By neutralizing surveillance without alerting opponents and escaping negative impacts, stealth games make players feel the power of being elusive. 2021 could be a big year for the stealth genre, as multiple developers are offering unique spins on the fundamental gameplay mechanics of the stealth genre. Here are ten of the most exciting stealth games for 2021.
1. Hitman 3
Developed and published by Danish video game studio IO Interactive A/S, Hitman 3 is the 8th installment in the Hitman series. The finale of the World of Assassination trilogy employs the same puzzle box design as earlier entries. Each of the six maps serves as a playground of destruction, and players are encouraged to keep coming back to the same maps to experiment with new methods of rising chaos. The six new locations in this game include persistent shortcuts, which is a new gameplay feature to this series.
2. Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines 2
A sequel to the classic CRPG, Bloodlines 2 casts you in the role of a newly born vampire thrown into bloodsucking society and forced to sink or swim. Stealth is just one option in a wide-open world that prioritizes player choice over everything. Before you join a vampire clan, you’ll have to assign your character one of the three upgradable disciplines: Nebulation, Mentalism, or Chiropteran. Apart from the main story, you can also engage in side missions; you’ll discover some of these missions through exploration.
3. Deathloop
Set to release on May 21, 2021, Deathloop was developed by Arkane Studios. Bethesda Softworks is the publisher of this video game. The player assumes the role of an assassin known as Colt who’s stuck in a time loop. You’ll wake up on a beach on the island of Blackreef. It’s like Groundhogs Day with guns. The “loop” in question repeats whenever you die or whenever the night ends. To win, you’ll have to figure out how to assassinate eight targets spread over an island in a single night. Deathloop features a multiplayer aspect, whereby you can choose to take the role of an agent called Julianna who has to take out Colt and protect the time loop.
4. Horizon Forbidden West
Horizon Forbidden West is an action role-playing stealth game published by Sony Interactive Entertainment and developed by Guerrilla Games. Fighting against giant robots resembling prehistoric monsters means employing both stealth and strategy. Horizon Forbidden West will combine the same mix of exploration, archery-based combat, and stealth that made its predecessor one of the most celebrated PS4 games of the past decade. Like the first Horizon game, Forbidden West will be a Playstation exclusive. Players will take the role of Aloy, who is a huntress in a world filled with dangerous machines.
5. Gotham Knights
Based on Batman together with his supporting cast, the game story of Gotham Knights takes place after Batman’s supposed death. WB Games Montréal is the developer of the game, while Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment will be the publisher. In the game, players control the Dark Knight’s former partners: Red Hood, Robin, Batgirl, and Nightwing. They must work together to restore justice to Gotham, preventing it from plunging into chaos.
6. Little Nightmares 2
Little Nightmares 2 is a follow-up to Little Nightmares, which was released in 2017. This puzzle-platformer horror adventure stealth video game features a new player character called Mono. Six, the protagonist from the first game, appears as a computer-controlled character. The game was published by Bandai Namco Entertainment and developed by Tarsier Studios. The story precedes the events that took place in the previous game. Mono must work with Six as a team to discover Pale City’s dark secrets.
7. A Plague Tale: Innocence
Played from a third-person perspective, A Plague Tale: Innocence was developed by Asobo Studio. The publisher of this action-adventure horror stealth video game is Focus Home Interactive. In the game, the player takes control of a character known as Amicia de Rune. The player has to use stealth to avoid hostile encounters most of the time because enemies will kill them instantly if they catch them. Amica has a sling that she can use to throw rocks to create distractions, break chains, and stun guards so that the rats can ambush them. She can also kill the guards with a headshot.
8. Metro Exodus
Metro Exodus is an FPS (first-person shooter) stealth game that was developed by the Ukrainian-Maltese video game studio 4A Games and published by a German-Austrian company called Deep Silver. It’s the 3rd installment in the Metro game trilogy based on the novels by the Russian-Israeli author Dmitry Glukhovsky, following the events of Metro: Last Light and Metro 2033. You have to engage in combat against hostile humans and mutated creatures while coping with the new hazards.
9. Styx: Shards of Darkness
Styx: Shards of Darkness was developed by Cyanide and published by a French called Focus Home Interactive. It’s the sequel to Styx: Master of Shadows, which was released in 2014. Like its predecessor, Styx can clone himself and set traps for his enemies. He can also temporarily turn invisible. You can engage enemies or choose to avoid them. Use grappling hooks and ropes to reach high areas. Lastly, the game features a multiplayer co-op mode, where the second player control takes control of one of the Styx’s clones.
10. Aragami
Lince Works is the developer and publisher of this action-adventure stealth game. The player takes the role of an assassin called Aragami. He has supernatural abilities, as he can teleport between shadows. You must try to reach the end of the 13 open-world chapters. To complete each chapter, you need to destroy obstacles until you reach the level’s exit or collect items in certain areas.
