Helldivers 2 is not only a great third-person co-op shooter, but it also has an amazing community that works together to shape an ongoing narrative with developer Arrowhead.
What makes Helldivers 2 special is the immersion that you're just a small disposable cog in the machine mixed with intense and large-scale battles that make you feel like you're storming the beaches of Normandy.
Not only that, but the sense of community makes you feel like a true badass patriot fighting for the future of humanity alongside your fellow Helldivers while driving away your hated enemies.
But sometimes, even the most dedicated Super Earth citizens need a little bit of R&R from their vigilant fight against our robot and alien enemies.
If you're looking for games similar to Helldivers 2, then look no further than this list. Desertion is punishable by death, but don't worry--we won't report you to your local Democratic Officer.
While Helldivers 1 is the predecessor of Helldivers 2, it doesn't offer the same experience as what we're looking for due to its top-down perspective, so unfortunately, it will not be included on this list.
Still, it's highly recommended, and you should check it out if you're interested.
10 Earth Defense Force 6
The E.D.F. Deploys!
Earth Defense Force 6
- Released
- July 24, 2024
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood, Intense Violence
- Developer(s)
- Sandlot
- Publisher(s)
- D3Publisher
- Engine
- Havok
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Local Co-Op
- Franchise
- Earth Defense Force
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Playable
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Action
- How Long To Beat
- 45 Hours
- OpenCritic Rating
- Fair
The Earth Defense Force games have always been an acquired taste. With PS3-era graphics, terrible voice acting, nonsensical story, and even clunky controls, it's hard to take this series seriously.
I was introduced to the series during my freshman year of college when my friends were singing the E.D.F. battle hymn, and I began to learn the lyrics and sang along.
Even before knowing about the true extent of the E.D.F.'s ridiculousness, I was already into the theme of fighting and dying for humanity.
Much like Helldivers 2, you play as a one-in-a-billion grunt fighting against alien bug invaders, charging into the meat grinder to defend Earth. Essentially, E.D.F. is what happens if the Terminids and Illuminate have managed to invade Super Earth.
If you're a fan of the insane chaos and balls-to-the-walls silliness in Helldivers 2, then you'll love Earth Defense Force 6. Just don't pay close attention to how the good guys are losing. And maybe ignore the time-traveling paradox stuff.
9 Starship Troopers Extermination
I'm Doing My Part!
Starship Troopers: Extermination
- Released
- October 11, 2024
- ESRB
- T For Teen // Blood, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Offworld Industries
- Publisher(s)
- Offworld Industries
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5, Unreal Engine 4
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S
- Cross Save
- No
- Franchise
- Starship Troopers
- Number of Players
- 1-16
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Unsupported
- Platform(s)
- PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- Steam User Rating
- 89%
- OpenCritic Rating
- Weak
Anybody with eyes can tell that the entire premise of the Helldivers franchise is based on the classic movie Starship Troopers, so it's unsurprising that their tie-in game Starship Troopers Extermination has the same vibes.
With Casper Van Dien making a return as General Johnny Rico from the original movie, Extermination puts you in the boots of a soldier fighting in a war against the Arachnid threat, joining squads of 4-16 in a variety of missions where you can build bases, collect resources, and just straight up kill bigs everywhere you go.
Extermination is a fun romp for anybody looking to kill hordes of bugs with your friends and enjoy the chaotic mess of battle. Every multiplayer mission, especially the 16-man missions, makes you feel like a cog in a much larger machine working towards a common goal.
The only reason Extermination doesn't rank as high as it should be is that it's a rather unpolished game with lots of graphical and technical issues and has a lackluster single-player campaign.
Still, if you're looking for some dumb fun and to immerse yourself in the experience of fighting in the war against the Arachnids, then Starship Troopers Extermination is the game for you.
Would you like to know more?
8 Destiny 2
Conduct Mass Murder With Space Magic
- Released
- August 28, 2017
- ESRB
- T For TEEN for Blood, Language, and Violence
- Developer(s)
- Bungie
- Publisher(s)
- Bungie
- Engine
- Tiger Engine
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- Cross Save
- yes
- Expansions
- Destiny 2: Forsaken, Destiny 2: Shadowkeep, Destiny 2: Beyond Light, Destiny 2: The Witch Queen, Destiny 2: Lightfall
- Franchise
- Destiny
- Number of Players
- 1-6 (Co-Op)
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- no
- Platform(s)
- PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC, Stadia
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- How Long To Beat
- 100+
- X|S Optimized
- YES
- Metascore
- 85
- Platforms That Support Crossplay
- PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- PS Plus Availability
- Essential, Extra, & Premium (The Witch Queen)
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
As a die-hard Destiny 2 fan and day-one player, I always caution people against getting into the game in its current state.
If you're thinking about getting into Destiny 2, then a word of warning: Make sure to have a veteran player give you tips and tricks, as even the most dedicated fan will tell you that the game is not beginner-friendly.
PvP notwithstanding, Destiny 2's PvE content is a blast to grind, where the power fantasy of playing as a dripped-out space-magic-wielding super soldier really shines through.
While Destiny 2 is free-to-play, a good portion of the best activities is locked behind expansions, though The Final Shape is definitely worth your money.
Whether you're playing solo with randoms or if you're in a raid with a full fireteam, Destiny 2 has a variety of game modes where you can slay massive hordes of enemies.
Most notably, if you're looking exclusively for a horde mode, then look no further than Onslaught, which is a wave-based defense game mode where you fight 50 enemy waves of increasing difficulty while upgrading your defenses. You'll also get to fight a boss every 10 waves.
Like any game with MMORPG elements, there's also add-clearing, which is a role during high-tier PvE activities where you focus on clearing hordes of enemies with as little effort and as quickly as possible.
7 Warframe
Leave None Standing
- Released
- March 25, 2013
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Language, Violence, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Digital Extremes
- Publisher(s)
- Digital Extremes
- Engine
- Evolution Engine
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- All platforms
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch 2, PC, Android, iOS
- Genre(s)
- Action, RPG, Third-Person Shooter, Looter Shooter
- How Long To Beat
- 250+ hours
- Metascore
- 85
- Platforms That Support Crossplay
- PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
- OpenCritic Rating
- Fair
As a souped-up cyber-ninja with powerful weapons and abilities, Warframes are, for the lack of a better term, meat grinders that can shred through any enemy they come across.
I had a relatively brief phase of playing Warframe and still hop on from time to time, and there's not a single moment that I didn't feel unstoppable killing hordes of Grineer, Corpus, and Infested. Even when I'm still a novice at the game.
There are many different game modes to play in, but the one that turns Warframe into a horde shooter is Survival, where you get to fight a never-ending stream of enemies and survive as long as possible before you either extract or die.
Survival is actually never-ending. There are people doing endurance runs, and some videos show you just how broken Warframes are.
With the right build, you can nuke an entire room over and over until you get bored or develop brain damage.
Much like Destiny 2, Warframe is a tough game to get into, as the customization options are endless, from Warframes to weapons to even cosmetics.
The community is known to be incredibly welcoming and wholesome, and any Warframe player knows that fashion is the true endgame.
6 Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
"Revive Me, I Got The Ray Gun!"
- Released
- November 13, 2020
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes
- Developer(s)
- Raven Software, Treyarch
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Engine
- IW
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- Crossplay will apply to all players on PlayStation, iOS, Android, and PC
- Cross Save
- yes
- Franchise
- Call of Duty
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- NOT SUPPORTED
- Platform(s)
- PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PC
- Genre(s)
- First-Person Shooter
- How Long To Beat
- 6 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- YES
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
If there's one consistently enjoyable game mode in the Call of Duty franchise, it's Zombies. It's not too much of an exaggeration to say that 13-year-olds shooting zombies in Call of Duty was once a major pillar of the gaming zeitgeist during the late 2000s and early 2010s. Just ask anyone who grew up playing Black Ops 3.
Not all CoD games have a horde mode, which is mostly exclusive to Black Ops games. I fondly remember playing split screen with my friends in high school, running around and killing Nazi zombies in classic maps like Kino der Toten.
I didn't really get into CoD Zombies until Cold War, which had a great addition where your level progression crosses over with regular multiplayer and was a great title for any newcomer. As someone who is famously bad at PvP, this helped me quickly level my guns to the max without the frustration of getting stomped by tryhards or yelled at on voice chat in multiplayer.
The weapons in CoD zombies vary between games, but Cold War's felt particularly powerful. The perks that you can pick up are game-changing, which are crucial in upgrading and snowballing your operative into an unstoppable zombie-killing machine.
5 Titanfall 2
Ready For Thrills, Chills, and Kills?
- Released
- October 28, 2016
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Respawn Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
- Engine
- Source
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Local Multiplayer
- Franchise
- titanfall
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- How Long To Beat
- 6 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- No
- File Size Xbox Series
- 68 GB (December 2023)
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
Titanfall 2 is one of the best first-person shooters of all time, and I will die on this hill.
With amazing movement mechanics like wall running and sliding, mech combat, and smooth gunplay, Titanfall 2 is easy to pick up but has a high skill ceiling. It's also a tragically underrated game that's been done dirty by Respawn and hackers.
With a concurrent player count of no more than 2000 on any given day, Titanfall 2 still works surprisingly well and has a wide variety of PvP game modes for you to try. But you're here for horde shooters, so let's talk about Frontier Defense.
Frontier Defense is a game mode where you can work with a squad to defend your Harvester from the IMC forces, including grunts, drones, and AI-controlled Titans.
Once every few waves, you can purchase defenses like turrets and mines to fortify your defenses, but the main draw comes from your combat prowess in and out of your Titan.
Whatever your playstyle is, it's always satisfying to mow down hordes of grunts before you can call down your Titan with a satisfying "Stand by for Titanfall."
On higher difficulties, combat can get chaotic and intense, where you can encounter dozens of nuke titans and arc titans that can swarm and overwhelm you before you can even react.
My favorite Titan is Monarch because even though it is a Support Titan, it can be upgraded into an unstoppable killing machine and melt through hordes without much effort.
Titanfall 2 regularly goes on sale for as low as 2.99 USD and has an "Overwhelmingly Positive" rating on Steam. If you enjoy Apex Legends, then you'll be pleased to know that Titanfall 2 is where its satisfying movement comes from.
4 Warhammer 40,000: Darktide
Stave Off The Blight Of Chaos
- Released
- November 30, 2022
- ESRB
- M For Mature Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Developer(s)
- Fatshark
- Publisher(s)
- Fatshark
- Engine
- bitsquid
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer, Online Co-Op
- Franchise
- Warhammer 40K
- Number of Players
- 4
- PC Release Date
- November 30, 2022
- Xbox Series X|S Release Date
- October 4, 2023
- PS5 Release Date
- December 3, 2024
- Platform(s)
- PC, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PlayStation 5
- Genre(s)
- FPS, Action, Science Fiction
- How Long To Beat
- 30 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
- File Size Xbox Series
- 56 GB (November 2023)
- Platforms That Support Crossplay
- PC & Xbox Series X|S
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
In the grimdark Warhammer 40K universe, there is only war.
While the Warhammer 40K franchise is best known for its grand scale featuring space marines fighting in a massive war, Warhammer 40K: Darktide has a much smaller scale.
Instead of the hulking Space Marines, you play as a nobody reject of the Imperium of Man, an exterminator in a squad of four tasked with killing hordes of Chaos-worshipping cultists who intend on spreading Nurgle's plague across the galaxy.
The classes featured in Darktide vary in playstyle and are archetypal of class-based shooters, like the Tank-like Ogryn Skullbreaker or the gun-toting Veteran Sharpshooter.
Not only that, but you can also customize your character, allowing you to choose their home planet, personality, and even the crime they were charged with.
While the story isn't particularly something to write home about, each unique character fits into the vibe and atmosphere of the dark comedy of the Warhammer 40k franchise.
It's also gone through many changes since its launch and is shaping up to be the horde shooter that fans wanted it to be.
Darktide doesn't take itself too seriously, which makes the game a good time for anybody looking to blast through hordes of zombie-like Heretics.
3 Left 4 Dead 2
Pills Here!
Left 4 Dead 2
- Released
- November 17, 2009
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Language
- Developer(s)
- Valve
- Publisher(s)
- Valve
- Engine
- Source
- Multiplayer
- Local Co-Op, Local Multiplayer, Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
- Franchise
- Left 4 Dead
- Number of Players
- 2 (Local Co-Op), 4 (Online Co-Op)
- Split Screen Orientation
- Vertical Or Horizontal
- Steam Deck Compatibility
- Verified
- Genre(s)
- Shooter
- Metascore
- 89
With smooth gameplay and fun enemies to fight, Left 4 Dead 2 is perhaps the most influential horde shooter in gaming history.
In case you've been living under a rock, Left 4 Dead 2 is a zombie horror shooter where you and three other teammates must traverse a level and complete objectives while you're constantly assaulted by a horde of zombies and special infected.
While each survivor has the same gameplay, their distinct personalities shine through the dialogue that gives Left 4 Dead 2 the soul and character it is best known for.
Regardless of difficulty, fighting through a horde is always intense and memorable. The diversity of the special infected is varied and equally terrifying.
Those who have played through even one mission in Left 4 Dead 2 will vividly remember the moment they accidentally disturb a Witch and alert the horde or the sheer terror of being pummeled by a Tank.
Even after 15 years, Left 4 Dead 2 is still going strong today, with at least 20 thousand concurrent players. It is the quintessential horde shooter, and every gamer who loves horde shooters should try it at least once.
2 Deep Rock Galactic
Rock And Stone!
- Released
- May 13, 2020
- ESRB
- T for Teen due to Blood, Language, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Ghost Ship Games
- Publisher(s)
- Coffee Stain Publishing
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 4
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- How Long To Beat
- N/A
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
- File Size Xbox Series
- 3 GB (December 2023)
- Metascore
- 85
- Platforms That Support Crossplay
- PC, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- PS Plus Availability
- N/A
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
In Deep Rock Galactic, you play as a space dwarf combat miner working for the eponymous mining company, and your job is to dig through a hostile planet's countless procedurally generated cave systems to extract valuable resources while defending against giant alien bugs.
As a co-op game, you can choose one of four classes, each with a unique job and a shared love for mining.
There's the Driller, whose main job is to drill tunnels; Scout for shooting flares and going to hard-to-reach places, Engineer for deploying useful gadgets, and Gunner for absorbing aggro.
During these missions, you must stick to your role and help your squad mates if you plan on making it home rich.
You either earn your keep or you die trying, and in Deep Rock Galactic, there is no such thing as OSHA or an ethics board.
You'll also encounter the very deadly insects that act as the planet's defense system, ranging from tiny bugs to heavily armored tanks that can impale you with their razor-sharp claws. A good bug is a dead bug.
Not only that, but what makes Deep Rock Galactic an enjoyable game is that it has a huge community and a developer who actively updates the game and interacts with the community.
Many consider Deep Rock Galactic as one of the current "big three of horde shooters", along with Helldivers 2 and Space Marine 2.
These three share a strikingly similar vibe, where there's a sense of camaraderie between squadmates and a mutual hatred against the enemy. The only salient difference between these three games is the average height of the player characters.
1 Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2
For The Emperor!
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine II
- Released
- September 9, 2024
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Developer(s)
- Saber Interactive
- Publisher(s)
- Focus Entertainment
- Engine
- Swarm Engine
- Multiplayer
- Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S
- Franchise
- Warhammer 40K
- Number of Players
- 1-6
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Third-Person Shooter, Hack and Slash
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Last but not least, we have one of my favorite horde shooters in recent memory. Warhammer 40K: Space Marines 2 puts you in the thick ceramite armor of the titular Space Marines.
These genetically modified and cybernetically enhanced humans use unwieldy weapons to wage a never-ending war against the enemies of the Imperium of Man.
Aside from the enjoyable singleplayer campaign and the PvP game mode, there's also the main end game content, which is the PvE game mode Operations, where you load in a uniquely challenging level with two other players and fight through hordes of Terminids or Chaos cultists.
You get to pick between six classes, along with a respectably sized arsenal that can become more and more powerful as you upgrade them through level-ups.
The classes and weapons are also quite well-balanced for end-game content like Lethal difficulty; if everything is overpowered, nobody is overpowered. Well, except for the Tactical with a Bolt Rifle Grenade Launcher.
The gameplay of Space Marines 2 is immensely enjoyable and scratches an itch that only the best horde shooters can scratch.
With a sweet balance between gunplay and melee combat, this game makes slicing through hordes of enemies into bloody ribbons ever so satisfying.