Best Games of 2004
World of Warcrafton 5 of 28 rankings2
Sly 2: Band of Thieveson 4 of 28 rankings3
Half-Life 2on 3 of 28 rankings4
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eateron 3 of 28 rankings5
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreason 3 of 28 rankings6
Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenalon 2 of 28 rankings7
Burnout 3: Takedownon 2 of 28 rankings8
The Lord of the Rings: The Battle for Middle-earthon 2 of 28 rankings9
Rome total waron 2 of 28 rankings10
Ace Combat 5: The Unsung Waron 2 of 28 rankings11
Halo 2on 2 of 28 rankings12
Pokémon Emerald Versionon 1 of 28 rankings13
Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed Kingon 1 of 28 rankings14
Garry's Modon 1 of 28 rankings15
Def Jam: Fight for NYon 1 of 28 rankings16
X-Men Legendson 1 of 28 rankings17
Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stoneson 1 of 28 rankings18
Pokémon FireRed Versionon 1 of 28 rankings19
Shadow Hearts: Covenanton 1 of 28 rankings20
Katamari Damacyon 1 of 28 rankings21
Unreal Tournament 2004on 1 of 28 rankings22
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of Waron 1 of 28 rankings23
Hitman: Contractson 1 of 28 rankings24
Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakeson 1 of 28 rankingsHow this ranking is made
According to Made the Cut's census of 28 independent rankings, recounted 19 October 2026, the best game of 2004 is World of Warcraft, followed by Sly 2: Band of Thieves and Half-Life 2.
How this is counted
This chart counts 28 ranking sources, one voice each: the published ranking of games from that source with the most titles released in 2004, cut down to those titles, in the order that source listed them. A title's place is its average position across all sources counted: a title someone left off their ranking counts as tied with their last place (here, that source ranked titles of this kind and left this one out). A small pull toward the middle keeps one enthusiastic list from crowning a #1. Every title in the computed chart has a numbered position, with its source count shown beside it. It is recounted whenever a ranking is published, changed or removed, last on 19 October 2026. Member rankings and attributed external lists use the same calculation. Multiple lists from one member or external author count once; linked slices add no extra vote. Frozen links, private or unlisted lists and unmatched titles are never counted. The full method.
12 of the 28 published rankings of games this counts, in the order they were published.