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The best game expansions of 2024 deserve a round of applause. The big names that typically show up in these kinds of lists faced steeper challenges than usual. The likes of World of Warcraft and Destiny 2 had to grapple with the question of how to reinvent themselves after previous expansions left a sour taste. Even Final Fantasy 14 faced a similar challenge, namely, answering the question “what’s left when the story ends?”.
These expansions might be building upon older releases, but they've all added something meaningful that makes their base games feel just as fresh and exciting as they ever did, and often more so. Just as important, they haul games that often struggle with feeling outdated into the modern era, paving the way for even bigger, bolder expansions in the coming years, and providing room for their communities to grow and evolve.
Bear in mind that – unlike The Game Awards – we consider these expansions as ongoing parts of older games and not new releases in themselves. They won’t be appearing in our best games of 2024 list as a result. Which is why making sure to celebrate them here is all the more important.
5. Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail
Developer: Square Enix
Platforms: PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X
Everyone deserves a nice vacation after saving the planet, or that’s what Square Enix decided with its Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail expansion, anyway. After the literally world-ending events of Endwalker, the Warrior of Light and Scions of the Seventh Dawn head across the sea to Tural to help influence the election of that nation’s next ruler. (It’s less insidious than it sounds). Dawntrail has the unenviable task of hauling FF14 into a new era and narratively starting from scratch, and it resembles 2013’s A Realm Reborn in that regard, albeit with, mercifully, better pacing and a much more refined vision. Its tale of loss and the tension between tradition and progress leaves just enough mysteries for future patches to build on, but the battle scenarios are the real star of Dawntrail. Its dungeons and bosses are some of the MMO’s best to date.
Learn more in our Final Fantasy 14: Dawntrail review where we noted that "some of the best content in Dawntrail is in its Trials and dungeons – which require you to engage with your Job Class to its fullest extent"
4. World of Warcraft: The War Within
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Platform: PC
World of Warcraft normally exists on the completely opposite end of the MMO spectrum, but The War Within, perhaps by virtue of starting a planned trilogy, borrows some of FF14's storytelling methods and is much better for it. The War Within actually wants you to care about its characters and world, and some of its quest writing ranks among the long-running game’s best. Speaking of borrowing from FF14, The War Within finally lets you run dungeons on your own with a party of NPCs, making this epic adventure more approachable for those who prefer solo play. Better still is the new Hero Talents system. These give you so much more control over how your favorite class plays and completely shake up familiar battle routines with a wealth of new possibilities. It's quite the achievement for a game as old as this to be reaching a new peak two decades in.
Learn more in our World of Warcraft: The War Within review, where we called it "one of the strongest WoW expansions in recent memory"
3. Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment
Platforms: PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One
Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred is exactly what you’d hope for from a Diablo expansion – crunchy, bombastic, and full of system and gear tweaks that make it so much smoother to play. With Lilith seemingly defeated, our hero’s task turns to tracking down erstwhile companion Neyrelle after she hightails it with Mephisto’s soulstone – not a good idea, Neyrelle. It’s schlocky and melodramatic in that endearing way Diablo is great at realizing, but the real draws are elsewhere. The new Nahantu map adds some much-needed environmental nuance with its sprawling temples and cursed jungles, and the Spiritborne class, which channels the spirits of wild animals during battle to transform your playstyle, is broken in the most fantastically enjoyable ways. Most surprising of all, though, is the new Dark Citadel endgame raid. It’s a challenging, multi-part dungeon built around teams working together in co-op to expose a boss’ vulnerabilities. It’s the first of its kind for Diablo and hopefully not the last.
Learn more in our Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred review where we called it "a journey worth taking"
2. Destiny 2: The Final Shape
Developer: Bungie
Platforms: PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One
The Final Shape is Destiny 2 at its best, and that sure is a nice feeling to have after last year's more middling Lightfall. It brings almost a decade of storytelling to a close, finally makes The Witness feel like a properly dangerous villain, and answers so many questions Bungie’s happily let linger for years. But this is Destiny 2, and that means the really good stuff is what happens outside the main story. The Final Shape’s maps are brilliant both in concept – spelunking in a god’s body, for example – and design – ditching linear layouts from previous expansions for areas that invite close exploration. Topping it off is the absolutely fabulous new Prismatic subclass that lets you combine elements from other classes. They're a great way to tackle the oh-so-satisfying new raids and endgame challenges that prove the Destiny formula still has plenty to give.
Learn more in our Destiny 2: The Final Shape review, where we called it "an incredibly well-executed expansion that nicely rounds off a decade-long journey"
1. Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree
Developer: FromSoftware
Platforms: PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One
Calling Shadow of the Erdtree an expansion almost seems wrong, since FromSoftware stuffed it full of so many bosses, so many areas, and so much mechanical evolution that it feels like a slightly smaller scope sequel. It’s everything that was outstanding about Elden Ring, only better. Shadow of the Erdtree’s boss fights are more spectacular and unpredictable, its dungeons more devious, and its labyrinthine world more worthy of exploration. Despite the themes of decay and stagnation – and, y’know, the bodies piled up everywhere – Shadow of the Erdtree is absolutely gorgeous, with some of FromSoft’s most visually captivating environment designs to date. And, of course, there’s the lore. Shadow of the Erdtree fills in so many gaps that Elden Ring left and completely recontextualizes the main story. It's not just essential for fans of the original game, but a vital addition to the medium that pushes its genre forward, while making you rethink the nature of sequels, expansions, and iteration entirely.
Learn more in our Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree review, where we rightly said that "if FromSoftware is going to keep making games of this caliber, there'll always be hope for the creative future of the industry"
Looking for more to play? If Destiny 2 was your thing this year, you might want to check out our best FPS games list!
