Dating back to 1973, Steve Colley developed the principal First-Person Shooter Video Game-‘Maze War’. Maze War was developed for the Imlac PDS-1 computers installed at the NASA Ames Research Centre. From then onwards, FPS games met with colossal popularity and tragic downfall. With fresh ideas and new concepts from the new generation of game designers, it always came back.
In the generation where shooter video games are gaining popularity, its sub-genre FPS games have gained more admiration. As the FPS games are in the First-Person perspective, it lets players see through the eyes of the protagonist. The player in the shoes of the character moves and shoots.
Though FPS games are not popular among older adults who prefer slow-paced games, teenagers and younger adults craze them. With many video-game services that are available, players can choose among them to play their favorite games or find one. Xbox Game Pass is a video-game subscription service from Microsoft, and it charges a single monthly payment. It allows gamers to choose among the hundreds of games available from a range of publishers and other premium services. Both the console game players and PC game players can play.
With new games and updates every now and then, the best stories and concepts gain more approval and stand out among others. Here, we are going to see the best FPS games that standout in Xbox Game Pass:
15. Halo Infinite
- Developed by 343 industries
- Published by Xbox Game Studios
- Released worldwide in 2021
The protagonist Master Chief- a super soldier, battles his way through his enemies and is Banished to the Forerunner ringworld Zeto Halo.
14. Back for Blood
- Developed by Turtle Rock Studios
- Published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment.
Extraterrestrial parasites called ‘the devil worm’ have infected the world. Humans coming in contact with them are turned into undead mutants, and they are named ‘Ridden’. ‘Cleaners’ are the survivors in the post-apocalyptic world. These veterans are supposed to fight the Ridden and save Fort Hope.
13. Slime Rancher
- Developed by published by American Indie Studio Monomi Park
- Released worldwide in 2017
Slime Rancher is a First-person life simulation adventure video game.
On a planet far from Earth named Far Far Range, the protagonist Beatrix LeBeau moves to live a life as a ‘Slime Rancher. Duties include collecting, raising, feeding, and breeding slimes. They are gelatinous living organisms of different sizes and features.
12. Crysis
- Crysis is an FPS game created by Crytek.
Ceph, aliens that are technologically advanced, arrived on Earth millions of years ago. They are awakened after a deep slumber. The player, in the shoes of militants in nano suits, fights the hostile North Korean military and battles with the Ceph.
11. Quake
- Developed by id software
- Published by Bethesda Softworks.
Quake is a compilation of FPS games from 1996. Inspired by gothic novels and works of H. P. Lovecraft, the surroundings are dark and gritty, with many stone textures. The player has to fight his way through the maze-like medieval environment fighting monsters.
10. Payday 2
- Developed by Overkill software.
- Published by505 games
- Released worldwide in 2013.
Payday 2 is a cooperative FPS game.
The game allows the player to perform heisting alone or team-up up to three teammates.
9. Battlefield 1
- Developed by DICE
- Published by Electronic Arts
- Released worldwide in 2016.
Among the Battlefield series, this is the tenth installment.
The game sets Uniworld War 1 and makes use of historical events. The players can use the vehicles and weapons used in world war 1 to kill their enemies. It features a collection of war stories.
8. Deep Rock Galactic
- Developed by Ghost Ship Games
- Published by Coffee Stain Publishing
- Released worldwide in 2020
Deep Rock Galactic is a 1-4 player cooperative FPS video game. Players are assumed as the dwarves assigned various missions in order to progress. There are also a few secondary missions to obtain extra rewards.
7. Doom (2016)
- Developed by id software
- Published by Bethesda Softworks
- Released worldwide in 2016.
Union Aerospace Corporation unleashes demons from hell. The unnamed protagonist, a space marine known as a “Demon slayer”, battles his way around trying his luck.
6. Halo: The Master Chief Collection
- Developed by 343 Industries partnering with other studios
- Published by Xbox Game Studios
- Released worldwide in 2014.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection is a collection of FPS games in the Halo series. The collection includes; Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo 2: Anniversary, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, Halo: Reach, and Halo 4.
The collection has all the features, and stories follow the plot in order of the series. With a higher definition of graphics and music and also features the same map.
5. Prey
- Developed by Arkane Austin
- Published by Bethesda Softworks
- Released worldwide in 2017.
The game takes place in a different timeline where humankind is in charge of orbital stations. Typhon, an alien force with physical and psychic powers, escapes its imprisonment in the research center. The protagonist Morgan Yu using varieties of weapons and abilities, try to stay alive while looking for an escape.
4. Titanfall 2
- Developed by Respawn Entertainment
- Published by Electronic Arts
- Released worldwide in 2016
Titanfall 2 is a sequel to 2014’s Titanfall.
The game takes place in a science fiction universe. A rifleman from Frontier Militia, Jack Cooper, after losing his mentor, bonds with his mentor’s Titan BT-7274. Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation (IMC) is planning to launch a super-weapon that would destroy the harmony of Planet Militia. This FPS single-player campaign is about saving the Planet.
3. Wolfenstein: The New Order
- Developed by Machine Games
- Published by Bethesda Softworks
- Released worldwide in 2014.
Wolfenstein: The New Order is the seventh main release in the Wolfenstein series.
The game takes place in a different history where the Nazis won the Second World War. The protagonist William “B. J.” Blazkowicz, a veteran, tries to stop the Nazis from ruling the world. It features varieties of weapons.
The game story is arranged in chapters as each chapter is completed in order to progress. Some characters and small plot points are changed throughout the two timelines when the choices are made.
2. Star Wars Battlefront 2
- Developed by DICE joining in hands with Criterion Games and Motive Studios.
- Published by Electric Arts
- Released worldwide in 2017
Star Wars Battlefront is based on the Star Wars franchise and the fourth main installment in the Star Wars Battlefront series.
This installment includes more content than all the previous installments altogether. It features both single-player and multiplayer modes.
1. Rainbow Six Seige
- Developed by Ubisoft Montreal
- Published by Ubisoft
- Released worldwide in 2015.
Rainbow six siege is an online tactical shooter video game.
It allows players to play as an attacker or defenders in various gameplay modes. Examples: defusing bombs or capturing an objective in a room. Players can access short offline missions called ‘situations’ played solo. It showcases a training period preparing the recruits for future missions.
There were many accusations against playing shooting games as it makes one violent and threatens to damage the brain of the player. But recent studies have shown positive effects of playing First-Person Shooting video games. Some of them are:
- Relieves the player from external stress.
- Develops one cognitive skill.
- Enhances decision-making skills.
- Enriches the player’s creativity.
- Increases hand-eye coordination.
- Fine motor and spatial skills.
- Multitasking.
Still, there are cons to playing FPS games, just like pros.