Top first-person shooter FPS games ahead of their time

The first-person shooter (FPS) segment has spawned some of the most critically acclaimed games in history, with some standing out for their features that were ahead of their time. Since the early 90s, FPS has become one of the most popular game genres. And since then, the development of FPS has shown no sign of stopping. Veteran gamers have spent hours on the battlefields of Call of Duty, Battlefield and the latest battle royales. Some of these titles stand out thanks to the game industry’s largest player base.

After 3 decades filled with FPS games, we’re taking a look back at the genre’s history and its evolution over the years.

Wolfenstein 3D (1992)

The FPS genre certainly existed before Wolfenstein 3D. However, it was this title by id Software that became the basis for the development of FPS after many decades. Many games still follow the design of Wolfenstein 3D to this day. Wolfenstein 3D is also a stepping stone for id Software to develop into a famous studio with equally important FPS games in the following years.

Doom (1993)

Just a year after the launch of Wolfenstein 3D, id Software has produced another pioneering FPS game: Doom. As one of the first games to feature an environment, Doom builds on Wolfenstein 3D’s original design, while adding a host of improvements of its own. While Wolfenstein 3D is purely a single-player game, Doom adds a multiplayer mode, which has inspired many other RPG games in the future. Thanks to the great success of Doom, a series of Doom imitation games also appeared and dominated the FPS market for many years.

Quake (1996)

id Software continues to pioneer the FPS game segment after the success of Wolfenstein and Doom. In 1996, the studio released Quake, with singleplayer, co-op and multiplayer campaign modes. However, Quake’s creativity does not stop at the number of game modes. Instead, Quake created a new path for the network to move in FPS with the “rocket jump” mechanism. This mechanism is still present in some games today. At the same time, Quake is also said to be one of the first esports titles.

GoldenEye 007 (1997)

Before GoldenEye 007 launched on Nintendo 64, the best quality FPS experience was found only on PC. Studio Rare changed that stereotype with GoldenEye007 – a game that not only changed the FPS genre on consoles, but also broke the notion that movies based on works are often of poor quality. GoldenEye 007 brings a host of improvements to the entire FPS series, including realistic graphics and a split-screen multiplayer mode that supports up to 4 players. The multiplayer mode alone puts GoldenEye 007 among the most innovative FPS games of all time.

Half-Life (1998)

Since their inception, FPS games have always focused on dramatic action sequences and repeated hours of gameplay. That was until Half-Life came out with story-centric development. Half-Life’s narrative style inspired later successful titles like BioShock. The influences of Half-Life remain in the industry to this day.

Counter-Strike (2000)

Half-Life’s influence was seen immediately, as the base game for the Counter-Strike mod. Starting from a mod, Counter-Strike’s highly tactical gameplay is still learned by many modern games. Riot Games’ Valorant and Hi-Rez Studio’s Rogue Company are prime examples of successful bomb defusing gameplay with modern gamers. While it started out as a mod for Half-Life, Counter-Strike has grown into a series of its own with Counter-Strike: Global Offensive becoming one of the top esports titles in the world.

Halo: Combat Evolved (2001)

In charge of the opening game for Xbox, Halo: Combat Evolved has become the flagship title of the new system. The title from Bungie has had the biggest influence on the FPS genre since Doom in 1993. The first game in the series to feature many of the controls pioneered by console FPSs, while also introducing a host of multiplayer modes. ambitious. The game set the stage for a series associated with the Xbox console line to this day when Microsoft still promotes Halo as its flagship game.

Halo 2 is also worth mentioning for its popularity of Xbox Live and online multiplayer for consoles.

Team Fortress 2 (2007)

Team Fortress 2 invented the line of shooters that developed character classes, setting the stage for a series of learning games, including Blizzard’s Overwatch. Team Fortress 2 received rave reviews upon its release and quickly became one of the most popular games to this day.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (2007)

The first three Call of Duty games were all World War ll themed and received rave reviews from both pundits and fans. However, Infinity Ward took it to the next level with Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. The game’s plot has inspired an entire generation of FPSs, with plenty of intense action and unexpected plot-twists. The multiplayer system is also extremely popular with players, with a number of FPS games trying to emulate this mode of Call of Duty. Today’s multiplayer FPS games still follow the development of Modern Warfare since 2007.

Overwatch (2016)

Overwatch developed the concept of a character-based shooter with inspiration from Team Fortress 2. However, while Team Fortress 2’s characters are merely different classes, Overwatch develops characters that also focus on plot, form a detailed game universe. The loot box system is also learned by many other games, but not all gamers are interested in this system.

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (2017)

PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) is theoretically a combination of FPS and TPS. However, the influence of PUBG on the shooter segment is not small. PUBG popularized the battle royale genre, setting the stage for Fortnite and Call of Duty: Warzone. Most of the mechanics that exist in today’s battle royale games have already appeared on PUBG. Although the game has somewhat lost a player base, PUBG still retains its appeal in the genre it created.

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