When thinking of one genre that dominates the Xbox brand, it has to be FPS games. There's Halo, all the FPS games from Bethesda, including Doom, and of course, Call of Duty from Microsoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Xbox is the FPS console, so it's no surprise a ton of amazing titles in the genre are on it.
This is even more so due to backward compatibility, with many titles still having their servers active. Some also have sweet enhancements like FPS Boost or certain 360 games being enhanced to run at nearly 4K on Xbox Series X. Here's a look at the best first-person shooters you can play on Xbox Series X|S.
Updated on January 11, 2025, by Dominic Allen: Xbox has to be the top FPS console, with so many stellar franchises, like Halo, Call of Duty, Doom, Wolfenstein, and so on. It's the only system that allows you to play every Call of Duty game, minus the original, and it's the best platform period for the series. Whether you like single-player FPS games or multiplayer ones, Xbox Series X|S has you covered.
17 Call Of Duty: Black Ops 3
The Best COD Zombies Experience
Call of Duty: Black Ops III
- Released
- November 6, 2015
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Treyarch
- Publisher(s)
- Activision
- Multiplayer
- Local Co-Op, Local Multiplayer, Online Co-Op, Online Multiplayer
- Franchise
- Call of Duty
- Number of Players
- 4 (Co-Op)
- Split Screen Orientation
- Horizontal (Campaign); Vertical Or Horizontal (Zombies)
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- How Long To Beat
- 9 Hours
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 marked the triumphant return of round-based Zombies, and while it's great, the GOAT Zombies mode in the series is still Call of Duty: Black Ops 3. This title has the best Zombies experience hands-down in its maps and gameplay.
From the classic maps to the more difficult and complex newer maps, Blops 3, with all the DLC included, is a treat that you can play for dozens of hours and still try something new. The multiplayer is a lot of fun as well, and the campaign is, frankly, underrated, even though the story's way too complicated for its own good.
16 Doom Eternal
The Only Thing They Fear Is You
- Released
- March 20, 2020
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence
- Developer(s)
- id Software
- Publisher(s)
- Bethesda
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Franchise
- DOOM
- Platform(s)
- Xbox One, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Nintendo Switch
- Genre(s)
- FPS, Action
- How Long To Beat
- 15 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
- File Size Xbox Series
- 82 GB (December 2023)
- Metascore
- 87
- PS Plus Availability
- Extra & Premium
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
One of the best action-focused FPS games in recent years has to be Doom Eternal. The action-packed arena fights deliver satisfying combat like no other, especially if you crank up the difficulty or play the brutal Master Levels. The lore was nicely expanded as well, and you get an awesome hub area to explore and find unlockables.
It wouldn't be complete without an incredible soundtrack by Mick Gordon in his last outing in a Doom game. Sadly, Doom Eternal won't be for everyone since the core gameplay loop of glory, burning, and chainsaw kills can become boring for some. For most others, though, this game will be a blast from start to finish.
15 Rainbow Six Siege
The Premier Tactical Shooter
- Released
- December 1, 2015
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood, Drug Reference, Strong Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Ubisoft Montreal
- Publisher(s)
- Ubisoft
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Cross-Platform Play
- PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- Franchise
- Tom Clancy
- Platform(s)
- PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Amazon Luna, Stadia, PC
- Genre(s)
- Shooter
- How Long To Beat
- N/A
- X|S Optimized
- No
- File Size Xbox Series
- 58 GB (June 2023)
- Platforms That Support Crossplay
- PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One & Xbox Series X|S
- PS Plus Availability
- Extra & Premium
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
The Rainbow Six series was always pretty good, but with Rainbow Six Siege, Ubisoft knocked it so out of the park that the ball landed in the next city. The tactical gameplay here is unrivaled with the huge amount of depth, strategy, and teamwork required. Not only that, but Rainbow Six Siege is incredibly fun, both casually and competitively.
You can be in a group that's not that good and still have a ton of fun playing Casuals or playing Terrorist Hunt missions when they were around. Sadly, that mode was removed but the game's still getting new content to this day and has to be among the greatest Ubisoft games of all time.
14 Serious Sam Collection
"This Is Getting Serious"
Serious Sam Collection
- Released
- November 17, 2020
- ESRB
- M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Drug Reference, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity, Strong Language
- Developer(s)
- Croteam
- Publisher(s)
- Devolver Digital
- Franchise
- Serious Sam
- Genre(s)
- FPS
- How Long To Beat
- 30 Hours
- PS Plus Availability
- Premium
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
One FPS series you might not have played is Serious Sam. These are some of the most fun and thrilling FPS titles you can play right now. Fighting against a ludicrous amount of enemies all by yourself just never gets old, and the games are packed with secrets and Easter eggs that'll keep you exploring.
The Serious Sam Collection contains the First and Second Encounter, plus Serious Sam 3 and a few DLC packs. The former are the best parts of the package, as Serious Sam 3 only really picks up during the last third. You can also play cooperatively, which is great, too, but you do lose that one-man army power fantasy feel.
13 GoldenEye 007
The Update This Game Desperately Needed
- Released
- August 25, 1997
- ESRB
- T for Teen: Animated Blood, Animated Violence
- Developer(s)
- Rare
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Multiplayer
- Local Multiplayer
- Franchise
- James Bond
- Genre(s)
- Shooter
- How Long To Beat
- 9 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- No
- File Size Xbox Series
- 310 MB (November 2023)
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
A game that's often thought of as aged and dated is GoldenEye 007. It's understandable because the controls are so alien in today's age. The N64 only had one stick, so Rare had to work with what it had.
After 26 years, GoldenEye was finally rereleased on Switch and Xbox, and Nintendo got shafted hard. While the Switch has online multiplayer, it doesn't have the standard dual-stick controls you'd expect now. The Xbox port does, however, and it looks way better, too. GoldenEye has never played smoother, making the title age so much better now.
12 The Darkness
A Gem Of A Comic Book Game
Comic book games aren't always of the superhero variety, especially during the 2000s when gaming was a bit more experimental. The Darkness is a good example, as it still feels fresh. This is no ordinary FPS, as it's actually a small open world and you use the subway system to get around. You can do side quests with the various people you meet, but make sure not to kill any interesting NPCs, as it's permanent.
The action is quite fun and challenging, with you needing to strategically use your Darkness powers to get by. The story's great, with amazing voice acting, and its depiction of Hell is still stunning today. Nothing here is incredibly dated, so you can hop into this game now and still have a good time.
11 The Orange Box
The Ultimate Valve Package
The Orange Box
It's very interesting, looking back now, that a Game of the Year contender for 2007 was a game compilation. The Orange Box was a pretty big deal because it was the first game compilation of this size, and the titles were recent. You got three new games: Half-Life 2: Episode Two, Portal, and Team Fortress 2.
You also got vanilla Half-Life 2 and its first episode, along with the package. The value at the time was massive, and all five games were phenomenal. The 360 servers for Team Fortress 2 are still active, but what's even better is that on Series X, it runs at a near 4K resolution. Playing Half-Life 2 on a console has never been better.
10 Titanfall 2
One Of The Best FPS Campaigns In Recent Times
- Released
- October 28, 2016
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Language, Violence
- Developer(s)
- Respawn Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Electronic Arts
- 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
Similar to Rockstar's Bully, Titanfall has a massive fanbase begging for a new entry. To be fair, if you play Titanfall 2, you might understand why. The developer Respawn Entertainment consists of a lot of classic Call of Duty devs, and the campaign's quality is not only what you would expect based on that pedigree; it's even better.
With great villains, sweet gameplay, and many action-packed moments, it's still a fun campaign to replay. If you're used to Call of Duty, though, it can be a bit hard to adapt to the movement of Titanfall. On Xbox Series X, you can also play this game at 120fps, which is pretty cool.
9 Perfect Dark
The Perfect Spiritual Sequel
- Released
- May 22, 2000
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Animated Violence, Animated Blood
- Developer(s)
- Rare
- Publisher(s)
- Rare
- Multiplayer
- Local Multiplayer, Local Co-Op
- Franchise
- Perfect Dark
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo 64
- Genre(s)
- First-Person Shooter, Stealth
- How Long To Beat
- 8 hours
- X|S Optimized
- No
- File Size Xbox Series
- 784 MB (June 2023)
An N64 classic, Perfect Dark is essentially the real sequel to GoldenEye 007, made by the same devs at Rare. It's not as iconic, but a better game in every regard. The levels are better, with not nearly as many unfair frustrating objectives, the arsenal kicks all sorts of ass, and the multiplayer was also improved.
The N64 original is very badly optimized for the platform, but this 360 remaster fixes all of that with the addition of modern controls. You also get new textures, which is nice compared to the GoldenEye Xbox port. Like many Rare 360 games, it also runs at near 4K on Xbox Series X, which is the cherry on top.
8 Quake
Pushing Gaming Technology Like No Other
- Released
- June 22, 1996
- ESRB
- M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Violence
- Developer(s)
- id Software
- Publisher(s)
- Bethesda, GT Interactive
- Multiplayer
- Online Multiplayer
- Franchise
- Quake
- Number of Players
- 1-4
- Split Screen Orientation
- Vertical or Horizontal
- Platform(s)
- PC, Switch, Nintendo 64, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Sega Saturn
- Genre(s)
- First-Person Shooter
- How Long To Beat
- 6 Hours
- X|S Optimized
- Yes
- File Size Xbox Series
- 1 GB (November 2023)
- Metascore
- 87
- Local Co-Op Support
- 1-4 Players
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty
Nightdive Studios' 2021 remaster of Quake is excellent. For the longest time, a PC-perfect console port of Quake was nowhere to be seen, in contrast to Doom, which had quite a lot by 2021. The wait was worth it, though. You get all the additional expansions, and it's one of the best games on Xbox to play at 120fps.
It's super smooth, unlike other 120fps titles, which are rather inconsistent. The base game hasn't aged the best, but the expansions are really good. The ones by MachineGames are especially fantastic, with huge levels and high enemy counts.