Best Games of 1997

The best games released in 1997, ranked by Belly Score. The Belly's definitive 1997 game rankings.

The Belly's definitive rankings for games released in 1997. Every title from 1997 that earned a Belly Score appears here, sorted from the highest verdict down. It's a year-by-year snapshot of what The Belly thought of the releases — the standout hits, the disappointments, and everything in between from 1997.

9.6

DoDonPachi

Shooter

Arcade · PlayStation · Saturn · EZweb · i-mode · PlayStation Network

Sci-FiFuturisticMilitary+1

IntenseFast-PacedFrantic+3

9.4

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night

Action RPG · Platformer

PlayStation · Sega Saturn · PlayStation Portable · PlayStation 3 · Xbox 360 · PlayStation 4 · iOS · Android

Dark FantasyGothicSupernatural+1

ExploratoryDiscovery-DrivenMysterious+3

9.4

Vampire Savior: The Lord of Vampire

Fighting · Action

Arcade · Sega Saturn · PlayStation · PlayStation 3 · PSP · PS Vita · PlayStation 4 · Xbox One · Nintendo Switch · PC

SupernaturalGothicMonsters+1

Fast-PacedFranticChaotic+2

9.0

ARMORED CORE

Action · Simulation

PlayStation

ExploratoryBleakIntense+11

8.7

Giten Megami Tensei: Tokyo Mokushiroku

RPG · Adventure · Visual Novel

PC-9800 Series · Windows

Post-ApocalypticSupernaturalDark / Grim+1

DarkAtmosphericUnsettling+2