10. Apex Legends The Battle Royale craze somehow went stale
the moment Apex Legends dropped. This spin-off of Respawn’s award-winning
Be the last team standing and put your skills and reflexes to the test in its fast-paced
first-person, hero-shooting experience. Choose from its 11 unique Legends and use the massive
map as your playground. Each Legend offers their own set of abilities, letting you turn
the tide of every firefight.
GameSpot mentioned in their review that, “Apex Legends is a mix of smart shooter ideas that
makes for a competitive, team-based game…”
It combines all the best parts of Titanfall while injecting it with Battle Royale’s
frenetic moment to moment action. Its major gripes, however, is that it’s an EA title
with a buttload of microtransactions. As a free game, it is expected, but knowing EA’s
business model, it might be a bigger problem in the long run.
Nevertheless, Apex Legends excels as a good first person shooter and a battle royale with
a playscore of 7.89
9. Paladins The age of hero-shooters began when Blizzard’s
Overwatch came out way back in 2016. From then on, the market continues to push the
trend even further resulting to Hi-Rez making their own hero-shooter FPS, Paladins. It finally
came out of Open Beta after 2 years.
Despite the oversaturated shooter genre, IGN gave it an 8.4, saying that, “Even after
over 300 hours of exhilarating battles and strategic planning, champions continue to
find a way to offer new gameplay experiences.”
At first, it had a lot of controversy due to it being an ‘Overwatch clone’ but over
the years it gained its own identity with more heroes and diverse multiplayer modes.
On the surface, Paladins is a hero-shooter but within its layers lies a in-depth deckbuilding
system where you customize your Champions’ abilities. You can choose what skills well-suited
for your playstyle, providing a fun yet complex gameplay mix. It receives a playscore of 8.03
8. Sairento VR VR still has a long way to go, but this mission-driven
action role-playing game from Mixed Realms is a step in the right direction. In Sairento,
assume control of a ruthless assassin trained by a cover organization. If SUPERHOT had a
sequel, this could pass as one. Albeit without the time-bending abilities.
As a Virtual Reality title with first person shooter elements, showcase your gunplay and
sword fighting abilities with its arsenal of futuristic weaponry using your supported
VR controllers. Every engagement feels like walking on thin ice. Go guns blazing or use
a variety of stealth mechanics to gain the upper hand and take enemies down one by one.
Its impressive visual design and atmosphere coincides with its already satisfying combat,
paving a new way for the future of VR. It has a playscore of 8.07
7. Borderlands: Game Of The Year Edition The third installment may be out, but nothing
can top the previous two installments that made the series what it was. Gearbox’s ‘crazy’
interplanetary looter-shooter came with a few refinements to the experience, from navigation
to inventory.
This Game of the Year Edition not only comes with gameplay upgrades, but these are all
topped off with a big 4K finish that dusts off their nostalgic cel-shaded look and ushers
us back into the rough Pandoran paradise.
It was hailed as one of the greatest shooters of all time. Gaming Bolt’s Ravi Sinha gave
it an 8 out of 10, saying that “... it is more than a blast from the past - it's a compelling
game in its own right.”
It receives a playscore of 8.08
6. Project Warlock A retro first-person shooter about one man
and his guns. An ode to B-Side shooters like Doom, Hexen, and Wolfenstein, Buckshot Software’s
bullet-hell mayhem takes you through 60 levels of non-stop action. Your mission? Eradicate
evil in a never-ending maze packed with bloodthirsty enemies determined to kill you every second.
It’s the ultimate throwback for fans of these classic retro-shooters. According to
Destructoid, who gave it an 8 out of 10, “If your trigger finger is itching, buy Project
Warlock to scratch that itch. You won’t be disappointed.”
And in this day and age, there’s no shortage of videogames backed by fans. It was initially
a Kickstarter project and a passion-project. This title made its way to GOG as a timed
exclusive and from then on, it became a major hit. It has a playscore of 8.13
5. Blood: Fresh Supply™ Speaking of classic shooters, Blood was part
of the legion of clones of the classic B-Side shooters alongside Doom and Wolfenstein. This
revival of the 90's cult-favorite remains dark, spooky, and edgy.
As a remastered version, it amps up the ante of the original as you battle through an army
of sycophantic cultists, zombies, hellhounds, and other freaks of nature. The gameplay is
similar to the aforementioned shooters, where you as a protagonist make your way through
endless hallways battling out enemies and unlocking weapons.
Techraptor gave it an 8 out of 10. Praising the entirety of its rework. Saying that “Blood
is a classic FPS game. Its level design, animation, movement, arsenal of weapons, and monsters
are as delectable today as they were in 1997.”
Like the classics, this game is ‘bloody’ difficult, but it's what made these titles
shine. It receives a playscore of 8.26
4. Overload PC is a hotbed for all kinds of shooters.
If there are Battle Royales like Apex Legends and B-Shooters like Project Warlock and Blood,
there’s also 6 Degrees of Freedom-Shooters like this.
Dubbed as the ‘spiritual successor’ of the popular 90’s gem, Descent, this brand
new game feels like a revival of the age-old title. Genres like this are unlike most of
the shooters that came out in the 90s. It’s non-static and it enables you to move in any
direction while you battle a horde of machines in its endless hallways.
It’s like a breath of fresh air amidst PC’s overbearing collection of first-person shooters.
Game Reactor gave it an 8 out of 10. Impressed by the Developer, Revival Productions, for
sticking true to its inspirations, saying that it’s “...done a decent job of marrying
reverent design with a dash of much-needed modernity.”
It receives a playscore of 8.37
3. Ion Fury Speaking of ‘spiritual successors’, let’s
not forget about 2019’s version of Duke Nukem. As a ‘bomb disposal expert’, lead
Shelly “Bombshell” Harrison in a quest to stop a sociopathic transhumanist cult leader.
IGN gave the game a score of 7.5 out of 10, saying it is an “...authentic throwback
to Duke Nukem 3D that certainly hails to the king but can't quite dethrone him.”
Although there’s no denying the original is always better, what Ion Fury did was re-introducing
this kind of genre to the modern audience. If you’re looking for an oddly specific
title with pop-culture references from Terminator, Tron, and Duke Nukem itself, this game is
for you. It receives a playscore of an 8.52
2. Metro Exodus The latest of the Metro series continues to
take you to the heart of post-apocalyptic Russia. In this third installment to the first-person
survival-shooter from 4A Games, you are no longer limited to the confines of the underground
Metro, travel around the irradiated Russia with your steam-powered train and find a new
hope for the future of humanity.
Artyom remains as the protagonist and his quest to rebuild civilization is as difficult
as ever. Games Radar’s Austin Wood gave it a 4.5 out of 5. Calling it as ‘’the
best Metro game yet…’’
As an Epic Exclusive, the game was lauded for its immersive atmosphere and detailed
environments. It is a huge leap to the ‘semi-open world’ element makes it a potential Fallout
killer. A playscore of 8.58
1. DUSK We go back once again to the age of 90’s
shooters. David Szymanski retro-FPS easily dethrones the rest of these titles. DUSK borrows
elements from iconic contemporary 3D shooters and refines the age-old genre with their own
style and form. Set in a ‘Lovecraftian’ world where you fend off an army of backwater
cultists and demons, discover what lurks beneath the Earth.
PC Gamer praised the level design of Dusk, stating that the game "is both an ode to and
evolution of the greatest era of FPS level design." on which they gave it an 8.90 out
of 10. Not only does this game offer a fantastic single-player experience, but its multiplayer
mode is also akin to Quake. Although it’s not its best feature, it remains a fun addition
for fans looking for some replay value.
It’s the ideal PC first-person shooter that doesn’t just pay homage to the retro-FPS
days but stands on its own as a fantastic modern classic. A playscore of 9.13