The best historical video games ever made
As a developer of the historically-accurate video game series Important People of History about George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln (releasing July 2026 for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence), I decided to sit down and put together a list of the best historical video games ever made.
Last updated: June 2026
The best historical games
- Civilization series
In the Civilization games, you take a society from primitive to technologically advanced, and the games include real-life historical figures in them. So easy to lose hours of your life playing these games, they include many eras and many historical figures. Need I say more?
- Assassin's Creed series
Yes, you can have your complaints about this series (annual releases, gimmicky interactions with historical figures, etc.), but in terms of making history come alive, the Assassin's Creed games absolutely deserve a spot on this list. Depending on which game you pick up you may learn about the Renaissance (Assassin's Creed 2), the American Revolution (Assassin's Creed 3), or any other historical time period. Recent entries in the series (Odyssey, Origins, and Valhalla) even have a "Discovery Tour" mode where you can explore the meticulously recreated environment and learn about history without worrying about violence or objectives. Sadly, a game planned for the US Civil War and post-Civil War Reconstruction time period was scrapped, but there are still plenty of games (and time periods) from which to choose in the Assassin's Creed series.
- Call of Duty: WWII
There is no shortage of first-person shooter set in World War 2, but this game is my pick. The single-player campaign stands out for two reasons: 1. There is a level where you're not a soldier in the trenches but rather a spy attending a party 2. There is a level where you walk through a liberated concentration camp. These were two memorable experiences that separate this from other World War 2 shooters.
- WW1 series
While World War 2 has received more than its fair share of shooter games, World War 1 has a few notable entries of its own. For example, there's a whole WW1-themed series by BlackMill Games, including titles like Verdun, Tannenberg, Gallipoli, and Isonzo, each corresponding to a different part of WW1.
- Ultimate General, Total War, Europa Universalis, and Age of Empires
There's no shortage of strategy games about battles from any number of historical areas. I've already highlighted the Civilization series separately above, but there are plenty of other well-known video game series that focus more heavily on historical wars. Ultimate General, Total War, Europa Universalis, and Age of Empires give quite a few options covering a variety of time periods.
- Oregon Trail
Not all historical video games are about expanding your empire, fighting a World War, or performing assassinations. Sometimes you're just trying to survive as you make your way across untamed lands to a new life at the end of the Oregon Trail. This was a popular "edutainment" game among children, as you would try to ford the river without losing any of your gear, hunt animals, and buy bananas for super cheap to stay alive. And in a true mark of historical accuracy, dysentery could kill you just as easily as starvation or anything else. If playing the original game, the graphics will certainly look well out-of-date, but thankfully there's a modern remake if decades-old graphics are a dealbreaker for you.
- The Saboteur
This game is set in occupied France during WW2, and you play as a saboteur trying to free the city. The game starts off in black and white but each zone you liberate restores color to the world. An intriguing look at what life was like in an occupied city during wartime, as most historical wartime games have you engaging the enemy somewhere on a battlefield, not among a civilian population.
- LA Noire
This game contains a stunning recreation of post-WW2 Los Angeles where you play as a WW2 veteran who has returned to America as a detective. Although most of the game takes place in contained missions, during the time in between missions, you can drive around and soak in the carefully reconstructed 1940s Los Angeles setting.
- Red Dead Redemption games
Perhaps no video games capture the Old West as well as the Red Dead series. It's got horseback riding, quickdraw duels, saloons where you can get drunk, poker games, and so much more. The main storyline in Red Dead 1 even includes quiet moments of tending to an Old West homestead, so experiencing the immersive time period isn't just for wandering around in between missions.
- Important People of History
This series of kinetic novels (a subset of visual novels) shows you photos of real-world locations related to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln, as those places look today. You will learn all about the American Revolution, the Declaration of Independence, the French and Indian War, the Louisiana Purchase, the US Civil War, and much more in these games, traveling across the US and also to locations in other countries, without ever leaving your home. You will see the room where the Declaration of Independence was signed, where Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address, where Washington crossed the Delaware River, and hundreds of historically important places through these games (note that I am the developer of this series).
Interested in more video game recommendations? Check out these other lists: