What Are The Top Shooter Games of 2018?
Shooters are one of gaming’s most popular genres and an abundance of new titles are released every year. But with so many shooters dropping each year, it can be hard to keep track of which titles are worth your time and money. That’s where this list comes in handy! From 90’s throwbacks, to VR experiences, to open-world zombie survival games, these are the best shooters of 2018.
15. Hellbound
Hellbound gameplay
A callback to 90’s first-person shooters like Doom and Duke Nukem 3D, Hellbound is an action-packed shooter that emphasizes brutal gameplay over story. Set against a fiery hellscape with a frantic heavy metal soundtrack, the goal of Hellbound is simple – kill or be killed. A free-to-play survival mode where you face endless hordes of demons is currently available on Steam with a full campaign mode to be released soon. No details are known about the game’s story beyond that it promises lots of adrenaline-fueled action with plenty of demons to kill. And, really, do we need to know anything more to get us excited?
“Kill anything that moves” is as good of a description as any for Hellbound.
“Do you want to know how I got these scars?” Yes, Hellbound’s gruff and macho protagonist. Yes, I do!
14. Reborn
Reborn gameplay trailer
Reborn is an action-heavy take on the horror genre that blends FPS mechanics with a survival horror atmosphere. Though its visual style is reminiscent of games like Outlast, players will spend little time running and hiding in Reborn. In this game, you are the hunter, striking fear in even the deadliest of supernatural forces. Don’t let your guard down too much though as the game more than delivers on setting a terrifying atmosphere. With a story centered on occultism, Reborn offers the perfect blend of gripping action and tense horror.
Three bullets in the chamber equals three soon-to-be-dead bad guys.
Reborn’s story and environments draw heavily from occultism. Certainly, nothing good can come from this scene.
13. Witch Hunt
Witch Hunt gameplay
Evil spirits have invaded the woods of a peaceful village and it’s up to you hunt down and exterminate the mysterious forces. Set in the 18th century, Witch Hunt is a unique gameplay experience that blends horror elements with a first-person hunting game and some light RPG elements for good measure. The game features skill progression, magic abilities, and a trading system that are crucial to master if you want any hope in defeating the game’s deadliest foes. With sprawling environments and non-linear gameplay, Witch Hunt is an immersive experience that challenges you with increasingly difficult enemies. A well-crafted strategy is key to surviving the horrors of the night.
The game features a wide variety of creatures and supernatural forces to hunt.
“What are ya buyin’?” A well-stocked inventory is essential to surviving the game’s more challenging encounters.
12. Scum
Scum gameplay
Taking cues from Battle Royale and The Hunger Games, Scum finds players imprisoned on an island as they battle for survival against other prisoners all in the name of televised entertainment. Character customization and skill progression is key to your survival. Everything from how quickly clothing dries to a character’s metabolism level affects your ability to survive the harsh environments. Players can also earn “fame points” from sponsors for participating in mayhem or just by surviving for an extended period. These points can be exchanged to have your character cloned in case of death or purchasing safe zones within the game’s 144 square kilometer map. The game is currently available in early access through Steam with a full version to be released in 2019.
You can form alliances with other players or eliminate them to increase your fame.
The open world environment is beautiful. Too bad this tranquil scene will soon be the site for bloody mayhem.
11. Mist Survival
Mist Survival gameplay
After the spread of a deadly virus, the world is overrun by flesh-eating zombies. Immune to the virus, you play as one of the last remaining members of society with just one goal in mind: survival at any cost. As you explore the game’s open world, you’ll encounter other survivors and establish camps and settlements to stock supplies and keep the infected away. But zombies aren’t the only foes lurking in the wilderness. Wild animals and bandits also roam the world and will attack on sight. The game also features realistic weather patterns including a thick mist that limits visibility and attracts hordes of the undead.
This scene looks quiet enough, but zombies are just waiting behind closed doors to surprise you.
Out of gas and surrounded by zombies. Things can’t get much worse from here.
10. Insurgency: Sandstorm
Insurgency Sandstorm gameplay
Perhaps the simplest concept on this list, Insurgency: Sandstorm doesn’t have any supernatural or sci-fi twists or even a single player campaign. What it does deliver, however, is incredible, tense, and realistic objective-based team combat. The sequel to the 2014 hit Insurgency, the game is perfect for hardcore shooter fans who like a little strategy with their combat. The game doesn’t hold your hand and features a very limited HUD with no health bar, mini-map, or ammo counts. Sometimes keeping it simple and focusing on the fundamentals is enough, and Insurgency: Sandstorm offers of the best FPS multiplayers available.
Communicating and working closely with your teammates is essential to completing objectives and winning matches.
Though based on a fictional Middle Eastern conflict, the game’s depiction of war is incredibly realistic.
9. Red Faction: Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered
Red Faction: Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered gameplay
In the year 2125, Mars has been colonized by those who left Earth in search of a better life. As Earth’s natural resources begin to run out, the Earth Defense Force (EDF) is sent to Mars to obtain resources at any cost. As the EDF begins forcing Martian workers into slave labor, you’ll lead the resistance as mining engineer Alec Mason and overthrow the oppressive regime using all manners of guerilla warfare. The game has an emphasis on destruction with buildings and structures being fully destructible, all in the means of liberation. The updates to the original 2009 release are largely cosmetic, but the open world destruction looks better than ever with full 4k support.
The game’s destructible environments provide ample opportunities to walk towards the camera like a total badass as explosions go off behind you.
Several vehicle types are available to help explore the rugged Mars terrain.
8. Firewall: Zero Hour
Firewall: Zero Hour gameplay
No other game on this list brings you into the action quite like Firewall: Zero Hour. Available exclusively on PlayStation VR, immersion and realism are everything in Firewall: Zero Hour. Like Insurgency: Sandstorm, the game is strictly a multiplayer experience where the player must work closely with their team to complete objectives. The realism in Firewall goes even further as players only have one life per match. While this may turn off more casual gamers, it adds a greater sense of realism and intensity to every match. The gameplay is also highly varied with fully customizable weapons and unique character classes.
Going in guns blazing is a good way to quickly lose your one life. 0/10, would not recommend.
There’s no “I” in “team”: effective teamwork and a solid strategy are the keys to victory.
7. Far Cry 5
Far Cry 5 gameplay
The fifth main entry in the celebrated franchise, Far Cry 5 finds players in rural Montana as you face off against a doomsday cult and their charismatic leader. Fans of the series will feel right at home in the franchise’s largest sandbox world yet with all the classic elements like liberating settlements and towers, hunting and taming wild animals, and upgrading skills. New features include a customizable protagonist, a greater variety of melee weapons for close-quarters combat, fishing, and a less linear progression system with the full map being available from the start.
There’s so much going on in this picture, it could be a Renaissance painting.
Explore, and battle, across the open world by land, sea, and air.
6. Quake Champions
Quake Champions gameplay
Alongside Doom, the original Quake is one of the most influential FPS games of the 90’s and Quake Champions is a worthy continuation of that legacy. Returning to its fast-paced arena shooter roots, the latest installment introduces a new twist to its classic gameplay with the inclusion of characters called Champions. These sixteen combatants all come with their own unique abilities and attributes that are suited to a variety of play styles. Best of all? The game is now completely free to play via Steam!
You call that a gun? This is a gun!
The dark and gothic environments synonymous with the Quake series return in HD glory.
5. World War 3
World War 3 gameplay
World War III is here, and you are fighting on the frontlines. With an emphasis on realism, World War 3 is one of the most immersive multiplayer war games on the market. Developed alongside real-life military consultants, everything in the game feels authentic. From the ballistics system that affects a bullet’s impact on armor and other surfaces or the different tactics and strategies inspired by real conflicts, every detail was designed with authenticity in mind. Another highlight is the highly variable customization of weapons and equipment. Everything from your helmets, vests, and pants to the individual parts of your gun like the stock and barrel are fully customizable.
Choose and customize your equipment wisely as every conflict is different and requires its own approach.
Battles are fought in highly detailed urban environments like Moscow, Berlin, and Warsaw.
4. Just Cause 4
Just Cause 4 gameplay
There’s something uniquely satisfying about the Just Cause franchise’s patented style of open world destruction. Sure, lots of games let you blow up helicopters and gas tanks, but only one series lets you do so while gliding through the sky in a wingsuit before using a grappling hook to pull yourself to safety. And with the addition of extreme weather conditions like tornadoes and lightning storms, Just Cause 4 delivers the series’ craziest action set-pieces yet. Set in the South American country of Solis, the game follows series protagonist Rico Rodriguez as he investigates his family’s mysterious past. Naturally, there’s another authoritarian government to overthrow along the way and enough explosions to make Michael Bay blush.
The franchise’s signature grappling hook returns with a wide variety of uses such as propelling yourself straight into an enemy helicopter like a total badass.
The addition of hazardous weather, like tornadoes, means there are more possibilities for destruction than ever.
3. Deep Rock Galactic
Deep Rock Galactic gameplay
In Deep Rock Galactic, you and up to three other players play as space dwarves sent to mine resources in deadly cave systems. But no two levels are the same with the game’s procedurally-generated cave systems, adding a great deal of replayability and a sense of wonder to exploration. Though it can be played alone, the game is designed with co-op in mind and features four unique classes each with their own special abilities. Good teamwork is necessary if you hope to survive attacks from Glyphids, the game’s spider-like antagonists. Blending the resource harvesting of games like Minecraft and No Man’s Sky with intense FPS action, Deep Rock Galactic is a refreshing twist on the co-op shooter genre.
With procedurally-generated maps, you never know what dangers await you in the next cave.
Environments are completely destructible and are necessary to progress the game.
2. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
Call of Duty Black Ops 4 gameplay
As the fifteenth entry in the Call of Duty series, you likely decided if these games were for you a long time ago. Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 probably won’t win over any of the series’ detractors, but there’s a lot here for fans to love. Although it’s the first installment of the franchise not to feature a single-player campaign, the multiplayer is better than ever. The standout is the new Blackout mode in which up to 100 players are dropped in the series’ largest multiplayer map to date and scavenge for supplies to be the last player standing. The mode can be played solo, as a duo, or with squads of four. The sprawling map also features vehicles like ATVs and helicopters and includes AI-controlled enemy zombies for an extra challenge.
The game features ten Specialist classes with customizable weapons.
The franchise-favorite Zombies mode returns with more customizations than ever and two separate campaigns.
1. Battlefield V
Battlefield V gameplay
Returning to the series’ World War II roots, Battlefield V lives up to its lofty ambitions and delivers one of the year’s most satisfying shooter experiences. There’s no shortage of features and customization and there’s still only more to come. The game’s single-player campaign continues the episodic “War Stories” presentation of its predecessor with each chapter packing in equal amounts of action and emotion. But the game’s varied multiplayer modes steal the show once again. The game launches with eight different multiplayer modes and developer EA DICE plans to release more content (available to all players and free of charge!) over time. The new Grand Operations mode is a highlight and resembles a campaign mode with each round having different objectives that are influenced by the results of the previous round. Matches culminate with a tense final stand where players have limited ammunition, no respawns, and fight until only one side is left standing.
The war rages on in the air, on land, and at sea in Battlefield V.
Double tank action = complete and utter obliteration.
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