Ranking by year

The best games of 1997.

77 games compete in this selection. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night tops it with 1,878 points: the ranking comes from player votes alone, and moves with every duel settled.

  1. 1 Castlevania: Symphony of the Night 1997 · Metroidvania 1,878
  2. 2 Fallout: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game 1997 · RPG 1,860
  3. 3 Final Fantasy VII 1997 · JRPG 1,850
  4. 4 Dungeon Keeper 1997 · Strategy 1,844
  5. 5 Final Fantasy Tactics 1997 · JRPG 1,826
  6. 6 GoldenEye 007 1997 · FPS 1,823
  7. 7 Quake II 1997 · FPS 1,800
  8. 8 Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back 1997 · Platformer 1,773
  9. 9 Age of Empires 1997 · Strategy 1,772
  10. 10 The Curse of Monkey Island 1997 · Point-and-click 1,766
  11. 11 Gran Turismo 1997 · Racing 1,761
  12. 12 Star Fox 64 1997 · TPS 1,748
  13. 13 Theme Hospital 1997 · Strategy 1,745
  14. 14 Tekken 3 1997 · Fighting 1,680
  15. 15 Total Annihilation 1997 · Strategy 1,643
  16. 16 Yoshi's Story 1997 · Platformer 1,638
  17. 17 Tomb Raider II 1997 · Platformer 1,626
  18. 18 Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee 1997 · Platformer 1,603
  19. 19 Mortal Kombat 4 1997 · Fighting 1,596
  20. 20 Mega Man X4 1997 · Platformer 1,587
  21. 21 Star Wars: Jedi Knight - Dark Forces II 1997 · FPS 1,578
  22. 22 Disney's Hercules Action Game 1997 · Platformer 1,576
  23. 23 Shadow Warrior 1997 · FPS 1,565
  24. 24 Carmageddon 1997 · Racing 1,557
  25. 25 Diddy Kong Racing 1997 · Racing 1,556
  26. 26 Blade Runner 1997 · Point-and-click 1,551
  27. 27 Worms 2 1997 · Strategy 1,550
  28. 28 Klonoa: Door to Phantomile 1997 · Platformer 1,545
  29. 29 Kirby's Dream Land 3 1997 · Platformer 1,537
  30. 30 Need for Speed II 1997 · Racing 1,534
  31. 31 Riven: The Sequel to Myst 1997 · Point-and-click 1,533
  32. 32 Bomberman 64 1997 · Platformer 1,529
  33. 33 Moto Racer 1997 · Racing 1,524
  34. 34 Tibia 1997 · Action RPG 1,517
  35. 35 Bushido Blade 1997 · Fighting 1,516
  36. 36 Grand Theft Auto 1997 · Action-adventure 1,504
  37. 37 Snowboard Kids 1997 · Sports 1,499
  38. 38 Castlevania Legends 1997 · Platformer 1,498
  39. 39 Doom 64 1997 · FPS 1,497
  40. 40 Fighting Force 1997 · Beat 'em up 1,478
  41. 41 Armored Core 1997 · TPS 1,478
  42. 42 Mega Man Legends 1997 · TPS 1,474
  43. 43 Time Crisis II 1997 · FPS 1,473
  44. 44 Broken Sword: The Smoking Mirror 1997 · Point-and-click 1,472
  45. 45 Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter 1997 · Fighting 1,471
  46. 46 MDK 1997 · TPS 1,469
  47. 47 Nightmare Creatures 1997 · Horror 1,468
  48. 48 Mischief Makers 1997 · Platformer 1,461
  49. 49 Breath of Fire III 1997 · JRPG 1,459
  50. 50 Game Dev Story 1997 · Simulation 1,458
  51. 51 Postal 1997 · Shoot 'em up 1,458
  52. 52 Hexen II 1997 · FPS 1,458
  53. 53 Blast Corps 1997 · Puzzle 1,458
  54. 54 Dragon Ball GT: Final Bout 1997 · Fighting 1,455
  55. 55 Resident Evil: Director's Cut 1997 · Horror 1,452
  56. 56 Rival Schools: United by Fate 1997 · Fighting 1,450
  57. 57 Turok: Dinosaur Hunter 1997 · FPS 1,447
  58. 58 The King of Fighters '97 1997 · Fighting 1,447
  59. 59 Bloody Roar 1997 · Fighting 1,441
  60. 60 Rampage World Tour 1997 · Platformer 1,437
  61. 61 Ignition 1997 · Racing 1,434
  62. 62 Street Fighter III: New Generation 1997 · Fighting 1,427
  63. 63 Ace Combat 2 1997 · Simulation 1,426
  64. 64 Ultima Online 1997 · Action RPG 1,426
  65. 65 International Superstar Soccer 64 1997 · Sports 1,415
  66. 66 Frogger 1997 · Arcade 1,404
  67. 67 Outlaws 1997 · FPS 1,391
  68. 68 Alundra 1997 · Action RPG 1,389
  69. 69 Claw 1997 · Platformer 1,384
  70. 70 Blood 1997 · FPS 1,375
  71. 71 Grandia 1997 · JRPG 1,366
  72. 72 The Lost Vikings 2 1997 · Platformer 1,353
  73. 73 FIFA: Road to World Cup 98 1997 · Sports 1,345
  74. 74 Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero 1997 · Platformer 1,345
  75. 75 Croc: Legend of the Gobbos 1997 · Platformer 1,339
  76. 76 LEGO Island 1997 · Action-adventure 1,311
  77. 77 Tomba! 1997 · Metroidvania 1,243

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Other rankings

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In detail

The best games of 1997, what this ranking says

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night leads this selection with 1,878 ELO points, ahead of Fallout: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game and Final Fantasy VII. The 77 games competing in it have played 9,532 duels.

This selection in figures
Games competing in this selection 77
Duels played by those games 9,532
Game in the lead Castlevania: Symphony of the Night (1997)
Score of the leading game, in ELO points 1,878
Point gap between 1st and 10th 112
Best represented genre Platformer
Last reading September 18, 2026

The best game of every genre in 1997

A selection is not read in one block: here is what leads each of its brackets.

The best game of every genre in 1997
Genre Games competing In the lead ELO score Duels played
Strategy 5 Dungeon Keeper 1,844 135
FPS 10 GoldenEye 007 1,823 234
Platformer 16 Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back 1,773 307
Racing 6 Gran Turismo 1,761 197
Fighting 9 Tekken 3 1,680 301

What moved this week

The ranking changes with every duel settled. Over the past seven days, the score of 75 games in this selection moved.

What moved this week
Game Points gained in 7 days ELO score
Mortal Kombat 4 +77 1,596
Breath of Fire III +57 1,459
Fighting Force +51 1,478

The most contested match-ups

These pairs of games have faced each other more than any others in this selection.

The most contested match-ups
Wins Against Duels played Win rate
Final Fantasy VII Final Fantasy Tactics 4 75%
The Curse of Monkey Island Broken Sword: The Smoking Mirror 3 100%

How this ranking is established

No jury, no press score, no sales figures: two games face off, players vote, and every vote updates an ELO score. This page is a view of the world ranking, never a standing kept apart.

Understand the method in detail →

FAQ

What players ask

What is the best game of 1997?

According to community votes, the best game of 1997 is Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, with 1,878 ELO points in the world ranking. It stands ahead of Fallout: A Post Nuclear Role Playing Game and Final Fantasy VII, and its place is replayed with every duel.

How many games of 1997 are ranked?

77 games of this selection take part in the duels, and they have played 9,532 of them so far. The full site catalogue is much wider: only games kept for their fame enter the running.

Which game of 1997 is climbing right now?

Mortal Kombat 4 is the strongest climb in this selection over the past seven days, with 77 ELO points gained. Over the same period, the score of 75 games in the selection moved.

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