5 Best Naughty Dog Games, Ranked

Founded in 1984 under its initial name JAM Software, Naughty Dog has been a prominent player in the video game industry for over 40 years. In the ’90s, the rebranded development studio became a fixture on the original PlayStation, helping Sony’s PlayStation 1 accomplish the unheard-of goal of selling over 100 million units. This association led Sony to acquire Naughty Dog in early 2001 as it ramped up development of games for its then-new console, the PlayStation 2. In its capacity as a subsidiary studio, Naughty Dog has produced some of the best games for Sony platforms.

Simply put, Naughty Dog has consistently been putting out quality titles for decades, and every new release has our attention. But rather than looking ahead this time, we’re taking a peek back at Naughty Dog’s extensive output and naming our personal favorite titles from the studio. In retrospect, there’s a surprising diversity in creative range that the studio has demonstrated throughout its history. These are the five best Naughty Dog games ranked, showcasing what the influential studio is capable of.

5. Crash Bandicoot: Warped

Sony Interactive Entertainment

The franchise that put Naughty Dog on the map, more than early successes like “Way of the Warrior,” was “Crash Bandicoot.” The original PlayStation title found inspiration from Nintendo’s “Donkey Kong” franchise, more specifically the platforming and art design of the “Donkey Kong Country” trilogy. This led to the creation of Crash, a wacky marsupial out to stop a mad scientist through early 3D platforming, starting with the first game in 1996. The pinnacle of the series’ titles developed by Naughty Dog is its third mainline title, “Crash Bandicoot: Warped.”

The 1998 game has Crash and his sister Coco Bandicoot travel through time to stop Doctor Nefarious Tropy from altering the space-time continuum. With two preceding games under its belt, Naughty Dog really refines the gameplay and presentation for “Crash Bandicoot: Warped,” making it one of the best 3D platformers of its generation. Naughty Dog moved on to other properties after the following year’s “Crash Team Racing,” making “Warped” the studio’s swan song to the main series. Still a blast to play, “Crash Bandicoot: Warped” has aged better than any other classic game in the series and reaffirms Naughty Dog’s PS1 legacy.

4. Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End

Sony Interactive Entertainment

As much of an achievement as Naughty Dog’s “The Last of Us” is, I wish they remembered they could make fun games with serious emotions to them too. This balance is saliently realized in 2016’s “Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End,” originally released for the PlayStation 4. The last mainline entry in the series to date, the game has returning protagonist Nathan Drake emerge from retirement to search for pirate treasure with his long-lost brother. The entry features the third-person shooter gameplay that the series is known for, with a greater emphasis on stealth and more expansive level design.

Naughty Dog may be finished with the “Uncharted” series after the 2017 spin-off “The Lost Legacy,” but we wish they come back someday. “Uncharted 4” really showcases the series’ strengths while drawing from some of the mechanics Naughty Dog developed for “The Last of Us.” This, coupled with the stirring love story between Nate and his wife Elena, along with some bombastic set pieces, make for a beautiful send-off to the fan-favorite character. Among the best PlayStation 4 games, “Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End” offers a triumphant coda to the main series.

3. Jak 3

Sony Interactive Entertainment

One of the earliest PlayStation 2 exclusive series was “Jak and Daxter,” with Naughty Dog doubling down on its 3D platforming action while upping the intensity. 2004’s “Jak 3” leaned more into overt combat as it continued the saga of Jak and his animalistic buddy Daxter. The game’s story has the duo defend Haven City from the cybernetic warlord Cyber-Errol and his army of robots and monsters. The gameplay brings back the gunplay and third-person platforming mechanics from its predecessors, with a bigger arsenal of weapons and vehicles at players’ disposal.

“Jak 3” makes it over its predecessor mostly because “Jak II” feels so frustratingly unbalanced in its difficulty. By contrast, its 2004 sequel handles like a dream, with much more rewarding combat and a more naturally scaled difficulty. The game also looks and runs fantastically, with Naughty pushing the PS2 technical hardware as far as it can go. One of the best PS2 games of all time, “Jak 3” leaves us wishing Naughty Dog would come back to the franchise someday.

2. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

Sony Interactive Entertainment

Just as “Crash Bandicoot” was one of the defining PS1 properties and “Jak and Daxter” helped define the PS2, “Uncharted” is among the most prominent PS3 properties. “Uncharted” stands among the best action-adventure video games of all time, with the top title in the series being “Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.” The game has Nathan Drake searching for the mythical city of Shambhala in the Himalayas, trying to prevent a crew of war criminals from plundering its treasures. The third-person shooter gameplay, of course, remains a huge part of the experience, as does the platforming mechanics.

One of the few near-perfect games according to Metacritic, “Uncharted 2: Among Thieves” is leaps and bounds better than its predecessor. The game really improves upon the gameplay mechanics from the first game while featuring the best set pieces in the series, right from its in media res opening sequence. The story is also much more richly rendered, turning Nate into more than just an action-adventure hero archetype but someone to get legitimately invested in. But for as good as “Uncharted 2: Among Thieves” is, there is one loftier achievement in Naughty Dog’s library so far.

1. The Last of Us

Sony Interactive Entertainment

On some level, Naughty Dog fans knew that at least one “Last of Us” game was going to rank highly on this list. But whereas people tend to focus on “The Last of Us” for its raw storytelling and unflinching brutality, few still mention how tightly designed the original 2013 game is. The game takes third-person shooter and platforming sensibilities from “Uncharted” but places them in a more violent and horror-fueled premise. That makes the combat feel more intuitive while keeping players on edge in this post-apocalyptic world filled with hostile survivors and infected hordes.

Where “The Last of Us” outperforms its 2020 sequel is that it provides a much better balance in tone. “The Last of Us Part II” can frequently get quite heavy-handed in its narrative and, more frankly, it’s just markedly less fun to play. Fans can debate the merits of artistic achievement, but ultimately, we play games for enjoyment and the original game succeeds more on that level while still telling an emotional story. One of the best post-apocalyptic video games ever made, “The Last of Us” is still the high-water mark for what Naughty Dog has done.