I probably could have held off on writing this until what I like to call "Black Friday proper", on Nov. 28. But I've already seen several top offers fall into the shadow realm, never to return. And, I've got a sneaking suspicion that my top Black Friday picks will soon meet a similar fate.
Don't get me wrong, there's still some brilliant offers up for grabs, with some of 2025’s best games dropping to $30 or less, while plenty of other big PS5, Xbox, and Switch releases from the past couple of years are also heavily discounted right now (at least for now).
That's been massively helped by Walmart, which has stocked up on some of the best Black Friday discounts going this year. Yet, with retailers like Amazon and Best Buy still refusing to auto price-match most deals, once Walmart sells out, we likely won't see some of these low, low prices again for a while.
So, writing this article, I am.
You might have already seen my $20 or less roundup, which is still packed with heavy hitters from the last few years, and perfect if you want maximum bang for your buck. Some are so good, they even feature in this article as well. But, I've also tried to keep things as fresh as possible for returning readers.
I've also got you covered if you're looking for a more comprehensive roundup of the best video game deals for Black Friday. With that out the way, my advice is to snap up the following games up ASAP, cause once they're gone, they're gone.
It's the MGS 3 Remake! Or Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, if you fancy actually being able to Google it. If you also fancy joining the Kappa Delta sorority, the game has dropped to just $30 at Amazon and Walmart for both PS5 and Xbox.
I was being all silly... but that is kinda fantastic. Releasing just a few months ago, remake or not, $40 off is a mighty fine offer. Only last week, this was down to $50 at Best Buy and I was all like, "$20 off - that's a good deal!" What a fool I was.
Still, extra reductions on top of already good deals? Now that's what Black Friday is all about. But, fair warning, with deals of this caliber, Black Friday or not, they usually don't last long, so I'd pick it up while you still can.
Okay fair warning, there's a couple of Sonic games on this list, and you should be happy about it! The blue blur has been having a blinder these past few years, and SEGA has continued its hot streak of form with Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds. This might actually be the best racer I've played in recent years, and I even enjoy it more than Mario Kart World (sorry, not sorry!).
It's down to $30 for Switch, PS5, and Xbox, which is an almighty good deal, especially since this hasn't long been out, and was selling for $60-70 only a couple of months back. Not only that, it's another extra reduction deal, as this was $45 only last week in the sale. I may actually be enjoying Black Friday for once! This is such a good deal, and well worth picking up while stock lasts.
Somehow, Star Wars Outlaws returned. Hey, even a 7/10 game can be worth $30! Well, $15 on PS5, $20 on Xbox, and $30 for the Gold Edition on Switch 2.
Listen we all like to dog on this game, but I truely think there's a lot of fun to be had with Outlaws. Sure, it's got a bad rep, but you're actually getting so much genuinely great Star Wars content, it's no joke.
If anything, I really think it's worth a go for anyone who was ever on the fence about buying it for whatever console you're playing it on. I think it's a great pick for anyone on Switch 2, especially since it's dropped further in the sales, down from $60 to $40 last week, and now just $30 at Amazon. Score!
Hey it's that other Sonic game I mentioned! Sonic X Shadow Generations featured in my top picks from last year, and it's absolutely worth playing for just $15 on Switch and Xbox, or $25 on PS5. It's worth it for just the Shadow Generations levels alone.
I loved every minute with this game, and I even bought it again for my Steam Deck to play on the go. Trust, I may also end up buying it again on my Switch if I'm feeling extra saucy. Play this game! It's brilliant! Yes, I am a Sonic fanboy, and I always will be.
When it comes to Switch games, my top pick is still Super Mario Odyssey for Black Friday. It recently ranked fourth on IGN's "Top 100 Nintendo Games of All Time", and it's down to just 30 bucks. That's an outstanding deal, especially for such a good game, that also includes a free Switch 2 upgrade.
You can find the discount at both Walmart and Target, as it was obviously too hot for Amazon to hold on to for long. To be fair, Amazon quickly lost all their Switch deals once Walmart started rocking the price boat and dropping games an additional $10 all of a sudden.
Okay I've got to do the thing where I admit to not playing games again, even when they're on sale and very good deals. Echoes of Wisdom looks fun! For $30, I think it seems like an excellent offer for Black Friday. Since I've never played it, so I'm going to trust in my lovely collegue Tom Marks to rescue my embarassment.
He said this in his incredibly positive 9/10 review for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom on IGN: "The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is far more than some second-tier spinoff, combining the expertly crafted dungeons and item progression you’d expect from a 2D Zelda with the wild creativity provided by Tears of the Kingdom."
Another one of my favorite games of the year, Assassin's Creed Shadows, is now down to just $30 for both PS5. This has been one of my big comfort games for 2025, and I couldn't recommend it enough for anyone looking for a chill, fun, adventure through Japan.
Go in with no expectations, and I genuinely think you'll be surprised at how much fun this game can really be. The stealth is the best the series has ever had, and the addition of Yasuke is surprisingly excellent, providing a brilliant change of pace for when you're looking to just rip and tear through a castle instead of tip toeing to the objective. At $30, this is more than worth it.
Hard to believe it has been more than three years since Elden Ring landed on consoles and PC, and somehow it still lived up to every wild expectation I had for it. IGN handed it a 10 at launch, quite deservedly, and it's fast become one of my favorite games of all time as well. It is more than worth the $15 Walmart is currently charging for it in the Black Friday sales. That's a stupidly good deal.
If you'll allow me to momentarily skirt around my $30 or less rule (just like I did with the $20 or less rule, way too many times), I do highly encourage you to check out the full package if you can. Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree Edition is also discounted, $39.99 on PS5 and is well worth it. Still, if $20 is your limit, the base game has hundreds of hours worth of content already waiting for you.
Anyone else feel like Spider-Man 2 gets a bit of an undeserved bad rep?
Especially for how much fun it actually is. I'll admit the story is no where near as good as the first, but the gameplay in this one is absolutely outstanding and had be gripped for first playthrough, and then an immediate New Game Plus run.
At $30 in the Black Friday sales at Walmart, this is definitely one of the best deals going right now for PlayStation owners, if you one of the few who haven't gotten around to playing yet.
It's only fitting that I finished up on yet another Switch game I have never touched, but am assured that it is brilliant, and $30 for it is about as good of a deal that Nintendo will genuniely ever offer for any of its first party games. To back me up, I brought in the assisstance of IGN's Logan Plant, who had this to say in his 9/10 review last year:
"Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is an amazingly loyal and visually dazzling remake of a treasured RPG, and the improvements made throughout easily make this the definitive way to experience Mario’s unforgettable quest."
I had this whole speel ready for Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 for $30, Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 as it's my strongest contender to go up against what seems like the clear front runner in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 for the 2025 Game of the Year Awards.
But the deal is gone! See what I mean? Sorry for the deal FOMO, but it really shows how not all of the top offers are going to last through Black Friday on November 28, let alone until Cyber Monday when most of the sales "officially" end.
Honorable mentions include games like Helldivers 2 for $30, alongside EA Sports FC 26, Warhammer 40K Space Marine 2, and Silent Hill 2.
If your budget is more in the $40 range, you should absolutely be picking up 2024's Game of the Year winner, Astro Bot, which is down to $40 at Walmart, after, you guessed it, Amazon sold out!
Right, that's me actually done now, if you pick up anything good over Black Friday, or just want to tell me how much of a fool I am, let me know in the comments ASAP. Have a great Thanksgiving, and see you next time.
Robert Anderson is Senior Commerce Editor and IGN's resident deals expert on games, collectibles, trading card games, and more. You can follow him @robertliam21 on Twitter/X or Bluesky.
