Unleash Your Inner Marksman: The Ultimate Guide to the Best FPS Games of 2025

Searching for the ultimate FPS games to dominate on PC? Look no further! From the legendary physics playground of Half-Life 2 to the gripping intensity of Stalker 2, we’ve compiled a definitive list of the best first-person shooters available today. For over twenty years, FPS titles have been a cornerstone of PC gaming, taking us from the fiery pits of Hell in Doom to the vast, open spaces of Titanfall 2. Our guide begins with some fantastic free-to-play options, then delves into unique experiences and iconic Valve classics that every shooter fan should try.

This carefully curated selection features both timeless gems and thrilling new releases. Whether you crave competitive multiplayer, epic war simulations, or something entirely unique, these games are guaranteed to satisfy your craving for virtual gunplay. Get ready to hone your aim and make every shot count. While this list focuses on first-person shooters, don’t forget to explore other fantastic titles that might also appeal to your gaming preferences.

The best FPS games to play right now are:

Dying Light: The Beast

Picking up after the original, Dying Light: The Beast thrusts you into the shoes of Kyle Crane, who has finally escaped his tormentors after years of horrific experiments. Grappling with the zombie virus coursing through his veins, Crane must embrace the ‘beast within,’ unlocking powerful new abilities to seek vengeance against the Baron, all while navigating a world teeming with the undead.

This exhilarating zombie sandbox offers unparalleled freedom as you parkour across rooftops, scavenging for resources and crafting potent weapons. The fluid movement and satisfying gunplay enable creative combat solutions, seamlessly blending to elevate the series to new levels of immersion and excitement.

Doom: The Dark Ages

Id Software’s latest rip-tearing odyssey, Doom: The Dark Ages, once again dramatically reshapes the Slayer experience, subtly dialing back Eternal’s frenetic pace and rapid weapon swapping. The result is a gameplay style that feels closer to Doom 2016, but with an innovative new mechanic: the shield saw. Rest assured, you won’t be solely relying on melee combat; the intergalactic Dark Ages still offer an abundance of firearms, from standard guns to truly enormous, explosive weaponry.

While all three modern Doom games are absolutely worth playing, The Dark Ages stands out as the latest action epic and is readily available on Game Pass, making it an excellent choice for newcomers to the series.

STALKER 2: Heart of Chornobyl

STALKER 2 perfectly exemplifies an FPS that redefines genre expectations. Set in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone, this game plunges you into a world where the radioactive landscape harbors invaluable artifacts, terrifying mutants, and deadly anomalies. You embody a lone stalker, a character who has dedicated their life to unraveling the Zone’s profound secrets.

Survival in the Zone is a constant challenge due to the numerous warring factions, introducing you to a diverse cast of characters as you uncover each group’s motivations. Heart of Chornobyl offers much more than simple human and mutant combat; it’s a deep narrative filled with mysteries waiting to be unearthed, delving into the very essence of the Zone itself.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 6

Delivering an exceptional trio of modes, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 stands as one of the finest entries in the venerable franchise. Its globe-trotting campaign offers a fast-paced, explosive action-movie experience as you unmask a corrupt terrorist network hidden within the CIA. Meanwhile, Zombies revives the beloved classic round-based co-op mode, cherished by fans.

However, the multiplayer component has always been the heart of a great Call of Duty game. With an outstanding array of weapons and meticulously designed maps, Black Ops 6’s multiplayer provides arcade-style gunplay for satisfying, engaging, and rapid-fire matches. For the ultimate experience in this recent FPS highlight, mastering the best loadouts is key.

I Am Your Beast

Remember the raw, primal hunt of Rambo? I Am Your Beast channels that same thrilling premise, placing you in the boots of Alphonse Harding, a retired secret agent and an incredibly efficient killer who can decimate entire squads in mere seconds. Harding is summoned for one final mission by the Covert Operations Initiative, but his refusal ignites a brutal guerrilla war against his former employer.

This short, sweet, and relentlessly fast-paced shooter features 20 missions meticulously designed for speedrunning. Armed with an arsenal ranging from assault rifles and sniper rifles to even bear traps – if you can wield it, you can use it to eliminate your foes. In some intense scenarios, you’ll start with nothing but your fists, forcing you to turn enemy tools against them, eliminating any survivors before they can call for backup. The game’s practically flawless reception speaks for itself.

Crysis Remastered

Don’t be fooled into thinking Crysis is merely a visual spectacle; it’s a phenomenal FPS boasting a distinctive suit mechanic that transforms you into the ultimate soldier. You play as Nomad, a special forces operative outfitted with a nanosuit capable of dramatically altering the flow of battle. Essentially, you command four superpowers: armor, speed, strength, and invisibility. It won’t be long before you’re effortlessly toggling between these abilities to annihilate multiple enemy squads with tactical precision.

The campaign in Crysis Remastered largely maintains its appeal today, although the introduction of aliens does lead to a slight shift in tone. Nevertheless, the entire game is packed with epic set pieces and continues to be a graphical benchmark, depending on your system’s capabilities. While the remastered version might omit some original features, it compensates with modern enhancements like ray tracing, DLSS, and HDR support.

Trepang2

2023 was an exceptional year for gaming, and while major blockbusters dominated conversations, some lesser-known titles truly shone. Among these was Trepang2, a shooter that tragically flew under many radars. Despite its relative obscurity, it was hailed as one of the year’s standout games.

One of Trepang2’s most impressive aspects is its audio design. A shooter thrives on powerful sound, from the impact of gunshots to the crisp click of a reload and the ambient environmental cues, and Trepang2 delivers on all fronts with unequivocal quality. Each battle leaves you feeling breathless, shaken, and as if you’ve just survived the end of the world. This intense immersion alone is reason enough to experience it.

RoboCop

There’s a special magic in video games that allows you to live out your wildest fantasies. While this list features roles as super soldiers and scientists, only one game lets you embody Officer Alex James Murphy, famously known as RoboCop. After a horrific accident that would have claimed most lives, Murphy was rebuilt and reanimated to become the world’s most formidable law enforcer.

This game isn’t designed to be overly challenging; instead, it wants you to feel like an unstoppable force whose sole purpose is to eradicate crime. Whether you’re issuing parking tickets or obliterating waves of drug-dealing adversaries, RoboCop truly handles it all. While it may not be the next Half-Life, if you’re looking to switch off your brain and unleash mayhem on criminals, you’ll find no better option. The standalone DLC adds even more brilliant action, requiring no ownership of the base game.

Ghostrunner 2

Technically, you might not be firing bullets in Ghostrunner 2, but you’ll be slashing enemies in first-person, which is just as satisfying in our book. Set in a dystopian cyberpunk future where society has collapsed, you assume the role of a cyber ninja tasked with stopping an AI cult that threatens to extinguish humanity.

Armed with a katana and occasionally a powerful motorbike, you have everything you need to navigate neon-drenched environments, carving your way through robotic adversaries. Ghostrunner 2 embodies what a great sequel should be, improving upon its predecessor in almost every aspect. Many consider this to be one of the best games of 2023, and for good reason.

Neon White

Plucked directly from Hell, you embody Neon White, a demon offered a chance at redemption. To earn it, you must compete against other demon slayers to eliminate countless demons inhabiting Heaven. Instead of conventional run-and-gun tactics, you utilize a unique card system to either attack or execute elaborate special moves, such as stomping on foes, gracefully leaping to platforms, or dashing through the air.

These Soul Cards can be acquired through level exploration or by defeating demons, and they are crucial for achieving victory. However, not all is as it seems, as Neon White suffers from complete amnesia. While other demon slayers feel vaguely familiar, your mission is to piece together his forgotten past and cleanse Heaven of the demonic infestation.

Halo Infinite

Nothing quite compares to the rush of mowing down foes with your battle rifle, tearing across sprawling landscapes in a Warthog, or bisecting enemies with your Energy Sword. Halo Infinite masterfully captures the nostalgia and iconic feel of classic Halo games, while simultaneously introducing fresh innovations like a grappling hook and expansive open-world gameplay.

Master Chief’s journey through the single-player campaign is praised for its powerful storytelling and emotional depth. Beyond the gripping narrative, the multiplayer offers endless fun. Halo’s signature arena-shooter style matches, prolonged gunfights, and strategic weapon spawns provide a refreshing contrast to many other FPS multiplayer experiences available today.

Superhot

Superhot makes you feel utterly unstoppable, capable of shattering incoming enemies into countless tiny red shards with a single, perfectly placed bullet. In this indie phenomenon, players must navigate through relentless waves of enemies who can instantly dispatch you – but you possess the same deadly capability. While this might sound unfair, you hold a crucial advantage: time itself. In Superhot, time only progresses when you move, granting you ample opportunity to strategize your next breathtaking maneuver.

Many action sequences in Superhot are directly inspired by iconic films, allowing you to live out fantasies of single-handedly clearing rooms of adversaries. Featuring a mysterious, albeit somewhat convoluted, story mode and abundant post-game content, this unique puzzle/shooter hybrid is an absolute must-play if you missed its groundbreaking launch back in 2016.

Escape From Tarkov

While many FPS games claim realism, none come close to the obsessive detail invested by Escape from Tarkov’s development team into gun mechanics, attachments, and ballistic modeling. With over 100 firearms, each weapon can be extensively modded or stripped down until it’s barely recognizable from its original form. You can swap barrels, mounts, scopes, flashlights, foregrips, pistol grips, handguards, muzzle attachments, stocks, charging handles, magazines, receivers, and gas blocks, alongside choosing from various ammo types.

Escape from Tarkov distinguishes itself by seamlessly blending PvP and PvE elements. Each raid unfolds on a massive map, with players spawning around the edges and AI enemies appearing at key points of interest, typically where valuable loot resides. From the start, you have up to 40 minutes to eliminate threats, plunder resources, and reach one of the designated extraction points. Dying means losing all non-insured gear, and even insured items are only recovered if they aren’t looted first. After years in development, Escape From Tarkov finally announced its 1.0 launch date, with the game expected to arrive on Steam later this year.

Titanfall 2

EA and Respawn brilliantly refined the foundation laid by the first game, achieving remarkable balance in the sequel’s multiplayer. There’s truly nothing quite like Titanfall 2’s dynamic interplay between weighty, industrial mech brawling and agile, rapid-fire pilot combat. The single-player campaign also stands as an exceptional introduction to the game’s mechanics and a captivating, self-contained narrative experience.

The campaign wisely avoids over-the-top set pieces, instead allowing its raw, exhilarating mechanics to deliver all the thrills. Wall-running towards a group of enemies and obliterating them with a few satisfying shotgun blasts feels incredibly empowering every single time. Furthermore, the PC version remains wonderfully robust, offering a smooth and polished experience.

Black Mesa

Black Mesa is a meticulously crafted fan-made remake of Half-Life 1, built entirely on the modern Source engine. It took 15 years to reach its 1.0 release in 2020, and the wait was undeniably worthwhile. This remake offers a re-envisioned version of the classic single-player campaign, streamlining outdated puzzles and combat sequences to create a more cohesive and impactful experience.

The developers even expanded and enhanced the alien world of Xen, the final section of Half-Life 1 that was reportedly rushed during Valve’s original development. If you’ve never played Half-Life or wish to revisit it in its most refined form, Black Mesa is the definitive way to experience this seminal FPS, with many arguing it surpasses the original. Best of all, regular updates continue to improve the game.

Left 4 Dead 2

Valve’s zombies are in a league of their own. In Left 4 Dead 2, they swarm over you like relentless tides, scaling walls and leaping across chasms. They are accompanied by ‘Specials’ – highly evolved undead that demand coordinated teamwork to overcome. A Smoker will drag you into a dark alley with its impossibly long tongue, where you’ll be quickly overwhelmed by the common horde. A Hunter will pin you to the ground, tearing at your throat. And a Boomer will charge headfirst into your squad, exploding in a shower of corrosive green bile.

Despite the oversaturation of zombie games and Left 4 Dead 2’s age, its enduring tension, ingenious level design, and thriving modding community ensure it remains a captivating and chaotic romp. It consistently ranks among the best co-op games on PC, often imitated but rarely surpassed.

Team Fortress 2

In this explosively fun, class-based mayhem, a cast of angry cartoon characters capture briefcases, escort bombs, and secure control points. Team Fortress 2 is an undeniable classic and easily remains one of the premier shooting games on PC. It has also continuously evolved, benefiting from mountains of user-created content, new maps, exciting modes, and innovative gadgets that keep the shooter perpetually fresh and relevant.

The premise is simple yet brilliant: choose one of nine distinct characters and join a team. Modes include Capture the Flag, King of the Hill, and Payload – where one team pushes a bomb cart along a track while the opposition desperately tries to halt their progress. This iconic mode, later refined and popularized by Overwatch, found its perfect form right here in Team Fortress 2.

Valorant

Riot’s hero shooter will feel incredibly familiar to fans of CS:GO and Overwatch, but that’s precisely its strength. Valorant has rocketed to the forefront of competitive FPS gaming, and its success is clear. It features a vibrant cast of heroes, each equipped with a handful of useful, meticulously balanced abilities.

Matches are intensely competitive, demanding precision aim, lightning-fast reactions, and impeccable team coordination. Much like CS:GO, if your aiming skills are lacking or your reflexes aren’t sharp, you’re in for a challenging experience. Valorant is expertly designed for esports, making it highly recommended if you’re looking to dive into a new competitive scene. For those who prefer less commitment, the Spike Rush game mode offers faster, more casual rounds that are just as fun.

Counter-Strike 2

Some critics suggest that CS2 might have launched a tad prematurely, lacking a few features present in CS:GO. However, even as a work in progress, if you’re seeking a tactical shooter that boasts both stunning visuals and satisfying gameplay, Counter-Strike 2 is an unparalleled choice.

CS2 preserves the classic 5v5 gameplay the series is renowned for, while introducing a revamped ranks and ratings system that provides players with a clearer understanding of their global standing. Crucial gameplay changes include significant improvements to how smoke grenades function, though many core CS staples, such as the weapon skin system, remain faithfully unaltered.

Half-Life 2

Far more than just an evolution of its superb predecessor, Half-Life 2 is frequently lauded as one of the greatest PC games of all time. This sequel to Half-Life is incredibly ambitious, clearly benefiting from a much more confident Valve at the helm. Everything is grander than the 1998 original: the environments, the enemies, the narrative – it’s a true blockbuster, and an intelligent one at that. It features competent AI companions, genuine characters who serve more purpose than comical deaths, and physics that transform the world into a seemingly real, tactile place.

Valve once again works magic with its environments. Despite often being larger and more open than those in Half-Life, they are still crafted with the same meticulous care and attention to detail. Crucially, they remain incredibly memorable, from the eerie, haunted streets of Ravenholm to the ominous Citadel, towering over City 17 like a steel and glass tyrant. While age may have dulled some of its sheen, it endures as a striking, compelling FPS game. And while we eagerly await any news of a third installment, the free RTX demo for Half-Life 2 helps make the wait a little more bearable.

Ultrakill

Imagine combining the visual aesthetic of early 2000s shooters with Devil May Cry’s emphasis on style and combo mastery, then infuse it with the intense, twisted lore inspired by biblical stories, and you get Ultrakill. This indie gem boasts an impressive ‘Overwhelmingly Positive’ rating on Steam, even after four years in early access, and it offers no shortage of content.

As you equip yourself with new weapons, conquer new layers of Hell, and defy all laws of physics, you’ll steadily improve your skills, eventually becoming capable of speedrunning levels and tackling harder difficulties. Even after dozens of hours, you’ll uncover new tricks, like surfing on rockets or propelling yourself with explosives, completely shortcutting levels you’ve played countless times.

Quake (2021)

Quake is undeniably one of the foundational cornerstones of the FPS genre. In recent years, a plethora of so-called “boomer shooters” have emerged, explicitly designed to emulate the retro charm, labyrinthine level design, and high-speed gunplay found in iD Software’s classic 3D titles.

While many aspire, nothing quite matches the original. If you missed out on Quake during its initial release, Bethesda re-released a remastered version during QuakeCon 2021. This updated edition features beautifully enhanced graphics and even includes new episodes to conquer. Quake’s gothic, medieval dark fantasy setting has never looked better, but rest assured, the core gameplay remains untouched; it’s time to perfect your strafe-jumping once more.

So there you have it, the best FPS games available on PC. Many of these titles showcase the incredible innovation and enduring appeal of the genre. Now is a truly exciting era to be an FPS enthusiast. So stretch that trigger finger, keep honing your virtual headshots, and remember that more frames per second are always a good thing!