Crowing our Best Shooter 2022 was not an easy task. With unique takes on the genre this year like Rollerdome, stellar art styles from games like Neon White, and killer soundtracks from the likes of Metal: Hellsinger, our work was cut out for us!
This Best Shooter 2022 list should help anyone looking for new and original games to dive into heading into 2023, and we can’t wait to see what the next year has in store for the genre.
Here are the nominees for Best Shooter 2022:
Evil West
Writer: Philip Watson
Console: Xbox Series X
Score: 8
Price: $79.98
There are plenty of shooters out there and each tries to develop their own identity without borrowing from their predecessors too much. Flying Hog Games set out to create a fictionalized United States overrun by a vampire menace in Evil West. These are not the Twilight brand of ‘just trying to fit in’ vampires, these are bloodthirsty killing machines. Evil West proceeds to drag the night creatures back to their bloody roots, the threatening menaces that would make Dracula himself turn in his coffin.
The action is SMOOTH in Evil West. Jesse whips the rifle out with unmatched dexterity and fans the revolver as fast as your finger can. The dodge mechanism is quick and there is no stamina bar. Let me repeat that, there is NO stamina bar. This is a great aspect, instead of slowing Evil West down, more enemies are thrown at the player of varying types and instead of being hunkered down by one more cooldown metre — such as the shotgun requiring maybe 20 seconds to utilize after firing — the player can dodge to safety while regaining bearings. As a great addition, the title can be fully played in co-op.
Metal: Hellsinger
Writer: Philip Watson
Console: Xbox Series X
Score: 8
Price: $36.99
Nothing beats a good game soundtrack. Music can build on a narrative with flair, setting the mood in a dramatic effect, and in some cases, a soundtrack can be even more memorable than gameplay. Enter Metal: Hellsinger, a title that isn’t afraid to be ‘that song from that game,’ but also, break the mould with fast-paced addictive gameplay that sets the player’s teeth on edge.
Metal: Hellsinger checks the boxes of being a fast-paced FPS rhythm arcade title, but it is most importantly a really good time. The rhythm and arcade aspects shake up the Doom formula just enough to feel super original while treating players to one of the best original gaming soundtracks to date with the help of incredible real-life accomplished artists.
Rainbow Six Extraction
Writer: Philip Watson
Console: Xbox Series X
Score: 8
Price: $29.97
Rainbow Six Extraction is the 14th mainline entry in the Tom Clancy storied series that takes away the PvP aspect all players know and love from previous entries. Insert fan-favourite operators such as Sledge from Rainbow Six Siege into a horror PvE extravaganza spin-off that isn’t unlike the ‘Zombies’ add-on from the Call of Duty franchise but adds enough story elements to stand on its own two legs.
Rainbow Six Extraction is an excellent concept that will delight Rainbow Six fans that are tired of the PvP scene of Siege. The title has a select audience and may isolate newcomers to the series, but with the direct-to-Game Pass release, it is an easy recommendation to subscribers because it works EXTREMELY well.
Dying Light 2: Stay Human
Writer: Khari Taylor
Console: Xbox Series X
Score: 9
Price: $79.97
Dying Light 2′s premise definitely gets things off to an excellent start. Clearly, it isn’t a spoiler at this point to say that things haven’t improved for the world since the events of the first game, despite the heroics of its protagonist, Kyle Crane, leading to the successful development of a vaccine for the Harran Virus (a.k.a. THV). Surprising no one, continued THV research by the corrupt “Global Relief Effort” (GRE) for military applications ultimately resulted in a new strain of the virus escaping into the world once more.
Dying Light 2: Stay Human is a bold, doubling-down of all the elements that made the first game great, while also making ambitious strides in its open-world gameplay and branching narrative elements.
Rollerdrome
Writer: Ridge Harripersad
Console: PC
Score: 10
Price: $26.39
From the preview to finally completing Rollerdrome, I was enthralled by the bloodsport game I was not expecting to love as much as I did. There were not any major or minor downs—plenty of ups and sick tricks and grabs in the air. For those who have not seen our preview of Rollerdrome, check it out first to get a more detailed background on the game. The developers of the OlliOlli games, Roll7, were essentially able to create OlliOlli World mixed with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater and SSX on steroids with lots of slow-mo shooting fun.
From the banger 80s synth-wave music to the nostalgic colours, Rollerdrome excelled on every level. The plenitude of various game levels, the blend of simplicity and complexity and the focus on the fun aspect for all gamers from all accessibility backgrounds was sublime.
They really shoot the bullseye on exactly what we wanted out of 2022’s shooter games; the duel between the best was truly a difficult one. Let’s hope 2023’s shooter games are just as –if not more– hard to pick favourites for.
WINNER: Best Shooter 2022 Neon White
Writer: Eduard Gafton
Console: PC
Score: 9.5
Price: $31.99
In Neon White, players take up the mantle of White, an ex-assassin who, upon dying, is temporarily sent to heaven instead of hell so that he can become a Neon – a hunter tasked with eradicating the demons which have somehow infiltrated heaven. The reward? A chance at salvation. White is also joined by his ex-crew members Yellow, Violet and Red as they race each other and other Neons to gain the favour of heaven’s angels.
Neon White did an excellent job at easing me in as every few levels the game evolves in interesting ways: new abilities, more enemies, traps set by your frenemies, etc. To be honest, I came in nervous about the card mechanic thinking that it would be an impediment rather than a great feature and that it would be a gimmick that would get old quickly, but I’m very happy to report that it worked out unreasonably well, with Neon White reminding me of Crypt of the Necrodancer in this way.
