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Best Shooting Games

Video games have had a long history of including shooting play. Like the instinct of children to pick up sticks for imaginary gun-play, this offers players a chance to step into dangerous situations that raise the adrenaline and require high levels of skill and precision.

Often called shooter games, or shooters, they test the player's spatial awareness, reflexes, and speed against computer characters and human other players in online games. They usually offer players a range of weapons, each of which behaves differently and require practice to use efficiently.

While the main aim of most of these games is to shoot enemies in the head to kill them, there are many other things also going on. Players need to consider their environment, other opponents, team-mates, mission objectives, which weapon to use and how much health they have got. This level of systems work extends beyond quick reflexes to social understanding, layered decision making, long term strategic thinking and rigorous practice.

DetailsGenre Details

Era: 1981 - 2023
Total Games: 422
Total Likes: 4,900
 

 

Halo (Series)

Release Date: 15/11/2001, updated in 2020

Platforms: Android, Mac, PC, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One and iOS

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 3D Third-Person

Halo is the longstanding sci-fi shooting video game series that started when Halo: Combat Evolved launched alongside the Xbox in 2001. The franchise has featured on every Xbox platform since then, with Halo 5: Guardians serving as the latest entry in...

Valorant

Release Date: 02/06/2020

Platforms: PC, PS4 and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 13+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person

Valorant is a team-based online shooting game, where two teams of five compete under the role of agents with unique abilities. It's designed to be competitive and requires considerable skill and practice to win matches. Between rounds, players spend...

Affordable Space Adventures

Release Date: 09/04/2015

Platforms: Wii U

Components: 2D Side-On

Three people work to pilot a diminutive spacecraft through a hostile environment. One player uses the Wii U game tablet to control engines, power and shields. A second player controls lights and weapons. A third player steers the craft through the...

Steamworld Heist

Release Date: 16/11/2015, updated in 2016

Platforms: 3DS and 2DS, PS Vita, PS4, Stadia, Switch and Wii U

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 2D Side-On, Hand-Made and Pixels

Steam-powered robots fighting for space supremacy sounds like the script for a 1950s B-movie. As in those matinee hits, the point here isn’t realism but interesting characters. Like the related games (SteamWorld Dig and SteamWorld Quest), SteamWorld...

Valkyria Chronicles 4 (Series)

Release Date: 21/03/2018, updated in 2020

Platforms: Android, PC, PS Vita, PS4, PSP, Stadia, Switch, Xbox One and iOS

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person, 3D Third-Person, Grid, Hand-Made and Weather

Valkyria Chronicles 4 is a turn-based strategy game where you take command of a squad of soldiers and use your wits and tactics to plan and lead them to battle. You play as Commander Claude Wallace and the soldiers of Squad E and experience a gripping...

Fortnite

Release Date: 25/07/2017, updated in 2018

Platforms: Android, PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One and iOS

Skill Rating: 8+ year-olds

Components: 3D Third-Person, Cartoon and Open World

Fortnite (sometimes misspelled Fortnight) rose to popularity via its Battle Royale mode where 100 players fight against each other in online battles to the death. While they play, using shooting, evasion and building skills to survive, a storm is...

The Last Of Us

Release Date: 14/06/2013

Platforms: PS3 and PS4

Skill Rating: 16+ year-olds

Components: 3D Third-Person and Weather

You play a father, Joel, whose daughter was killed during the early stages of a deadly fungal outbreak. It’s now 20 years later, and he has clearly suffered from the loss. When Joel is given charge of a girl, Ellie, about the same age his daughter...

Destiny 2 (Series)

Release Date: 09/09/2014

Platforms: PC, PS4, Stadia and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 12+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person and Open World

Destiny is a shooting game set in space. You have to play online as it focuses on grand sci-fi adventures with other players. From the same developer, it takes Halo towards a bigger online role-play experience.

Lovers In A Dangerous Spacetime

Release Date: 19/09/2018

Platforms: Mac, PC, PS4, Switch and Xbox One

Components: 2D Side-On and Pixels

Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime offers a space-survival challenge where you must collaborate to defend your circular spaceship. Each player needs to take on specific tasks to manage offensive or defensive duties.

Bioshock Infinite

Release Date: 26/03/2013, updated in 2020

Platforms: Mac, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Xbox 360 and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 16+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person

Bioshock Infinite is an adventure shooting game. Although the story is unconnected to the previous games in the series, it raises similar themes of dictatorship communities and alternative to capitalistic society. It's another nuanced and complex story...

Void Bastards

Release Date: 29/05/2019

Platforms: Mac, PC, PS4, Switch and Xbox One

Components: 3D First-Person and Cartoon

Void *!@?* is a tongue-in-cheek shooting game, where you control misfit prisoners out of the Sargasso Nebula. You decide which shops to investigate, what to do and who to fight. When you die, you start again with some of the loot you've collected...

Overwatch

Release Date: 24/05/2016, updated in 2022

Platforms: PC, PS4, Switch and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person

Overwatch is a shooting game but with the focus on teamwork and skill rather than violence. Along with games like Rocket League it has professional e-sports competitions where players compete for prizes.

Plants Vs. Zombies (Series)

Release Date: 04/09/2019

Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Xbox 360 and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 8+ year-olds

Components: 3D Third-Person

Plants vs Zombies Garden Warfare is a series of third-person shooting games about the battle for supremacy between weaponised plants and attacking zombies. It's good for families because the comedic zombies and funny plant powers keep things away from...

Screencheat

Release Date: 23/01/2016

Platforms: Mac, PC, PS4, Switch and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person

Screencheat pits four players against each other in a shooting battle on one system but keeps the violence low by making the players invisible. You win by peeking at other players’ portion of the screen to figure out where they are as you hunt them...

Skies of Fury

Release Date: 12/04/2018

Platforms: Android, Switch and iOS

Components: 3D Third-Person

This is a World War I fighter pilot game set during the Bloody April battles. You pilot one of 10 aircraft from the WWI era and take on missions as a single-player before challenging friends to the multiplayer, split-screen battles.

Child of Eden

Release Date: 17/06/2011, updated in 2011

Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360 and Xbox One

Components: 3D First-Person

Child of Eden is a dance and motion game that uses the Xbox Kinect camera. You use your body to shoot and move. Rather than fruit, however, here it’s beautiful firework-style visuals and music that are the challenge.

Jets'n'Guns 2 (Series)

Release Date: 19/11/2004, updated in 2020

Platforms: Mac, PC and Switch

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 2D Side-On and Pixels

Jets'n'Guns 2 is a fast arcade-style shooting game where you defeat wave after wave of enemy ships and avoid an endless barrage of bullets. While initially the challenge seems overwhelming, building instincts of how and when to move and upgrading your...

Sol Cresta (Series)

Release Date: 22/02/2022

Platforms: PC, PS4 and Switch

Components: 2D Side-On and Pixels

Sol Cresta is a classic-style arcade shooting game. It follows previous Cresta games (Moon Cresta and Terra Cresta) focus on bullet dodging, ship augmenting action. Here though you have three ships that can combine their weapons in different ways.

Sky Force Reloaded (Series)

Release Date: 01/01/2004, updated in 2018

Platforms: Android, Apple TV, Mac, PC, PS Vita, PS3, PS4, PSP, Switch, Wii U, Xbox One and iOS

Skill Rating: 8+ year-olds

Components: 2D Overhead and Pixels

Sky Force Reloaded is a fast arcade-style shooting game where you defeat enemies, earn money and upgrade your ship. As you shoot down huge opponents and dodge barrages of attacks, you save civilians and upgrade your ship with unique upgrades that make...

Wild Guns Reloaded (Series)

Release Date: 30/10/1996, updated in 2018

Platforms: PC, PS4, Switch, Wii and Wii U

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 2D Side-On

Wild Guns Reloaded is a fast retro shooting game where you control the gun with one stick and your character with the other. It's set in an alternative steampunk Wild West.

Krunker

Release Date: 29/01/2019

Platforms: Web

Skill Rating: 9+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person and Blocks

Krunker (Krunker.io and Krunker Free) is a shooting game where you compete against online opponents on various maps. As you level up you unlock weapons that help you in the game. It's unusual because you play it in any web browser with no need to...

Phantom Forces (Roblox)

Release Date: 31/08/2015

Platforms: Mac, PC, Xbox One and iOS

Skill Rating: 7+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person and Cartoon

Phantom Forces Roblox is a popular shooting game on Roblox. Phantom Forces isn’t available on iOS or Android. It's a shooting game played in an online arena in teams. Although it looks simple, it offers a high-skill challenge similar to [link to...

Rust

Release Date: 08/02/2018

Platforms: Mac, PC, PS4 and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 14+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person, Day and Night and Open World

Rust (also, Rust: Console Edition) is an online survival game set in the wilderness. You explore, gather and craft materials to manage hunger, thirst, health and protection. The preparation is to ward off the threat of bears, wolves and (more commonly)...

Splatoon 3 (Series)

Release Date: 21/07/2017, updated in 2022

Platforms: Switch and Wii U

Skill Rating: 8+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person and Cartoon

Splatoon on the Wii U, Splatoon 2 and Splatoon 3 on the Switch are games where you shoot ink rather than bullets in this deeply skilled combat game. As well as taking out opponents, teams work together to cover the arena with their colour of ink. This...

Free Fire (Series)

Release Date: 29/10/2018

Platforms: Android and iOS

Components: 3D Third-Person

Garena Free Fire (also called Free Fire Battlegrounds, Free Fire, Garena Free Fire-New Beginning) is a shooting game like Fortnite but only played on mobile phones and tablet devices. It is highly popular for its online battles where 50 players search...

Hades

Release Date: 06/12/2018, updated in 2020

Platforms: Mac, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

Skill Rating: 11+ year-olds

Components: 2D Overhead

Hades is a fighting game where you battle your way through dungeons to escape hell and the clutches of Hades. You play as Zagreus, the son of Hades and through the game you'll meet many recognisable greek gods like Zeus, Athena and Posiedon who will try...

Rogue Company

Release Date: 30/06/2020

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

Skill Rating: 11+ year-olds

Components: 3D Third-Person and Open World

Rogue Company is an online shooting game where players compete in teams to win rounds. You play as one of the elite agents of Rogue Company, each with their own individual set of skills, and go to war in a variety of different game modes.

War Thunder

Release Date: 21/12/2016, updated in 2018

Platforms: Mac, PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

Skill Rating: 12+ year-olds

Components: 3D Third-Person and Open World

War Thunder is a shooting game where you drive a range of vehicles in warfare combat. Similar to Wargaming's World of Warplanes it creates realistic battles on air, land, and sea. The attraction of the combat is that each vehicle or craft’s...

Star Wars: Republic Commando

Release Date: 28/02/2005, updated in 2021

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

Components: 3D First-Person

Star Wars: Republic Commando is a shooting game set in the Star Wars universe, where you complete missions as part of an elite squad of Clones. Still regarded as one of the best Star Wars games over 16 years after its initial release, its fast-paced...

Apex Legends

Release Date: 04/02/2019

Platforms: PC, PS4, Switch and Xbox One

Components: 3D First-Person and Open World

Apex Legends is a shooting game where you work with two other players landing on an island and searching for weapons and supplies. You mission is to defeat the other 50 players to be the last team standing.

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (Series)

Release Date: 13/11/2020

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

Components: 3D First-Person

Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is a shooting game. It's a direct sequel to the original Call of Duty: Black Ops. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War will have a Campaign, Multiplayer, Zombies, and integration into Call of Duty: Warzone. It's a game that...

Star Wars Battlefront II (Series)

Release Date: 17/11/2017

Platforms: PC, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 13+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person and 3D Third-Person

Star Wars Battlefront II is a shooting game based on the Star Wars films. There have been four games in the series and is similar to the main Battlefield series. The latest version is Star Wars Battlefront II that features...

Enlisted

Release Date: 10/11/2020, updated in 2021

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

Skill Rating: 14+ year-olds

Components: 3D Third-Person and Open World

Enlisted is an online shooting game set in historically accurate World War II battle. You play a squad of soldiers and can switch between them as you take on other players doing the same in large online battles. It's unusual not only for its historical...

Superhot

Release Date: 25/02/2016, updated in 2019

Platforms: Mac, PC, PS4, Stadia, Switch, Web and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 11+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person and Cartoon

Superhot is a shooting game with a twist. Time only moves forward (bullets, enemies, damage) when you move your character. This is still a violent game, in fact, in slow motion, it feels more violent.

PowerWash Simulator

Release Date: 19/05/2021, updated in 2023

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person

PowerWash Simulator is a puzzle game where you clean different objects and locations using a pressure washer. It's designed to be soothing with sounds of high-pressure water and satisfyingly clean results as you blast away every speck of dirt and grime.

Call of Duty: Warzone (Series)

Release Date: 10/03/2020, updated in 2022

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S

Components: 3D First-Person

Call of Duty: Warzone is a large online shooting game. It's played with 150 other players with teams in squads of 1 to 4 players. As with other battle royale games, the map on which you play shrinks to great intense finale shot downs. This, combined...

Crossout

Release Date: 15/05/2015, updated in 2017

Platforms: PC, PS4 and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 9+ year-olds

Components: 3D Third-Person

Crossout is an online vehicle combat game set in a Mad Max, post-apocalyptic world. Players design modular vehicles combine weapons, armour and engines. As you progress in the game you earn currency to upgrade components and access more powerful parts....

Journey to the Savage Planet

Release Date: 28/10/2020

Platforms: PC, PS4, Stadia, Switch and Xbox One

Skill Rating: 10+ year-olds

Components: 3D First-Person, 3D Third-Person, Cartoon and Open World

Journey to the Savage Planet is an adventure-shooting game played from a first-person perspective. You explore a planet to catalogue various alien flora and fauna and collect the resources you need to craft items and upgrades like jetpacks and grappling...

Hyper Scape

Release Date: 11/08/2020

Platforms: PC, PS4 and Xbox One

Components: 3D First-Person and Open World

Hyper Scape is an online shooting game where players battle to be the last man standing. It's unusual because it integrates a feature that allows viewers of matches (on Twitch) to affect the game.

Escape from Tarkov

Release Date: 27/07/2017

Platforms: PC

Components: 3D First-Person, Day and Night and Open World

Escape from Tarkov is an online shooting game set in the fictional Norvinsk region in Northwest Russia. You play during a war between two private military companies and join matches to fight others for loot, survival and ultimately escape.

Taming Gaming Book Written by parents for parents, the database complements the in-depth discussion about video game addiction, violence, spending and online safety in the Taming Gaming book. We are an editorially independent, free resource without adverts that is supported by partnerships.

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