Best Games With Grappling Hooks 2023

Few gadgets are as iconic to gaming as the grappling hook, a movement-based device that lets the wielder latch onto and quickly zip toward their target.

While the tool has appeared in countless video games over the years, only a handful of games have perfected the satisfying feel of using a grappling hook.

In this list, we’ll highlight the best games with grappling hooks on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch platforms.

With that said, let’s see how this fascinating video game gadget has evolved throughout the years!

Related:Best Action Games On PC 2023Best Parkour Games 2023Best Sword Games On PC

Despite some mismanagement in regard to its multiplayer content, Halo Infinite is widely considered a solid addition to the legendary shooter franchise.

On top of that, it’s helped spark a newfound interest in video game grappling hooks by including one of the most satisfying iterations of said gadget to date.

It makes getting around Infinite’s lush and expansive open world all the more fun and in many cases, is much quicker than hopping on a warthog.

While there are some downsides to using the hook, such as its limited range and restriction to certain surfaces, we wouldn’t give it up in a heartbeat.

FromSoftware’s demanding hack-and-slash action game Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice is a great example of a modern title that gets grappling hooks right.

Set in late 16^th century Japan, it sees you controlling a shinobi with a prosthetic arm that transforms into a lethal spear, ax, umbrella, and grappling hook.

The inclusion of such a powerful traversal device fits in perfectly with Sekiro’s fast-paced gameplay and proves useful both in and out of combat.

Whether you need to get from A to B, get the tactical drop on an enemy, or make a quick escape, Wolf’s prosthetic grappling hook is as versatile as it is flashy.

As if Monster Hunter didn’t already have enough weapons, gadgets, and systems to master, Rise takes things even further with the addition of Wirebugs.

These magically-charged bug contraptions allow the user to propel themselves upwards to quickly scale cliffs, climb structures, and perform dazzling new attacks.

They also happen to have a relatively fast cooldown and can be replenished even faster by obtaining buffs throughout each map.

Considering many of Rise’s new monsters were designed with this tool in mind, it ends up being one of the most valuable resources in your Hunter’s kit.

This list wouldn’t be complete without giving at least a nod to DOOM Eternal‘s fantastic implementation of grappling hook traversal.

Not only does this tool make getting around environments much easier, but it also provides a quick escape tool for getting out of dodge when things heat up.

To account for this, Eternal features much more aggressive enemies than past installments, many of which are armed with long-range projectiles.

The same can be said of the game’s levels, which function like sprawling jungle gyms for you to hop through while thinning out mobs of demons.

The Batman: Arkham games do a great job of presenting the caped crusader’s toolkit in all its crime-fighting glory, including gadgets like the grapple gun.

After all, when you patrol a city as crime-ridden as Gotham, you need a quick means of transportation that can get you to Joker’s hideout and back in a pinch.

Much like Sekiro’s hook, Batman’s grapple has other uses aside from traversal such as stringing up bad guys from gargoyle statues.

Later on, you can even upgrade the grapple gun’s retraction speed to have Batman zip from rooftop to rooftop in record time.

Spider-Man is another hero with access to a grappling hook, even if his web shooters are never explicitly called so.

In real life, web would never have the tensile strength to hold criminals against the side of a building or support the weight of an adult man as he swings around NYC.

While many retro Spider-Man games kind of miff the execution of web-swinging gameplay, we have more than enough good examples in more modern releases.

Spider-Man 2 is often cited as a benchmark for Spidey’s web-swinging mechanics, with Ultimate Spider-Man and Marvel’s Spider-Man deserving mentions as well.

If you’re willing to accept our loose interpretation of what qualifies as a grappling hook for Spider-Man, then Just Cause’s high-flying antics shouldn’t be a problem.

Whereas most characters use this tool to get from one location to another quickly, Rico Rodriguez takes things further by attaching his grapple to anything he wants.

This includes vehicles, aircraft, bad guys, missiles—name any two objects and there’s a good chance Rico has a full-proof method for tethering them together.

Things have only gotten wilder as the series has progressed, to the point where it feels weirder to use the grappling hook solely for traversal than causing chaos.

There’s no shortage of praise for Titanfall 2’s grappling hook, which builds off of the game’s satisfying and fluid movement to give players unbridled freedom.

In addition to running across walls, players can zip across sections of the map in multiplayer by selecting the right loadout.

The grappling hook allows pilots to explore new tactics by harnessing different angles and using momentum to get where they need to go.

This has the unintended effect of raising the skill ceiling for Titanfall 2 players who want to show off their mastery of the game.

The evolution of Titanfall 2’s grappling hook manifested in the Apex Legends hero Pathfinder, a charismatic robot with a suite of abilities that includes grappling.

While Pathfinder’s hook may not be as flashy as its predecessor, with reduced range and speed, in the context of a battle royale it’s still an extremely useful tool.

For one, it lets players get the drop on enemies by ambushing from above, as well as serves as an emergency escape whenever they have to flee.

To this day, we haven’t seen a robot, or any Apex hero for that matter, wield a grappling hook with so much confidence and grace.

With that said, Pathfinder isn’t the only character in a popular multiplayer first-person shooter to be bestowed a grappling hook.

That space is also shared by Wrecking Ball, aka Hammond, a hyper-intelligent hamster inside of a deadly mech outfitted with a grappling hook.

Despite belonging to Overwatch’s traditionally slow-moving tank class, Hammond gets around with ease by transforming into a ball and flinging himself across the map.

Add in the fact that he has a massive health pool and shield and you have one of the best heroes for causing a distraction by knocking enemies around.

Just about every Assassin’s Creed game has that one shiny new gadget or weapon that defines its gameplay.

For example, the original has the hidden blade; Assassin’s Creed II has a gun, AC III a tomahawk, and Black Flag, an entire ship.

In the case of Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, players can obtain a grappling hook that makes traversing Victorian London feel like a cakewalk.

The only downside is the game makes you wait a while before it can be unlocked and forces you to have completed certain activities.

Similar to Assassin’s Creed Syndicate, Dying Light requires players to get about 12 hours into the story before they unlock the grappling hook.

Although its design isn’t anything too special and mainly functions as a quick tool for getting from A to B, it does come in handy when facing zombies at night.

Combine this with the game’s satisfying parkour-based movement and things really start to come together.

If you want to truly experience this gadget’s progression, pick up Dying Light 2, which expands the uses for the grappling hook to allow for more high-flying stunts.

Grappling hooks appear in just as many indie games as AAA ones, including Gone North and Coffee Stain’s first-person platformer A Story About My Uncle.

In it, players take on the role of a boy searching for his lost uncle in a magical world filled with fantastical creatures and beautiful scenery.

To get around, you must rely on one of your uncle’s most mysterious inventions: a grappling hook that lets you swing through surreal environments.

Even if the mechanic starts to wear out its welcome by the end of the adventure, the game gets props for putting such a gadget at the heart of its gameplay.

High On Life is the latest title out of Squanch Games, a studio founded by Rick and Morty creator Justin Roiland.

It features the signature comedic stylings Roiland is known for while layering on colorful visuals and engaging first-person shooter combat.

To this point, every weapon in High On Life is assigned a unique voice and purpose that encourages you to explore different tactics.

One that’s absolutely essential to exploring the game’s environments is Knifey, a hand blade with an Australian accent that can tether itself to bugs and pull you up ledges.

Inspired by classic arena shooters, Fashion Police Squad is a humorous and over-the-top single-player FPS by Mopeful Games and No More Robots.

In it, you play as an officer of the titular Fashion Police Squad, a unit dedicated to fighting against fashion crime using attire-enhancing weaponry.

Part of your arsenal includes a company-issued leather belt that allows you to latch onto and swing from pole to pole across hazardous areas.

This tool also comes in handy during boss fights when you need to avoid powerful attacks by maintaining a safe distance.

Next up is Celerity, a fast-paced FPS parkour title developed and published by Gwyn Dev that includes an interesting grappling hook mechanic.

Instead of aiming and firing at bad guys, players must latch on to grapple points in the world to chain moves and maintain momentum.

Speed is the name of the game here as you try to use the environment and your grappling ability to reach the end of each level as quickly as possible.

Outside of the main campaign, Celerity includes challenge and free roam modes for perfecting your technique with each obstacle and ability type.

Video game grappling hooks don’t get much better than Cyber Hook, a vaporwave-inspired first-person platformer from Blazing Stick and Graffiti Games.

The game casts you as a digital hero on a mission to escape a hostile cyber world before they’re permanently deleted.

This means combining parkour skills with a grappling hook that allows you to scale and ride walls all while fighting enemies and wielding a laser gun.

It’s all wonderfully designed and benefits from an abundance of vibrant retro-wave environments with alternate routes and movement options.

Even though basketball and grappling don’t have much in common aside from making you sweat, first-person action game Grapple Hoops would beg to differ.

In it, you’re tasked with dunking on opponents across a series of levels that combine stylish basketball stunts with grappling hooks, parkour, and explosions. 

Like many of the games covered in this list, Grapple Hoops keeps things simple from a control perspective, allowing players to pull off complex moves with ease.

One second you’re swinging around a building, the next you’re kicking down doors, running along walls, and sliding under objects before delivering a powerful slam dunk.

Who could forget about the indie sensation SpeedRunners and all of its grappling hook glory?

Reaching peak popularity during the mid-2010s, this cut-throat multiplayer running game sees 1-4 players competing to be the last racer standing.

Staying ahead of the pack requires quick reflexes and memorizing each track’s distinct layout, including which surfaces your character can grapple to gain a speed boost.

The game also features a golden grappling hook power-up that can latch onto opponents and stop them from moving while sending your racer forward.