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Choosing the right FPS game as a beginner is a daunting experience. You don't want to get stuck in an online lobby with some horrible person, and you need to have a game that works well to teach you the skills you need to practice and advance in the gameplay.
The variant type of FPS you want to play is something to consider too, as there's difference in games between those focused on campaign, character progression, mission priority, or co-op elements. To make things a little easier and in no particular order, here are the top ten FPS titles that are the most beginner-friendly.
10 Start Wars Battlefront 2
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Huge, epic space battles. Classic characters wielding various lasers. Cinematic space dogfights with dozens of X-wings and Tie Fighters all blasting and swooping and exploding. If you’re curious about FPS games and haven’t tried Star Wars: Battlefront 2, this is a crazy-fun game. There's a short but fairly awesome single-player campaign that shows you the basics and has a decent story with some great cinematic moments. In multiplayer, you play as a lowly space soldier on either the Rebel or the Imperial side.
After choosing a class like infantry, engineer, or sniper you get unleashed into full-on space war. Here, you can navigate between various game modes like capture the flag and team deathmatch. Eventually you’ll have chances to play as iconic Star Wars characters like Darth Vader. Between the epic scale, large numbers of players, and explosive sci-fi action, Battlefront is a great FPS entry-point. As a beginner, you’re likely to die a lot, but that’s ok, this game isn’t competitive like Call of Duty. So don’t sweat it. Storm Troopers don’t have good aim in the movies either.
9 Doom Eternal
From the drop D music to the ripping and tearing, Doom Eternal is the most head-banging, demon slaying, and badass game on the list. You’ll play as Doom Guy, a dude just hanging out in a space station orbiting Earth. Out of nowhere, hell itself breaks through the surface of the planet. Doom Guy jumps into action to deal with the evil insurgence. You’re given a shotgun, a chainsaw, and the best heavy metal soundtrack of all time. That’s all you need. Well, plus a ton of awesome weapon mods, movement mechanics, incredible kill animations, bosses, enemy variety and strategies, blood and guts, and hearing yourself mutter aloud “woah”.
One amazing feature with Doom Eternal's gameplay is how it balances your resources. You constantly have limited ammo, so you have to keep killing to keep killing. The game keeps you on your back foot in a very fun way. Though the pacing can be intense and might not be for every new FPS player, the game has an “I’m Too Young to Die” easy setting. Those that are into the idea that in Doom, hell fears you, should absolutely give this title a try.
8 Wolfenstein Series (2014 - present)
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A classic FPS executed with modern sensibilities, the ongoing Wolfenstein series is a great beginner-friendly starter. Both Wolfenstein: The New Order (2014) and Wolfenstein: The New Colossus (2017) are critically acclaimed and solid FPS games. Players inhabit BJ Blazkowicz, an American WWII soldier as he goes up against the Nazi war machine. This is no normal WWII game however, as the game is set in a fictional post-1945 nightmare where the Nazi’s essentially won. Well, when it’s up to Blazkowicz, they’ll learn how to lose too as the American hero uses armor, awesome weapons, and good-old-fashioned cover and fire mechanics to slay the evil Nazi scum.
Beginners will appreciate the straightforward nature of loot, collectibles, and gun fights. The story is also interesting and dark, with you squaring up against Nazi experimental monstrosities and suspiciously advanced tech. So if you’re new to FPS games and up for Nazi-killing without the fluff, the newest Wolfenstein series is a great choice. Just crank the setting to “Can I Play, Daddy?” easy difficulty and lets the bullets fly.
7 Destiny 2
In Destiny 2, players take control of one of three classes of Guardians, special keepers of earth’s last safe city from a slew of angry aliens. The character powers, amazing futuristic weapons, and epic, explosive campaign and online events set in a unique sci-fi setting makes Destiny 2 an awesome experience. Yet this one may not be on your beginner-FPS radar. Being an online-only, free-to-play science fiction multiplayer FPS game probably doesn’t help attract the average beginner. The reality though, is that developer Bungie has made a system where Destiny 2 has been streamlined and is surprisingly inviting to beginners.
Players don’t have to be good to participate in co-op multiplayer missions and events either. For new players, they can take advantage of co-op areas and groupings for help getting through tougher events. The same goes with raids and other content. As far as the multiple expansions go, the developer basically removed a bunch of old content so getting invested in your late-game is easy and not that much of a grind. Overall, Destiny 2 is a stronger beginner's choice than you may think. The mechanics are easy and fun to pick up, the classes and abilities are straightforward, and the sci-fi settings and enemies are various. Blasting aliens to bits is always rewarding.
6 Deathloop
As an FPS beginner, even on the easiest difficulty, dying is something that is inevitable. However, Deathloop is the perfect game for newbies as the dying is mostly on purpose. Here, you replay the same single day in the life of Colt Vahn as he figures out how to eliminate 8 targets and end the time loop. Think Groundhog Day with more guns. Blackreef island houses the time loop that Colt is stuck in, and each day gives you an opportunity to explore more, learn more, and connect more dots.
This of course is set to a mix of gun fights, sneak attacks, and tactics learned from the repetition of the loop. To win, one must have mastered certain guns, stealth, gadgets, and special abilities all learned in a single day. Between lowering the difficulty setting and the repeatable, fixed nature of the game, it’s a great choice for FPS starters. Other players can invade your games as well but don't worry too much. You can turn off the multiplayer, Demon Souls style invasion mechanic.
5 Call of Duty: Campaigns
To put it plainly, the military FPS, Call of Duty, sometimes gets a bad reputation. Yet the series has some of the best FPS mechanics, stories, and gameplay around. Modern Warfare 1 & 2 and Black Ops Cold War are a few starting title recommendations. This series has been the gold standard for many gamers for decades. Beginners can turn the setting to ‘easy’ and jump right into explosions, sniper heads shots, and military-grade warfare.
Each campaign also features a high-budget, cinematic story, some of which are incredible visual spectacles that rival Hollywood's action pieces. Conveniently, most of these games will not only teach you how to play other Call of Duty games, but they’ll also teach you how to play / approach most FPS games. The entries are some of the best teachers of an FPS system, so it’s a good place to start. The Call of Duty Zombies editions also feature a fun way to team up with friends and play and practice FPS skills.
4 Borderlands franchise
Pick a Borderlands game of your choice, load up the insanity, and watch the world burn. Part FPS and part RPG, the world of Pandora mixes a cool, cartoon aesthetic and a heavy does of madness into an experience that everyone should try. Although the weapon variation, character abilities, and general chaos may seem daunting at first, Borderlands games are always shoot first and think later. Defined as a looter shooter, gamers play as a “vault hunter” which have one of four possible powers. Combine that with the elemental powers of certain weapons and the world of Borderlands is like a lit fuse: waiting to be blown to bits in every way.
If you haven’t tried a Borderlands title, enjoy some anarchy here and there, and appreciate irreverent, dark humor, it’s definitely worth a go. Tiny Tina's Wonderland and Borderlands 3 are some easy title recommendations. The series also boasts some incredible action, intimidating bosses, open world elements, and one-of-a-kind style. It's a game series that’s more fun than difficult, yet challenging enough without becoming frustrating.
3 Halo Infinite
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The single-player campaign in Halo Infinite is fantastic and a great choice for noob FPS players. Say what you will about Halo and the state of the franchise, Halo Infinite gave us the best graphics, mechanics, and single-player fun a Halo title has had in years. Also, the semi-open world map lets players customize their play styles around high-value targets, Forward Operating Bases (FOBs), and mission goals.
Master Chief is as amazing as ever and still feels like the unstoppable one-man army that he should. Punching grunts is still so satisfying. It’s an FPS that serves different play styles well. In Halo Infinite's campaign, each encounter can be approached depending on weapons, build, and tactics. Beginners will be impressed by the polish of Halo Infinite, enjoy the basics of Spartan combat, and appreciate the explosive action and plot of the newest iteration of Halo.
2 The Outer Worlds
The Outer Worlds has all the best of a deep-dive RPG shooter without the excess. This game gets compared to the Fallout series in the best way and is a great entry point for the inexperienced FPS gamer. Set among several planets that corporate interests have colonized, The Outer Worlds is filled with dark humor, colorful alien landscapes, and awesome companion combos.
Players will also find incredible space guns, hideous space monsters, and moral space choices that affect the world. The impressive array of weapons and powers and the incredible and often beautiful setting are an easy highlights of the game. Between the optional powers of your companions and the awesome weaponry of the game, The Outer Worlds should be easy for beginners.
1 Deep Rock Galactic
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Rock and Stone. For Carl. These are the words of dwarves. Space dwarves. Those that have been sent to mine planet-sized asteroids for riches. Gold, oil, jewels. Watch for the bugs though. If you’ve never heard of Deep Rock Galactic, for shame. This FPS shooter is one of the funniest, most explosive, and most chaotic co-op games to come around in a long time. Featuring up to 4 players at a time, the dwarves use weapons, abilities, and powers to kill giant bugs. Whether it's fire, turrets, grenades, machine guns, or even your trusty pickaxe, Deep Rock's classes of dwarves have a synergy where each one balances the other's weaknesses.
Our dwarves don't own any means to production though. The gameplay is actually these dwarves slaving away for 'the man'. The 'dwarf man'. Risking their lives for corporate profit, players mine, pump for oil, guard assets, and generally disrupt the natural ecosystem of the asteroids. The poor, enormous bugs are only defending their home. They’ll die nonetheless. Always better with friends, this game can be fun even when your team gets wiped out. The chaos and tide-turning battles feature an amazing soundtrack that ramps up every time the fighting gets tense. Deep Rock Galactic is an absolute must for any entry FPS toe-dipper.