It’s been a huge year for games in 2023. Plenty of long-delayed and highly anticipated games made their debut this year and it’s been an excellent time to be a gamer. This list covers the best shooter games of 2023 that you should consider playing if you haven’t already.
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty
One of the smoothest shooters to grace us in 2023 was the upgraded 2.0 version of Cyberpunk 2077 alongside the new Phantom Liberty expansion. The gunplay feels fantastic in this game. You have a wide range of weapons to choose from and plan your character build around. From exploding heads from a distance with a high-tech sniper rifle to running and gunning with fast-firing SMGs, there is something to fit every playstyle.
Plus, the game has an epic storyline. Even if you completed the base game back in 2020, I’d recommend playing through again right from the start to get the best story experience. Cyberpunk 2077 has changed and evolved so much since it first came out that it feels entirely different to play now — in a good way! If you’re looking for a solid shooter with beautiful graphics and a thrilling story, you should consider picking up Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty.
Starfield
Following the trend of excellent futuristic shooter games in 2023, Bethesda’s latest title Starfield earns a nod as one of the best. I wasn’t expecting the shooting to be great, but it was actually one of my favorite parts of the game. You get a surprisingly good range of weapons to choose from, and there are a ton of unique attachments available that makes each gun feel entirely different.
As you upgrade your skills in Starfield, you can venture down paths that lead to more fast-paced gunplay, such as using a jetpack to get the high ground on enemies and gun them down from above. Some skills even let you slow down time for cool, bullet-bending headshot lineups that feel cool to pull off.
Outside the crisp gunplay, Starfield also has some great characters and a very interesting storyline to follow. I’d recommend playing through the main storyline first and then going back for the side content afterwards. It’s a great tale to play through and you’ll unlock some abilities that make the game even more fun by doing so!
Remnant 2
Remnant 2 by Gunfire Games is a third-person shooter with RPG elements. It’s a dark and gritty game that is best played in co-op in my experience. The enemies are tough, but you’ll use an epic arsenal of weapons as different classes to fight your way through, gather loot, and take down huge bosses.
It’s a game that almost gives me Dark-Souls-with-guns vibes. It has clever enemies and mechanics designed to take you by surprise. As you learn attack patterns and enemy positioning, you get better at predicting and adapting until you’re able to overcome the levels and boss fights. It’s a fun and challenging experience, especially with friends. It has some story elements but, much like Dark Souls, that’s not the focus of the Remnant 2.
Counter-Strike 2
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has been a powerhouse multiplayer tactical FPS for the longest time. This year, we finally got a new entry in the series that completely replaced CS:GO. Counter-Strike 2 was built on the new Source 2 engine by Valve, and it gives Counter-Strike a much-needed coat of paint to bring it up to modern graphical standards. It has some of the most impressive lighting in the industry, which makes the rebuilt maps, guns, and models look amazing. It also has incredibly impressive volumetric smoke that react to your bullets or grenade explosions, which is very technically impressive.
CS2 retains the core tactical Terrorist-vs-Counter-Terrorist, plant-and-defuse-the-bomb FPS action. The gunplay is crisp, and the competition is intense. It’s still free to play, but I would encourage new players to purchase the Prime Status from the store. You’ll get access to weekly loot drops as you level up, but even more importantly, you’ll be placed in matches with other Prime Status players which greatly reduces the number of hackers you’ll encounter.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
While it’s no secret that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has a very short story campaign, that doesn’t detract from how fun the Multiplayer and Zombies modes are. The campaign is decent, but don’t expect anything too wild. It’s short, has some cool levels, and kind of skimps on the story elements.
The multiplayer this year, though, is top notch. There are more weapons and maps than ever, and the hectic fast-paced shooter action is better than ever. You have the fast sliding and diving movement style that the original MW3 was known for brought back in this reimagining. Almost all the weapons feel awesome to play with, especially when you get the right weapon attachments to fit your playstyle. Plus. there are tons of cool Killstreaks to call in and ruin your enemies’ day with, as per usual.
The Zombies mode is cool, though different to the traditional wave-based mode from earlier Call of Duty games. That doesn’t make it bad, just different. This time around, it adds a more open environment to the wave-based shooter mode than we’ve come to expect of Zombies in COD. It’s still a lot of fun, and plenty of new features are being rolled out to make the mode even better. If you’re looking for a top-notch, fast-paced shooter, I still believe you can’t look past COD. Modern Warfare 3 has been a blast, and I’d happily recommend it to anyone else.
Those are the best shooter games of 2023. There are plenty of others to choose from, but if you’re itching for some trigger-squeezing action you really can’t go wrong with any of the games on this list!
For more of our Best of lists for 2023, check out the following:
Best Action-Adventure Games of 2023
Best Nintendo Switch Games of 2023
