what is your fav and least fav FPS franchise of all time?

[B-Cell_v1legacy]

Hello friends,

in history we have played so many FPS games. some great ones. some bad ones. but in this thread we talk about what are our fav and least fav FPS franchise. so lets start with fav, its all based on personal opinion. you may agree or disagree.

Best

STALKER: One of the best FPS series of all time. consist of 3 games with one expansion/prequel and other stand alone sequel. while clear sky was weakest of 3 but the other 2 games are so great. they are simply masterpiece. STALKER SoC in 2007 was the most immersive, atmospheric game and probably most innovative game too. there is nothing like it. Call of pripyat was by far best game of 2010. there something it did better than SOC like more open, more immersive soundtracks etc but overall SOC was better.

Half life: A franchise consist of 2 Greatest shooters ever made and 2 really amazing episodes. they were unique, innovative and ahead of times when released in 1998 and 2004. the level design, the pacing is unbelievable. Half life 1 was first FPS game that focus on Story but without interrupting to cutscenes. kinda sad franchise doesnot exist anymore as valve are no longer game developers.

Metro: Its like Linear Stalker with Half life and COD elements thrown in. and is one of the most atmospheric franchise with some of the best storytelling of all time. both metro games are amazing in thier own way. and now third one is coming which will be more open and sandbox and becoming the true successor of Stalker.

Doom: Doom is basically origins of FPS. each and every main 4 games revolutionize FPS genre in their own way and this series never have bad game. first 2 are instant classic, Doom 3 was put in different and right direction and Doom reboot is return of old school classic. cant wait for what id software doing with next one.


I wish I could also said FEAR and Crysis. while original games were so amazing the sequels so bad that it ruined it legacy. otherwise could have been excellent franchise.

Deus Ex is also a franchise i wish to mention but no matter how amazing original and HR are. original Deus Ex is indeed greatest game ever made. its not strong franchise when it also have 2 disappointing sequels to each great games like invisible wars or mankind divided.

now its time for least fav

Least Fav:

Call of Duty: No one is going to surprised. the first 2 games were good. not great but then its becoming yearly iteration. copy and paste of each other. and these games are just nothing but 4 hour linear scripted campaign with same MP been introduce in COD4.

Wolfenstein: The series that one invent FPS can be one of the worst FPS franchise? how? let me explain. wolf 3d might be first FPS but it was Doom that revolutionize it. FPS were called Doom clones. then RTCW was one of the best FPS of that time. it might save the series but no. wolf 2009 game was mediocre, new order, old blood and new colossus are so bad that machinegames turn wolfenstein into one of the worst FPS franchise of all time. like seriously this franchise in general suck.

Bioshock: First bioshock was mediocre system shock rip off in a cool setting. second game was bit better but still not very good. infinite is one of the worst AAA FPS ever made. everything about infinite is bad except setting. the shooting suck so much. overall this franchise that consider spritual successor of System Shock is not even a shadow of that.

Medal of Honor: This series is so bad that EA has abandon this franchise. since 1999 it produce nothing but mediocre games with only one game allied assault being good one. EA reboot it as modern day war and failed so much that EA has to kill the series.

Halo: the series popularity may died once 343 put thier hand on but on peak the series was very overrated. Halo CE released at that time when there were far superior PC shooters avaliable. and it also have most repetetive level design in FPS games. theres the reason when PC version released it scored lower because of high standard in FPS when it comes to PC rather than xbox.

theres some franchise i dont hate but i dont like particularly that much. far cry is example.

i enjoyed FC3. and first half of FC1. other than its ok. not bad.

so my friends. what are your fav and least fav? discuss

 

[Samtemdo8_v1legacy]

In the end, I think any FPS worth their salt no matter what they are all just good stuff in the end.

I like Doom. I like Rainbow Six 3. I like Far Cry 3.

 

[Silentpony_v1legacy]

Favorite of all time? Bioshock. I know you think its a ripoff of System Shock, but it was literally supposed to be System Shock redux, set underwater in a 1950s steam punk world.
It's kinda like saying Far Cry BloodDragon is a ripoff of Far Cry. Or that Conker's Bad Fur Day is a foul-mouthed ripoff of Banjo-Kazooie. Its literally supposed to be an alternate take on that game!

Least favorite, and I hate to do this as a 40k fan, but Fire Warrior. I mean its just so...sad. A single, literal first day on the job Fire Warrior takes on an entire squad of Raptors Space Marines, Word Bearers, Obliterators, Raptors, Sorcerers, a Daemon Prince, and a Changer of Ways, all with a no back up and not even a Crisis Suit.
Also the laspistol was the single most powerful weapon in the game. Terrible range and accuracy, but it was one-shot kill against anything.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

Half-Life, Doom, Quake, Unreal and Team Fortress in the fave category. I like almost all games in those.

As for least fave? I don't kwow. SiN? Two games, both kinda shit. Euh, what else? A lot of 90's to early 2000's fps like Requiem: Avenging Angel, Strife, TekWar, Blood 2, Witchaven, Powerslave (Exhumed), Kingpin, Wheel of Time, Daikatana, Kiss Psycho Circus, Mortyr and so on. Wouldn't really call those franchises tho, since most only got one game, generally for a good reason.

 

[Arnoxthe1]

I think I'm just gonna pop in here and say Half Life 2 has aged pretty badly in the gameplay department. Revolutionary? Perhaps, but there you go. I think HL1/Black Mesa ironically holds up better.

 

[Pecola]

Favorite would have to be Battlefield, but the series has had some flops; it's still original and offered so much, especially for big multiplayer battles.

Honestly have to go with HL for least favorite. That does still mean "favorite" and not something I dislike. It's well made but the games just feel like they drag on from one puzzle to the next, and the narrative got boring after the first game.

 

[Hawki]

Bear in mind that these are franchises and not single games, but:

Favorite: Halo. While it has some low points (e.g. ODST and Halo 4), most of its entries are solid. Solid gameplay, solid lore, solid story, etc.

Least Favorite: If we include sub-franchises, maybe Metroid Prime. I detest Hunters, and really disliked Metroid Prime (of what I played of it). However, I can't really nominate Metroid as a whole, because it's not primarily an FPS franchise, and I like the 2D games I've played.

As a franchise as a whole, maybe Half-Life. I've played Half-Life 2 (average), Episode 1 (bad), and Episode 2 (excellent), and...yeah. I think it might be the effect of constantly being told how great Half-Life is, while in my experience I find it too flawed to be put on the pedastal many have put it on.

 

[DeliveryGodNoah_v1legacy]

My favorites would include:

Turok: Dinosaur Hunter,
Turok 2: Seeds of Evil,
Half Life (1),
Resistance: Fall of Man (God I wish the Trilogy magically got a PC port...or at least a remaster),
F.E.A.R. (including FEAR 2)
Metro 2033
DOOM 2016
Titanfall
Overwatch (Easily over 600 hours in this game. I still come back to it nearly every day for a couple hours, especially after work. The only criticism I've ever found completely valid is that the game has been lacking in real content updates and that lootboxes aren't for everyone, and the constant balance struggle that isn't uncommon to find in just about any competitive online game.)

My least favorites would be:

FEAR 3 (still enjoy it, but it lost a lot of the charm, and the shooting doesn't feel very good),

System Shock 2 (It's incredibly boring and dull. I played it a lot when I was younger because this was during a time when I didn't have money to buy more games, but as an adult with money and a swarm of other games to play, I can't imagine myself giving this game the time of day.)
Prey 2017 (Again, woefully boring. I've tried time and time again to give this game a chance and it never grabbed me. The enemies are dull, the gameplay is passable at best, and I don't care for the plot.)
Halo 2-5 (They could be amazing shooters. But I'll never know because they suffer from some serious "console shooteritis" with a nauseatingly low FOV and the mispositioned aiming cursor I've went on about in the past. It makes me feel like I'm constantly tilting my head slightly upward while looking down with my eyes like Master Chief can't support the weight of his own fat head.)

 

[Hawki]

And to comment on other franchises others have brought up:

-Doom: I have a love-hate relationship with Doom. On one hand, I really like Doom 1 and Doom 3, but am apathetic at best towards Doom 2 and Doom 2016. On one hand, I like the concept of Doom (Hell invading our universe, the mix of the occult and future technology), on the other, Id seems incapable of doing anything with the series beyond this premise (as in, the series has been rebooted twice, and with the same premise every single time). On one hand, I can appreciate the influence Doom had on the genre. On the other, just because it's influential doesn't mean it's good. And again, I do consider Doom 1 to be "good," but how much love can I have for a series when I only like 50% of the games I've played?

-Call of Duty: Okay, I've technically played some CoD games, namely the first and Final Fronts, but apart from that...well, most of what I know about CoD is in Noah Gervais's retrospective series. That at least gave me some appreciation for CoD, even if I've barely played any of its entries.

-Medal of Honour: I have a lot of nostalgia for MoH, but about the only genuinely "good" games in the franchise I can name are Pacific Assault and Frontline. Yes, I like Allied Assault, but it's more "okay" rather than "good."

-Rainbow Six: I played the first game. I died. A lot.

NEXT!

-BioShock: Only played the first BioShock game. Can't comment on the franchise, but the game in of itself is pretty damn good.

-Battlefield: I've played some of the games in this series - 1942 (and expansions), Vietnam, BF2, Modern Combat, and Bad Company. I never got beyond that because Battlefield has always struck me as a series that really needs to be played on PC to 'work,' and I doubt that I could play BF3 (or beyond) in any reasonable capacity on my PC. But, I like this. Vietnam was "meh," Modern Combat was terrible, but the rest were solid.

Half life 1 was first FPS game that focus on Story but without interrupting to cutscenes.

Cough*Marathon*Cough

each and every main 4 games revolutionize FPS genre in their own way and this series never have bad game.

How the heck did Doom revolutionize anything outside the first installment? Doom 2 is basically an expansion for Doom 1. Doom 3 doesn't really do anything that hadn't been done before. Doom 2016 might be revolutionary if more games follow it (hope not), but right now its sphere of influence is so far confined to its own game.

Or that Conker's Bad Fur Day is a foul-mouthed ripoff of Banjo-Kazooie. Its literally supposed to be an alternate take on that game!

I like both, but I've never considered Conker to be an "alternate take" on Banjo. Yes, they're both platformers developed by Rare, but even if you separate the different tones, Banjo is a collectathon while Conker is kind of a string of minigames strung together in an overall linear sequence.

but Fire Warrior. I mean its just so...sad. A single, literal first day on the job Fire Warrior takes on an entire squad of Raptors Space Marines, Word Bearers, Obliterators, Raptors, Sorcerers, a Daemon Prince, and a Changer of Ways, all with a no back up and not even a Crisis Suit.

Never played it, but that sounds more systemic of FPS cliches than anything else. I mean, at least Fire Warrior has an actual, well, 'fire warrior.' Half-Life wants me to believe that a scientist can outfight special forces and lord knows what else.

 

[B-Cell_v1legacy]

Off the top of my head of what I've played (sequels are listed after in order of preference) -

Fav's:

Doom>Doom 2 (Original - only just started the new one. Other than Crusader it was the first thing I really played on PC and I was enthralled with it. It had such a rhythm between the mouse play shooting action, the level design, the music, the moody environments. All brilliant for its time and still stands as a true classic today, worthy of its pioneering status)

Doom 3>>RoE (A nifty expansion with some good levels, horror elements and some of the best bosses in a modern shooter. The descent to the final boss personally ranks as one of the greatest tension building moments in a shooter. I was just thinking of this guy [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyQAJ9Ragp8] today. The first time I saw him bust out of there literally gave me goosebumps)

Half Life 2>1 (Great immersive storytelling, and revolutionary physics implementation. It was the first game that really me into its world)

Crysis>Warhead>>>3>>>2 (Yeah it sure is pretty even today, but the gameplay can match the visuals if you seek it out. Crysis/Warhead only though. The other two...not so much)

STALKER: SoC (Rough around the edges, but probably still the high water mark of immersive FPS'ing)

Killzone 2, 3, 1 Shadow Fall (The only console FPS series I really enjoyed since the N64. Outstanding presentation and attention to detail in everything from sound design, music, hit response ragdolls, animation, finale, etc.)

BLACK (Scratch that above comment. I knew there was something in between N64 era and 7th gen on console that made me take notice. It's a shame this game was never officially released on PC, because it simply kicks ass)

Cryostasis (Under-rated and highly immersive survival horror style shooter. I'm already wanting to reinstall it. Barely ran on my old rig but I'd reckon even a modest PC could now play it smoothly. Another that was rough around the edges, but I actually enjoyed it more than Metro)

Far Cry 2>>FC1 (I've only played the first two. The original I played years after release, and it was great but definitely flawed in terms of AI. The sequel was also great, but definitely felt unfinished in some cases. It was still a very immersive and expansive title, but the constantly respawning NPC's and stilted, repetitive story structure hampered its flow. I've read FC3 is better, but I've grown weary of Ubisoft's formula, and know I'd probably run out of patience for chasing icons. GR: Wildlands was most recently about as much as I could take)

Goldeneye (The first console FPS that was actually fun to play on a console. Outstanding detail for the time)

The Darkness>>>2 (Not a traditional FPS, but still one of the most interesting takes on the genre in the last couple generations. Great story and well balanced powers)

Perfect Dark (Basically like Goldeneye, but more refined. I liked Goldeneye's theme more though)

Turok: Seeds of Evil (Wow, now this was a hardcore console FPS. Pushed the N64 to its limits in both visuals and sound. Loved coming home from school to play this, similar to Goldeneye and PD)

HEXEN>>>Heretic (I grouped these together as I remember them similarly. They were a blast to play through but I never felt compelled to replay them as much as Doom back in the day. The level design and shooting were a mixed bag for the time. I remember getting lost a lot in HEXEN but liking the shooting more than Heretic which had the more interesting locations)

Metro: Last Light>>>Metro 2033 (STALKER-lite. A bit too linear and scripted, as other similar games have done this style better. But its presentation is impressive, and it's still one of the best looking games technically)

Battlefield 3 (Solid shooter with great presentation, but ultimately too linear and scripted with little else to get excited about. It's the only one I've played in the series though, so maybe others are better. Haven't had a chance to find out and not exactly pining too either)

Resistance 3>>Resistance: FoM>>>Resistance 2 (Mostly in the fav's for the weapons and interesting set piece encounters)

Counter-Strike: Source (Had quite a bit of fun in the time I spent playing, but ultimately realized in order to really have fun, you need to be competitive. And that would've involved far more time than I had to spend on it)

Deus Ex: GotY Edition>>Deus Ex: HR - Director's Cut (This is an odd one. As FPS games I'm thinking the original was pretty average to downright awful, while HR fairs quite a bit better but also isn't a true FPS. As overall games though, they are outstanding. I only played through the original and am still wanting to finish HR whenever I have more time)


Least Fav's:

Bioshock (I played through the first, and I think tried the demo of the second. It was an interesting play through, but couldn't muster much enthusiasm to return to it for more)

Portal (This should be one of my fav's for its uniqueness alone, but as an actual FPS game there really wasn't enough there to hold my interest the couple times I played. One of these days I want to at least get through its story because I know I'd probably enjoy it overall)

FEAR>>>FEAR 2 (It's not that I don't like them, but just not enough to actually feel compelled to finish. Maybe if all my favorite shooters disappeared. The shooting was good but environments were too repetitive and bland, especially in the original. The horror elements and shooting would be what might bring me back someday)

Wolfenstein 3D>>>RtCW>>>TNO (Another series I haven't technically ever finished, but enjoyed what I played from it overall. Just not enough to ever get through them)

Quake (I've only dabbled in the original and LIVE, which were both fun but I always had something else I'd rather play, shooter or not. Maybe someday I'll return and give it at least the original a proper go)

UT3 (Played online for a while and had some fun, but couldn't say it grabbed me. I mostly played it because it was one of the first games I tested my new-at-the-time-rig out on, and it at least looked and ran incredibly well)

Call of Duty: World at War>>>MW1>>BO2>>>MW2>>>MW3>>BO (W@W Had the most memorable campaign, and decent shooting. MW1 also had a fun, original campaign for its time, and I enjoyed BO2's MP. By MW2 I was getting really tired of this series and its reskin philosophy. I liked MW2 at first, and even beat it on either Hardened or Veteran IIRC. But eventually grew tired of it, and it was a chore to get through MW3's campaign)

Halo: CE>>>Halo 2 (I've only played the first two and some of 3/Reach. It's a solid series, and I can understand why people like the MP, but I never really got into it. They felt bland and repetitive with very little in the way of technology or art style that stood out to me. The AI was above average and the vehicles were cool especially in CE, but overall I just don't care much for the tone of this series)

_________________________________________________________________________________

I know I'm missing some, but it's getting late and I want to play some DOOM.

 

[Squilookle]

This is hard, because all my favourites are either stand-alones, like Goldeneye, or stellar entries in otherwise mediocre series, like Battlefield 1942. Straining my mind to think of a FPS series that has consistently entertained me and all I get is Timesplitters, Far Cry and Unreal Tournament, because all of those put out a whopping two games each that I really enjoyed.

 

[Hawki]

Since people are listing individual games, I'll just copy-paste my top ten FPS list, so...yeah.

10) Halo 2
9) Halo 5: Guardians
8) Doom
7) BioShock
6) Doom 3
5) GoldenEye
4) Killzone 2
3) Halo 3
2) Halo: Reach
1) Halo: Combat Evolved

(Yes, I like Halo, thanks for asking.)

 

[Timedraven 117]

Favs: F.E.A.R and Extraction point expansion, F.E.A.R 2 is alright, but the original even on console was amazing and I saw no reason why the had to "Dumb it down" for console. I never got that, and I always thought they were just fucking lying to us as an excuse to make inferior games. While the story was nothing to write home about, it works in the confines of the game and its only failure was making Alma TOO powerful, jumping the shark in 2, firmly killing the franchise even as it left on an okay note.

HaloCE - ODST: I don't get the hate ODST received, and it was the last great Halo (FPS) game, Reach was a steaming wreck story and gameplay wise(Fuck your expanding radical, I'm a goddamn super soldier who can bench four times his weight!). I won't even mention the new stuff.

METRO: I liked the first two games, I'm VERY worried about the direction they're taking Exodus, this has so many ways to fail I'm not even hyped, I'm just worried like a soon to be father.

Least Favorite: New Call of duty. (Shocker) The original games were alright, not fantastic but the first had little things like changeable fire modes, and other little nifty things, however as the series went on it stripped more and more from the gameplay.

Fear 3: I never played the first two games but this game's quality and story was so abysmal it makes me absolutely sick. Like want to punch the lead writer with brass knuckles angry.

Half Life: Revolutionary and cool themes and ideas. Abysmal shooting mechanics. For an FPS, the one thing necessary for anything more than a decent shooter is tight and good shooing mechanics. Honestly I believe the series to be over rated, and is likely permanently dead due to Valves fear of the number 3.

 

[not_you]

Eh, why not...


Shooters I liked:
Doom (90's+Doom 3) Ah, I remember the days... Playing this on my old 486... I'm sure it was on my 486... And Doom 3, I never got to finish it because my HDD died when I was running through the Hell levels and never got around to doing it all again... But it was the most fun I had in the early-mid 2000's gaming.

Far Cry 2 (And a little bit of 3): My personal favourite Far Cry game... No, it's not perfect, but I loved it then, and still love it now.

Brothers in Arms: My favourite PS2 shooters that I think a lot of people overlook or forget. Hell's Highway was my favourite with Road to Hill 30 feeling a step behind.

PAINKILLER: (Only the original) Another gem from the mid 2000's (or was it late 2000's, can't remember)

and Obligatory S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and Metro mention because they're all fucking great.

*THE WORST*

Doom (2016/5?): I couldn't stand it, getting the run-aroundy gameplay of the older with current gen graphics just doesn't mix in my mind... Everything was too... "Real" I don't know, it's so hard to explain why I didn't like it, but I really, REALLY didn't like it.

Half Life: Yeah, yeah, I know... But I never got around to playing them until about 2013~ish, and by then they had aged badly, and I'm sure it's worse now... If I'd played them in their prime, then I probably would've liked them, but I didn't, so they felt stale, slow and just worse than everything else.

Halo (1): I just don't get how everyone likes this game... Never played 2+ but Halo 1 felt like a "wannabe" game that wanted to be both Unreal Tournament and Doom, while failing at both.

 

[sXeth]

Can't say I have super strong preferences on any of the big ones.

Favorites would probably be Doom or Unreal. Might've put Far Cry in, but Primal. Dark Forces/Jedi Knight (although it becomes less FPS the farther you get through the series). Hexen/Heretic.


Least favorites (leaving out some abject shovelware I've played in the shareware age):

Duke Nukem (I actually liked the 2d games, the 3d series is awful). Redneck Rampage. Metro (Dull dull dull dull dull boring, half assed RPG wannabe stuff, nonsensical karma system). Borderlands.

 

[B-Cell_v1legacy]

METRO: I liked the first two games, I'm VERY worried about the direction they're taking Exodus, this has so many ways to fail I'm not even hyped, I'm just worried like a soon to be father.

.

Many people criticize Metro being too linear and scripted and not enough freedom. so thats why they are making it non linear and probably less scripted too. but classic linear gameplay is still here. they are making more like Stalker.

 

[B-Cell_v1legacy]

Favs: F.E.A.R and Extraction point expansion, F.E.A.R 2 is alright, but the original even on console was amazing and I saw no reason why the had to "Dumb it down" for console. I never got that, and I always thought they were just fucking lying to us as an excuse to make inferior games. While the story was nothing to write home about, it works in the confines of the game and its only failure was making Alma TOO powerful, jumping the shark in 2, firmly killing the franchise even as it left on an okay note.

HaloCE - ODST: I don't get the hate ODST received, and it was the last great Halo (FPS) game, Reach was a steaming wreck story and gameplay wise(Fuck your expanding radical, I'm a goddamn super soldier who can bench four times his weight!). I won't even mention the new stuff.

METRO: I liked the first two games, I'm VERY worried about the direction they're taking Exodus, this has so many ways to fail I'm not even hyped, I'm just worried like a soon to be father.

Least Favorite: New Call of duty. (Shocker) The original games were alright, not fantastic but the first had little things like changeable fire modes, and other little nifty things, however as the series went on it stripped more and more from the gameplay.

Fear 3: I never played the first two games but this game's quality and story was so abysmal it makes me absolutely sick. Like want to punch the lead writer with brass knuckles angry.

Half Life: Revolutionary and cool themes and ideas. Abysmal shooting mechanics. For an FPS, the one thing necessary for anything more than a decent shooter is tight and good shooing mechanics. Honestly I believe the series to be over rated, and is likely permanently dead due to Valves fear of the number 3.

? It?s the first fav series you mentioned playing?

 

[B-Cell_v1legacy]

Since people are listing individual games, I'll just copy-paste my top ten FPS list, so...yeah.

10) Halo 2
9) Halo 5: Guardians
8) Doom
7) BioShock
6) Doom 3
5) GoldenEye
4) Killzone 2
3) Halo 3
2) Halo: Reach
1) Halo: Combat Evolved

(Yes, I like Halo, thanks for asking.)

if we are talking about individuals so heres my list.

1. Half-life 1/2 (with episodes)
2. STALKER SoC
3. Deus Ex 1
4. System Shock 2
5. Doom (2016)
6. Crysis 1
7. FEAR
8. Metro Redux (better version of both games)
9. Doom 3
10.Chronicles of Riddick Escape from butcher bay

 

[Benpasko]

but Fire Warrior. I mean its just so...sad. A single, literal first day on the job Fire Warrior takes on an entire squad of Raptors Space Marines, Word Bearers, Obliterators, Raptors, Sorcerers, a Daemon Prince, and a Changer of Ways, all with a no back up and not even a Crisis Suit.

Never played it, but that sounds more systemic of FPS cliches than anything else. I mean, at least Fire Warrior has an actual, well, 'fire warrior.' Half-Life wants me to believe that a scientist can outfight special forces and lord knows what else.

It's not legit, he befriends a bunch of Space Marines and they go on missions together. Like, it could not be less legit, Silentpony wasn't wrong in naming it as one of the worst fps of all time.

 

[Wakey87]

Most Favorite: Unreal Tournament, Quake, Seriouse Sam.

Least Favorite: Destiny. I've probably played worse but I wouldn't of invested that much time into the franchise, and I can't say COD because the early games were the shit.