Summary
- Battlefield Hardline offers a unique approach, enabling players to choose peaceful solutions over violence - a rare feat in shooter games.
- BioShock provides players with moral choices, allowing them to decide between being a power-hungry villain or a redeeming angel.
- Wild Bastards stands out as a pure roguelike with diverse characters, each with unique abilities, promoting player freedom and engagement in gameplay.
Most first-person shooters are linear affairs, going from one mission to the next until the credits roll. Most Call of Duty games are good examples and have bombastic campaigns that are fun to go through, but without a lot of player choice beyond the multiple game modes, which are admittedly robust.
8 Best Soulslike Games That Let You Play Your Own Way
These great Soulslike games provide a wide variety of build options and approaches, allowing players to play their own way.
For shooter fans who enjoy having some agency in their games, these first-person titles give players just a little more to sink their teeth into. Even if there is just a loadout menu before a mission, that can be enough for some players, so let’s go through a wide variety of first-person shooter experiences that let all of the shooter fans out there play how they want.
8 Battlefield Hardline
Woop-Woop, That’s The Sound Of Da Police
Battlefield Hardline
- Released
- March 17, 2015
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- m
- Genre(s)
- FPS
Battlefield Hardline is the strangest entry in the series, as it centers on cops rather than soldiers in World War 2, the present, or the future. This also helps it stand out, as players didn’t have to kill every villain they saw.
Instead, many situations could be handled via peaceful and stealthy approaches that ended in handcuffed criminals instead of bloody corpses. Any game that offers passive runs should be applauded, especially a shooter about cops.
7 BioShock
Would You Kindly?
BioShock
- Released
- August 21, 2007
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- m
- Genre(s)
- FPS
BioShock is one of the standout horror games of the Xbox 360 era. The game begins with players crashing into the ocean and then discovering an elevator in the middle of the water that takes them to Rapture, a city under the sea. This paradise went to hell ages ago, with mutants now running amok. Players can use a range of weapons and magical powers called Plasmids to fight back.
There were children, known as Little Sisters, who could amplify these powers at the cost of their own lives, or they could be spared, with the decision entirely in the player's hands. Choosing to spare Little Sisters would result in a better ending, but it was up to players if they wanted to be a power-hungry villain or a redeeming angel.
6 Borderlands 2
Choose A Class, Have A Blast
Borderlands 2
- Released
- September 18, 2012
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language, Sexual Themes, Use of Alcohol
- Genre(s)
- Shooter
Borderlands 2 stepped it up a notch over its predecessor with a more centralized villain, Handsome Jack, more guns, and more classes. Players could choose from four classes, Vault Hunters all, who specialized in one thing or another, like a cybernetic ninja who favored stealth and blades, or a Siren who liked magical abilities and uzis.
9 Best Open-World Games That Let You Play Your Own Way
There are very few restrictions in place in these open-world games that encourage players to experience the world just as they want.
DLC packs added more environments and classes, giving Borderlands 2 the biggest set of Vault Hunters to date. The number of varied classes made replaying this open-world game several times over tempting and enjoyable.
5 Bulletstorm
Kick It Up A Notch
Bulletstorm
- Released
- February 22, 2011
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ due to Blood and Gore, Game Experience May Change During Online Play, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Use of Alcohol
- Genre(s)
- First-Person Shooter
Bulletstorm is one of the most over-the-top shooters to have graced the PS3 and Xbox 360 era. Players could go through it as a linear shooter, but they would be missing out on all the fun.
Each area is set up with tons of ways to kill enemies. For example, players could lasso enemies with their tether and then kick them into cactuses for bonus points. It’s a high-octane shooter that’s quick, fun, and memorable, even if it only got one entry and a remaster.
4 Cyberpunk 2077
V-ictory Day
Cyberpunk 2077
- Released
- December 10, 2020
WHERE TO PLAY
Cyberpunk 2077 had a rocky launch, but now it’s a well-respected first-person RPG. Players can customize their male or female version of V and explore Night City and the desert surrounding it on foot or in a vehicle.
Each main and side mission can be tackled stealthily with hacks and gadgets, or V can go in guns blazing to make quick work of enemies. Either way, it’s a massive RPG that drips with techno funk, and there are always several reasons to try again with a new approach.
3 Deathloop
Revenge Takes Time
Deathloop
- Released
- September 14, 2021
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
Deathloop, true to its name, puts its main character, Colt, in a time loop. He has to find a way to escape this pocket dimension, and the only way he can do it is by murdering his captors. The game is made up of several big open areas with open-ended gameplay, allowing players to tackle the bosses in whatever order they please.
8 Horror Games That Let You Play Your Own Way
These horror games won't shoehorn you into a linear narrative-driven experience, instead offering robust player freedom to let you get creative.
Players can find different powers and guns on each run, and every time they restart, they’ll get just a little bit better, as there are roguelike elements. Go loud, go quiet, or find some in-between to make it out alive.
2 Fallout 4
Sifting Through The Rubble
Fallout 4
- Released
- November 10, 2015
WHERE TO PLAY
Fallout 4 is set in a far-future Massachusetts, which, like the rest of the Fallout universe, lies in ruins. Players can start their journey by customizing their character, male or female, and after a quick tutorial, they will be set free to roam an absolutely massive open-world environment.
The goal is to find the protagonist's missing child, which takes players across the vast wasteland. They can find weapons and use them just as they are, or they can modify them at tool benches to introduce all kinds of chaotic elements into combat. One of the wildest weapons in this game will drop mini-nukes on enemies.
1 Wild Bastards
A Space Western
Wild Bastards
- Released
- September 12, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Violence, Language
- Genre(s)
- FPS, Strategy
Wild Bastards is a pure roguelike wherein players will find a cavalcade of characters to play as. Each one uses a different weapon and a unique power; for example, Casino has a shotgun, while Spider Rosa has revolvers.
Players will move their characters around a tactical-looking map and then dive into small first-person arenas to explore for loot, complete objectives, and blast enemies. The colorful cel-shaded look helps it stand out from the pack, and the lack of a deep story means players are free to engage directly with the gameplay however they please.
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From platformers to brawlers, these games have innovative character-switching systems that let players control multiple different heroes.