First-person shooters are some of the most popular types of games, whether they be primarily multiplayer oriented or focus on epic, single-player adventures.
2025 saw many FPS games debut, and while not all of them were universally praised, such as Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, many released to widespread critical and financial acclaim, such as ARC Raiders and Battlefield 6.
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Only a few months have passed in 2026 so far, but already a wide plethora of popular FPS have been released, like High on Life 2 and the much anticipated Resident Evil Requiem, which can be played in both first and third-person.
However, there’s still a good number of upcoming FPS games expected to launch in 2026 that gamers should keep an eye on for their unique multiplayer modes, intriguing worlds and stories, and reinvention of traditional gameplay mechanics.
10
Marathon
Bungie’s Return to a 1990’s Classic
One new 2026 FPS title is Bungie’s Marathon, an extraction shooter reboot of Bungie’s classic Doom-like Marathon trilogy from the mid 1990s.
Set in the late 29th century on the faraway planet of Tau Ceti IV, Marathon has players embody mercenaries whose minds are implanted in artificial Runner Shells to investigate and loot the ruins of the Tau Ceti IV colony from the UESC Marathon either solo or in small two or three-person squads.
Compared to Bungie’s previous series, Halo and Destiny, this new Marathon is far more intense with its gameplay, requiring players to always be alert and cautious for potential run-ins with hostile Runners or security robots who can easily eliminate ill-prepared players and cause them to lose all the loot they spent so much time acquiring.
Marathon‘s complex method of environmental storytelling and sometimes difficult to navigate menus may be a bit off-putting for some, but once players get through a few matches and test out each Runner Shell’s abilities, it can quickly become a highly addictive PvP experience.
9
Project Spectrum
First-Person Horrors
Horror multiplayer games have only increased in popularity over the past few decades with titles such as Dead by Daylight and Phasmophobia, but one upcoming title is striving to break the horror multiplayer mold with that game being Project Spectrum.
Project Spectrum is a first-person PvPvE game centered around small squads of tactical agents investigating reality-warping anomalies as they inevitably come into conflict with rival agents and monstrous creatures before being extracted.
While the gameplay of agents is played like a first-person extraction shooter, with some crafting elements, people can also play as the monsters themselves in gameplay similar to that of Evolve and Dead by Daylight while being assisted by AI-controlled monsters.
Project Spectrum currently has no exact release date this year and while little is known about the game’s narrative, it’s expected to deal with psychological trauma that will cause characters to hallucinate and see horrifying visions of things that may not be what they appear to be.
8
Hell Let Loose: Vietnam
Return to the Vietnam War
Many FPS games have been set during and have recreated battles of wars set during the 20th century, primarily World War 1 and 2, but Expression Games will soon bring players to a battlefront rarely seen in video games: the Vietnam War.
A sequel to the World War 2-centric Hell Let Loose, Hell Let Loose: Vietnam is an upcoming multiplayer FPS game that will see players embody either the United States Armed Forces and their allies or the Viet Cong and their allies in large scale battles.
Unlike other multiplayer FPS titles like Battlefield 6, Hell Let Loose: Vietnam features several unique mechanics and environmental settings, such as U.S. forces exclusively being able to pilot helicopters while North Vietnamese forces can dig tunnels to ambush players.
Both sides will be able to drive boats, which often be necessary as both factions will have to traverse dangerous jungles, beaches, and rivers once Hell Let Loose: Vietnam eventually launches on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S later this year.
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7
John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando
A New Kind of Zombie Horde
In a few weeks, horror and video game fans alike will be able to witness a new story from one of the greatest horror film creators of all time with John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando.
Written and composed by Carpenter, who famously created the Halloween franchise and 1982’s The Thing, Toxic Commando is an upcoming four-player co-op zombie game similar to Left 4 Dead and Saber Interactive’s World War Z, with people playing as mercenaries turned reluctant heroes Walter Irons, Ruby Pelicano, Cato Arman, and Astrid Xu.
Here, this band of unlikely heroes must work together as they help scientists stop a mysterious Sludge God originating from the core of the Earth and his army of the undead, full of special infected like hulking Slob and the explosive Nuker, from destroying the world.
While most combat in Toxic Commando is played in first-person, the game additionally features vehicular combat, with each vehicle featuring its own unique perks and abilities, such as the horde-destroying tractor trailer god-killer truck and the team-healing ambulance.
6
Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2
Two Space Marines Are Better Than One
Despite being a robust multimedia franchise filled to the brim with over seven-foot-tall gun-wielding space marines, Warhammer 40,000, oddly enough, doesn’t feature that many FPS games. But one of those titles is getting a much anticipated sequel in the form of Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2.
A direct sequel to 2023’s Boltgun, Boltgun 2 is very similar to its predecessor in that it looks and plays much like classic 1990s FPS titles like Doom and continues the story of Ultramarine Malum Caedo in his quest to rid the galaxy of heretics.
This time, however, Caedo won’t have to go on this quest alone, as he’ll be joined by another playable character, Nyra Veyrath, a Sister of Battle Celestian who comes equipped with her own unique abilities and arsenal of weapons, from the power sword to the destructive melta bomb.
Boltgun 2 is expected to debut later this year, but it’s already proving to be an exceptional thrill ride in the boots of some of the most iconic space marines in all of gaming.
5
Mouse: P.I. For Hire
A Cartoony Noir FPS
One of the most intriguing games coming out later this year, not just among FPS games but among games in general, is Fumi Games’ debut title Mouse: P.I. For Hire.
Originally slated to launch in late March before being delayed to mid-April, For Hire is another FPS that plays similar to classic games like Doom and Wolfenstein, with players having to move fast to take out enemies and avoid fire.
What makes For Hire stand out among other games launching this year is its world design, as its visuals are inspired by rubberhose-style black and white cartoons of the 1920s and ’30s like Felix the Cat and Mickey Mouse.
Unlike those cartoons, however, Mouse: P.I. For Hire is a noir story following hardboiled mouse detective Jack Pepper as he investigates mysteries and inevitably gets in shootouts with criminals and monsters alike, such as a ghost that can only be defeated with a flashlight.
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4
The Lift
A Repairman Unlike Any Other
Sometimes the best FPS games and games in general are those that twist or flip genre norms on their heads, like how Portal was an FPS game despite not having players fire any bullets. One game that will probably similarly surprise players is Fantastic Signals’ The Lift.
Here, players will embody a handyman tasked with renovating an abandoned research facility known as the Institute, only to discover that it’s not as desolate as it initially appeared, forcing the handyman to use his tools to keep creatures away whilst discovering the history behind the Institute’s downfall.
The Lift‘s primary gameplay is centered around renovation, exploration, and repair, with the handyman using his titular lift to explore the many floors and biomes of the Institute whose machines can be repaired with tools such as one that clean away infected material or shoot out material that can secure pipes.
While The Lift‘s gameplay may be less action-packed than something like Hell Let Loose, it’s expected to deliver a highly immersive, eerie yet satisfying journey that fans of more slow-paced FPS titles are sure to enjoy.
3
Animal Use Protocol
Caesar’s Nightmare
Developer | The Brotherhood |
|---|---|
Platforms | PC |
Release Date | 2026 |
Many FPS games have people embody trained soldiers or hulking space marines, but every so often, developers make people play as the most uncommon of creatures for FPS title. That’s exactly the case for The Brotherhood’s Animal Use Protocol.
Here, people will play as Penn, a hyper-intelligent chimpanzee with the ability to talk who is striving to free lab animals from a nightmarish testing facility alongside help from a hyper-intelligent yet narcissistic mouse called Trip.
However, Animal Use Protocol isn’t just an FPS game, as it’s also a survival horror game similar in gameplay to Alien: Isolation, with Penn having to often hide to avoid giant mutated and deformed creatures while using a gravity manipulation tool to repair devices and hurl objects at enemies.
For anyone who wanted to see Planet of the Apes dive more into the horror themes and tropes seen in the Alien franchise, Animal Use Protocol will be the perfect game to check out when it launches on PC later this year.
2
Valor Mortis
Revenants of Napoleon
FPS games are hardly ever set in time periods before the 20th century, save for a few outliers like Far Cry Primal and Red Dead Redemption 2, but one upcoming FPS is already looking to be one of the best set during the 19th century with that game being One More Level’s Valor Mortis.
Valor Mortis is an FPS Soulslike game set in an alternate 19th century when Napoleon never conceded and instead continued to rage war across Europe, eventually causing a supernatural Crimson Plague to affect the region and turning many into grotesque monsters.
Here, players will embody William, a former Grande Armée soldier who was resurrected by Napoleon to uncover the origins of the plague and defeat fellow former soldiers who have turned into monsters.
While Valor Mortis is an FPS, its gameplay is much more reserved and precise than common FPS titles, with William’s primary weapons being a cutlass sword and a flintlock pistol, though he is able to acquire other weapons and abilities later on in the game, such as magical transmutations allowing William to unleash fire on enemies.
1
Halo: Campaign Evolved
An Unexpected Great Journey
2026 is a celebratory year for many gaming franchises, and as such, many developers and publishers are releasing new, remastered, and remade titles to denote the milestones, with one of the most exciting celebratory games being Halo: Campaign Evolved.
A remake of Halo: Combat Evolved, Campaign Evolved is a very notable title in the Halo series for many reasons as it will not only be the first remake in the franchise, but it will also be the first entry to launch on PlayStation 5 the same day as it launches on PC and Xbox, marking the first time Halo will be playable on Sony consoles.
While Campaign Evolved will remain mostly true to Combat Evolved‘s iconic gameplay and narrative, it will expand upon those features in several ways, such as including three new prequel missions following Master Chief and Sgt. Avery Johnson, including new enemies to fight like the Flood Pure Forms, and featuring four-player co-op, among other new features.
Sadly, Campaign Evolved won’t feature any PvP multiplayer that Halo has become known for, but it’s still shaping up to be an exciting return to Master Chief and Cortana’s first gaming journey on Installation 04 25 years later, and it will hopefully create many Halo fans on PlayStation.
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