First-person shooters have come a long way since the days of MIDI Maze and Doom. Full 3D meshes are used instead of 2D sprites, dial-up internet isn’t needed to compete with others, and the variety of game types in FPS games easily trump what was available decades ago.
All of that said, most FPS games still take inspiration from these classic games. Deemed “arena shooters” by most, this subgenre of FPS focuses on weapon pickups, map control, and a massive skill ceiling. A dead genre by today’s standards, arena shooters set the groundwork for most FPS titles today and are still worth experiencing. From Unreal Tournament to Halo, here are the ten best arena shooters ever made, ranked from worst to best.
10 Doom (1993)
Doom was the franchise that sparked the hyper-competitive arena shooter genre. While Wolfenstein 3D and MIDI Maze were the first games in the FPS genre, Doom 1993 was the first game to truly embrace the genre’s speed and momentum.
Firing devastating weapons was complimented by Doom Marine’s incredible speed and intricate level design. Instead of fighting enemies with hit-scan attacks, players could dodge projectiles from enemy demons. These core tenants would form the arena shooter genre. Its multiplayer component might have aged poorly by today’s standards, but Doom’s campaign is still as much fun to play today as it was back in 1993.
9 Star Wars Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
The Star Wars Jedi Knight franchise carries the same spirit of arena shooters but places emphasis more on lightsaber duels than using weapons. These games still have weapon pickups for players to find, but they are complementary to the franchise’s excellent melee combat.
Every player gets to use various Force powers, weapons, and a custom lightsaber to take on dozens of foes either in either single-player or multiplayer arenas. Emphasis on map control is still present since positioning can help open an opponent’s guard, allowing for an easy kill. Impeccable control and a high skill gap make this the best Star Wars game with lightsaber combat ever made.
8 Doom (2016)
After Doom 3 and RAGE released, many fans questioned if id Software still had the same magic they did back during the 90s. Expectations for their Doom reboot were considerably low considering the lackluster multiplayer beta.
id knocked it out of the park. While the multiplayer component might not have landed, Doom 2016’s single-player is one of the best campaigns the arena genre has ever seen. It brilliantly dismantled every common trope with the FPS genre while simultaneously setting a few tends of its own. Doom’s Glory Kill system and push-forward combat proved to be a major success that some FPS titles have unashamedly copied. Ripping and tearing through hordes of demons has never felt so good.
7 GoldenEye 007
Rare’s GoldenEye 007 would change the FPS genre forever with its single-player innovations and fantastic split-screen multiplayer—a feature that was almost cut. Instead of flying through levels with a rocket launcher, players had to strategize how to complete levels with GoldenEye’s various side objectives. Manually aiming weapons was also a great addition that would lay the groundwork for what Perfect Dark would bring to the genre.
However, what made this game truly legendary was its multiplayer component. Four-player split-screen deathmatch was a blast as most would expect, but Rare also included unique modifiers named scenarios that fundamentally changed gameplay. The Man with the Golden Gun and The Living Daylights remain as some of the most engaging alterations to the deathmatch formula the genre has seen.
6 DUSK
Not every arena shooter needs to have a AAA budget to succeed in today’s gaming landscape. No better example of this exists than DUSK, a fast-paced arena shooter developed by David Szymanski. Taking inspiration from classic arena shooters, DUSK brilliantly delivers a chaotic single-player campaign that harkens back to the older era of shooters.
DUSK doesn’t rely on 90’s nostalgia to deliver its vision, either. Every level, every gun, every encounter feels well-crafted and modern while simultaneously having as much over-the-top cheese as one would expect. Players can deflect projectiles with a sickle, shoot two-lever action shotguns at once, and move through arenas at incredible speeds. While DUSK might not bring any major innovations to the genre, it is such a superb arena shooter that it deserves a place amongst the giants it was inspired by.
5 Unreal Tournament 2004
Unreal Tournament 2004 needs no introduction for most arena shooter fans. This game is the pinnacle of party-play FPS titles. Instead of relying on a tightly-balanced sandbox to win genre enthusiasts, Unreal Tournament 2004 focused on a plethora of game types and unique weapons.
Capture the Flag, Invasion, Onslaught, and the iconic Assault are just a few modes that this game had to offer. Vehicular combat and varied weapons complimented the game’s variety of maps and modes nicely. Additions such as dashing also allowed newer players to avoid attacks while increasing the skill gap. For casual arena shooters, it’s almost impossible to top UT 2004.
4 Perfect Dark
Despite GoldenEye 007’s multiplayer component being nearly cut from the final game, it proved to be one of the game’s largest selling points. With Perfect Dark being developed with multiplayer in mind from the start, Rare had an opportunity to improve on their last iteration and deliver something truly special.
Perfect Dark is an improvement over GoldenEye 007 in almost every way. Better weapons, multiplayer levels, and a dizzying amount of customization options are here for the player to experience. While GoldenEye feels dated by modern standards, Perfect Dark is still a joy to play even today. That is if players can deal with the Nintendo 64 version’s low framerate.
3 Unreal Tournament (1999)
Quake 2’s online component was such a massive success that many developers sought to chase that success, Epic Games being one of them. Using the Unreal Engine they developed for Unreal, they decided to make an arena-based FPS title named Unreal Tournament that would release right beside Quake 3 Arena.
What won some fans of Quake over to Unreal Tournament was the game’s unique modes and weapon sandbox. Each weapon in Unreal Tournament has two fire modes that drastically increase their versatility. While Quake players will never have a use for the Ripper, UT’s starter Impact Hammer can be used to deflect projectiles with its alternate fire. Some of the best maps in the FPS genre like Facing Worlds came from this game.
2 Halo 2
Halo 2 was a game-changer for not only the FPS genre but console gaming at large. Microsoft’s Xbox series of consoles would continue to push online features thanks to Halo 2’s quintessential multiplayer experience. Instead of browsing through multiple lobbies or setting up a LAN party, players select their favorite mode and hop straight into a match.
Those features are taken for granted today, although Halo 2’s gameplay sure isn’t. Nearly everything about Halo 2’s multiplayer is excellent. It takes the casual, mode-focused fun of Unreal Tournament and blends it with the arena-shooter madness that Perfect Dark and GoldenEye presented for the N64. Slayer/deathmatch was the mode of choice for many, yet Halo 2 offered so much more than that. Oddball, King of the Hill, Infection, Territories, and Juggernaut are just a few fan-favorite modes that this game had.
If all of that wasn’t enough, Halo 2 also has a solid campaign that, while short and incredibly unbalanced, offers one of the most engaging single-player experiences a shooter can offer.
1 Quake 3 Arena
Quake 3 Arena was a massive risk for id Software at the time. A multiplayer-only title that still carries the Quake name was worrying to some. Thankfully, the focus on multiplayer would spawn the height of the Quake franchise.
Virtually everything about Quake 3 is perfect. Every gun holds a place in the sandbox, maps are all top-notch, and the game’s AI bots are surprisingly competent. There weren’t dozens of modes or a massive weapon roster to set Quake apart from its competition. It’s Quake, after all, the biggest name in the genre. All it needed to do was focus on delivering the best deathmatch experience possible. Not only did id Software succeed with that goal, but they also set the bar so high that no arena shooter has met that standard since.
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