The first-person shooter genre had a brilliant run on the 7th generation of consoles. While there have been some gems on current gen consoles, the genre so far hasn’t reached the heights it once did. With the release of the new Call of Duty and Wolfenstein on the horizon, it’s time to look back on some of the best.
10- Metro: Last Light
A possible surprise to this list is the sequel to the cult classic Metro 2033. Metro: Last Light moved the series from a more survival-based shooter to one that’s more about the shooting rather than staying in the shadows. The gunplay still retains the feel of the first, the tense battles with enemies are still here and the creatures of the surface are even scarier than before. The story might be slightly weaker towards the end but overall an adrenaline-fuelled thrill ride through all the parts of the Metro system.
9- Titanfall 2
The sequel to the 2014 Xbox One exclusive improved the original in almost every conceivable way. It included a superb single-player campaign, which was absent in the original. The multiplayer refined the Titan battles so that they weren’t indestructible tanks and made being a pilot actually exciting.
8- Wolfenstein: The New Order
The second reboot in 5 years was possibly the most underrated game of that year. It’s dubbed a dumb game made by intelligent people. The story is bonkers in a good way and takes the player across 15 years of alternate history. The gunplay is punchy and exciting, each weapon feels different and all are effective to the task ahead. A real masterpiece of first-person shooter design.
7- The Darkness II
An unconventional pick for this spot, but this game had a little bit of everything. The story is excellently paced, and the mix of the guns and the Darkness powers are brilliant. The takedowns with the Darkness are visceral, and that’s what makes them brilliant. The extra stories might seem like a tacked on mode, but they are well done, and the different characters the player can use are all different and have their own personality. Truly a gem that went largely unknown in the community.
6- Call of Duty: World at War
The first Call of Duty game on this list is the last World War II game in the series till this November. The campaign is up there with some of the best in the series. The gore in this game is rare to see in this genre, and it’s done really well. The multiplayer is almost a copy of Modern Warfare’s with WWII era weapons and kill streaks. This was also the first game to bring in the Zombies game mode, and it is possibly the most fun you can have with friends.
5- Battlefield 1
Dice did something a little different with this one by taking us to World War I, but it paid off big time. The story is a collection of short stories from all over the Great War, and they are done with sympathy of the period. The multiplayer is excellent, and guns feel incredible and do the era justice. The best shooter of 2016 and still going strong now.
4- Halo 3
The only Halo game to make this list is the Master Chief’s first outing on the Xbox 360, and what an outing it was. The campaign was excellently paced and an absolute delight to play through. The multiplayer was excellent, and not one weapon felt overpowered apart from the energy sword, maybe, but that’s about it. There is a reason why it was in the top ten games played on Xbox Live for ages.
3- Battlefield: Bad Company 2
The only Battlefield game that had a campaign with personality. The Camaraderie of B company made the campaign an absolute blast from start to finish and had some great variances in gameplay, especially the one level where the player had to guide the soldier from heat source to heat source; keeping him alive was something that hadn’t been seen before or really since. The multiplayer was another masterstroke, and the destructible environments made every firefight different and exciting.
2- BioShock
The best plot twist seen in gaming history. The “would you kindly” story arc is by far the best I have ever seen in a first-person shooter ever. The game had everything you could want in a single-player campaign, and the combination of plasmids and guns was excellent and made fighting the splicers thrilling. The various big name NPCs were all incredibly well written characters, and all had interesting stories to tell.
1- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
The number one spot had to go to MW2, it is a masterpiece in every department. The campaign continued the story of Captain Price and Soap and their adventures in saving the world. This was probably the beginning of the Michael Bay-style of storytelling with spectacular set pieces. The “controversial” No Russian level pushed the boat out with what can be played in a first-person shooter but was important to the story. The multiplayer, whilst having some overpowered elements, was still exciting to play. It’s still the best multiplayer I have ever experienced and one that I still play to this day.
