Best Hero Shooters To Play in 2024

With a mix of new releases and updates, 2024 has become one of the most remarkable years for hero shooters. From even the early days of multiplayer shooters, players have loved to dive into multiplayer experiences where there is a variety of different classes to experiment with. Different kits, abilities, and skill articulations allow different people to fit into their preferred roles, making hero shooters some of the most intriguing multiplayer experiences in gaming.

It can be daunting to choose the Hero Shooter that’s right for you. But with the variety of Hero Shooters on the market, of which most are also free to play, there’s seemingly a hero shooter out there for anyone. So, as it’s the year of the hero shooter, we thought it best to run through the best options that gamers have at their disposal in 2024!

10 Concord

Fresh But Needs Some Love

Launching later this year for $40 and currently open with a pre-purchase beta (or free with PlayStation Plus), Concord has revealed itself from behind the curtain with a small amount of applause and some boos, already being surpassed greatly in player count by Marvel Rivals. Pessimistic theorizing aside, it’s still a very ambitious, story-focused hero shooter aiming to pick up a piece of this huge genre.

The Guardians of the Galaxy inspiration offers this game world depth and character. Additionally, the gunplay and game design are high quality, and if this game can patch up its rougher aspects, it could pick itself back up after a shaky pre-launch period. Sadly, the hype train for Concord isn’t currently, and was never, where the creators had planned it to be, but it may be worth checking out for fans of the hero shooter genre.

9 Warframe

One Of Free-To-Play’s Finest

Regarding free-to-play services, Warframe is one of the unique and longest-running games. There are numerous reasons to play Warframe: fun combat, loot collection, the sci-fi cast of playable characters, and steady progression systems.

Unlike many other games on this list, Warframe harnesses co-op and multiplayer PVP functionality, akin to games like Destiny. So, while many hero shooters have you working on an infinite grind of multiplayer PVP matchmaking, Warframe benefits by giving players a long mission grind to work their way through. Warframe is a hero shooter that’s an easy recommendation for MMO and Destiny fans, with tons of content to dive into.

8 Call of Duty: Black Ops 3

COD’s Best Attempt At A Hero Shooter

You may wonder what Black Ops 3 is doing on this list. Although it feels old, that’s mostly due to the comparisons to the 8 Call of Duty games that have been released since. Playing Black Ops 3 in 2024, you’ll find a heavy community of veterans wall-running and grinding through guns as though the game just came out.

The specialist system allows you to play as many different and unique characters with their own kits, giving this futuristic Call of Duty Multiplayer its shine. Alongside a futuristic movement system, still one of the most played Call of Duty Zombie modes, and a huge amount of weapons and unlockables to grind out, even in 2024, Black Ops 3 is a great time.

7 Rainbow Six Siege

A Tactical Stress-Inducing Title

Since its launch in 2015, Rainbow Six Siege has amassed a community of skillful and knowledgeable players. By bringing more hardcore and difficult gaming systems to mainstream audiences, Siege has continued to be one of the most popular tactical 5v5 shooters.

In recent years, streamers like the popular Jynxzi have brought even more life to this intriguing shooter, which seemed to have been neglected. Although the game requires immense map, operator, and gameplay knowledge, learning those complex systems brings people back to the rewarding feeling of tactically reading opponents.

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6 Valorant

Hero Shooter Meets Counter-Strike

Valorant holds an interesting place within the hero shooter genre, taking inspiration from Counter-Strike with its surgical search-and-destroy gameplay. Valorant holds a strong competitive community, with players perfecting their counter-strafing and map knowledge. While this may make Valorant a scary game to get into, that makes it subsequently rewarding to learn and get good at.

In terms of heroes, Valorant uses them to its advantage to give everyone a competitive edge. So, unlike many other games akin to Counter-Strike, you’ll find everyone holding different character-centric utilities, which makes the slow, methodical gameplay different from anything else released since then.

5 Apex Legends

The Best Battle Royale Hero Shooter

Besides being one of the top free-to-play battle royales on the market, Apex Legends is also a top hero shooter. Like other battle royale games, you’ll have to learn all the locations, the gun system, and, unique to Apex, a wider range of unique playable characters.

Then, on top of that, creators at Respawn implemented their incredible movement system used in the related Titanfall series to give Apex Legends fast-paced gunplay and movement, differentiating it from any other battle royales or hero shooters.

While not the most traditional hero shooter on the market, that only makes it more interesting, especially if you’re coming from battle royales like Warzone or Fortnite, which have become quite dry for many. Apex Legends is unique in its different genres, with a strong community that makes it a compelling hero shooter title to check out in 2024.

4 Team Fortress 2

The Oldie That’s Still A Goldie

There’s not much that hasn’t been said about this now legendary hero shooter. Team Fortress 2 is a classic from 2007, and its timeless art style and characters make it a masterpiece. It is tied to Valve’s infamous source engine and is known for those purchasable hats that cost more than a car. In 2024, you’ll still be able to hop in and have fun with this oldie that aged like a fine wine.

Team Fortress 2 only has nine playable classes, yet each is significantly unique, with its own range of weapons to customize your playstyle. Sure, through time, there have been community problems, such as the bot fiasco that has plagued servers for years, yet luckily, that issue is currently fixed (all the more reason to hop right now).

Aside from that, the TF2 community has always been strong, special, and welcoming. From rocket jumping to yelling at your teammate to switch off spy, something will always bring us back to Team Fortress 2.

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3 XDefiant

2024’s New Hero Shooter For Fast Paced Action

XDefiant, Ubisoft’s response to Call of Duty, was dropped in May of this year and quickly found itself taken in by a supportive community. Despite taking heavy inspiration from Call of Duty’s boots-on-the-ground combat, the implementation of heroes from Ubisoft IPs, such as Watch Dogs and Far Cry, gives it some edge above the competition for many fans of Ubisoft franchises.

XDefiant is a great game if you’re interested in COD weapon grinding, combat, and map design. The multitude of game modes gives this free-to-play shooter a lot of content to explore. Being a solid Hero shooter with enjoyable kits and abilities, XDefiant has something riveting for players in 2024.

2 Marvel Rivals

New Multiplayer Super Hero Shooter From Marvel

Marvel Rivals is one of the new kids on the block, releasing free-to-play this year and currently in a limited beta. It sparked everyone’s interest in a new Marvel multiplayer game and kept everyone watching with its fun and entertaining gameplay.

While taking a lot of inspiration from its peers, primarily Overwatch, it’s also a third-person shooter showcase of Marvel and its characters that works exceptionally well as a hero shooter.

With fan favorites like Spider-Man and lesser-known heroes like Jeff the Land Shark, Rivals has a solid roster of 23 heroes and villains. While it is hard to say what type of lasting impact this game will have at launch and over the coming years, it’s certain that in 2024, Rivals will be one of the top hero shooters in the market.

1 Overwatch 2

A Reining Champion Of Hero Shooters

Since its first release in 2016, the Overwatch franchise has been a leading name in hero shooters. Winning Game of the Year at The Game Awards in 2016, it’s unsurprising that this has remained one of the most recognizable titles in the genre.

By combining Blizzard’s talent for character design and storytelling with a first-person perspective, we were given a game with an interesting premise, great combat, and, most importantly, very distinctive heroes to play as.

Despite the issues surrounding Overwatch 2’s launch, you’ll still find a great, free-to-play, polished experience with one of the largest multiplayer fanbases in gaming. With Overwatch 2 getting large updates (and even larger tanks), it’s hard to find a game as charming and entertaining as Overwatch 2.

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