Summary

  • First-person shooters may seem intimidating, but with practice and trying out beginner-friendly games, they can be easily approached and enjoyed.
  • Games like Dead Island 2 and Halo Infinite offer beginner-friendly experiences with an emphasis on melee combat and cooperative play respectively.
  • Other recommended titles for newcomers include Prodeus, Splatoon 3, and Bioshock.

First-person shooters might be one of the most popular video game genres to have ever existed, but it's not every person's initial cup of tea. Indeed, for someone that grew up on JRPGs or real-time strategy games, it can seem quite intimidating and unapproachable at first blush. It requires an entirely different sort of responsiveness and situational awareness.

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But when it comes down to it, it's really not all that difficult to get accustomed to. Just like with anything else, the best way to get accustomed is through practice, but the most important part in diving into this genre is playing solid games. If you're looking to dip your toes into the FPS genre, these are the best places to start.

Updated December 25, 2024, by Branden Lizardi: There are plenty of military and sci-fi shooters out there. Some tell dramatic stories, others are... well... the gameplay is fun. But there is more out there than just that. With the launch of Stalker 2, we've taken a look back at the original game and its place in FPS history. And yes, we think it's something everyone should experience.

21 Stalker: Shadow Of Chernobyl

S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl

FPS Survival Horror Released March 20, 2007 ESRB M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol Developer(s) GSC Game World Publisher(s) THQ Engine x-ray engine Multiplayer Local Multiplayer, Online Multiplayer Franchise S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Platform(s) PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One How Long To Beat 15 Hours Metascore 82 Powered by Expand Collapse

Borrowing themes from the classic Russian sci-fi story Roadside Picnic, Stalker has you play an amnesiac traveling throughout a supernatural area called The Zone. After a second nuclear disaster, the area around Chernobyl is rife with bizarre (and dangerous) anomalies and monsters.

It's a classic dystopian survival shooter game with strong environmental design and storytelling, and it helped bring the modern eye toward more games following in these footsteps. If you're a newcomer looking to experience some of the classics, this one is a must-try, especially if you want to play Stalker 2.

20 Resident Evil: Village

Resident Evil Village

Survival Horror Survival Horror Released May 7, 2021 Developer(s) Capcom Platform(s) PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Stadia, PC Powered by Expand Collapse

The eighth mainline Resident Evil game, Village is the second game to bring the series into First Person perspective. Following the same Ethan Winters from Resident Evil 7, you're dropped into a snowy northern european village, fighting against werewolves, zombies, and more. This plot driven survival horror shooter may not offer the same high intensity pacing as other FPS games, but the gradual progress, upgrade system, and entertaining plot will lock in any player, beginner or not.

It also offers a fun way to make the game easier for anyone playing. As you achieve challenges, you earn points that can be redeemed for "cheats" of sorts, like unlimited ammo, special guns, and so on. Sometimes all you need to beat a particularly tough section is to not have to scrounge for ammo so hard, so this offered a creative way to overcome these obstacles without "taking the easy way" out of a problem.

19 The Finals

The Finals

FPS Released December 8, 2023 Developer(s) Embark Studios Publisher(s) Embark Studios Platform(s) PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S Powered by Expand Collapse

If you've built up a bit of confidence when it comes to competitive FPS games and want to explore the genre further, The Finals has burst onto the scene just for you. It's a very casual multiplayer shooter, without the tense corridor action of a game like Counter-Strike, and a brilliantly flashy sense of style. You play in a squad of three players competing against squads of other players, all seeking to get the top spot in this game-show-like match to the death.

All of that sounds very straightforward and vanilla of an FPS multiplayer game, but The Finals truly shines when it comes to how destructible its environments are. Not only does busting through walls, ceilings and floors add to the fun nature of the game, it adds an extra tactical layer that doesn't rely on veteran-player FPS skills.

18 Dead Island 2

Dead Island 2

Action RPG Released April 21, 2023 Developer(s) Dambuster Studios Publisher(s) Deep Silver Platform(s) PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC Powered by Expand Collapse

Despite showcasing a hellacious version of LA overrun by hordes of zombies, Dead Island 2 is an easily approachable FPS game. It puts the fun back in slaying zombies. With an emphasis on melee combat as well as shooting firearms at the undead, Dead Island 2 just feels great to play. Not to sound too gory, but stomping on skulls and swinging baseball bats at skulls is incredibly satisfying.

Obviously, if blood-spattered zombie-killing grosses you out more than it entertains you, this might not be the best starter point to get you into first-person shooters. But if that sounds like a hell of a great time, then Dead Island 2 is one of those games that's great for easing you into the FPS perspective. Its primary focus on melee gives you time to acclimate to being in first-person before you're precise-aiming.

17 Halo Infinite

Halo Infinite

First-Person Shooter Released December 8, 2021 Developer(s) 343 Industries Publisher(s) Xbox Game Studios Platform(s) PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S Powered by Expand Collapse

More than many of the other FPS games on the market, Halo has typically been very welcoming toward newcomers. With its emphasis on physics-based fun in social playlists and zany multiplayer games like Infection and Grifball, Halo catered to a wide audience. And while Halo 4 and Halo 5: Guardians tried to shift their focus toward more competitive spaces, Halo Infinite has slowly brought itself back to appealing to more people.

The open-world campaign can be completed with friends online, and the multiplayer offerings have grown since launch. There are rotating event playlists, a variety of social games, and a slowly expanding selection of community-built games.

16 Call Of Duty: World At War

Call of Duty: World at War

FPS Released November 11, 2008 Developer(s) Treyarch Publisher(s) Activision Platform(s) PC, PS3, Wii, Xbox 360 Powered by Expand Collapse

The Call of Duty series is notorious for having a highly competitive multiplayer side to it, so it's a daunting place for a newcomer to the genre to start. But if your curiosity about the series compels you to dip a toe into one of its games, World at War is a solid place to start.

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The campaign features more mature themes than seen previously, but it's a digestible length, as most Call of Duty campaigns are. The multiplayer is a solid offering, but the clear star is the Zombies mode. World at War is the first CoD game that features this staple, and while it doesn't have a lot of the bells and whistles you can now find in modern iterations of the mode, you can have a blast playing what laid the foundation.

15 Prodeus

Imagine the straightforward nature of Doom with the speed and flow of a modern FPS game. That's what you get with Prodeus. The look of it might turn you away as it thoroughly embraces the vibe of a boomer shooter. But if those pixilated graphics don't succeed in putting you off, you are in for one of the best indie FPS experiences currently around.

Prodeus is fun, and what makes the game even better is you can chomp through the levels with a friend in online multiplayer, shooting demons and gross-looking eye things. If there is one thing newcomers to the FPS genre should search for in a title, it's cooperative play; it makes everything a gazillion times more approachable if you have a friend alongside you.

14 Splatoon 3

Splatoon 3

Third-Person Shooter Released September 9, 2022 Developer(s) Nintendo Publisher(s) Nintendo Platform(s) Switch Powered by Expand Collapse

Don't be deceived by the cartoonish aspect of Splatoon 3. Competitive matches can be quite the challenge, especially if you're going up against a team that knows the ins and outs of the game modes you're playing.

However, Splatoon 3 makes for a good entry point for beginners to the genre. No, you're not shooting at people the way you would in a typical FPS game. You're more focused on shooting the floor, trying to cover it in as much paint for your team as you can. But the objective-oriented style of gameplay here definitely teaches good teamwork, and having to pick weapons that suit your playstyle the most is also something that most FPS games welcome.

13 Deep Rock Galactic

One surefire way to make a first-person shooter title more inviting is to make it a cooperative experience. And Deep Rock Galactic is one of the most welcoming cooperative FPS games available now. You and up to three friends are dwarves whose job is to collect minerals and survive wave upon wave of hostile bug creatures populating the planet. Each of the four classes possess a different kit, but the shooting aspect of the game remains largely the same.

No matter the weapons at your disposal, you and your team can work together to eliminate swarms using your trusty guns. Because you're not spending your time fighting other players, you've got room to learn how the varying weapons work, how to navigate the cramped caves, and how to dig a hole.

While co-op oriented, playing Deep Rock Galactic solo is an equally valid experience.

12 Deathloop

Deathloop

Adventure Released September 14, 2021 Developer(s) Arkane Studios Publisher(s) Bethesda Platform(s) PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S Powered by Expand Collapse

Another way you can get into FPS games without worrying about the highly competitive nature of the genre is by starting with a title that blends aspects of another genre with those of a first-person shooter. Deathloop, developed by Arkane Studios, mixes a bunch of different genres together in their time-loop narrative, making it an ambitious, but altogether doable game for newcomers to FPS titles. You play as Colt, a former security man for an island that lives through the same day over and over again.

Your main objective is to break this loop, uncovering bits and pieces of how you're supposed to go about that with every passing (same) day. What makes Deathloop perfect for beginners is that it offers a variety of ways you can go about moving through areas. You don't have to go in guns blazing all the time; you can attempt stealthy entrances or lay traps for unsuspecting Eternalists. And when you do decide to solve your problems with shooting, you can just funnel your enemies into a doorway and pick them off one by one. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.