Game without bad chapters and every moment is important

It's easy to miss sometimes, but many video games (even some of the very best in the industry) are divided into chapter or section. Needless to say, this particular style of structuring can be a double-edged sword, as it can either destroy or enhance a game's pacing depending on how the story is designed and how much content each chapter contains.

While hundreds of great games follow this design philosophy, only the absolute best titles out there are seen as perfect from start to finish and as a result, does not contain a single bad chapter where something unimportant happens. This is true of some of the most iconic and popular video games ever made, with the following eight being the most infamous examples of this practice.

Resident Evil 4/Resident Evil 4 Remake

The perfect blend of survival horror and third person action

Although survival horror is sometimes seen as one of the most uninviting genres out there, Resident Evil 4 is still often cited as one of the best video games ever made. Its massive success and popularity can be explained by the fact that Capcom brilliantly designed an over-the-shoulder third-person combat system that not only feels incredible, but also influenced many action and horror games that came after it.

Leon Kennedy's bone-chilling adventure through the European countryside never has a dull moment. Every single chapter contains either an intense survival horror segment or an over-the-top action set piece (and sometimes both). Sure, some players aren't too keen on “Chapters 3-4”, where they have to play as a defenseless Ashley Graham, but this was actually a brilliant way to up the survival horror game. Also, this chapter was even more fun in Resident Evil 4 Remakewhich also deserves a special mention for being a near-perfect game.

Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening

One of the best hack and slash video games ever made

Since all entries in Devil May Cry series follow this structure, most of them inevitably have that one chapter that everyone hates to replay. Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening is the only exception. This shouldn't be much of a surprise, considering this is the game that single-handedly saved and revived the franchise.

Every single chapter of this prequel is filled to the brim with fast-paced action, tough enemies and powerful bosses. Yes, unlike some of its sequels, Dante is the only playable character in DMC3but he has such a large and diverse array of weapons and abilities that controlling him never gets boring. The only slightly controversial chapter in this game is “Mission 18: Invading Hell”, which features a boss rush, but not only are these fights so well done that it's actually quite fun to replay them, but the player technically only needs to defeat three of the bosses to proceed, and all others are optional.

Half-Life 2

An FPS so perfect that fans are still begging for a sequel (or a third episode)

Back in 1998, the original Half-life revolutionized the gaming industry and redefined what an FPS should be (especially on PC). Just six years later, Valve knocked it out of the park again when Half-Life 2 came out and quickly became an overnight success. This sequel's campaign starts out rather slowly, which is a clever way to slowly build up how much the world has changed since the last game, but it quickly builds into an incredible adventure full of action, drama and horror.

Most players are aware of it Half-Life 2 received two more episodes (which is why many of them are still begging Valve to release either a third episode or an entirely new sequel), but some may have already forgotten that both the base game and its two subsequent episodes are divided into chapters, which is ultimately a testament to how flawless the pacing is. Still, most of them Half-Life 2 fans can agree that “We Don't Go To Ravenholm…” is by far the best chapter in the entire game.

The Walking Dead

The point-and-click title that popularized episodic storytelling

Back in the early 2010s, the idea of ​​a point-and-click/graphic adventure game based on The Walking Dead IP sounded like a recipe for disaster. Yet Telltale proved everyone wrong. As a result The Walking Dead not only received glowing reviews, but it also helped popularize both its genre and its episodic format.

The story of Lee and Clementine is incredibly heartbreaking, gripping and emotional, not to mention full of dialogue options to choose from and difficult decisions to make. In addition, The Walking DeadThe episodic release complemented its story perfectly and allowed players to come together to speculate about what would happen in the next episode, which was a mind-blowing experience back in 2012.

The last of us

A perfectly paced emotional survival horror adventure

Yes, this list includes not one, but two different video games released between 2012 and 2013 that are about a grown man and a young girl traveling through a post-apocalyptic version of America. They undoubtedly deserve their flowers, because both The Walking Dead and The last of us are great video games that do not contain any delicious chapters.

Each chapter i The last of us is divided by which area Joel and Ellie visit, which is not only a smart method of story pacing, but it also makes each location all the more memorable. In addition to that, the game brilliantly uses the four seasons (summer, autumn, winter and spring) as if they were the seasons of a series, to further elevate each chapter within them. Many claim that The last of us boasts one of the best stories ever told in a video game, and it wouldn't have earned the prestigious title if it had a single bad moment in it.

Bayonetta 2

A beautiful and stylish hack-and-slash game with non-stop action

PlatinumGames' Bayonetta the series intentionally borrows many elements from Devil May Cry series, including its chapter-based format. But while the first Bayonetta game was notorious for having some less-than-great chapters in it (like the ones that rely on ridiculous fast-paced events or that title character riding a motorcycle), its incredible 2014 sequel fixed and/or removed most of those issues.

The moment a player picks up Bayonetta 2 and experiencing its superior opening chapter, it becomes immediately apparent that this is a hack-and-slash game like no other. Every single one of Bayonetta 2s chapters are packed with outstanding gameplay, satisfying combat, beautiful environments and, of course, some of the best boss battles in gaming history. It's safe to say that any dedicated fan of the hack-and-slash genre needs to try this masterpiece.

Delta rune

Toby Fox's ambitious RPG may not be finished yet, but it's already a masterpiece

When Toby Fox (creator of Undertale) began releasing its next game – known simply as Delta rune — Episodic, fans were initially concerned that this format would ruin the pace of the story. Fortunately, they quickly found out that they were wrong. This structure not only allowed him to take more time to develop each segment of this ambitious RPG, but he and his team also put a lot of effort and content into each chapter.

As a result, all chapters have i Delta rune feel like full games with their own identities, instead of feeling like small parts of a larger product. To make matters even better, the story it tells is deep, charming and fascinating, and its episodic release schedule has encouraged gamers to fill the internet with rampant speculation and thousands of fan theories. Only four Delta rune chapters have been released so far (with even more scheduled to come out in 2026), and yet it's already considered one of the best indie RPGs ever made.

Dispatch

The episodic superhero game that took the world by storm

Sadly, the original Telltale Games shut down in 2018, but its spirit lives on in various modern games that have adapted the studio's episodic releases and point-and-click gameplay styles. One of the most prominent examples is AdHoc Studios Dispatchwhich was made by a bunch of former Telltale developers.

Dispatch is a surprisingly refreshing superhero story full of lovable characters and brilliantly written dialogue. As always, its episodic release helped fuel speculation from thousands of gamers eager to see what would happen next week. It is easy to understand why Dispatch became one of 2025's most popular games, as each episode was punchy and important, and none of them felt like unnecessary filler.