The year 2023 is coming to an end and shooter fans have also been able to enjoy some new games in recent months. MeinMMO editor Dariusz Müller has taken a look at the shooters that were released in 2023 and selected the top three.
How did this list come about? I looked at all the shooters released in 2023 and made a selection of the three best based on various factors. Among other things, I paid attention to the state of the game (performance, bugs, etc.) as well as player satisfaction.
Why isn’t shooter X included? Quite simply, because in my perception it does not belong among the three best shooters of the year. This can have various reasons, including poor performance, a plethora of bugs, or other factors that negatively affect the gaming experience.
The Finals – Pure destruction and fast movement
I won’t beat around the bush and will start directly with the best shooter of the year: The Finals.
The title from Embark Studios gets a lot right, including the gunplay, movement, and various abilities and gadgets.
- The selection of weapons is small, but the gunfights are still fun. The movement is fast, but not excessive.
- There is no fall damage and gadgets that allow vertical gameplay, which sensibly enhances movement.
- The gadgets have interactions. Gadget B counters Gadget A, Gadget C counters Gadget B, and so on.
- The three classes, including the various weapons, abilities, and gadgets, allow for individual builds and team compositions to play different strategies
The unique selling point of The Finals is clearly the enormous extent of destruction that players can wreak on the map.
You can destroy almost any building and deliberately blow up walls or floors to gain the upper hand. Often
Remnant 2
With Remnant 2, we also have a PvE shooter on the list. The title from Gunfire Games impresses with its atmosphere, world design, and tough gameplay and is a worthy successor to the first part – Remnant: From the Ashes.
Remnant 2 is not a normal PvE shooter, as the third-person title is also a soulslike and therefore wants to drive you crazy with tough boss fights.
You can choose from various classes – the so-called archetypes – and attributes to select the best combination for you and fight to survive in the dark game world with up to 3 players.
A highlight of Remnant 2 are definitely the many secrets hidden within the shooter. For example, there is a class that was only discovered through data mining.
BattleBit Remastered
BattleBit Remastered is a PvP shooter that made headlines in summer 2023 as the low-poly Battlefield. And that describes the game principle of BattleBit quite accurately.
You choose a class and join up to 254 players in a chaotic battle, either on foot or with various vehicles. You have well-known weapons such as an M4 or UMP at your disposal.
While the game modes, player counts, and general chaos remind one of Battlefield, the representation of the characters is more reminiscent of LEGO than of a classic first-person shooter.
Even if BattleBit doesn’t look like a great shooter, it implements the most important aspects well. Especially the gunplay is convincing. But also the maps, selection of weapons, and class compositions enhance the gaming experience.
Honorable Mention: Roboquest
The roguelike shooter Roboquest narrowly missed out on our top 3, but still deserves an honorable mention. In Roboquest, you play short level instances against AI and collect various weapons along the way. When your character falls in battle, you have to start a new run and begin again.
Both the movement and the gunplay are successful in Roboquest. The same goes for the art style and soundtrack of the game. Roboquest follows a simple principle and implements it very well.
Which shooters didn’t make the list?
In 2023, there were also a few shooters that didn’t make it into the top 3. The aforementioned shooters all had flaws and points of criticism that prevented them from being included in our list – even if a big name is behind the shooter.
Counter-Strike 2
- The highly anticipated shooter came with problems. Bugs, cheaters, and glitches dampen the gaming experience.
- In addition, players miss numerous contents that the predecessor CS:GO had.
- One point of criticism is also the worsened peekers’ advantage
- Overall, the reviews of CS2 on Steam don’t look good.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
- MW3 is actually not a bad shooter, which even receives praise from players – especially developer Sledgehammer Games, which quickly responds to community feedback, has been able to impress.
- However, MW3 was unable to eliminate the biggest and most decisive point of criticism: SBMM
- Moreover, MW3 simply feels like it’s actually an MW2 DLC being sold for 70 € – after all, MW2 maps and no MW3 maps were added.
- The zombie mode is also disappointing, and the extremely short campaign had to face criticism. Generally, it seems that the price-performance ratio does not match up.
Escape from Tarkov: Arena
- Also, in EFT: Arena, bugs spoil the fun.
- In general, the game’s implementation has been criticized – for example, regarding the pre-made classes
- Moreover, EFT: Arena can hardly be counted as “release 2023”. The shooter only started its closed beta a few days ago and only granted access to a small number of players in the first wave.
Payday 3
- Payday 3 feels like a step back compared to its predecessor and had to face a lot of criticism upon release.
- Players especially missed the ability to plan their heists in advance and determine their own approach.
- In general, the lack of gameplay depth compared to its predecessor was criticized: fewer weapons, fewer skills, and worse mask selection
- The performance and poorly implemented social system did not go down well either. Especially the lack of voice chat received strong criticism.
If you’re looking for shooters to look forward to in the future, you should take a look at the realistic shooter Grey Zone Warfare: New shooter on Steam focuses on realism and jungle combat – Shows new gameplay
