8 Criminally Underrated First Person Shooters

There are so many first person shooters that it’s hard to play them all. Heck, sometimes it’s hard to even see them all. With that being the case, it’s inevitable that some of them will be overlooked. That’s the case with these eight games. You may have played them, but our community doesn’t think that they got the attention or respect that they deserved.

Many thanks to AnthrSolidSnake for starting the thread!

Think we missed one? Tell us what it is in the comments!

Cold Winter
First mentioned by: Zykon TheLich

Cold Winter was a PS2 first-person shooter that cast you as a former SAS soldier that worked for MI6. After you were captured by the Chinese government and rescued by a fellow former SAS soldier, you end up working for a private security company to take out a stolen missile guidance system. The story is superb, and the presentation and gameplay are solid as well. It was a PS2 exclusive, but if you can lay hands on it, it’s worth checking out.

Shadow Warrior
First mentioned by: Bobic

Originally released in 1997 by 3D Realms, Shadow Warrior was rebooted in 2013 by Flying Wild Hog. While the updated version looks much better than the original (duh), it retains much of the gameplay that you’d expect in a game from the late 90’s. It’s super fast-paced, has tons of guns, secrets, health packs instead of regenerating health, and pretty much everything else you’d expect from a classic shooter, just in a modern package. Plus, there’s swordplay, and it’s pretty damn good as well.

Brink
First mentioned by: spartandude

Brink is a game that seemed poised to be a huge hit, and then somehow just never got the recognition it needed. It had a great developer in Splash Damage (Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory, Enemy Territory: Quake Wars), it had great mechanics, innovative movement, and the shooting worked pretty well. It also incorporated one of my favorite features in any multiplayer shooter: something for everyone to do, regardless of chosen class or playstyle. You could repair staircases to gain vantage points, build turrets, cut open doors, and every bit of it helped your team win. It’s unfortunate that it rarely has online players these days, but the bots are OK, and you can always host a LAN server yourself.

Project Reality
First mentioned by: Michel Henzel

Project Reality began its life as a mod for Battlefield 2. Since the servers for that game have shut down, the mod has been updated to run as a standalone game. It offers up five game modes including a Conquest-like mode, over 40 maps and 15 factions, and a focus on realistic gameplay and teamwork. It packs in integrated voice chat on it 100-player servers. In short, it’s a great game for those who like their shooters a bit less arcade-like and more focused on teamwork.

Project Snowblind
First mentioned by: jurnag12

Initially set to be the third game in the Deus Ex series, the multiplayer-focused Project Snowblind was moved out of the series after the less-than-stellar reception received by Deus Ex: Invisible War. As Liberty Coalition soldier Nathan Frost, you’ll be kitted out with nanotech augmentations after being critically injured (sound familiar?). You’ll then use your new abilities to lead your forces into battle to stop an EMP attack. I can definitely see where this one could have been a Deus Ex game.

Singularity
First mentioned by: The White Hunter

Part shooter, part survival-horror, Singularity meshes together FPS gameplay with time manipulation mechanics. Using the Time Manipulation Device (TMD), you can move objects through time, repairing or decaying them to help your progress or hinder your enemies. It’s an interesting concept, and the game manages to piece together elements that we’ve seen in previous titles to make a surprisingly coherent whole. It’s a bit goofy, but definitely fun.

Bulletstorm
First mentioned by: Cowabungaa

Bulletstorm mixes fast-paced shooter gameplay with melee combat and a points-based combo system. You can use your energy leash to pull enemies closer so you can more effectively kick them away. This allows you to pull off “skillshots,” which earn you large numbers of points. Points are useful because they let you purchase weapons and upgrades. Although there are only a limited number of multiplayer maps, Bulletstorm is still worth checking out.

No One Lives Forever
First mentioned by: A Fork

Possibly the best secret agent game of all time (Yeah, I said it), No One Lives Forever puts you in control of Cate Archer. She’s an agent for UNITY, a shadowy organization that watches over world peace. It’s got everything you could want: gunplay, gadgets disguised as normal feminine items like lipstick, amazing one-liners, and the absolute best of 1960s inspired fashion. No One Lives Forever is part shooter, part stealth game, and all awesome.