Summary
- Arkane Studios redefines FPS games with creative mechanics like rewinding time and supernatural powers.
- Redfall struggled with bugs and performance issues but had potential in its eerie world and gunplay loop.
- Dishonored 2 excels in player choice, level design, and refined gameplay, setting a new bar for immersive sims.
Arkane Studios doesn’t make “normal” first-person games. Instead of just aiming and shooting, players find themselves rewiring security systems, rewinding timelines, flinging enemies into walls with supernatural powers, or kicking goblins into spike pits like they're auditioning for a metal album cover.
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Whether it’s boots-on-the-ground brutality or slow-burning worldbuilding, Arkane has spent over two decades twisting the FPS genre into strange, creative, and unforgettable shapes. Here's a look at seven of their most notable first-person titles, ranked from good to genre-defining.
7 Redfall
The One That Bit Off More Than It Could Bite
Redfall
- Released
- May 2, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Arkane Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Bethesda
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- Platform(s)
- PC, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
On paper, Redfall sounds like a slam dunk — open-world co-op, vampires instead of zombies, and Arkane’s signature environmental storytelling layered over a sleepy Massachusetts town. But in execution, it ended up more like a vampire missing its fangs. The game struggled under a messy launch riddled with bugs, performance issues, and AI so baffling it made stealth feel like cheating. Even so, it is worth noting that the bones of something interesting were there.
The town of Redfall itself has some genuinely eerie corners, like abandoned churches with makeshift shrines or vampire cultist lairs packed with unsettling details. Arkane’s knack for immersive environments shines through — just not consistently. There’s a decent gunplay loop and flashes of creative ability synergy in multiplayer, but it's clear the game was rushed out of its coffin too early. It stings because players wanted this to work. They still do.
6 Deathloop
Death Is Only The Beginning
Deathloop
- Released
- September 14, 2021
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Arkane Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Bethesda
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
Deathloop took Arkane’s design DNA and spliced it with a time-loop structure that’s part puzzle box, part assassination playground. Playing as Colt Vahn, players wake up every morning on the mysterious island of Blackreef with a killer hangover and a simple job: break the loop by killing eight Visionaries in one day. Easier said than done when one of them is Julianna, an equally deadly rival who actively hunts Colt down — sometimes controlled by another player.
The real brilliance of Deathloop is how it tricks players into learning without realizing it. Trial and error isn’t just encouraged; it’s the entire point. Time of day, location schedules, and shifting environmental conditions all matter. It’s like Hitman meets Majora’s Mask, only with way more swearing and way cooler jackets. The 60s-inspired aesthetic, jazz-infused soundtrack, and razor-sharp writing give Deathloop a swagger Arkane hadn’t shown off before, and it worked — at least for most players. Some found the combat a bit light or the replay loop a bit thin, but as a playground for experimentation, it’s a blast.
5 Arx Fatalis
Before There Were Dishonored Masks, There Were Fireballs And Rats
Arx Fatalis
- Released
- December 23, 2003
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Arkane Studios
- Publisher(s)
- DreamCatcher Interactive, JoWood Productions, Mindscape, Arkane Studios
- Genre(s)
- RPG
- Platform(s)
- PC, Xbox (Original)
Arkane’s first game, Arx Fatalis, doesn’t get talked about nearly enough, probably because it came out when first-person RPGs were still in their awkward teenage years. But it laid the groundwork for everything Arkane would become. The game throws players into an underground world where the sun has died, and entire civilizations have retreated into subterranean cities. It’s dark fantasy at its grimiest, with factions like rat-men, goblins, and snake-worshiping cults lurking behind every corner.
Combat was clunky, sure, but the rune-drawing magic system was way ahead of its time. Players had to physically trace spell shapes with the mouse — which either made you feel like a powerful warlock or like you were sketching on an Etch A Sketch during an earthquake. But it was immersive in a way that stuck with those who gave it time. The way Arx Fatalis handled environmental storytelling and reactive systems — baking pies, flooding tunnels, poisoning enemies’ food — directly influenced the DNA of Dishonored and Prey. It’s not polished, but it’s foundational.
4 Dark Messiah Of Might And Magic
You Shall Not Pass—Unless You Kick It In The Face
Dark Messiah Of Might And Magic
- Released
- October 24, 2006
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Arkane Studios, Ubisoft Annecy
- Publisher(s)
- Ubisoft
- Platform(s)
- Microsoft Windows, Xbox 360
There’s never been a more satisfying foot in a first-person game than the one in Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. This is Arkane at their most gleefully unhinged. It’s a game where every fight feels like a physics experiment with ankle-breaking results. Players can impale enemies on spikes, collapse scaffolding onto their heads, or just Sparta-kick them into flaming pits. The combat isn’t just crunchy; it’s strategically crunchy.
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Built on Valve’s Source engine, Dark Messiah lets players wield swords, bows, and magic while channeling pure chaos into each encounter. The story is a high-fantasy affair with demons, chosen ones, and a twist that feels lifted from a particularly dramatic Dungeons & Dragons session. But the real joy was how each level was basically a sandbox of environmental deathtraps begging to be exploited. It’s janky, it’s dated, and it’s occasionally broken — but it’s also the closest anyone’s come to making first-person fantasy combat genuinely exhilarating.
3 Dishonored
Sometimes, The Knife Is Mightier Than The Gun
Dishonored
- Released
- October 9, 2012
WHERE TO PLAY
Dishonored is where Arkane truly carved out its modern identity. A first-person stealth-action hybrid set in the plague-ridden, whale-oil-powered city of Dunwall, it puts players in the boots of Corvo Attano, a bodyguard turned supernatural assassin out for justice — or mercy, depending on how players approach the mission. Because here, choice matters; not just in dialogue, but in approach, morality, and consequences.
Levels like “Lady Boyle’s Last Party” or the High Overseer’s office are masterclasses in level design, filled with alternate routes, hidden lore, and moral dilemmas hiding behind every mask. Powers like Blink, Possession, and Devouring Swarm turn Corvo into a ghost or a god, depending on how players use them. But perhaps Dishonored’s greatest achievement is making players feel responsible for their impact on the world — more deaths mean more rats, more sickness, and a darker ending. It’s a game that respects intelligence, curiosity, and restraint.
2 Prey
The Space Station Where Immersive Sims Got Rewired
Prey
- Released
- May 5, 2017
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Arkane Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Bethesda
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Prey starts with a coffee mug. A cup that turns into a skittering mimic that tries to eat the player’s face — and from that moment on, nothing can be trusted. Set aboard Talos I, a sprawling art deco space station orbiting Earth, Prey is a slow-burn sci-fi horror story that draws just as much from System Shock as it does from Arkane’s own playbook.
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As Morgan Yu, players can mod themselves with alien Neuromods, gaining abilities that range from basic hacking to full-blown mimicry, letting them turn into a coffee cup to roll through a vent. It sounds ridiculous, but Prey sells it with an atmosphere thick enough to chew on. The station is open-ended, intricately layered, and reactive — it’s possible to miss entire story arcs based on how exploration is handled. Combat’s clunky at first, but it gradually evolves into a high-stakes dance between resource management and creative problem-solving. Prey didn’t make the biggest splash at launch, but it has since become a cult favorite and arguably the most complete immersive sim Arkane’s ever made.
1 Dishonored 2
The Crown Jewel Of Creative Chaos
Dishonored 2
- Released
- November 11, 2016
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Arkane Studios
- Publisher(s)
- Bethesda
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
Arkane didn’t just refine the Dishonored formula in the sequel — they elevated it to an art form. Dishonored 2 lets players choose between returning protagonist Corvo and Empress-turned-fugitive Emily Kaldwin, each with their own suite of powers. And from the get-go, the choice feels meaningful. Emily’s Domino ability, which links enemies’ fates together, turns stealth into an elegant puzzle. Corvo, meanwhile, plays like a more aggressive shadow with time-bending tricks.
But what really cements Dishonored 2 as Arkane’s best first-person game is its level design. “The Clockwork Mansion” shifts its rooms in real-time like a deadly Rubik’s Cube. “A Crack in the Slab” lets players jump between two timelines to solve puzzles and assassinate targets in parallel realities. Every mission is a playground for player ingenuity, where violence isn’t the only (or even best) answer. Add in the lush southern-European-inspired city of Karnaca, and the whole experience feels handcrafted, layered, and alive. This is immersive sim design at its absolute peak.
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