22 Games Like Half Life
Our list of games like Half Life has a selection of other science fiction first person shooters with great stories that offer unique alien adventures.
Set in a world of scientific experiments Half Life is a game series that is well known for its notable crowbar weapon and it’s less than typical hero scientist, Gordon Freeman. With many games, cancelled games and community created spin-offs the Half Life franchise has been one of the most influential in the video game genre. Each released game is set within the same a science fiction universe and explores a dystopian era of alien invasion through a mostly linear first person shooter storyline.
While linear the games do encourage some exploration through hidden and side paths that often reward the player with items to boost their pool of limited resources or interesting discoveries and game Easter eggs. The games within the franchise are also known for their use of simple puzzles with environmental hazards, platforming and other elements spread in between the combat and sometimes stealth experience.
The games like Half Life here focus on other first person shooters with science fiction themes that will pull you in with their story and immerse you into a new world as you fight aliens on behalf of Earth.
Deus Ex
Deus Ex is an older game with a cyberpunk theme which blends action, role playing, stealth and first person shooting into a single story heavy adventure. Highly rated amongst fans and critics the success of the first game has seen the lore, world and mechanics revived in a number of subsequent games in the Deus Ex universe. Deus Ex is set in a futuristic world during 2052 where conspiracies and a number of different government agencies are threatening to tear the world apart as they fight for co...[Read Review]
Serious Sam 3: BFE
Serious Sam 3: BFE seeks to deliver fast past first person shooting that is akin to the early shooters that gave birth to the FPS genre. Serving as a prequel to the original Serious Sam game (The First Encounter) this edition in the franchise takes place before Sam’s previous adventures. Picking up the storyline as Sam Stone heads to Egypt with a team of Earth Defense troops to find Dr Stein players find themselves quickly entangled in a quest to save the human race. Said quest centres aro...[Read Review]
Halo 3
Halo 3 continues the Halo science fiction first person series with another campaign and multiplayer arena for players to adventure into as Master Chief. Originally launched in 2007 for Xbox 360 Halo 3 has since been made available on Windows and modern Xbox platforms. Halo 3 is set in the same universe and setting as the previous Halo games within the franchise with players once again battling the Covenant who consider humans an affront to their way of life and religion. Featuring the familiar H...[Read Review]
Doom (2016)
Rebooting the Doom franchise to new heights Doom (2016) is the first game in over a decade. Spawned on PS4, Xbox One, Windows and eventually the Nintendo Switch Doom is an exhilarating fast paced shooter with plenty of demon gore. Following a similar structure to the past Doom stories players step into the suit of an unnamed marine who is surrounded by the demons of Hell. Set on a colonised Mars players will explore a range of semi open ended levels as they literally run and gun down demons that...[Read Review]
Killzone: Shadow Fall
Killzone: Shadow Fall continues the Killzone series of sci-fi shooters with an impressive PlayStation 4 launch title that takes advantage of the increased amount of hardware processing power. Fans of the series will want to get their hands on the game while players looking for a breathtaking PS4 FPS experience will also want in on Killzone: Shadow Fall thanks to the solid FPS action and beautiful world presentation. The game is set in the same universe as the previous games in the Killzone franc...[Read Review]
Resistance 3
Resistance 3 picks up the story four years after the events of Resistance 2 with a similar dark and science fiction themed adventure that builds on the setting established by the franchise to date. Serving as a final chapter to the Resistance story trilogy there is also a slight shift away from the full on military campaigns of the past title in favour of a post-apocalyptic style that is the most survival and horror orientated yet. This shift in game structure is primarily driven by the stage of...[Read Review]
Resistance 2
Resistance 2 is the second game in the sci-fi shooter video game series and promises a solid single player experience with great multiplayer option. Players will again be taking on the role of Nathan Hale as he fights of the Chimera threat and just hopefully can stop the last safe haven of the world (the United States) falling into enemy hands. This time around players are joined by other elite soldiers who are also infected the Chimeran virus. Resistance 2 continues to offer a solid first perso...[Read Review]
Singularity
Singularity is a first person shooter released in 2010 that constantly throws new mechanics at the player which all have a science fiction theme and provide new combat functionality. While FPS is the core of the adventure with players needing to use their diverse weapon roster against the strange power that is threatening to rip the world apart you’ll also find a number of notable mechanics that allow it to be more than just a shooter such as your ability to manipulate time around you. The...[Read Review]
Doom 3
Doom 3 adds to the Doom franchise with a similarly scary experience that finds itself planted firmly in the survival horror genre. Like the other titles in the franchise players will find themselves on Mars with first person shooter mechanics as they slowly progress through a truly terrifying atmosphere of blood, gore and demons with a devastating arsenal of marine weapons. Released in 2003 with an improved edition (BFG Edition) in 2012 along with a 2019 release for modern platforms (Switch, PS4...[Read Review]
Wolfenstein: The Old Blood
Wolfenstein: The Old Blood continues the modern day Wolfenstein story with a stand alone prequel to The New Order. Set in the same alternative 1946 history as the other titles players will once again fight against the Nazi powers on Windows, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Taking place right before the story of Wolfenstein: The New Order players will join the story in an infiltration attempt on Castle Wolfenstein itself to obtain some secret documents from within. After the attempt is botched and fa...[Read Review]
BioShock Infinite
BioShock Infinite is a FPS game released in March 2013 for multiple platforms by 2K Games. It is the third game in the critically acclaimed BioShock series which has been praised for its strong gameplay, horror aspects and immersive storytelling. The majority of the game takes place in 1912 on the floating city of Columbia. Players take on the role of agent Booker DeWitt on his mission to rescue Elizabeth from captivity. After successfully rescuing Elizabeth you’ll quickly discover there is much...[Read Review]
Deus Ex: Invisible War
Deus Ex: Invisible War serves as a sequel to the original Deus Ex and follows the story of Alex D in a new world that is constantly at war. Opting for a Windows and Xbox release this time around Invisible War stays true to the series of offering diverse player choice in how they approach the game in general and individual missions within it. Invisible War picks up the story over two decades after the events in the original game and sees players exploring a world further ravaged by war and econom...[Read Review]
Red Faction
Red Faction is a first person shooter adventure released in 2001 for the PlayStation 2, Windows and Mac that takes you to the red giant of Mars as you fight within the revolution against the oppressive Ultor Corporation in the 21st century. Building onto a core FPS experience with an out of this world location, story high adventure and a range of physics enhancements the original Red Faction was a large leap forward for the genre upon it’s release date. The story of Red Faction revolves ar...[Read Review]
Halo 4
Halo 4 is the 2012 instalment in the science fiction shooter Halo franchise and continues to evolve on the foundations of the previous titles with new story and challenges for players to overcome. Starting this adventure four years after the events of Halo 3 players will need to be familiar with the current state of affairs to truly follow along with the Halo 4 storyline which focuses on the Forerunner planet of Requiem. Players join the story once again as Master Chief as Chief wakes from cryon...[Read Review]
BioShock 2
BioShock 2 has players jumping into the body of a Big Daddy in a game set nearly a decade after the end of the original BioShock and giving players a taste of something different. Despite the passage of time Rapture is still the dangerous, unforgiving and scary dystopia it was in the original although you’ll be seeing it through a different set of eyes this time around. Mixing familiar locations and characters along with new ones BioShock 2 ensures adequate fan service amongst fresh conten...[Read Review]
Wolfenstein: The New Order
Wolfenstein: The New Order revives the franchise four years after the last game with an impressive offering. With solid first person shooter gameplay, a well written storyline and some strong visuals the game is definitely one that FPS fans need to be playing in 2014. Set in an alternate timeline where the Nazis won World War II players will step into the shoes of William Blazkowicz and the role that he plays in stopping the Nazi’s rule over the world once and for all. It’s definitely an enjoyab...[Read Review]
Halo 5: Guardians
The 2015 addition to the Halo franchise is here, Halo 5: Guardians once again follows the story of Master Chief in an impressive Xbox exclusive science fiction shooter. Set just under a year after Halo 4 players find themselves amidst the year 2558 and closely follows the paths of Blue Team a Spartan-II group of troops and Fireteam Osiris a band of Spartan IVs. All the usual forces are at play in Halo 5: Guardians with the Covenant returning, ancient lore, the current war and much more. Gameplay...[Read Review]
BioShock
Step into the dark world of Rapture in BioShock which blends first person shooter mechanics and light RPG features which gave birth to a popular franchise of atmospheric titles. Originally released in 2007 with a number of re-releases since to expand the number of available game platforms BioShock is the first of many adventures that explore philosophical and total utilitarianism themes. This original BioShock is set in the 1960s and has the player arriving at the mysterious underwater city know...[Read Review]
Killzone 3
Killzone 3 continues the Killzone experience and offers a great level of immersion with impressive environments and realistic character movements. The story hasn’t received as much love as previous games in the series but still provides enough of a backdrop to keep you interested. Players will get to experience a story that jumps around a lot in Killzone 3 but the action solely revolves around being stranded on a now alien infested planet (the Helghast for players unfamiliar with the franchise)....[Read Review]
Red Faction: Guerrilla
Red Faction: Guerrilla brings the popular Red Faction franchise into the open world genre with an third person shooter that places you on the Mars colony and gives you all the necessary tools to achieve maximum environmental destruction throughout the story. The game is the third in the series and originally released Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2009 with a “Re-Mars-tered” edition for Windows, PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch released in 2018-2019 featuring improved graphics. Red F...[Read Review]
Halo 2
Halo 2 continues the Halo franchise with an entirely new adventure to save the human race as the super soldier, Master Chief. While originally launching on Xbox in 2004 the legacy of Halo 2 continues to live on with a subsequent Xbox 360 and Windows release in the years following. As recently as 2020 the title was also included in The Master Chief Collection that provides fans access to Halo 2 on the Xbox One in a complete Halo bundle. Featuring a familiar science fiction setting of the first Ha...[Read Review]
F.E.A.R. 3
If you are looking for an FPS game that will leave you unable to sleep at night then F.E.A.R. 3 is your perfect game. The game combines solid first person shooter mechanics with a psychological style of horror. F.E.A.R. 3 has been generally well received by the gaming community for offering a great shooter experience and some unique multiplayer game modes. F.E.A.R. 3 was released in 2011 with development headed by Day 1 Studios and is available across all major platforms (PC, PlayStation 3 and X...[Read Review]