Shooters with better action than Call Of Duty

When it comes to shooter franchises, Call of Duty is number one. Whether gamers are hardcore or casual, chances are they've played one Call of Dutyif not all, or continue playing one of their favorites online. While the campaigns can often be epic and the weaponry pristine, there are other shooters, and not just first-person shooters, that feature better action throughout.

Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon is a good third-person mech example, while a more recent boomer first-person shooter likes Ultra cool breaking new boundaries. What other games are on the list? Let's blast on and remember that at the end of the day, the Call of Duty games are still fun.

Armored Core 6: Fires Of Rubicon

A classic franchise returns

Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon is the latest game in the Armor core series, with the most intense mech action yet. Most of the game will take players through a linear series of missions with large open areas to explore and attack enemies, whether they are other mechs, turrets, or anything in between.

Players can customize their mechanics with parts and weapons the further they get in the game, and a build can easily make all the difference during a difficult boss fight, such as favoring different steps or melee over range. Between sliding on the ground to avoid attacks, returning blaster guns and shooting off some rockets, players will never get a moment's rest until the mission is complete. Call of Duty have very rarely had mechs and certainly not ones that are as fast or as robust as the ones in Armored Core 6: Fires of Rubicon.

Bulletstorm

Cliff Kickers

Bulletstorm is a first-person shooter that went for humor and creativity above all else and has yet to merit a sequel. Players will get to arm themselves with the usual array of rifles and shotguns, albeit with futuristic twists, but the real hook of the game is the environment.

There will always be something in the environment that can make for a cool kill, from shooting barrels to cause an explosion to lassoing an enemy and then kicking them off a cliff. The more creative players are, the more points are collected, which can help liven up the battles from the usual point-and-shoot gameplay of Call of Duty game.

Destiny 2

Powered Up classes

The Fate the series and Call of Duty series has a solid reputation when it comes to console games, thanks to Bungie and the many developers working behind the scenes at Activision. Then it should come as no surprise Destiny 2 has some of the best controls in modern shooters, even though it's technically almost a decade old.

What sets it apart is the weapon variety and classes, as each has a skill tree that offers players more than just weapons to shoot aliens with. From using powerful weapons and going into third person to calling down lightning bolts in space, the various powers keep things interesting as one of Bungie's best games.

Doom (2016)

Earns M In Mature

The 2016 reboot of Downfall was about keeping up the momentum. The levels weren't linear, but there was definitely less exploration in levels than in the previous games, or rather, there was less hunting for objectives to slow things down in between what this series is good at: shooting demons.

New on Downfall series was a finishing system where players could brutalize their opponents to keep their health high or their ammo in check. Like the last one Mortal Kombat game, these finishers were gooey, and even though Call of Duty is rated M, Downfall is a 100% more mature than that series on all levels.

Max Payne 3

Bad holiday vibes

Max Payne 3 is the latest entry in the series, and it's been a while since this pill-popping detective made the scene. Like the previous entries, the titular hero is now a bit older and can't move as well as he used to. Players will feel every bullet and punch he takes, but the same goes for when players shoot back.

As old as Max is, he can still use bullet time to pull off cool moves on missions. This is another game that gets the mature feel of gunplay right, both glorifying it with cool cinematic combat and showing just how brutal weapons are, like Call of Dutybut much more interesting thanks to Max's noir-infused story, making it one of Rockstar's more forgotten games.

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart

Platforming at its best

It may seem strange to nominate one Ratchet & Clank games like Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart before Call of Dutybut Insomniac Games knows what they're doing, and this series has always mixed humor, great gunplay with inventive weapons, and solid platforming.

Combat is all about keeping up with enemies between shooting them around or jumping into the air, all while firing a wild assortment of weapons from standard laser blasts to a gun that can pixelate enemies. New to this game is the dimension change and the two new dual protagonists, Rivet and Kit. Pixar level “kiddy” graphics shouldn't deter players as this is a really good action shooter.

Saros

Level up Roguelikes

Saros is the latest bullet hell roguelike shooter from developer Housemarque. As Return that came before, players will have incredibly fast movement speed in third person, and gain various weapons and perks on runs. What's different in this spiritual sequel is that there is a permanent upgrade tree to boost stats and abilities, like one that can save players from death.

RPGs and roguelikes with progression systems excel Call of Duty campaigns because achievements rarely carry over. The intensity that players can feel Saros' levels as they constantly dodge gunfire while dishing out their own incredibly devastating moves is also something Call of Duty players can only dream of.

Ultra cool

Armed robot arms

Ultra cool is one of the best modern shooters out there, and it's only in Early Access. There's not much of a premise beyond entering levels and blasting enemies with larger-than-life weapons, from pistols that can deflect coins to a Gatling gun that gets hot when used.

The game is presented entirely in pixel art, but does not shy away from large splashes of blood comically and colorfully. It can also be likened to an old-school bullet hell where players must constantly be on the move or they will be decimated. Although shooting can be intense in some situations within Call of Duty, Ultra cool is another game that gets the movement right with intensely satisfying gun-based gameplay.

Titanfall 2

The spiritual successor to CoD

Titanfall 2 feels like the closest spiritual successor to Call of Dutyas Respawn Entertainment was built by former Infinity Ward team members. Unlike the first game, which was purely a multiplayer shooter, this sequel had a campaign that was short, but it made every second count.

The human combat never lets up, between sliding on the ground to skip a few laps, or hacking robots to become allies, or running on walls and raining grenades down on enemies. This is shooter parkour, and that's not even getting into the mech combat, which is just as solid, and the bond that forms between pilot Jack Cooper and his mech, BT, can be both heartfelt and funny.

Defeat

A rare shooter from PlatinumGames

PlatinumGames does its best work with character action games, though Defeat is a rare exception as their first-rate third-person shooter experiment. Equipped with a futuristic suit, the Augmented Reaction Suit, the hero, Sam Gideon, can slow down time in battle when players activate it, such as when sliding on the ground.

Movement can take some getting used to as color propulsion can be fast when not in slow-mo, but with practice players can get used to it. While Call of Duty have had exoskeleton suits before with combat abilities, nothing compares to Sam's ARS. The shooting isn't bad either, but overall it's the momentum that's addictive in Vanquish.