let's keep the ball rolling everybody welcome to chaos gaming and fps games got better and better
as the years went on and technology it got better and better as well in 2002 was a pretty pivotal
year the ps2 and the xbox were in everybody's hands shooters were starting to grow on consoles
and everybody was trying to one-up everyone else welcome to chaos gaming once again today
we are going to check out the 25 best fps games that were released in 2002. you let me know
if you played any of these what your favorite was drop a like and if you guys want 2003 next
let me know at number 25 delta force urban warfare let's kick things off with a game developed by
rebellion who would later go on to have a pretty impressive library delta force urban warfare is a
military simulator for the ps1 which it's a pretty insane combination of things when you consider how
old it was it got pretty solid reviews at the time and it was even re-released in 2010 for the ps3 so
and the psp actually you could probably grab it if you want to give it a go it was a super ambitious
game for its time i think it's a good way to start today's list adam or 24 dark arena you may
not have heard of this one it was an fps exclusive to the gameboy advance and before you laugh at me
it was actually pretty good now despite being made for a console with no graphical power to speak of
dark arena was actually pretty impressive as a doom clone and while it didn't do anything crazy
it did have a lot of niche appeal to it in the platform this was around the time when
developers were really starting to figure out how good fps games were made at number 23. this one's
dear to my heart i love dinosaurs turok evolution now a lot of people point to this game as being
the one that killed the franchise i don't totally agree with that now turok evolution may have been
a step backwards from the glory days of turok too but it was still a solid shooter one of the better
fps titles of 2002 the gameplay was simplified the story wasn't all that interesting but the
shooting of visuals had some merit it was pretty hard to uh be more hardcore edgy than the previous
entries but i think the shift in tone worked in its favor in certain regards is it a great game
no is it as bad as people say i don't think so to rock evolution has some really solid
elements to it i think it deserves a spot albeit a low one at number 22
america's army you've probably heard of this game and you did because it was impressive the
first version was released for the pc in july of 2002 and it was meant to not only be a military
simulator but also a way of educating people as to what life in the army is like america's army
has been updated time and time again and while the project has been somewhat abandoned now it was a
pretty good game and it was very very detailed for its time at number 21 who got into tribes
tribes aerial assault it's weird it was an online only multiplayer shooter exclusive to the ps2
and it was released in 2002 more than 10 years before always online shooters were a thing
but regardless of all that tribe's aerial assault was actually pretty fun it had a ton of
our content the combat was pretty addicting and the technical aspects were marveled you can't
really play it anymore which is the main problem with always online games but you can go look it
up on youtube it's actually interesting give it a watch at number 20. tactical ops assault on tear
the game started as a mod for unreal tournament back in 1999 but it got its official release
in 2002. unlike its sci-fi origins taco ops is a slower paced and more methodical shooter
although it does maintain a focus on multiplayer combat now for a mod made by a small team it was
actually impressive it's also cool to see a mod get a full retail release at number 19
die hard nakatomi plaza now die hard games have been pretty bad for the most part but this one it
had a little bit of appeal developed exclusively for the pc on the build engine it was an fps based
on the first movie of the franchise which i like to call the best one and the gameplay was pretty
basic level as i wasn't anything special but fans of the series they'd have a few fun hours with it
and do a quick play through it's not going to blow you away but if you're a fan of the first
movie which you should be it's fun at number 18 global operations that could mean so many things
there was a lot of tactical shooters in the early 2000s and this one was developed by barking dog
studios that's a really cool name and release for the pc was super deep gameplay or a lot of ways to
play it now it was obvious that it took notes from counter-strike but this was more team dependent if
you can actually believe that it's true it got good reviews and while it didn't last as long
as counter-strike it was fun while it lasted at number 17 007 agent under fire now this game is
not good but it's still one of the better james bond shooters it's not based on any established
james bond story or canon and it features the unique version of james himself the gameplay
was a pretty faithful update of the goldmine mechanics albeit updated for the next console
generation which i can appreciate the problems well it was repetitive the level design was
super repetitive and very very short but if you're looking for a game where you just
turn your brain off for a few hours and you feel like an action movie hero here you go at number 16
medal of honor frontline who remembers when medal of honor was good raise your hand
frontline is often seen as one of the best in the series and it dropped on the ps2 gamecube
and xbox in 2002 now like most of the other medal of honor games frontline was a world war ii
shooter that primary focused on you guessed it the european theater and the front line tense combat
elaborate set pieces a very emotional story it was a blockbuster shooter before call of duty had ever
been conceived and frontline is one of the best in the series but there's one more medal of honor
game that came out in 2002 and we'll talk about that a little later yes there was two of them
at number 15. command and conquer renegade you guys know command and conquer right the strategy
series but renegade was actually a first and third person shooter if you can believe that it was
a spin-off it was developed by westwood studios for the pc it was a super unique game like i said
it's a first and third person shooter but it also has elements of rts thrown in it to keep things
more in line with what you would expect from a cnc game now it turned some of the fans off of
the series okay but it was a solid shooter even got a fan made remake in 2014 called renegade
x which you can go play right now check it out if you want something just a little
different from the regular command and conquer series at number 14. ballistic x versus sever
remember the gameboy advance shooter from a couple videos ago x and sever well it got a sequel it's
called ballistic and it was actually all right as opposed to what you may expected this game
boy advance fps was really really good one of the best exclusives to come out for that system that
year unfortunately competition was hot in 2002 and it didn't sell as well as the original but
if you can find a copy it'll like i said turn your brain off for a couple hours
at number 13 double 007 knight fire often seen as one of the best double 07 games ever made it was
developed by eurocom published by none other than ea featured a single player campaign as well as a
pretty stripped down multiplayer like many james bond's games are known for it was one of the best
reviewed console shooters of 2002 and the double 07 license has fallen off the world i know but it
was a ton of fun it was i mean if you can emulate it go give it a try at number 12 natural selection
like many early 2000s shooters it's a mod for the original half-life although you'd be forgiven for
not believing me because this looks and completely plays different the graphics and lighting are a
lot darker the gameplay is hybrid i'd say of an fps and rts now people have been trying to blend
fps and rts for a long long time natural selection was one of the first it was natural select
praise for its technical aspects as well as many things people were blown away i mean the devs were
able to update the gameplay in the engine and it was good it was one of the best shooters of
2002 and it's one of the most impressive half-life mods ever released at number 11. we're starting to
get into the really good ones serious sam the second encounter a sequel in the truest sense
it was almost identical to the first game and that's a good thing because the first game
was amazing fast-paced over-the-top fps you played as a dude blasting through hordes of enemies with
these all while using ridiculous weapons and firing out some memorable one-liners plus like
other serious same games the visuals were next level for the time and it aged like fine wine
check it out it's been re-released on pretty much every console so you don't have any excuses
and now we've reached the top ten iron storm yeah it took place in alternate history where world war
one never ended okay cod vanguard and it revolved around an allied shooter trying to keep the
russian mongolian empire i don't know whatever from acquiring nuclear weapons in 1964
the game had some pretty linear levels and the gameplay was simple but the technical aspects
were pretty impressive for the time and the story was interesting it flew under the radar a bit but
it was popular enough to get a remake in 2004 as world war zero which you might have heard of
ironstorm was pretty interesting it's worth a look if you like alternate history games which
i actually do i don't know why i'm hating on it at number nine soldier of fortune 2 double helix
developed by none other than raven software it was released for the pc in 2002 it was a
huge improvement over the original in every form it improved the gameplay the graphics
the gore which were the main draw of the first one the level design wasn't quite as good as
the first game but from a technical standpoint soldier of fortune 2 was extremely impressive
and still worth a look in 2021 it was a solid fps and it was definitely one of the best of that year
at number eight red faction 2 developed by volition the team that would later go make saints
row yep it was a multiplayer focus shooter set in the near future with some pretty interesting lore
the campaign was criticized for being on the short side which a lot are but the gameplay was praised
for some of the best in fps shooting red faction would later go on to be a very respected franchise
and its early beginnings here were certainly impressive at number seven star wars jedi knight 2
jedi outcast it's a long one many people call this one of the best star wars shooters ever made i
i don't think it's i don't think it's quite as good as some others but it was good
it took place in the now trashed expanded universe and as you're playing as a mercenary
and former jedi who returns to the jedi order an attempt to stop the remnants of the empire from
rising again sounds familiar kinda it refines the previous gameplay and allowed you to play
it from a first or third person perspective plus it had some of the best lightsaber combat of any
star wars game ever released it was an upper tier star wars game it was it aged like fine wine yes
wasn't the best though at number six i told you one more medal of honor allied assault
many will call this game the best in the series i get it takes place in world war ii greatly refined
the dramatic presentation of previous games and it focused primarily on the european and north
african theaters of the conflict the gameplay was fantastic the story was great and it was
all topped off with an awesome multiplayer mode that most people would never get to experience it
solidified medal of honor as a top dog in the fps field in that time and it was met with critical
acclaim and really good sales unfortunately the franchise has died at number five today
no one lives forever two yeah no one lives forever was one of the best reviewed pc shooters
of the time the sequel it did the impossible it was better in every way like the previous
title it was a spy shooter lots of attitude it was cool style great writing the shooting
was smooth the environments were awesome and the dialogue was sharp and witty and the gear
well it was pretty cool no one lives forever two holds up super well and you can get it on steam
right now for super cheap plus it came out in 2002 so you can run it on practically any computer
at number four battlefield 1942 some people still point to this being the best battlefield game of
all time i don't agree with that but i'll give it a ton of credit because it was good the mechanics
aged super well it was one of the most popular pc shooters in the world back in 2002 and it
helped popularize that kind of large-scale warfare that battlefield is now known for
now compared to other battlefield games 1942 is much simpler it's more straightforward which it
has its own appeal it's a great game and there's still ways to play it in 2021 if you want to do
a little research we've only got three left the best of the best unreal tournament 2003 it used
to be one of the biggest shooter franchises in the world and it's probably never going to get
revived like that but we can look back and get nostalgic and remember those glory days
now unreal tournament 2003 was an impressive update of the previous game's mechanics all while
improving the visuals in the performance plus it introduced us to a ton of new weapons and gameplay
elements that fans still remember fondly is it the best unreal tournament i'll let you debate that
but it was a good one at number two time splitters 2 one of the most under appreciated franchises
in fps history it was a rare sequel that improved upon the first and everywhere like the first game
time splitters too had you jumping around you guessed it time and trying to stop various bad
guys from screwing up the world's timeline and that was all topped off with really good levels
fun characters and some really good shooting back in 2002 it was one of the best fps gameplay
games you could get on console and if you could get it up and running on an emulator you will
immediately see why people want this franchise to make a comeback it's probably never going to
but we can appreciate it and at number one today on the best fps games of 2002 metroid prime if
you know your gaming history which i think most of you do this is not going to shock you it blew
everybody away to this day i think it's one of the most underrated nintendo exclusives ever
it took the formula of super metroid and it perfectly translated it to the third
dimension complete with all kinds of mechanics weapons and everything plus the game aged very
well the visuals were extremely impressive for 2002 and the soundtrack is pure fire it's a must
play for all fans of first person shooters and i don't think many people are going to disagree
with it being in the number one spot today and there you have it my friends that's a trip down uh
the nostalgic fps world of 2002. do you remember any of these games do any of them make you think
back let me know one game that didn't make the list that should have and i'll see you guys soon
you