7 Shooter Games That Defined the 1990s (And Most Are Still Going Today

The 1990s were quite the era for the first-person shooter genre. Back when graphics were blocky and multiplayer meant hauling computers to LAN parties with three of your best friends, a few games came along and redefined the way we digitally shot at and competed. These games were experiences that shaped an entire generation of gamers, and looking back, it’s wild to see how many of these franchises are still kicking and influencing the modern shooter.

From pixelated corridors to sprawling 3D worlds, the ’90s laid the foundation for what shooters are today. Each game on this list brought something unique to the table, and each innovation these games gave to the world has managed to stick around into the modern era of today’s gaming. Some became cultural icons, some cult classics, but all left a mark on the industry that echoes to this day.

7. Duke Nukem 3D (1996)

Duke Nukem 3D was an absolute riot of a game, released during a time when games were essentially the Wild West. It was a personality-packed, over-the-top action fest full of countless vulgarities that would not fly by today’s modern standards, in most cases. Duke’s wisecracks and the sheer audacity of its design made the game unforgettable, especially for those who were there at the time to witness the infamy.

While the franchise has had its ups and downs over the years, especially with Duke Nukem Forever, it still holds a spot in gaming history as a pioneer of adult-oriented humor in FPS. Today, the Duke remains an icon with occasional remasters and DLC-related appearances in other games, keeping the legacy alive and reminding players just how wild shooters could get in the ’90s.

6. Medal of Honor (1999)

EA’s Medal of Honor kicked off a long-running franchise that brought cinematic World War II battles to your living room. It was all about immersion, authentic weapons, intense missions, and a story that made you feel like you were a real soldier in that part of history. The series has evolved over decades, with Medal of Honor: Allied Assault and the later rebooted games still remembered fondly by fans.

Today, the franchise is not exactly dead, but it has long been dominant. Call of Duty, the franchise’s most direct rival, owes its existence to Medal of Honor, but it has served as the franchise’s replacement in the modern era. EA has done nothing with the franchise in a very long time, so consider it on ice for now. It could eventually make a comeback, but it would be directly competing with its long-time rival and the new kid on the block, who just so happens to be a juggernaut franchise: Battlefield.

5. Unreal (1998)

Unreal exploded onto the scene with jaw-dropping graphics for its time and multiplayer that made LAN parties absolutely insane. The single-player campaign had depth and atmosphere rarely seen back then, while the Unreal Engine laid the groundwork for countless future games. It was a weird game in many ways, but no one can deny how defining it was, even going on to spawn the legendary Unreal Tournament sub-franchise, years later.

Today, if you type ‘Unreal’ in Google, it will point you toward the famous Unreal Engine long before you reach any results about the game series itself. Like with some others on this list, the Unreal franchise has been dormant and silent for a long time. The engine itself, however, is now a titan of the industry, powering everything from blockbuster shooters to VR experiences. Unreal showed the world what PC shooters could look like when tech and creativity collide.

4. Star Wars: Dark Forces (1995)

Star Wars fans were blown away when Dark Forces landed, proving that shooters could do more than endless corridors and mindless shooting. It introduced mission objectives, stealth mechanics, and multi-level exploration, setting the stage for the legendary Jedi Knight series. While the franchise hasn’t seen a major revival since the original games and its sequels, Dark Forces still lives on through remasters and its massive influence on Star Wars shooters. It’s a nostalgic favorite that shows how ’90s developers were experimenting with storytelling and gameplay in FPS games.

3. Wolfenstein 3D (1992)

It’s hard to overstate Wolfenstein 3D’s influence; it basically invented the first-person shooter genre as we know it. Blasting Nazis through mazes of corridors never felt so thrilling, and the franchise has evolved into a powerhouse with The New Order series still impressing modern audiences.

While the original is now a nostalgic relic, Wolfenstein remains a respected name. Beyond New Order, the legendary Return to Castle Wolfenstein became its own cultural icon in the early 2000s, practically in the same vein as Quake 3 and Unreal Tournament. It showed the franchise can be whatever it wants, whenever it wants to.

2. Heretic (1997)

What do you get when you add dark fantasy magic to Doom? You get Heretic, a game that flipped the FPS formula on its head. Instead of running around with boring guns, you were slinging spells and firing enchanted crossbows, while unleashing chaos on monsters in ways that were ultimately just Doom with a magical twist. More importantly, every level was a mix of exploration, secret passages, and deadly surprises, making it one of the most inventive shooters of its time

While the franchise is dormant today, Heretic did go on to inspire a few spin-offs. Most notably, it led to Hexen, which expanded the fantasy FPS formula with multiple character classes, hub-based levels, and co-op gameplay. Later, Raven Software released Heretic 2, a third-person action game that played very differently from the original, keeping mostly the main character and story but changing the gameplay style completely. Even so, Heretic remains the perfect example of how the ’90s weren’t afraid to mix genres, and it still earns love from players looking for something different from the standard sci-fi or military shooter.

1. Doom (1993)

And of course, we have Doom. Can’t forget this one. The Doomguy. The game that started it all, or at least the game that made the whole world sit up and notice FPS games. Put simply, Doom defined a generation. It undeniably influenced countless shooters, and even today, the franchise is still alive and well with Doom: The Dark Ages releasing earlier in 2025, proving the formula still works.

Doom was essentially a phenomenon spawned from Wolfenstein 3D’s inception. Its name alone still evokes nostalgia, and the pure joy of blasting through demons with nothing but skill and a shotgun.

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