Over the past 30 years, Naughty Dog has slowly become one of the most acclaimed studios on the planet. The developer behind franchises like The Last of Us, Uncharted, Jak and Daxter, and Crash Bandicoot has reinvented itself countless times, with each new evolution taking the company’s games to new heights. As it stands, Naughty Dog is widely considered the best developer that belongs to PlayStation Studios, which leads to millions around the globe always eagerly anticipating the studio’s latest project.
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With Naughty Dog’s next major game, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, on the horizon for PS5, let’s take a look back at the studio’s best games up until this point. These are the top five games ever released by Naughty Dog, ranked.
5. Crash Bandicoot
Anyone who knows me knows that I do not care for Crash Bandicoot. While it was enjoyable at the time of its release in 1996, the game’s platforming mechanics have aged quite poorly, to say the least. In fact, in the vast landscape of 90s platformers, I would put Crash Bandicoot on the lower end when it comes to the best that the decade had to offer.
Still, even as a Crash hater, I cannot deny that this game is one of the greatest from Naughty Dog. This is unquestionably the studio’s most important title, as it finally put Naughty Dog on the map nearly 15 years after being established. Not only was it vital for the developer, but it also gave PlayStation a mascot of its own in the early days of the PS1 to go toe-to-toe with Mario and Sonic. Without Crash Bandicoot, Naughty Dog and PlayStation as we know it are surely not the same. As a result, it simply has to be included on this list, even if it is slotting in at the last spot.
4. The Last of Us Part II
I’ll be the first one to tell you that The Last of Us Part II has its flaws. The game’s narrative doesn’t hit everything it’s going for, its pacing is occasionally bogged down due to its bloated runtime, and the cast of characters is a bit too vast. Even in spite of these issues, though, The Last of Us Part II is one of the most impressive video games we’ve ever seen.
On a gameplay front, this is arguably Naughty Dog’s best title, as it refined the stealth-action mechanics of the original game to now stand as one of the greatest the genre has ever seen. And on a technical level, The Last of Us Part II remains one of the most visually impressive and detailed games we’ve seen come about since its launch in 2020. While it’s by no means a perfect game, The Last of Us Part II is still one of Naughty Dog’s high points as a studio and is undoubtedly one of its five best.
3. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
Nathan Drake’s send-off in Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End is about as good as it gets. Naughty Dog combined all of the best elements (excellent set piece moments, chaotic gunfights, engaging platforming, etc.) of the previous Uncharted games with this fourth entry and added even more stellar mechanics to make it the best-playing installment in the series. The advent of a grappling hook, in particular, takes Uncharted 4’s combat and climbing to a whole new level and ends up being one of the most fun additions in the franchise.
Uncharted 4 also gave Nathan Drake more depth as a character than ever before, thanks to some slower-paced sequences spread throughout the game. These moments aren’t just some of the most enjoyable storytelling tidbits in the Uncharted saga, but they’re some of the best ever written by Naughty Dog. All of this culminates in a conclusion that feels fitting for Drake and serves as a shining example of how to end a series.
2. The Last of Us
The Last of Us is one of the most acclaimed games of all-time, and for good reason. The story of Joel and Ellie traveling across a post-apocalyptic version has been remastered, remade, and even adapted for television, and yet it still finds a way to be gripping with every playthrough/viewing. To say that The Last of Us is one of the best video game narratives ever isn’t a stretch.
Beyond its stellar writing, though, The Last of Us more perfectly combines gameplay and storytelling than any other release from the developer. The game’s strategic, stealth-focused gameplay is paired with plenty of great world-building and banter between its characters, which gives more depth to Joel and Ellie without the need for cutscenes. Naughty Dog’s greatest talent as a studio is this flawless meshing gameplay and story together, and The Last of Us is the best we’ve seen of it to date.
1. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves
Nearly 17 years after its release, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is still Naughty Dog’s best game ever. The second entry in the Uncharted series didn’t just improve on everything found in the original, but it also set the template for virtually everything that Naughty Dog would do in the years to come. The aforementioned pairing of gameplay and storytelling took greater strides with Uncharted 2 than any other game Naughty Dog had released prior.
Even in 2026, what continues to make Uncharted 2 stand out is that it’s essentially the perfect third-person shooter. With nearly flawless pacing and the best set pieces seen in the entire series (the train sequence is one of ND’s greatest achievements), Uncharted 2 is the equivalent of a “popcorn flick” that just about anyone can sit down with and expect to have a rip-roaring time. Uncharted 2 isn’t just the most fun game that Naughty Dog has created to date; it remains the studio’s top game in its entire history.
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