The best games where you can stop time

The ability to stop, slow down, or rewind time is often featured as a core mechanic in games, adding a new layer of depth and complexity to the gameplay loop for players to interact with. Reversing the flow of time is an inherently overpowered ability that requires proper balance and care to avoid breaking the game.

This list only includes titles where stopping time is an in-game superpower or special ability the player character has, not a system mechanic. Turn-based games and CRPGs with tactical pauses are excluded for that reason.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Lets you rewrite every mistake with the power of Dagger

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time One of the earliest examples of using time stop as a game mechanic and judging it. The game is entirely centered around the Dagger of Time, a powerful artifact with the ability to manipulate time. As a basic ability, the Prince can rewind time up to 10 seconds, depending on how much sand is stored in the dagger, allowing players to reset the game state and avoid death.

As the Dagger of Time becomes stronger over the course of the game, it also gains the ability to slow down time around the main character, freeze an enemy in time-stopped stasis, or even allow the entire world around the Prince to move freely.

The danger of iron

Each battle turns into a puzzle that you can complete over time

The danger of iron is an underrated gem of an ARPG that revolves entirely around the concept of controlling time. Players are placed in various scenarios in a highly interactive environment with the goal of defeating enemies in isometric real-time combat. The unique twist is that, at any point, players can rewind time up to five seconds, effectively resetting the state of the entire game world, including death and disconnection.

The combat scenarios are absurdly difficult, almost the equivalent of a one-man army storming a castle full of enemies armed to the teeth with weapons of mass destruction. Without the ability to rewind time, these obstacles are almost impossible to overcome, but with it, they turn into a fun but challenging puzzle game where players have to figure out the best approach for each combat situation in order to win.

Transistor

Freezes time for you to plan every perfect strike

Developed by Supergiant Games, Transistor is a sci-fi isometric RPG that puts players in the shoes of Red, a singer who loses her voice, wielding a giant greatsword called a transistor to defeat machine-controlled enemies. The transistor gives Red access to powers called functions, and one of the very first functions he unlocks is called turn(), the ability to stop time.

Turn() freezes time for Red and all enemies, allowing him to plan what actions to take. When time restarts, all actions players have planned to take the raid will play out in sequential order. The use of Turn() is purely optional, though, and players can easily defeat enemies if they have good reaction time and know the right skills to use. But when in a tight pinch, Turn() is the ultimate fallback tool for planning the most optimal path to success.

Fallout series

VATS lets you freeze time to target enemies with surgical precision

was first introduced in Fallout 3VATS, or the Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System, has become one of the series' most iconic mechanics, allowing players to pause time and aim their guns at specific body parts. The feature acts as an auto-aim system baked into the in-game lore and linked to the Pip-Boy's abilities.

in Fallout 3 and New VegasVATS stopped time completely, while Ma Result 4This instead resulted in a bullet time effect, slowing down time considerably but not stopping it completely. in Fallout 76Due to the online nature of the game, the time manipulation aspect was completely removed, and VATS was converted into a real-time goal assist.

Disgraced series

Turns stealth into an art form with time-bending powers

The insulted The series consists of two stealth action games where players use supernatural powers such as teleportation, possession, telekinesis and summoning to complete missions. One of the most useful supernatural abilities in the insulted The sequence is the ability to slow down and stop time, allowing players to easily reposition and plan their actions.

In the first insulted game, this power is named Bend Time. Bend Time I slows down time significantly, similar to a bullet time effect, while Bend Time II stops time completely for 8 seconds. in Humiliated 2This ability is split, Bend Time slows down the world around the player, and stops the passage of time by completely freezing it.

Life is strange

Mixes heartfelt storytelling with the ability to change time

Life is strange is a story-driven episodic adventure game that follows the life of Max Caulfield, an 18-year-old high schooler with the ability to manipulate time. Max's powers manifest in various ways throughout the game, but his main ability is Temporal Rewind, the power to reverse the flow of time and step into his own past.

In the past, Max can find and place objects, interact with the environment, and talk to people when she sees fit. Anything Max finds in the past and keeps on his person stays with him when he returns to the present. Additionally, Max's actions in the past allow him to change the past and present, saving people who would otherwise die.

Bread

Combines puzzle-solving and time reversal into a beautiful journey

Bread is a critically acclaimed 2D puzzle platformer where players control Tim, a person with the ability to infinitely rewind time, reversing deaths and platforming mistakes with ease. The game is divided into six major levels called “worlds”, each introducing a new signature mechanic that adds a new challenge to overcome.

In combat and platforming Bread Time reversals are balanced around Tim's ability, and it's nearly impossible to complete without using it. As new worlds add more mechanics to the mix, additional layers of complexity are added on top of the basic difficulty, further challenging players who have mastered the basics.

Slows down time so you can dominate every battle

Mechanic's time stopped Skyrim A dragon called “Slow Time” comes in the form of a scream. This can be achieved by learning words of power from Word Walls spread across the world. At full power, this sound slows time to 90% for 16 seconds, which can be further extended by gaining benefits such as Stability (Alteration) and Fortify Alteration enchantments.

In practice, slow time is one of the most powerful screams of all SkyrimEspecially useful for archers who can draw and fire dozens of arrows in half a second while using it. While slow time doesn't completely stop time, it's basically the same thing when used correctly and at its highest level.