The Best Halo Killer Games

As the old saying goes, history tends to repeat itself, and that's especially true in the world of video games. When Doom set the industry on fire in 1993, it created a desperate need for other developers to have their own hyper-violent shooters. This gave birth to the Doom Clone, a term that has carried over into contemporary times. Just eight years later, Bungie would change the shooter world once more with the landmark release of Halo: Combat Evolved in 2001.

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In the years following, Halo's dominating performance prompted the competition to create the Halo Killer. Much the same as Doom Clones, the Halo Killers were about replicating the massive success that Master Chief's debut title had. Some of them were shameless rip-offs, while others carved out their own unique identity and even created franchises of their own. Whatever the outcome of any particular Halo Killer, it was all the evidence needed that the iconic FPS franchise was one of the industry's most remarkable properties.

6 TimeShift

This Unique Shooter With Time-Based Abilities Is Still A Blast

Through several delays and a publisher change, TimeShift came to resemble Halo in a number of ways. After its troubled development process, Saber Interactive overhauled TimeShift, putting a stoic protagonist behind a gold-plated helmet and setting him loose in a sci-fi world full of fierce enemies and bosses.

TimeShift feels outstanding to play, as the shooting still features some excellent feedback and weight. It also features some fun time-based powers to use, with slow-down and stop being crucial to making it through the game's tougher encounters. As far as sci-fi military shooters go, TimeShift is a solid adventure and still one of the more memorable Halo Killers of its generation. TimeShift is readily available on Steam, and is worth diving back into.

5 Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

The Reinvention Of Call Of Duty Still Competes With Master Chief

After exploring armed conflicts from previous decades for the first three Call of Duty games, developer Infinity Ward wanted to do something different. Seeing the massive success of Halo at the beginning of the century, the team decided to fast-forward to the present day, vaguely chronicling the wars in Iraq and Syria.

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By  Jake Fillery

This shift away from World War 2 to contemporary warfare put it in direct competition with Master Chief's modern sensibilities, and it contended directly with Halo 3 in 2007. Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare was able to substantially outsell Halo 3 and launched one of the industry's most dominant modern franchises.

4 Warhammer 40,000: Fire Warrior

The First Warhammer 40k FPS Challenged Halo's Dominance

• Developer: Kuju Entertainment
• Platforms: PS2, PC
• Release Date: November 17, 2003

Realizing they had their own sci-fi military franchise that could compete with Halo, Games Workshop licensed the Warhammer 40,000 IP to Relic Entertainment, who produced a shooter for the PS2 and PC called Fire Warrior in 2003. The expansive world of Warhammer has been a perfect fit for video games ever since the first 40k game in 1995, and it seamlessly fit into the FPS genre with Fire Warrior, where it challenged Halo's dominance as a sci-fi military shooter.

Fire Warrior is still an excellent shooter, one that comes from an era where console shooters were still a bit rough around the edges. Movement feels slick and responsive, while the feedback and sound design of the guns is top-tier. It was a worthy challenger to Master Chief's throne, even if it remains largely forgotten today, even in Warhammer circles.

3 Resistance: Fall Of Man

This First-Party Sony IP Features An Alien Invasion On PS3

In its continued quest to compete with Halo, Sony tapped the massively-talented developer Insomniac to develop a first-person shooter. Insomniac separated their game from Halo by setting it in World War 2, featuring an alien invasion that pits the player against the fearsome Chimera. The end result was Resistance: Fall of Man, which launched on the PS3 in 2006. It was easily the PS3's best title at launch, with an impressive campaign and some truly wonderful world building.

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Resistance spawned a truly fascinating franchise, one that saw multiple sequels and spin-offs over the years. Much like the franchise it was competing with, Resistance focused on tight, responsive gunplay set in a bold, far-reaching sci-fi universe, while the Chimera remain one of the best antagonistic forces the industry has seen. These days, Resistance has been pushed aside for other Sony IPs and Insomniac is busy with Spider-Man, but it was certainly one of Halo's most well-respected competitors.

2 Brute Force

This Original Xbox Exclusive Features Four-Player Squad Gameplay

• Developer: Digital Anvil
• Platform: Xbox
• Release Date: May 28, 2003

Branded as "The Next Halo" by the Official Xbox Magazine, Brute Force was designed to emulate the success of Microsoft's shooter franchise by utilizing similar themes and world design, but within the framework of a third-person squad-based action game. Utilizing the Xbox hardware in some impressive ways, developer Digital Anvil created a fun, addictive third-person action game that featured some great level design and excellent gunplay.

Brute Force features four playable squad mates, with each of them offering unique contributions to the team, focusing either on full-frontal assaults or stealth. The AI is still rather impressive, as the computer-controlled characters respond in a timely and appropriate manner. The setting of Bruce Force is also a delight, featuring unique sci-fi worlds and characters, as well as some standout alien races.

1 The Conduit

This Wii-Exclusive Shooter Is One Of The System's Best

Although the Wii was noted for its remarkable success with casual players, there was still a desire to create a game that would appeal to a more hardcore audience. Seeking to do just that, High Voltage Software started development on a Wii-exclusive known as The Conduit, which would launch just three months before Halo 3: ODST in 2009.

In The Conduit, players take control of a special agent named Michal Ford as he tries to stop an alien invasion. Using the Wiimote to aim weapons feels snappy and responsive, with some wonderful feedback from the guns and a whole host of alien creatures to dispatch. It is easily one of the Wii's greatest shooters, and it was a great alternative to Halo for anyone who only owned Nintendo hardware. It was later ported to Android, and a sequel was launched in 2011, but a modern port of The Conduit remains elusive.

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