In a market where there are a plethora of FPS games, it can be hard to keep up and choose which one you might want to play. It seems like a new game is released almost every week. Even with some of the popular games, being popular doesn’t always mean good.

Steam has a wide catalog of games to play, and sometimes, it can be a little overwhelming to decide on what game you might want to try. Both positive and negative user reviews can certainly impact your decision when it comes to choosing a game.

Updated August 17, 2024, by William Quick: Gaming is an expensive hobby, almost as expensive as being leagues of little dudes to paint and hopefully deploy into some kind of extended battle on top of a table or something. What makes it harder is that we don't always have enough time or energy to play games that challenge us to do all sorts of things, from saving the universe to power-washing a bicycle. To help you out with finding quick bursts of action for free, here's this list of top-rated games to try.

16 Call Of Duty: Warzone

A Contained Battle Of Bullets And Blasts

The Call Of Duty series is one of those things that we won't see end in our lifetime, but it has been slowing down in recent years. This is due to the ongoing popularity of Call Of Duty: Warzone, which is the series' take on the battle royale formula, with the two merging pretty well.

With the sharp movement and gun mechanics of the popular Modern Warfare entries and a consistently stable online connection, you can be running and gunning with both the best and the worst that the FPS community has to offer. Fight around the different maps, use stealth, vehicles, support, and collect things to make your perfect loadout.

15 Entropy: Zero 2

This Fight Doesn't Break Down

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At this point, you could make the argument that the gaming community has done more for the expansion of the Half-Life universe than Valve themselves. The evidence is in titles like Entropy: Zero 2 that show you how the other half lives as it puts you in control of the Combine and their otherworldly technology.

Your mission is clear: Capture Dr. Judith Mossman. However, the good doctor knows that you're hunting her and will not make getting to her any easier than it was for Dr. Gordon Freeman to fight back a whole alien invasion. You're placed in the tough, cynical boots of a character known mainly as "Bad Cop" to do your job, protocol thrown to the wind and into a volcano.

14 Unturned

Don't Get Infected!

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The way some zombie games are involved is by trying to raise the stakes of an encounter with even just one zombie. Sometimes, one bite is all it takes to get a game over, and Unturned has you playing as one of the few people who haven't been transformed into mindless cannibalistic semi-living flesh-bags.

You're going to have to make use of everything you find and form groups out of necessity rather than desire. The zombies are getting much more dangerous, gaining special powers that allow them to wield very elements themselves. As long as you've got some ingenuity and grit left, you might survive to see another sunrise or at least be eaten in front of it.

13 Paladins

Team-Based FPS Meets Fantasy

Team-based shooter games are always a great way to pass the time, and you might find one that really sticks with you. If you are a fan of fantasy, then Paladins might be the game for you.

You can find a great selection of Champions in this game, such as goblins, humans, elves, and dragons, each with their own set of abilities. A unique addition to the game is the deck-building system that allows you to customize your Champions abilities. There are also plenty of free items to unlock by playing the game.

12 Team Fortress 2

An Iconic Game From Valve

Team Fortress 2 is probably one of Valve’s biggest and most well-known games, and there is a good reason for that. There is a large fanbase that plays the game, and there is plenty that the game has to offer.

If you have never played the game, there are practice modes to learn it and its characters. You can choose to play one of the many game modes in the game, such as King of the Hill, Capture the Flag, and Zombie Infection, to name a few. Do you love collecting items and cosmetics? Then you are in luck because there are hundreds of items to make your character to your liking.

11 The Finals

Fast-Paced FPS With Plenty Of Chaos

Are you looking for a game that offers fast-paced gameplay where you can just jump in and have fun? If so, then you might want to check out The Finals. This game was released in December 2023 and has been taking over since it launched.

In this game, you play as one of three customizable classes and work with your teammates to win one of the two current game modes. Each class comes with its own weapons, gadgets, and abilities which can help your team. Not only is the game fun and the gunplay great, but you can destroy the map, which turns the game into chaos.

10 Quake Champions

A Modern Version Of A Classic Game

Quake is not only a fantastic, fast-paced FPS game, but the original was also the very first to introduce online multiplayer to the world of gaming.

While the original game is not free, the next best thing that captures everything the original game has is Quake Champions. This free-to-play FPS brings the nostalgia of Quake with modern graphics.

Mixing together Quake and Quake 3 arena battles, you now have the ability to choose between 16 different champions to play as and master their abilities.

9 SCP: Secret Laboratory

Horror Meets Multiplayer FPS

Whether you’ve read about them or watched gameplay of the original games, SCP is more than a well-known name within the gaming community.

SCP: Secret Laboratory is a horror multiplayer game you play with and against other players, including SCPs. There are six different factions to choose from, including scientists from the SCP Foundation, the Chaos Insurgency, who are former employees, and the SCPs themselves.

Depending on which faction you pick, you will try to secure the Foundation you’re at, sabotage it, or avoid the many things trying to kill you.

8 Fistful Of Frags

An FPS That Brings You To The Wild West

If you are looking for a different setting within multiplayer FPS games, look no further than Fistful of Frags. Set in the Wild West, this game delivers a different FPS experience from the more modern games.

There are quite a few game modes to choose from, including free-for-all, deathmatch, bank heist, and 1v1, to name a few. All the weapons are based in the Wild West era, and there are quite a few to choose from.

The best part of this game is there are no microtransactions. Everything is play-to-unlock.

7 Polygon

A Polygon Game With Great Gunplay And Action

The saying “less is more” really defines the game known as Polygon. This may look like a simple game, but there is a lot more when you play it.

Made by one developer, this game can really stand on its own against triple-A titles in terms of gunplay. This tactical FPS has both large-scale maps that can hold up to 32 players and smaller maps.

While there is a small range of weapons and attachments, they are well-balanced, and nothing is meta. You play to unlock all your weapons and attachments, and there is a small battle pass to gain cosmetics, but nothing is pay-to-win.

6 Halo Infinite

Unlock Your Inner Spartan

When it comes to great and nostalgic FPS games, Halo is definitely one of the games that comes to mind. Halo Infinite released both a campaign and a free-to-play multiplayer game.

This free-to-play game lets you enter the Halo universe with many features. Like most multiplayer games, there is a battle pass that unlocks seasonal rewards, unique events, new and different maps, and modes, as well as a new weapon, so if you have never played a Halo game, this is a great way to try it out.

5 World War 3

A Great Free Alternative To Battlefield

There aren't many games that get called the next Battlefield, but that’s exactly what World War 3 was dubbed when it came out in playtesting.

World War 3 is a modern tactical FPS game that is free to play but also comes with a seasonal battle pass. There are many great features within this game, including weapon progression, real-world locations, realistic gameplay, and two main game modes.

You can play in Tactical OPs, which is a 20v20, or in Team Deathmatch, which is 10v10. Chest armor is also customizable; you can go light or heavy, and there is a wide variety of weapon customization.

4 Destiny 2

Plenty Of Missions And Stories To Take Part In

Chances are that you have most likely heard of Destiny. If, by any chance, you haven't, this is a great MMO FPS game.

What makes Destiny 2 a really fun game is an immersive world and storyline. There is plenty to do in the base story, such as leveling up your character’s class, armor, and weapons.

If you are looking for more of a challenge, there are plenty of unique puzzles and quests to complete solo or with friends. There are also multiplayer modes with PvP and PvE, including ranked gameplay. Destiny also has plenty of expansions that add to the story, but those are paid to unlock.

3 PUBG: Battlegrounds

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

PUBG is a staple of the battle royale genre and one of the first ones to really kick off the popularity of battle royale games. PUBG offers so much in terms of weapons, armor, and pure strategic gameplay.

The maps alone are wide open and extremely large maps with diverse terrain, making gameplay both fun and challenging. You drop into this game solo or with your friends to try and eliminate every other squad, and there are many attachments for weapons that make for some fun sniping or close-quarter combat.

2 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

One Of The Most Popular FPS Titles In Team-Based Games

Even if you haven’t heard of CS:GO, chances are you have seen many iconic clips or catchphrases from this game. CS:GO is one of the most popular eSports titles and, for good reason, a team-based game that offers competitive games in the form of 5v5 matches.

There are both short and regular matches in which your objective is to try to eliminate the other team, plant a bomb on one of the designated sites, or defuse the bomb if planted. You have a great set of weapons to choose from, such as the Desert Eagle, M4A1, and AWP, to name a few, and there are also plenty of community maps, mini-games, and cosmetics to make for a fun experience.

1 Apex Legends

Are You Ready To Become A Legend?

Apex Legends has been one of the top games in the battle royale genre for its diverse cast of characters and its incredible storytelling. If you haven't had the chance to play Apex Legends, there is no time like the present.

Being a part of the Titanfall universe, this game has delivered some of the most in-depth storylines with a battle royale game. The story isn't the only thing that keeps fans coming back; the gameplay and many legends with unique abilities are what truly make this game stand out.

Apex continues to deliver with each season, introducing new characters, new weapons, and a battle pass with season-exclusive cosmetics. This game can be played at both a fast and slow pace, but the legends' abilities make for some interesting fights.