Best Free First-Person Shooter

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The best free first person shooter (FPS) category covers only free first person shooters. This might sound strange, but many free FPSs charge you for in-game items. Now that doesn't make them free, does it? This is a list of the top-quality fully free, no unfair advantages, first person shooters.

A FPS is a type of action game where you view the world through the eyes of your in-game entity. Thus, the term First Person Shooter. There are two main categories for a FPS: Singleplayer, and multiplayer. Unfortunately, single player FPSs are a rare commodity in the freeware world.

The game-play, graphics, and objectives of FPSs vary from title to title. Some games in the genre have a more cartoon feel, while others strive to emulate realism. I myself have met many people who have different tastes.

Urban Terror

Online: Primarily

Singleplayer: None

Registration: None

Popularity: High

Urban Terror, commonly abbreviated to UrT, is an action based FPS. It is only multiplayer. Described as "fun over realism" by the creators, the game has fast paced, intense game-play.

UrT doesn't throw realism to the wind mind you, but rather tries to enhance game-play with elements like powerslides and wallhops. There are five different game types: Death match (DM), team death match (Team DM), Survivor, Capture the flag (CTF), and Bomb. You are given a choice of eleven different guns, and two pistols, with optional attachments.

As of now, it requires no registration, and no personal information at all to play online. There are over a thousand servers, and plenty of players to go around. There will be no waiting for people to show up here.

Hidden & Dangerous Deluxe

Online: Optional

Singleplayer: Primarily

Registration: None

Popularity: Not applicable

Love it or hate it Hidden and Dangerous Deluxe is one of those games. Unlike most first person shooters, this game is not action based. It relies primarily on strategy to get the job done.

You take full control of four WWII special operation soldiers, and when I say full control, I mean full control. You get to choose the soldiers from a list of 40 candidates, and load them  whichever you choose. You are only limited by the amount you can carry. The player has direct control over one character, who may shout orders to the others, and can (and will need to) open the map where you can tell the others exactly what to do. Right down to crouch, prone, and hide. You perish after about three bullets, and as little as one if you are hit in the head, but so do your enemies. The controls are hard to get down, but you can change them to a much more preferable setup in the options. It has over thirty missions, and plenty of guns to keep you satisfied.

Along with lots of cut scenes and cinema, this game also offers satisfying game play. If you're looking for a first person shooter whose aim is not just to blow up as many people as possible, this may be the only free one for you.

TrueCombat:Elite

Online: Primarily

Singleplayer: None

Registration: None

Popularity: Low

Yet another game struggling for existence. It was once the epitome of the freeware FPS. It was a host to commercial quality graphics, a huge fan base, and wonderful game-play.

Now two of the three are missing. Last updated in 2006 the graphics are still modern, but by no means cutting edge anymore. It still has extraordinary game-play, allowing you to crouch, prone, look down your scope, and lean out from behind walls. It does not disappoint in this section. It has many maps, and even more custom maps, and there's always something new and exciting.

Although the fan base has all but died off, there are still over five hundred servers and enough people to give you a good time. This game plays a lot like America's Army, but is much easier to break in. I highly recommend this one, and the only reason it is not my top pick is because of its lack of population.

Sauerbraten

Online: Yes

Singleplayer: Yes

Registration: None

Popularity: Medium

Sauerbraten throws realism to the wind. With breath-taking graphics (that can be disabled if you have a slow machine) you run around at break neck speeds, and blast everyone you see, unless of course you are in a team game mode. 

Sauerbraten has 15 game modes and 7 completely different weapons. One of the funniest game modes is called instagib, where you get a rifle with unlimited rounds, and die in one hit. This makes for lightning game-play which is not found anywhere else.

The game's key buying factor is not the game-play however. It is the innovative level editor which allows anyone with a vision and minimal skill to create a masterpiece. Players can work together on the same map over the Internet with its own special game mode. And every player has an equal opportunity to submit his/her map to the creators to be included in the next version of the game. 

This has spawned the most unique and interesting levels in any game up to date. Unfortunately, without an auto-download feature, you won't see many casual, user created maps on the big servers.

America's Army

Online: Primarily

Singleplayer: Tutorial

Registration: 2 Sites

Popularity: High

America's Army is a game produced and given away free from the United States Army. It is much more realism based than most FPS games out there.

You work as a team to complete specific objectives. If you are killed, you re-spawn with the rest of your team at the beginning of the round. This makes for lots of down time in your games. I found that you had to be very skilled to even score a kill.

After playing for three weeks and getting an average of one kill per game I gave up. It certainly takes a deal of practice to get good at this one, however, with the game's stat tracking and ranking system, the results can be truly rewarding.

Rising Eagle

Online: Primarily

Singleplayer: None

Registration: Email Address

Popularity: All but dead

This is a fast paced tactical action game oriented towards teamwork. There are over 40 weapons to keep you company, and six main unit classes. Each class has its own fresh load out of weapons and tactical advantages.

Although it is a fun game, it is slowly slipping into oblivion. With hardly a player in the servers and only three servers up, playing it can be a real drag. It's sad to see a great game fall by the wayside, but I fear this one is on its way out.

PRISIM Guard Shield

Online: Yes

Singleplayer: Yes

Registration: None

Popularity: All but dead

This is a tactical FPS produced by the National Guard. Don't be afraid of the "All but dead" popularity, this game is primarily for a single player.

The game-play is a mix of tactical and action. The character is able to withstand more bullets than I would suppose a normal human can take, and to help him out is an arsenal of near future weapons and gadgets.

It hasn't been updated for some time now, but remains a good game none the less. It has an OK campaign, and a fairly good multiplayer. At the beginning of the game your character, retired form the National Guard, finds himself in a terrorist situation at New York harbor. As a security guard you see the need to help. You end up being reinstated into the Guard and have to run about doing missions of national security.

In multiplayer things run smoothly, and it is fun. The only downside is that there is never anyone in the servers for you to play with. Another problem is sadly, not everyone can run this game because of its harsh system requirements.

Smokin' Guns MP, SPB

Warsow MP, SPB

Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory MP

F.E.A.R. Combat MP

Nexuiz MP, SPB

D-Day: Normandy MP, SPB

*Starseige: Tribes MP
*Requires a download from Cnet. Downloads from Cnet (Download.com) require the use of a proprietary installer.

Tribes 2 MP

World of Padman MP

Harmony SPC

Action Doom & Action Doom II SPC

Red Alert: A Path Beyond MP 

MP= Multiplayer | SPB= Single v Bots | SPC= Single Player Campaign

If this list still isn't doing it for you, head on down to Wikipedia's list of free first person shooters. But be warned, you might have to shell out some hard earned income for in-game items.

This software category is in need of an editor. If you would like to give something back to the freeware community by taking it over, check out this page for more details. You can then contact us from that page or by clicking here.