Newsletter
GeForce NOW isn’t the only cloud gaming service out there, but it is now perhaps the best showcase for the technology, with over 1,500 games, and the recently launched RTX 4080 SuperPODs that Ultimate subscribers have access to. We’ve spent lots of time with the new features to check things out over the past year, and have so far loved everything about the upgrade.
With so many available games though, you’d be forgiven for having trouble deciding on what to play. Especially if you’re a newcomer to the service and aren’t sure where to start. Obviously, you’ll want to use GeForce NOW to play the games you already play on a local machine. If you’re already playing them, then you’re probably having fun doing it. And gaming is about fun after all, so you should ultimately play the games you have fun with.
That being said, there are some games available on GeForce NOW that showcase the tech better than others, and we rounded up some of the best options as suggestions for where to start. Also keep in mind that with GeForce NOW you do need to own the game on a compatible platform like Steam, the Epic Games Store, Ubisoft Connect, or GOG. Also worth noting, is that the prices on these games change. Prices listed may not be the current price as some games will be on limited-time sales.
Best multiplayer shooter: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III
- Price: $59.99
- Where to Buy: Steam
Call of Duty Modern Warfare III landed on GeForce NOW back in November and it’s one of the best games you can play on the service at the moment. On top of that, this marks a monumental moment for the service in general. It’s the first Activision game to land on GeForce NOW following Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. If you’ve been with GeForce NOW since beta, then you might remember that there used to be Activision games on the service. But Activision, like many publishers, pulled its games well before an official launch.
That was years ago. So this is a pretty big deal. All of that aside, Modern Warfare III on GeForce NOW means you can play the game anywhere you like as long as you have fast, reliable internet. From your phone no less. If you’re big into the game, this will be an easy way to continue your progression even if you’re not at home sitting in front of your PC. GeForce NOW access for this game comes at a perfect time too. Because Season 1 of Modern Warfare III just launched this week. With it comes an all-new battle pass to complete for tons of unlockable rewards.
Including 2XP tokens, new weapons, new operator skins, and a whole lot more. While the game has negative reviews on Steam, much of that seems to be for the campaign as many say it feels more like a DLC than a whole new game. I say ignore the haters. The campaign was fun. It should have been less money but let’s be honest. The multiplayer and the zombies mode are the meat and potatoes of this game and both of those are excellent modes of play.
If you’re curious about the zombies mode, think of it like a zombies version of DMZ but with no PvP elements at all. It’s strictly PvE and it’s awesome. You pick your loadout just like you would in DMZ, drop in solo or with a squad of two other players, and then work your way around the map doing any number of things. You can complete contracts for cash so you can level up your weapons at Pack-a-Punch stations, then work toward the middle of the map where all the most dangerous zombies and monsters are. Brave the tier zone and you just might score some really sweet rewards.
Zombies is also a great way to level up weapons. And once you level them up that progress stays for when you’re playing in multiplayer. So if you’re camo grinding, zombies is excellent for leveling weapons that are more annoying to level in multiplayer. Speaking of multiplayer, with season 1 now active, there are three new 6v6 maps available across all modes in both core and hardcore. In addition, season 1 marks the arrival of Warzone in Modern Warfare III. Now is certainly the time to jump back into Call of Duty.
Best open-world RPG: Cyberpunk 2077
- Price: From $29.99
- Where To Buy: Steam
There are few if any games that truly push the limits of what PC gaming can do these days. And that’s precisely why Cyberpunk 2077 is an excellent game to test out GeForce NOW with. It’s one of the best GeForce NOW games with the arrival of the RTX 4080 SuperPODs.
As long as you’re subscribed to the Ultimate plan, and in my opinion you should be, you’ll get to push this game to the limits. As I have tested it myself, you can crank the graphics up to their absolute maximum. And the game looks and runs great. Cyberpunk 2077 had its rough patches in the early days of its launch. But it’s in a much better spot now and is a wonderful game to behold.
A story that you want to play more than once just to experience the different endings. Although, the combat and build crafting are two of the main reasons to check it out. Now is also the best time to give this game a try if you have never played it. For more reasons than one.
For starters, the expansion, Phantom Liberty, launched a couple of months ago so there’s fresh content to play through. A whole new storyline with loads of missions wrapped up in a spy thriller theme. This is just where things begin. On top of the new expansion, CD PROJEKT RED has pushed out tons of upgrades. With patch 2.0 that launched alongside the expansion, the game’s skill system was completely reworked and is now much better than it was before. This includes some new skills that weren’t available before the patch but you might also notice some familiar favorites if you’re an existing player of the game.
More recently, however, CDPR pushed out patch 2.1. This adds even more content like replayable car races, new vehicles, a portable radio you can listen to as you walk around the city, and you can now finally ride the metro around. This most recent patch does more than just add new playable content though. It also introduces improvements to Path Tracing and Ray Tracing. The visual differences aren’t night and day but they are noticeable. And the best part is, you’ll get to experience these visual upgrades if you’re on the Ultimate membership.
Best fantasy RPG: Baldur’s Gate 3
- Price: $59.99
- Where to Buy: Steam
Despite this game being available on GeForce NOW for a while, it only just recently launched in full. Officially it got the full release back in August and was released for PS5 the following month. Before that, it was available in early access. Now that the official launch has happened, Baldur’s Gate 3 has gained so much attention that it’s been nominated for Game of the Year at The Game Awards.
This fantasy epic is based in the Dungeons & Dragons universe and has many hours of content. If you’re looking for a long game to play, one that you can dive deep into for months upon months, this is probably that game. With well over 100 hours of gameplay for one single playthrough, you surely won’t be bored.
There are also multiple endings so there’s a reason to play the game again and again. This is a turn-based strategy RPG so it revolves a lot around putting together a party fit for specific combat scenarios and making tactical moves. The best part about this game is that the developers have coded in so many ways to accomplish things. Don’t want to go through a bunch of enemies and climb the castle steps to kill a single enemy? Fine. Stack crates on top of each other until you can stand on top of them and shoot down over the castle walls. Thus avoiding almost all combat.
Filled with rich lore and tons of spells and abilities, Baldur’s Gate 3 provides something few other RPG games can. A near limitless amount of ways to play the game. This is very rare these days. And it’s one of the reasons why I love it so much and why so many others do too. And now that it’s on GeForce NOW you won’t have to be limited to playing at home. Take it with you everywhere and continue your adventures whenever you wish.
Baldur’s Gate 3 also has one of the most in-depth character creators of any modern game. With 11 races and 31 subraces, plus tons of customization options, you can create a character that is truly unique to you. There’s also multiplayer support with up to four players just in case you get bored of playing alone and want to bring a friend. If you like strategy RPGs based on high-fantasy, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a must-play title.
Best racing game: Absolute Drift
- Price: $11.99
- Where to Buy: Steam
There are lots of good racing games out there, but when it comes to racing games available on GeForce NOW, Absolute Drift takes the cake. For starters, this is an indie game and we love indie games. Some of the best games that were the most fun that we’ve ever played are indie games.
Aside from that, it’s just hard to argue with a really good quality game that doesn’t cost a lot. That’s another reason why we think this is the best racing game on GeForce NOW and that’s it’s worthy of your attention. It’s only $11.99 and that’s incredibly good value for game that will provide you with hours of entertainment.
As the name suggests Absolute Drift is a game about drift racing. Or rather, about mastering the art of drifting. To that end a lot of the time you spend playing it will revolve around trying to master every track available. This includes 5 more recently added “night tracks” that will tack on layers of additional challenge. You might find it difficult to get going at first, but the fun ensues almost instantly and you’ll want to keep coming back.
As a nice little bonus, Absolute Drift is a Steam Deck-verified game so you can play it on the Steam Deck if you have one. This is a good thing since you might not always have an internet connection to stream over GeForce NOW. There are 34 tracks to complete but the game goes beyond this by adding challenging tasks. Once you finish the tracks in their normal state, you can test your skills by trying to complete the challenges and the aforementioned night tracks. And for even more things to do, there are 20 achievements to collect.
Achievement hunters will no doubt find plenty to keep them entertained with Absolute Drift. Overall, for $12 this is a steal of a game that everyone should pick up if they like racing titles. It might not look as realistic as some other racing games out there, but I can assure you it’ll be just as fun if not more so.
Best free-to-play game: Genshin Impact
- Price: Free
- Where to Download: N/A
With more or less every other game on this list, you’ll need to own the game on a supported storefront to play it using GeForce NOW. That isn’t the case with Genshin Impact. This is a free-to-play game so you don’t need to purchase or own it. You also simply need to search for it in the GeForce NOW library and hit the play button and you’re off and running. As you might be able to guess, Genshin Impact is an open-world anime RPG.
It has a rich, compelling story to follow with hundreds of quests to fill your time. This is also a live-service game which means you’ll be able to look forward to additional content being added down the road. HoYoverse expands on the game with new content patches every couple of months or so, with large patches a couple of times a year.
A big part of the game is collecting and putting together a party of heroes, of which there are many to choose from. Each character you can play has its own unique set of abilities attuned to one of the game’s different element types. And with so many playable characters it makes for a varied list of party combinations. Now as this is an open-world game, there will be a lot to explore and discover.
Genshin Impact features several nations that are massive in size. In addition to all of the colorful characters you’ll meet in each of these new lands, there will be new monsters to fight, new quests to take on, and new branches of the story to take the game’s overarching story even further. You can spend money on this game but HoYoverse has been pretty good about making most things completely accessible through gameplay. Some of it might take a little longer to acquire. But it’s one of the better free-to-play games that doesn’t shove microtransactions down your throat and force you to pay for things.
And that in and of itself is a reason to check the game out if you like RPGs and adventure games.
Best platformer game: The Ori Collection
- Price: $49.98 (on sale for $31.48)
- Where to Buy: Steam
Ori and the Blind Forest and its sequel, Ori and the Will of the Wisps are two of the best platformers available on GeForce NOW. Furthermore, they’re two of the best platformers out there period. You can get both games in one bundle on Steam in The Ori Collection, which is currently on sale making it a great time to pick these up if you’ve never played them.
Better still is that the version of Ori and the Blind Forest you get is the Definitive Edition. Which comes with new environments, new abilities, and full backtracking support. The Definitive Edition also includes new secrets to discover and new story sequences. This is essentially the version of the game you want to play if you’re a newcomer to the series. Then of course, once you’re done with that you can move on to the sequel which has even more gorgeous environments.
One of my favorite parts about either of these games is the level design. Not only are they visually stunning, but they’re fun to traverse and provide a nice level of challenge without being too difficult to turn some players off. Even at full price, two games for the price of one AAA release is a great deal when they’re this good. Do yourself a favor and pick the bundle up if you haven’t already.
Best family game: Moving Out 2
- Price: $29.99
- Where to Buy: Steam
Lots of people play games and this includes families. If you happen to be one of those families that enjoys playing games together, then you need to check out Moving Out 2. Even if you’re not a family and you just enjoy playing more casual games, this is a great one to try out with friends who also like playing casual games because it now supports online play.
It’s lighthearted and filled with silly humor that is hard not to laugh at and is sure to make you crack a smile. In Moving Out 2 you play the role of a Furniture Arrangement & Relocation Technician (yes, a F.A.R.T.) after seeing a now-hiring poster. You need a job so you take on the responsibilities of the F.A.R.T.s and help people move their stuff around. Or sometimes you help them move their stuff to completely new places.
Since this is a physics-based co-op game it’s best played with other people. And if you are playing with family, such as your kids, you will no doubt find it enjoyable since it includes the kind of humor that kids would laugh at.
Best action game: Assassin’s Creed Mirage
- Price: $49.99
- Where to Buy: Ubisoft
Assassin’s Creed Mirage is in my personal opinion, one of the best Assassin’s Creed games to ever release. It harkens back to the Assassin’s Creed games of old and that’s a nice refreshing feeling after the massive, more RPG-focused releases like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla and Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. While still a fairly big game, Assassin’s Creed Mirage is much smaller in scale so it should feel a lot easier to get through. And I think that is a big reason to get back into the series if you’ve been away for a while.
As always with games in this series, Mirage has lots of interwoven themes based on historical facts. If you love history and like to learn about other cultures, you’ll find some neat little tidbits about Baghdad in this game. In Assassin’s Creed Mirage, you’ll play the role of Basim, a thief who ends up joining the Assassin’s order. If you liked older Assassin’s Creed games Mirage also features combat that is more like those older releases, but paired with some of the more modern enhancements.
Of course, if you prefer the newer games in the series you might find this one a little hard to get into. But it’s still worth a playthrough. Stealth plays a strong role in this game and you’re rewarded for engaging in less direct combat with enemies. Although you’re not often prevented from doing so if this is how you wish to play the game.
You’ll notice that Basim’s story, and therefore the game itself, is much shorter than some of the previous games. This is indeed a good thing because it makes the adventure more accessible to more people. There’s more of a chance you’ll finish the entire thing and you do want to finish it. Because the story is great. In total, it should take you around an average of 20 hours to complete. However, that time can change if you’re a completionist and you try to do everything and collect everything the game offers.
Best arcade game: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge
- Price: $24.99
- Where to Buy: Steam
The TMNT games from back in the day were some of the best arcade games available. Not only is TMNT one of the biggest franchises on the planet but the original games were co-op which made them fun to play with friends and siblings. Shredder’s Revenge carries on that legacy by allowing for co-op both online and via split-screen. Of course, if you’re playing on GeForce NOW you’ll have to play co-op using the online function. But that won’t take away from the experience.
In Shredder’s Revenge, you can play as any of the four original turtles including Leonardo, Donatello, Michaelangelo, and Raphael. You can also play as Usagi Yojimbo via a new DLC, Casey Jones, Master Splinter, and even April O’Neil if you feel so inclined. Graphics are true to the original with glorious pixel art but with an updated look thanks to more vibrant colors. All the characters also have new unique abilities for some pretty cool attacks and devastating combos. Which you might need from time to time as the game is still tough as nails.
In fact, if you enjoyed these beat ’em up games for their challenge, you’ll love Shredder’s Revenge. It’s not impossible by any means. But it’s no cakewalk either and will most certainly require you to think a little bit before you rush into attacking a pack of enemies. All this being said, the game is a tad short so you might find yourself wanting something else to play sooner than you think. Length aside, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge is an amazing game worth playing. And some might say the shorter completion time makes it a better choice. Not everyone has all day to play games these days.
So when you can dive into something that won’t take long to beat it’s almost always a good idea to give the game a shot. A nostalgic throwback to the ’80s, Shredder’s Revenge is a fun arcade game that will delight. Worth noting is that it also supports up to 6 players simultaneously. Which is something that wasn’t possible with other TMNT games from retro console days. This alone is a good reason to play it with friends if you played these games as a kid. Because playing with 5 other people is bound to serve up some zany moments.
The game also supports a keyboard and mouse if you’re accessing GeForce NOW on a PC. But if you’re playing on a phone you can just as easily play with a controller as the game supports controllers as well.
Best puzzle game: Untitled Goose Game
- Price: $19.99
- Where to Buy: Steam
If you haven’t played Untitled Goose Game, you are doing yourself a disservice. Some of the most fun I’ve had playing a puzzle game in recent years was in Untitled Goose Game. You might wonder what the game is about since the title doesn’t really give it away. Essentially, you play a menacing goose who has to make its way through a quaint town you’ve been terrorizing without being caught by the town’s inhabitants.
Some of the puzzles will require you to find certain things and move them to other places. You’ll also need to figure out how to unlock doors to move to new parts of the map, and you might even make a friend or two along the way. But mostly you won’t because you’re a horrible goose who hates everyone in town. Despite its goofy theme, Untitled Goose Game has some genuinely confounding puzzles that might take you longer to figure out than you’d expect. My absolute favorite part is the dedicated “honk” button.
If ever you find yourself at your wits’ end you can just run around town honking at everyone and annoying them. This is more fun than you might think and it can be hilarious to play with kids. Initially, this was made as a single-player game and that was plenty of fun already. But the game now includes a two-player mode where you can play with a friend. Just imagine all the terrorizing you can do with a second horrible goose running wild in a town of people who just want to go about their day.
The co-op content is also a free update so if you own the game, you won’t have to spend more money for the DLC. Like many games on this list, Untitled Goose Game features Steam achievements which gives you something else to shoot for when playing. You might get through the game before collecting all of these. So if you need something else to keep you going, this could be a good way to do that.