Shooter games
First- or third-person action built around firearms, aiming and accuracy.
What is the shooter genre?
The core action of a shooter is clear: See the target, aim and hit it. If the camera looks through the character's eyes it is a first-person shooter, and if it looks over the shoulder it is a third-person shooter. Once layers like recoil, bullet drop, cover and team play are added to this simple core, the genre splits in two: Fast games that test reflexes and tactical games that test patience.
Shooters are the busiest arena of online competition. Single-player campaigns are still strong, but the genre's center of gravity today is multiplayer: Competitive arenas, battle royale islands, team-based hero shooters and extraction modes where you go in and try to get out with loot.
What defines it?
The core skill is finding the target fast and keeping the crosshair on it; everything else builds on this.
Recoil pattern, magazine size and rate of fire are the first things that define a shooter's identity.
In competitive play, knowing where enemies come from matters as much as aiming.
Some games throw you into a fight within seconds, others punish a single wrong step with death.
Landmark games
Well-known examples often used to explain the genre. For the list on our site, see the games section below.
At a glance
Shooter games (119)
Neo Berlin 2087 TR
Gears of War: Reloaded TR
6.8
Holy Shoot TR
Battlefield 2042 TR
Battlefield 3 TR
Battlefield 4 TR
Battlefield 5 TR
Battlefield 6 TR
Escape from Tarkov TR
Helldivers 2 TR
Ready or Not TR
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 TR
Mecha Break TR
MOUSE: P.I. For Hire TR
Striden TR
Metal Wolf Chaos XD TR
7.5
Dishonored TR
Warframe TR
Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl TR
Ahoy TR
Dying Light: The Beast TR
ARC Raiders TR
Hunt: Showdown 1896 TR
Death Stranding TR
Latest stories on shooter games
Frequently asked questions
What do FPS and TPS mean?
FPS is a first-person shooter, where the camera sees through the character's eyes. TPS is a third-person shooter, where the camera sits behind the character and you can see them. The difference is not just the view: In third person you can see around corners, so cover mechanics tend to matter more.
What sets a tactical shooter apart?
Health is low, respawns are often absent and a single hit can end the round. So it is played slowly and as a team that communicates, not by running and gunning.
Do I need a powerful PC to play shooters?
Most competitive shooters are deliberately released with low system requirements, because a high frame rate is an advantage. Big-budget single-player campaigns push the hardware much harder.