than go and risk their lives for an adrenaline rush.
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Thankfully, over the years, there have been video game releases that capture the thrill of parkour far better than any online video could, and these nine represent the best in the genre.
9Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
With Great Power Comes Great Parkour Capabilities
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2
Much more refined than it was in the first game, the parkour inMarvel’s Spider-Man2 may not be the traditional kind, but it’s undeniably thrilling. Swinging through New York City as Peter Parker or Miles Morales might not be what’s typically considered parkour, but it’s a thrill unlike any other. The fluid transitions between web-slinging, wall-running and ground-based traversal create a seamless experience that is the core essence of the web-crawler’s existence.
What sets this game apart is its attention to detail; animations change depending on the surroundings and both Spideys have unique styles. Miles moves with youthful energy, while Peter’s movements are refined from years of experience. The addition of web wings in this sequel further expands the player’s ability to traverse the city with speed and flair, adding a touch of wingsuit flying to a superhero game that fans ofextreme sports gameswill love.
8Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Jumping and Climbing to Treasure
Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Nathan Drake owns every cliff he climbs far better than any rock-climbing professional ever could. In Uncharted 4, parkour serves the occasional change of pace in a game filled with action sequences,jaw-dropping visualsand towering heights. These moments where Nathan is scaling ancient ruins, leaping across precarious ledges and using ropes to swing through dangerous gaps are tense and beautifully crafted.
While not purely a parkour game, traversal is a huge part of Uncharted 4 and its predecessor’s DNA. The controls feel intuitive and the environments are designed to push the player’s problem-solving skills. The one thing this game manages to do much better than any other is to make its parkour moments feel like cinema; the spectacle of these set-piece moments feels like they were ripped right straight from an action flick.
7Ghostrunner
The Cyberpunk We Never Knew We Needed
Ghostrunner
Ghostrunneris a high-octane, first-person parkour/action title where every move counts. Set in a dystopian cyberpunk world, players control a cyber-ninja who uses wall-running, grappling hooks, and time-slowing mechanics to dodge laser bullets and slice through enemies while navigating perilous environments.
The fluid parkour mechanics demand precision. One wrong move and it’s back to the last checkpoint. But every time players nail a sequence – wall-running over a pit of death, dodging gunfire, and taking out an enemy in midair – it’s incredibly satisfying. The difficulty curve is steep, but for those who love a challenge, it’s a rewarding adrenaline rush.
6Sunset Overdrive
Punk Rock Parkour
Sunset Overdrive
Sunset Overdriveis what would happen if Tony Hawk’s skateboarding took steroids and put players in a colorful, post-apocalyptic world where energy drinks have turned people into monsters. Parkour is essential if players want to survive in the game long enough to see the credits roll. Running along walls, grinding on power lines and bouncing off cars keep the momentum alive as players take down hordes of zombies high on energy drinks.
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The traversal system is fast and chaotic but surprisingly easy to master. The game rewards creativity, and stringing together moves with style increases the score and unlocks powerful abilities, tying itself into the progression system.
5Dishonored
A Deadly Combo of Stealth and Parkour
Dishonored
Parkour inDishonoredis about freedom. Creativity is at the root of everything the players do in the game, whether it’s scaling the rooftops to skip theenemieson the ground, or using supernatural powers to possess a rat and stay hidden from clockwork soldiers. Set in the dark, steampunk-inspired city of Dunwall, the parkour mechanics are extremely varied and give players the freedom to approach every mission the way they want to; go in guns blazing or silently eliminate targets from the shadows.
What makes Dishonored unique is how it integrates parkour into its stealth gameplay. The verticality of the environments challenges players to think outside the box, as every surface is a potential path, and the fluid animations make every leap and climb feel natural.
4Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
The Original King of Parkour
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
While there had been 2Dplatformersthat could be considered a parkour in some way, it was Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time that brought a 3-dimensional, parkour-intensive genre to the world of video games. It combines acrobatic movement with mind-bending puzzles, creating a timeless experience that’s just as fun to go back to twenty years later as it was on day one, provided that players can digest the dated graphics. The Prince’s ability to run on walls, swing from poles and leap across impossible gaps is extremely graceful and satisfying.
The rewind mechanic adds an extra layer of strategy, letting players experiment with different routes and correct their mistakes. All of this for the first game of a series, and dare I say, the genre, is something that deserves a lot of praise.
3Assassin’s Creed Unity
Scaling Paris Like You Have Unlimited Lives
Assassin’s Creed Unity
Few games capture the thrill of parkour quite likeAssassin’s CreedUnity, and this statement applies to the Assassin’s Creed franchise itself. While it was the Altair who was the first protagonist in the series to scale up the dusty walls of 12th century Baghdad with the finesse of a part-time parkour hobbyist, it was AC Unity’s Arno that cranked up these parkour mechanics to a level that even the future entries in the franchise failed to touch. Arno’s ability to seamlessly scale iconic buildings from 18th century Paris, like Notre Dame, or dive into crowded streets with more NPCs than players could count, is a testament not just to the refined traversal mechanics, but also to its commitment to capturing a living, breathing version of this European city during an era of turmoil and civil war.
Unity changed the climbing and descending controls for the first time since the launch of the franchise, adding a smooth descent feature that let players get down as easily as they could climb up. If the beautifully animated parkour isn’t enough, the accurate portrayal of old-school gothic architecture of 1700s Paris will be sure to put players in a place they can’t come out easily.
2Dying Light
Parkour and Zombies Makes Perfect Sense
Dying Light
Set in a zombie-infested open world, parkour is a lifeline inDying Light, without which players will easily be overwhelmed by thezombies. Running across rooftops, vaulting over obstacles, and wall-running to escape the undead feels both fluid and thrilling.
During the day, parkour is about speed, exploration and looking cool while doing it. At night, it’s about survival as the more dangerous Volatiles emerge and running away often becomes the only option left if the player wants to survive the night.
1Mirror’s Edge
The Game That Perfected First-Person Parkour
Mirror’s Edge
While it’s still up for debate whether the original’s weighty parkour is better than Catalyst’s more refined but airy feeling one, it can’t be denied that it was the 2008’sMirror’s Edgethat introduced players to a game that is so purely about running, parkouring and momentum that it puts nearly every other game of the same genre to shame.
Playing as Faith, a runner in a dystopian city, players navigate a stunning, minimalist world using fluid, first-person parkour mechanics. The sense of immersion is unparalleled; every leap, roll and slide feels visceral, while the first-person perspective heightens the tension during daring rooftop chases. The game is a love letter to parkour fans and its influence can be seen in many modern games.
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