The industry is poised to move onto the next generation of gaming, after nearly seven years with the Xbox One and PS4. The Xbox One has seen a wide array of titles, from beloved indie games like Ori and the Blind Forest to massive AAA titles like Gears 5.
Xbox has long had a reputation as the home for action games and shooters, and the Xbox One helped cement that idea even more. Even though Microsoft diversified its stable of exclusives this generation, the backbone of them was still made up of series like Halo and Gears of War.
Microsoft wasn't the only company releasing stellar shooters, however, as several third-party devs helped redefine the genre. Here are some of the best first-person shooters available on Xbox One.
Halo: The Master Chief Collection
There's no series more synonymous with Xbox than Halo, and it's been Microsoft's biggest and best-performing franchise since the beginning. The Xbox One saw Halo go through a variety of changes, including a new hero and change multiplayer in Halo 5: Guardians. Perhaps more notable, however, was how Microsoft delivered the ultimate Halo package in the Master Chief Collection. The massive title contains Halo: Reach, Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary, Halo 2 Anniversary, Halo 3, Halo 3: ODST, and Halo 4. Some of the best shooters of all times bundled together with full multiplayer, and a host of other options added in.
Halo 2 Anniversary was the biggest addition made to the Master Chief Collection, completely remastering the original game's campaign with modern visuals and outstanding cutscenes. There are few packages out there that provide as much content as the Master Chief Collection, and all that only becomes even better when considering the game is available through Xbox Game Pass.
DOOM Eternal
DOOM 2016 was a phenomenal reimagining of the prolific series, putting a focus on speed and intensity like never before. Its fantastic single-player campaign was the highlight, and the sequel DOOM Eternal drives that home even more. Somehow, Eternal feels like an even faster and more demanding experience than the first game, and players have a wealth of new weapons and options to use in combat. There's a rhythm to DOOM's gunplay that players just can't find anywhere else, and the focus on aggression, as well as the heavy metal soundtrack, makes it a uniquely visceral experience. DOOM Eternal is one of the tightest most satisfying shooters out there, even if the multiplayer doesn't quite live up to the highs of the campaign.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
Call of Duty is the most successful shooter franchise of all time, so it should come as no surprise that some of the best FPS games on Xbox One come from it. 2019's Modern Warfare is the largest step forward the series has taken in years, especially in terms of tech. A spiritual reimagining of the original Modern Warfare, the game uses an entirely new engine that significantly upgrades the performance and visual quality of Call of Duty. Modern Warfare's campaign sells itself on realism, doing away with the bombast of previous games to focus on smaller more intense conflicts. The story contains a handful of moral choices that need to be made in the heat of battle and also loops in tactical choices that can change how enemies act, like shooting out lights before a raid.
Modern Warfare's multiplayer, on the other hand, retains the same twitch-shooting style that fans love. That being said, Infinity Ward also included a realism mode that removes the HUD and makes things more tactical. The big new feature is Warzone, the smash-hit battle royale mode. Warzone drops 150 players onto a map and makes them duke it out to be number one, and it's a formula that Activision can keep iterating on for years with other Call of Duty titles. Modern Warfare is one of the most compelling shooters out there, and an example of the Call of Duty franchise at its best.
Metro Exodus
Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light were both cult classic shooters, but Metro Exodus helped propel the series into the mainstream proper. While it still retains the horror and survival elements of the series, Exodus also moves into the realm of open-world games. Instead of one massive open world, Metro Exodus instead has a series of smaller explorable areas, each of which feels distinctly different and is packed with secrets to discover. The gunplay of the series has been tightened up making it fall more in line with the top shooters out there, and Metro Exodus sports some brilliant aesthetic design. There's an eerie blanket that lays over the entire game, and it's such a distinct tone from any other shooter. Moving from the Metro tunnels was a great decision for the franchise, and Metro Exodus truly shows how a series iterates and progressively becomes better over time. Metro Exodus is the most robust game from the series to date, showing off the true potential of the property.
Overwatch
Overwatch has been an absolute phenomenon since its launch, quickly becoming one of the top eSports titles with its Overwatch League. Blizzard instilled its trademark style in Overwatch, creating a cast of wonderful heroes that are all equally memorable. Although the metagame has changed over time, Overwatch's diverse cast makes its gameplay an absolute blast. Learning the ins and outs of characters can be challenging, and team cooperation is always essential in matches. The game helped drive the continuing popularity of hero shooters, and Blizzard has done a great job of continuing to drive interest in the years since its release. More than anything, however, Overwatch is a shining example of how a multiplayer-only game can still pull off an incredibly engaging world and cast of characters.