First-person shooters have been a staple of the gaming scene since the '90s. Initially exploding on PC due to the accuracy provided by a keyboard and mouse set-up, the genre eventually made its way to consoles through the Nintendo 64. Nowadays, each year produces at least a couple of huge FPS games, including new entries in franchises that have been running for more than a decade.

What are the best first-person shooter games according to Metacritic? Which titles garnered almost nothing but praise upon release? Even though the last few years have produced plenty of great shooters like Doom Eternal and Borderlands 3, none of these releases crack the top spots on the aggregate site.

Updated May 21, 2022 by Mark Sammut: Over the last year, Back 4 Blood, Battlefield 2042, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, Deathloop, and Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 were all released. Sure, not each one of these games lived up to their hype, but they go to show that the first-person shooter genre is still as popular as ever. This article has been expanded to include even more of the best FPS games ever released, at least according to Metacritic.

Criteria:

  • One game per franchise.
  • No compilations (The Orange Box).

13 Medal Of Honor (92)

medal-of-honor-1999-2 split image cover art corridor screenshot

Release Date

October 31, 1999

Developer

DreamWorks Interactive

Platform (Highest Score)

PlayStation 1

Medal of Honor is one of the most influential World War 2 shooters of all time, if not the most influential. Released for the PS1, the FPS prioritized realism above anything else, and it did a great job of accomplishing its goal.

The game has aged rather poorly and is not particularly enjoyable to play nowadays, especially when compared to some subsequent entries in the franchise. That said, this does not take anything away from Medal of Honor's importance.

12 Team Fortress 2 (92)

team fortress 2 heavy feature

Release Date

October 10, 2007

Developer

Valve

Platform (Highest Score)

PC

Even after all these years, Team Fortress 2 still ranks comfortably among the most active games on Steam, outdoing more recent multiplayer releases like Destiny 2 and Battlefield 5. Valve crafted a team-based shooter with a well-balanced roster of characters, timeless visuals, and gameplay that is accessible while also having enough depth to keep people glued forever.

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Offering a wide range of game modes and boasting an extremely intense competitive scene, Team Fortress 2 is perfectly crafted to ensure wide appeal and longevity. As Valve is allergic to the number "3," this 2007 release is probably not going to disappear anytime soon.

Check it out on Steam here!

11 Fallout 3 (93)

A person in power armor standing above the remains of Washington D.C.

Release Date

October 28, 2008

Developer

Bethesda Game Studios

Platform (Highest Score)

Xbox 360

Admittedly, this entry comes with an asterisk as Fallout 3 is generally regarded as an RPG rather than a first-person shooter, mostly because it excels at the former but not the latter. Underwhelming gunplay aside, Bethesda's game is something special, and that is before taking into the count the active PC modding scene that has indefinitely extended the RPG's shelf life.

Fallout 3 drops players into an immersive post-apocalyptic landscape and gives them quite a lot of freedom in how they interact with this world. Engaging quests, memorable NPCs, and fascinating lore are a few things this game offers.

Check it out on Amazon here!

10 Unreal Tournament 2004 (93)

Unreal Tournament 2004

Release Date

March 16, 2004

Developer

Epic Games, Inc.

Platform (Highest Score)

PC

Epic Games has become mostly known for Fortnite, but prior to that, the company made a big splash on the multiplayer market with the first Unreal Tournament. That’s what the Unreal Engine they create and distribute is named after.

Unreal Tournament 2004 for the PC was sort of a sequel and an expansion, and it is regarded as one of the best in the series. More importantly, it is one of the best multiplayer shooters of all time.

Check it out on Steam here!

9 Quake (94)

Screenshot from the first Quake game showing the opening level.

Release Date

June 22, 1996

Developers

id Software, Nightdive Studios, MachineGames

Platform (Highest Score)

PC

Quake is another legendary multiplayer shooter. Although the series lost some steam after Quake 4, Quake Champions and 1996's Quake coming to modern consoles have helped bring the property back into the limelight.

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The first three games in the franchise are all classics. Personal preference and nostalgia will likely influence which entry is considered the best, but the original Quake was groundbreaking for its era. The 2021 port has also proven that the game is still as awesome nowadays as it was in 1996.

Check it out on Steam here!

8 Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (94)

activision new sequel returning elements

Release Date

November 10, 2009

Developer

Infinity Ward

Platform (Highest Score)

PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and its sequel both have averages of 94 on Metacritic, but the latter made the cut as it is ranked higher on the site. That said, there is very little separating these two games.

Do not be influenced by the fact that Call of Duty has been overexposed during the last decade; at its peak, Activision's franchise was producing the best FPS games on the market. Modern Warfare 2 has a stellar single-player campaign that blends blockbuster action with decent storytelling, along with a multiplayer that has very few peers.

Check it out on Amazon here!

7 Portal 2 (95)

Portal 2

Release Date

April 18, 2011

Developer

Valve

Platforms (Highest Score)

PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360

Calling Portal 2 a first-person shooter is disingenuous to what this game is actually about, although it technically still qualifies. Valve's release is more of a first-person puzzle game than a traditional shooter, and it is a great one at that.

Even though players do not spend their time shooting enemies, Portal 2's gunplay is nevertheless a blast. The Portal Gun is also one of the most iconic weapons in gaming history. Those who disagree will be launched into space with Wheatley.

Check it out on Steam here!

6 GoldenEye 007 (96)

Goldeneye 007 classic barrel opening sequence

Release Date

August 25, 1997

Developer

Rare

Platform (Highest Score)

Nintendo 64

One of the earliest multiplayer console phenomenons was GoldenEye 007 on the N64. The campaign was good and highlighted great moments from the film, but everyone was more infatuated with playing with friends. It had the same dedication as Super Smash Bros. players.

GoldenEye 007 must be recognized for what it did for first-person shooter games on consoles back then, even if it hasn’t aged well both graphically and in terms of the controls. Be that as it may, the memories of playing GoldenEye 007 live on.

5 BioShock (96)

bioshock 1 gameplay big daddy little sister

Release Date

August 21, 2007

Developer

Irrational Games (2K Boston)

Platforms (Highest Score)

PC, Xbox 360

BioShock blended the haunting vibes of Resident Evil with the shooting mayhem of something like Halo, all in a unique setting that was nothing short of spectacular in 2007. Rapture is worth the price of admission on its own – it just happens to be accompanied by brilliant writing, solid gunplay, fun powers, and fantastic characters.

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While not necessarily for the same reasons, all the BioShock games are highly regarded. However, BioShock 2 and BioShock Infinite arguably failed to reach the same dizzying heights as the original game.

Check out The BioShock Collection on Amazon here!

4 Half-Life 2 (96)

Gameplay From Half-Life 2

Release Date

November 16, 2004

Developer

Valve

Platforms (Highest Score)

PC

Half-Life 2 first debuted on PC before it was eventually ported to other consoles. Although the latter releases are perfectly fine, the PC version will always be the definitive way to play Valve's shooter.

Half-Life 2 is one of those games that altered the trajectory of first-person shooters and gaming for the better. Valve also wrote the blueprint for how to craft the pitch-perfect sequel, one that builds on the ideas of its predecessor while improving upon nearly every area. Fans are still hungry for this series to continue.

Check it out on Steam here!

3 Halo: Combat Evolved (97)

Halo Combat Evolved cover art cropped

Release Date

November 14, 2001

Developer

Platform (Highest Score)

Xbox

These next three games are all tied on Metacritic, but they are listed as they appeared on the site. Let it be known though that they are all still amazing as the day they were created.

The original Halo changed the console landscape for first-person shooters in a big way. Yes, ports like Half-Life 2’s were not great, but Halo was different. It was the next big thing for console shooters since the days of GoldenEye 007, and Bungie's game has aged considerably better than Rare's FPS.

Check it out on Xbox here!

2 Metroid Prime (97)

Metroid Prime

Release Date

November 17, 2002

Developer

Retro Studios

Platform (Highest Score)

Nintendo GameCube

Halo could actually be considered an inspiration for Metroid Prime. So much so that former members of this developer, Retro Studios, went on to help make Halo 4 with 343 Industries. Playing that game knowing that is pretty obvious now.

There were some who doubted whether Nintendo could take this series successfully into 3D, let alone as a shooter. Naturally, the company more than proved capable of switching things up, and Metroid Prime is a near-perfect FPS that retains the core features that made the franchise's previous entries so great.

1 Perfect Dark (97)

Perfect dark chicago location

Release Date

May 22, 2000

Developer

Rare

Platform (Highest Score)

Nintendo 64

Perfect Dark is the highest-rated FPS on Metacritic. Rare took the elements that worked in GoldenEye 007 and fine-tuned them, delivering arguably a superior single-player campaign and a just-as-good multiplayer.

The N64 version can be rough to revisit in this day and age, but the Xbox remaster is much easier to swallow. Viewed through the lens of a 2000s console FPS, Perfect Dark was way ahead of the competition.

Check out Rare Replay on Xbox here!

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