Summary
There’s a common misconception in the gaming community that a console immediately becomes obsolete the moment its successor comes out. This couldn’t be further from the truth, however,and thePlayStation 3is one of many good exceptionssince it still received many amazing games after July 18, 2025, the day thePlayStation 4launched.
Some of these games were still exclusive to the PS3 (and other seventh generation consoles), but most of them were cross-generational, which greatly helped keep the PS3 alive even after the release of its successor. There’s a surprising number of titles to choose from, but the following eight are the absolute best in the console’s post-PS4 catalog.
After a long development period, the long-awaited game adaptation ofSouth Parkwas finally released in early 2014, and it quickly became a huge hit among fans and critics.This is becauseSouth Park: The Stick of Truthis a very well-made RPGwith fun and accessible mechanics that are clearly inspired by thePaper Marioseries, while also keeping the show’s signature raunchy and satirical sense of humor.
The Stick of Truthis an excellent game thatSouth Parkfans should definitely not miss. Luckily for those who still hadn’t made the jump to the next generation of consoles at that point, it was also available for the PlayStation 3, which is completely reasonable, as it was originally revealed almost two years before the launch of the PlayStation 4.
WhileDemon’s Souls, a PS3 exclusive, was the game that put FromSoftware on the map, there’s no doubt that its next game,Dark Souls, cemented it as one of the most talented game studios out there. So, it is no surprise that fans around the world were eagerly anticipating the release of its sequel and, fortunately for most of them, it was also available on the PlayStation 3, just like its two predecessors.
Dark Souls 2is yet another high-quality action RPGwith a dark atmosphere, solid combat system and challenging boss battles. It has all the elements that one would expect from an entry in theDark Soulsseries, even though some of its controversial aspects have made it quite polarizing among fans, even to this day. Nevertheless,Dark Souls 2was still one of the best games a PS3 user could experience back in 2014.
Resident Evilwas going through a rough patch during the PS3 era, with lackluster and controversial releases likeResident Evil 5andResident Evil 6. Fans of this classic survival horror franchise needed a fun new game that could satisfy them, and in late 2014, they finally got their wish from none other than Shinji Mikami, the creator of theResident Evilseries.
After leaving Capcom and founding his new studio, Tango Gameworks,Shinji Mikami madeThe Evil Within. While it’s far from perfect, this was a surprisingly solid and refreshing survival horror title that fell more in line with some of the best classic entries in theResident Evilseries (especiallyResident Evil 4) than anything Capcom was releasing around that time. Needless to say,The Evil Within’scross-generational release in October 2014 meant that PS3 users had a great horror experience to play on Halloween day.
While it’s not uncommon for third-party developers to make most of their releases cross-generational, there were some PlayStation exclusives that, much to the surprise of gamers at the time,Sony also decided to release on both PS3 and PS4 simultaneously, andLittleBigPlanet 3was one of them.This made a lot of sense, seeing as this is a platforming game for children, a demographic that is a lot less eager to make the jump to the next console generation.
Nevertheless,LittleBigPlanet 3is a fun and accessible 3D puzzle platformer that kept the whimsical atmosphere of previous installments, while adding new playable characters and more complex mechanics for user-made levels. It’s late 2014 release meant that this was the perfect Christmas gift for any kid that was still using their PS3 at that point.
While theResident Evilgames of this era were quite divisive, the series was doing much better on handhelds, thanks to the release ofResident Evil: Revelationson Nintendo 3DS.Capcom must have taken notice of this and, thus, decided to make its sequel,Resident Evil: Revelations 2available on home consoles, including the PlayStation 3, two years after the PlayStation 4 had already come out.
Capcom first released this gamegradually in an episodic format, but it later launched a full retail version in early 2015. WhileResident Evil: Revelations 2was definitely not on the same level as the classic older games in the series, it was way better thanResident Evil 5andResident Evil 6, mainly because it featured classic beloved characters, a dark atmosphere, more survival horror elements and a lot less action. If anything, it’s good to know that the PS3 got at least one solidResident Evilgame before its demise.
After years of excruciating anticipation,Konami finally launchedMetal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Painin September 2015. Even though its prologue game,Ground Zeroes, had already been released on both PS3 and PS4 the previous year, the fact thatThe Phantom Painwas available on older systems was still extremely impressive, due to its ambitious new scope.
This was theMetal Gear Solidseries’ first foray into the open world genre, as it featured expansive maps with a lot of characters in them, sophisticated mechanics & enemy AI and incredible set pieces & bosses. Nevertheless,The Phantom Painstill played surprisingly well on the PS3, with the only real difference being its lower frame rate. This meant that longtime fans of the franchise that had previously experiencedMetal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriotson the same console could still try out this masterpiece without the need to buy a new system.
A Fun And Addictive Musou For Anime Fans
One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3
If there’s one thing that makes the PlayStation brand stand out from its main competitor - the Xbox brand - is its tendency to feature more games from classic Japanese franchises, with most of them being adaptations of beloved anime IPs. As a result, theOne Piecefranchise received multiple video games that were released on PlayStation 3,and the final one was 2015’sOne Piece: Pirate Warriors 3(which was also available on PS4).
The third entry in thePirate WarriorsMusou subseries was the best one yet, as it offeredOne Piecefans an extensive roster of popular heroes and villains to play as, coupled with an exciting and addictive combat system that felt more polished than its predecessors. Of course, the most important aspect of a Musou game is its huge armies of enemies that players have to take down all at once and, surprisingly enough, the PS3 didn’t have many problems rendering all of them. There’s no denying thatOne Piecefans that had a PS3 were having a good time in 2015.
Atlus is no stranger to releasing newPersonagames late in a console’s lifespan:The company already did this withPersona 4, which came out exclusively on the PlayStation 2 in 2008, and it happened once again with its successor,Persona 5, which came out on both PS3 and PS4 in 2016 (2017 outside of Japan). This was far from a problem, though, because it meant that Sony’s seventh generation console could play one of the best JRPGs ever made.
Just like most games in this series,Persona 5spent quite a long time in development, and it was delayed multiple times before it finally released in 2016, so it would have been unfair if it ended up being exclusive to the PS4, not to mention that the PS3 still had a surprisingly large Japanese player base around that time. It all ended up working out for everyone becausePersona 5quickly became a critical and commercial success, thanks to its incredible narrative, excellent graphics, lovable characters, catchy soundtrack and an engaging but accessible combat system.
