arena shooter Archives

AppWizard

January 27, 2026

This week in PC games: is Highguard a nothingburger? Plus, Winnie the Cthulhooh, Code Vein 2 and a plant-based RTS

- John Highguard: A sci-fantasy raid shooter developed by former creators of Apex Legends and Titanfall. - Winnie’s Hole: An early access title that transforms Winnie the Pooh into a cosmic horror roguelite. - Echoes Of Elysium: An early access game featuring six-player co-op in a procedural clockwork world. - Earth Must Die: A point-and-click sci-fi comedy from the creators of The Swindle and Lair of the Clockwork God. - The Spirit Lift: A roguelite deckbuilder set in a haunted hotel. - Roots Devour: A game where players control a malevolent tree deciding the fate of humans. - DON’T LET THEM IN: A horror game where players are supermarket clerks dealing with cautious customers. - Lanesplit: A first-person biking simulator with a cinematic style. - Ghost Keeper: An early access title where players manage a house full of ghosts. - Nova Antarctica: A post-apocalyptic game set in Antarctica focused on mysterious signals. - The Midnight Walkers: An early access extraction shooter set in a megamall with a poison gas mechanic. - Calyx: An RTS game featuring a military force against plant life. - Feastopia: A city-builder roguelite where players feed an infant god to avoid becoming part of the menu. - Space Warlord Baby Trading Simulator: A sequel that escalates the absurdity of its predecessor. - Cairn: A climbing adventure game with narrative depth. - I Hate This Place: A survival crafting horror game inspired by comic books. - Don’t Stop, Girlypop: An arena shooter with Y2K aesthetics. - Code Vein 2: The latest entry in the anime Soulslike genre featuring time travel mechanics. - Half Sword: An early access physics-based medieval combat game. - Front Mission 3: A remake of the classic turn-based mech game.

AppWizard

December 27, 2025

Welcome to the FPS vibe shift

The FPS landscape is transforming, with trends indicating a shift away from high skill ceilings and expensive cosmetics in multiplayer FPS games. Gamers are expressing dissatisfaction with overpriced cosmetics, leading franchises like Call of Duty to reconsider their strategies. Activision announced that Black Ops 7 will not carry over skins from previous games, focusing instead on thematic cosmetics. Competitive shooters are broadening their appeal to casual audiences, with games like The Finals, Rainbow Six Siege, Splitgate 2, and Overwatch 2 introducing new modes that reduce competitive intensity. Purely co-op shooters, such as Helldivers 2 and Warhammer 40,000: Darktide, continue to thrive, demonstrating lasting player engagement. Additionally, titles like Battlefield 6 and Black Ops 7 are being developed as premium products, indicating that gamers are willing to pay for complete, high-quality experiences rather than free-to-play models that lack content.

AppWizard

November 16, 2025

The best artillery-themed party game is celebrating its 30th anniversary, and you can get all the series’ best entries for less than five bucks

Worms, originally launched on the Amiga, has been a staple in multiplayer gaming for nearly three decades, with Team17 celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2025 through a Steam sale featuring many titles at low prices. Worms WMD is available for .49, while Worms Armageddon and Worms Reloaded are also offered at discounted prices. Team17 has expanded its portfolio with various spin-offs, and the total value of the sale is nearly 0 for around . Development on new projects has faced challenges, including personal setbacks for developer Davidson, who noted difficulties in working with older code but is making progress.

BetaBeacon

November 12, 2025

A Ratchet and Clank multiplayer game is coming to iOS and Android soon

Ratchet & Clank: Ranger Rumble is a new fast-paced multiplayer arena shooter game coming to iOS and Android, developed by Oh BiBi. It features platforming elements, colorful graphics, various weapons and abilities, and customizable characters. The game is free-to-play with likely microtransactions, and has different game modes including a soccer-style one.

AppWizard

October 25, 2025

You can play Escape From Tarkov’s answer to Call of Duty and CS2 for free right now, but you don’t have long

Escape From Tarkov: Arena has launched its first season, offering players a free experience of Battlestate's multiplayer arena shooter, which includes traditional elimination modes and a bomb defusal mode called BlastGang. The game is available for free for a limited time until October 27. An update in late September increased the maximum number of each class on a team from two to three and improved animations for actions like grenade throwing. Players can download the game from the official site and receive a 15% discount on the game and its bundle with Tarkov PvE through the Epic Games Store.

AppWizard

August 18, 2025

Hordelord Unleashes Chaos on PC with Arena-Style Roguelike Action

Hordelord is a roguelike first-person shooter released on August 18, featuring wave-based arenas focused on survival. The game emphasizes a straightforward design, avoiding cinematic narratives and excessive content, and instead centers on player skill and adaptability. Each playthrough offers unique experiences due to dynamic enemy spawns and procedural elements, with upgrades that significantly alter gameplay. The game encourages constant movement and quick decision-making in confined spaces, creating a relentless pace. Players can access Hordelord on Steam, where it aims to provide an adrenaline-fueled experience without unnecessary distractions.

AppWizard

July 24, 2025

7 years on, CliffyB is ‘still bitter’ about people gravedancing when his studio Boss Key failed: ‘It was amazing at first and then, well, it broke me for a good long while’

Cliff Bleszinski, a game designer known for his work at Epic Games and as the lead designer for the original Gears of War trilogy, founded Boss Key Productions, which launched the game LawBreakers in 2017. Despite innovative mechanics and unique characters, LawBreakers struggled in a competitive market dominated by games like Overwatch and PUBG, leading to its failure. Bleszinski reflected on the experience, expressing bitterness about the public's reaction to his studio's closure. He noted that shortly after LawBreakers' release, Epic Games introduced a new mode for Fortnite, further intensifying competition. Currently, Bleszinski prefers consulting over game development.