Single player FPS game aren't as common as they used to be, at least when it comes to AAA releases. We might get 3 or 4 big titles a year, and they tend to be either multiplayer only or have a single player campaign that barely lasts 5 hours. I miss the days when publishers would release experimental mid-tier shooters like Jurassic: The Hunted, The management, Dreamkillerand NecroVisionwhich all came out in 2009.
While indie developers have caught on and can keep most people busy, there's also the opportunity to check out some forgotten FPS games from the past, quite a few of which have aged well. The genre established its core mechanics in the early 2000s, and things haven't changed much since then; consequently, a shooter from 2010 can feel just as good as a successor from 2025.
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger Is A Spaghetti Western Blast
Perfect blend of style, gameplay and story
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Stylized images have stood the test of time.
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The western setting still feels fresh.
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Just cool.
Call of Juarez doesn't get enough love in general, and some of that may have to do with the series screwing up its momentum with The cartel. After the misguided attempt to jump forward to the modern day, Techland and Ubisoft wisely chose to return to Call of Juarezs roots with GunslingerAlthough a digital-only release suggested a lack of confidence in its potential.
In a sea of brown and gray shooters, Gunslingers colorful comic book-like visuals, wild west, myth-based storytelling and arcade games with short comics let it float to the top; in fact, this combination is still uncommon today, especially for an AA game from a major publisher. Blending history and fiction, the campaign puts you in the role of Silas Greaves as he recounts his tales of misadventures as a bounty hunter, including run-ins with the likes of Billy the Kid and Butch Cassidy.
The framing device affects the mission's presentation, with Silas sometimes changing the narrative and causing the world to change around him. Although not the coolest shot ever, Gunslinger still feels good to control, especially its concentration system that lets you slow down time and take multiple shots at once. Showdowns are also a blast.
Gunslinger is constantly on sale on the Nintendo Switchand I highly recommend you pick it up.
Peter Jackson's King Kong is the perfect film adaptation
Don't be afraid of the licensed gaming curse
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Immersive presentation without HUD.
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Multiple play styles.
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Incredibly ambitious for a licensed game from this era.
I will never miss an opportunity to discuss Peter Jackson's King Kongjust to keep its name alive, given that it has been delisted for more than a decade now. In the 21st century, few phrases evoked quite as much trepidation as “movie game,” and hoping for anything better than a rushed mess was a recipe for disappointment. King Kong can be lumped in with other failures of the era, but it doesn't deserve to be mentioned alongside Sega's Marvel games, Fight Clubor Catwoman.
Once you get into the game, you will immediately realize it King Kong is something special. Why? Well, you won't see a health bar, an ammo counter, or a traditional crosshair. Instead, you trust sensory cues to find out this important informationa decision that immediately showed that Ubisoft was trying to create an immersive experience rather than just Turok with King Kong (as cool as that sounds). You don't feel like an action hero, and you certainly don't become Rambo running through a forest killing everything that moves.
Wildlife AI was amazing for its era and still holds up pretty well. Since ammo is scarce, the game encourages players to think outside the box and manipulate their environment to get past predators, including using weaker animals as distractions. Humans are weak, so they must be smart.
Oh, right, you also play as Kong. It's as empowering as it sounds.
Click on the game with higher OpenCritic rating.
Project Snowblind Is Linear Deus Ex (And That's A Good Thing)
Slow down time, throw a grenade and blow up a tank
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Enhanced gunplay and the many ways you can destroy enemies.
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A fast paced linear shooter.
A Deux Ex games that ended up being something else entirely, Project Snowblind shows its lineage through its power-ups, top-notch gunplay and pure power fantasy factor. Let someone go immersive-sim elements in favor of linear arcade gameplay, Crystal Dynamics games have aged better than any of the older ones Deus Ex game, despite that the original is still far more impressive today.
While you may mostly walk along a straight path, Project Snowblind offers freedom through the techniques and abilities available to players. “Reflex Boost” lets you slow down time, while Cloak lets you turn invisible, and the fun comes from finding ways to cleverly implement them during missions. The weapon selection is also quite robust, including an Icepick gun that takes control of electronics such as mechs or turrets.
Project Snowblind certainly looks its age, more so than any other game in this article. However, the battle still feels surprisingly even.
Hard Reset set the stage for modern FPS games
The Boomer Shooter Before Boomer Shooters
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One of the last true AA FPS games.
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Available in improved form (Hard Reset Redux)
I struggled to make up my mind Hard reset qualifies as forgotten, because I always come across the game when I'm looking in stores for shooters. Ultimately, Flying Wild Hog's first game doesn't have the cult following of its more acclaimed peers, especially Bulletstorm and Shadow Warriorand Redux version doesn't even have 2K reviews on Steam despite being released more than a decade ago.
Hard reset is the missing link between classic 90s shooters and modern boomer shooters, occupy that AA space which is almost completely extinct today. 2011 was an uncompromising PC-first FPS that emphasized fast movement, weapon mode handling and raw aim far removed from the genre's typical releases, although it was a little rough around the edges in places. Even its neon lighting and sci-fi weaponry set it apart from the military crowd.
Moving away from “choose two weapon” loadouts, Hard resetThe best feature is that it only offers two weapons with multiple configurations that can be switched on the fly. Your standard assault rifle physically switches and assembles itself on the fly into a shotgun, grenade launcher, rocket launcher, or nearby minefield.
Dark Messiah of Might and Magic sets an unbeatable bar for FPS RPGs
The perfect battle
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Physics-based combat is top-notch.
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A proper sandbox that encourages experimentation.
Does this count? Dark Messiah of power and magic is first and foremost an action RPG, but it also plays like a first-person shooter with magic and a sword (and a bow). Two decades later, Dark Messiahs genre mash-up continues to be extremely rare, and part of that may be due to the fact that Arkane kind of nailed first-person combat immediately.
Because Arkane built the game on Valve's Source Engine, the entire world is incredibly tactile, reactive and physically modeled. If you try to play it as a traditional first-person chess and slash, Dark Messiah penalizes you significantly, as you are meant to treat the environment as your primary weapon. Well, that and your boot, like kicking goblins off scaffolding is simply the best.
Magic can be fired basically like a gun, but is most effective when used to exploit physics, such as freezing a stone floor to make guards slide. The fight is just so much fun.
