The weekend's here and if you're worried about being bored, here are some great FPS games you can play on your Mac.
Apr 25, 2019 Free Online Fps Multiplayer Games For Mac reza April 25, 2019 The 10 best fps games for mac with planet spanning battles and three diverse factions planetside 2 ups the ante on everyday first person shooters everything player does affects borderlands 2. Games Games Software Software. Browse the newest, top selling and discounted First-Person products on Steam New and Trending Top Selling. FPS, Hero Shooter, Multiplayer, Tactical. Free to Play. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. FPS, Shooter, Multiplayer, Competitive. DOOM Eternal. Aug 05, 2017 Team Fortress 2 started out as a paid game, but it’s now free and supported by purchases of in-game weapons, cosmetic items, and keys for randomized crates. All items can be earned randomly through playing, or by crafting from other items or trading with players.
This time around I'm focusing on some of my favorite first person shooters (FPSs) that are currently available for the Mac platform, ranging in price from free to not free. Locked and loaded? Good. Here we go...
Borderlands 2
- $39.99 - Download now
Every once in a while a sequel comes along that completely eclipses the original game. Such is the case with Borderlands 2, which took everything that was good about the original Borderlands and made it better.
For the uninitiated, Borderlands 2 drops you on the surface of a hostile alien world called Pandora. You're essentially a treasure hunter on a mission. You can choose from one of four different character classes, each with unique abilities, and in a nod to role playing games, you can develop special abilities by assigning skill points that you gain through experience. Borderlands 2 also features a weapons randomizing system that produces an almost unlimited number of variations on handguns, rifles, grenades and other weapons.
A hilarious script and great voice acting provides you with constant laughs through the 30+ hours of single-player fun your first time through (and you will replay this game to get experience with each character class). Add to that fantastic cooperative multiplayer gameplay and downloadable content to extend the game, and you've got a potent mix that will keep you coming back again and again.
Aspyr makes the game available through the Mac App Store and Steam (which we've linked above). Our recommendation is to go for the Steam version so you can get cross-platform multiplayer - Mac App Store downloaders are relegated to Mac-to-Mac play only through Game Center.
BioShock 2
- $24.99 - Download now
Few recent FPS's have had the impact of the BioShock series. The game struck gold for its detailed storyline involving Rapture, a Randian utopia far beneath the surface of the ocean, run amuck. A survival horror game, BioShock 2 puts you in the role of a Big Daddy - a genetically altered human encased in a heavily armored diving suit. Rapture is filled with psychotic and dangerous people who have been altered by a substance that can record their genes, granting them superhuman powers (and, unfortunately, driving them mad).
The game sports multiplayer action too, but unlike Borderlands 2 isn't available from Steam, so the Mac App Store is a safe bet. BioShock 2 is the sequel to the first BioShock, and if you haven't picked that one up, it's definitely worth your time as well, especially at $19.99 price. Both should wet your whistle until BioShock Infinite shows up for the Mac this summer.
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
- $29.99 - Download now
Short of having its superlative sequel on the Mac, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is the next best thing. Sure, it's been around for a while, but this game stands up to the test of time: it's a phenomenal FPS that puts you in the role of U.S. Marines and British SAS commandos as you travel to the U.K, the Middle East, Azerbaijan, Russia and Ukraine on the hunt for international terrorists who plan to detonate a nuclear warhead.
COD4: MW takes a break from past COD games by bringing the action to the modern era, instead of focusing on World War II, which means you have plenty of modern weapons to choose from. It also sports great multiplayer capabilities with plenty of challenges, unlockable perks at matchmaking to make sure you're paired with players of similar abilities.
Team Fortress 2
- Free to play - Download now
A team-based multiplayer first person shooter available through Steam, Team Fortress 2 is almost six years old and still going strong. The game pits two opposing teams against each other in a variety of different modes: Capture the Flag, Control Point, Territorial Control, King of the Hill and more. The play maps vary from the ridiculous to the sublime, and you can choose from nine different player classes, some with offensive capabilities (like the Scout), some better on defense (like the Heavy), and some best for support (such as the Medic).
The game's fun to play not only for its varied gameplay modes and different character classes to master, but also for its cartoon-style art. And it used to be you had to pay for TF2, but Valve made it free to play in 2011. (The company makes money through in-app purchases players make to buy unique equipment and character outfits.)
First Person Shooter Multiplayer Free
Counter Strike: Source
- $19.99 - Download now
The original Counter Strike took the world by storm when it was introduced as a mod for Valve Software's legendary game Half-Life. Valve reworked CS as its own independent game using the Source engine (hence the name). It's a team-based first person shooter that emphasizes accomplishing objectives - kill your opponents, rescue hostages and so on. What makes it a bit different than the rest is that when you're shot, you stay dead until the end of the round - no instant respawning.
Twelve years since its first release, Counter Strike still has a huge following and remains ridiculously popular. Last year Valve released Counter Strike: Global Offensive (seen above), so if you've gotten tired of the original, you can immerse yourself in a new game that features updated content from the original, along with new maps, characters and weapons.
Special Mention: Pathways Into Darkness
- Free - Download now
Before Halo, before Myth, before Marathon, way back in 1993, Bungie Software made a name for itself with Mac gamers with one of the most innovative first person shooters we'd ever seen (and really, we hadn't seen a lot of them, but we knew this one was cool). That game was called Pathways Into Darkness.
Man Up Time has resurrected this 20-year-old masterpiece for modern Mac and they've made it absolutely free. Not 'freemium' - there are no in-app purchases you need to make to keep playing. Free. The game traps you in a mysterious pyramid in the Yucatan that threatens the very survival of the Earth. You must descend into its innermost recesses, battling fearsome monsters to save the world.
PID is a game of its era. Its graphics are quaint and primitive, its interface is awkward by modern standards, but it stands out as a period piece worthy of remembering and enjoying. It's a bit of Mac legend. And it's free, so you have nothing to lose but some download bandwidth.
Your go-to first-person shooters?
Those are my favorite FPS games on the Mac right now, but if there are any other can't-miss shooters on your short list, let me know in the comments below. You can never have too much of an awesome thing!
First Person Shooter Game For Mac
We may earn a commission for purchases using our links. Learn more.
First Person Shooter Games Online
Fishing timeC.J.'s next Fishing Tourney will be in July
There are four Fishing Tourneys each year in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Here's when they are and what the rules are for participating.
This is a list of some of the most popular freeware and free and open-source softwarefirst-person shooter games.
Title | Developer | Release date | Last update | Operating system | Engine | License | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Action Quake 2 | The Action Team | 1998 | 2003 | Linux, Windows | id Tech 2 | Freeware | Team and Deathmatch based very fast FPS |
AssaultCube | Rabid Viper Productions | 2006 | 2013 | Linux, Mac OS, Windows | Cube Engine | zlib License (code), Individual licenses (media) | Realistic environments, fast arcade game play, many game modes. Single/Multiplayer. |
Black Shades | Wolfire games | 2001 | Linux, OS X, Windows, Mac OS, iOS | Wolfire Games | Freeware | Free First-person shooter | |
BZFlag | Chris Schoeneman, Tim Riker | 1993 | 2016-10-10 (2.4.8) | Linux, BSD, OS X, Windows, other UNIX | GNU LGPL | Tank combat | |
Chub Gam 3D: Director's Cut | ChubGamSoft | 1998 | MS-DOS | Pie in the Sky | Freeware | Surreal horror single player game | |
CodeRED: Alien Arena | COR Entertainment, LLC | 2004-11 | 2011-12-29 (7.53) | Linux, BSD, OS X, Windows | CRX Engine | GNU GPL (code), Proprietary license (media) | Science fiction, with single or multiplayer modes. |
Cube | Wouter van Oortmerssen | 2001 | 2005-08-29 | Linux, BSD, Mac OS, Windows | Cube Engine | zlib License (code), Individual licenses (media) | Quake style multiplayer deathmatch. Single/Multiplayer. |
Cube 2: Sauerbraten | Wouter van Oortmerssen | 2004 | 2013-01-04 | Linux, BSD, OS X, Windows | Cube 2 Engine | zlib License (code), Individual licenses (media) | Quake style deathmatch, includes built in level editor. Single/Multiplayer. |
The Dark Mod | Team Dark Mod | 2009 | 2015-02-08 (2.03) | Windows | id Tech 4 engine | CC-BY-NC-SA | First person stealth game in the style of the Thief (series) games (1 and 2) using a modified Id Tech 4 engine |
Fallen Empire: Legions | GarageGames, InstantAction | 2009-06-30 | 2013-06-27 | Windows | Torque Game Engine | Proprietary license | First-Person Shooter with Jetpacks, Multiplayer, CTF, Deathmatch |
Freedoom | Freedoom project | 2019-10-22 (0.12.1) | Linux, OS X, Windows, Android, Mac OS, MS-DOS, others | Doom engine | GNU GPL (code), BSD (media) | A Doom WAD file intended to be used instead of the copyrighted file from the original Doom and Doom II. | |
The Glorious Mission | Giant Interactive Group | 2013-06-20 | Windows | Proprietary license | Online multiplayer. Developed with the People's Liberation Army of China for use as a recruitment and training tool. | ||
Gore: Special Edition | 4D Rulers | 2008-07-04 | Windows | AMP engine | Proprietary license | ||
Hidden & Dangerous | Illusion Softworks, Take-Two Interactive | 1999-07-29 | 2001-11 | Windows | Insanity Engine | Proprietary license | |
.kkrieger | .theprodukkt | 2004 | Windows | Proprietary license | Won first place in the 96k game competition at Breakpoint in April 2004. | ||
KumaWar | Kuma Reality Games | 2004 | 2006-07 | Windows | Source engine | Proprietary license | Tactical episodic shooter. Single/Multiplayer. |
Marathon | Bungie | 1994-12-21 | 2007 | Mac OS (original), ported to Linux, OS X and Windows via AlephOne | Aleph One | GNU GPL (code) | Released as freeware and source code. |
Nexuiz | Alientrap | 2005-05-31 | 2009-10-01 (2.5.2) | Linux, OS X (10.4 or later), Windows | DarkPlaces Quake engine | GNU GPL | Unreal Tournament style deathmatch. Single/Multiplayer. |
OpenArena | OpenArena team | 2005-08-19 | 2012-02-20 (0.8.8) | Linux, OS X, Windows | GNU GPL | Free software content remake of Quake III Arena. Single/Multiplayer | |
Point Blank | Zepetto, NCSOFT | 2008-03 | Windows | N/A | Proprietary license | Free FPS created by Zepetto in 2009. Close Beta version. | |
Red Eclipse[1] | Quinton Reeves, Lee Salzman | 2009 | 2017-12-21 (1.6.0) | Linux, BSD, OS X, Windows | Cube 2 Engine | zlib License | New take on the first person arena shooter, featuring parkour, impulse boosts, and more. |
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. build 1935 | GSC Game World | 2009-02 | Windows | xrCore build 1935 | Proprietary license | 2004 Alpha build of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl. Contains content and features cut from the final release. Has a number of bugs but contains a full, playable single player campaign. | |
Savage: The Battle for Newerth | S2 Games | 2003-09-09 | Linux, OS X (commercial), Windows | Silverback Engine | Proprietary license | Hybrid FPS/RTS with both ranged and melee combat | |
Savage 2: A Tortured Soul | S2 Games | 2008-01-16 | Linux, OS X, Windows (commercial) | K2 Engine | Proprietary license | The sequel to the award-winning game, Savage: The Battle for Newerth. | |
Smokin' Guns | Smokin' Guns Productions and Iron Claw Interactive | 2009-01-01 | 2012-06-08 | Linux, BSD, OS X, Windows, others | GNU GPL (code/some media) Proprietary license (some media) | Western Quake-like FPS. Single (with bots)/Multiplayer. | |
Starsiege: Tribes | Dynamix, Sierra Entertainment | 2004 (free release) | Windows | Darkstar engine | Proprietary license | Futuristic team based combat, released for free to promote Tribes: Vengeance. Multiplayer only. | |
The DinoHunters | Kuma Games | 2006-04-24 | Windows | Source engine | Proprietary license | Also a machinima series. Single/Multiplayer. | |
Tremulous | Dark Legion Development | 2006-03-31 | 2009-12-04 (preview release) | Linux, OS X (unofficial), Windows | GNU GPL | Aliens vs Humans multiplayer team combat with some RTS elements. | |
Tribes 2 | Dynamix, Sierra Entertainment | 2004 (free release) | Windows | Torque Game Engine | Proprietary License | Futuristic team based combat, released for free to promote Tribes: Vengeance. Single/Multiplayer. | |
UberStrike | Cmune | 2010-09-17 | OS X, Windows | Unity | Proprietary license | Free-to-play 'social shooter' on Facebook, MySpace and Apple's Dashboard Widgets. | |
Unreal Tournament | Epic Games | TBA | 2015-03-09 | Linux, OS X, Windows | Unreal Engine 4 | Proprietary license | Crowdsourced and free first-person shooter. |
Unvanquished[2] | Unvanquished Development | 2012-02-29 | 2018 (Alpha 0.51.1) | Linux, OS X, Windows | modified ioquake3 | CC BY-SA 2.5/GPL | Fork of Tremulous with new assets |
Urban Terror | Silicon Ice Development / Frozen Sand | 2000-08-05 (Beta 1.0) | 2016-09-30 (4.3.0) | Linux, OS X, Windows | GNU GPL (ioquake3 engine), Proprietary license (mod code, media) | Fast-paced, Hollywood tactical shooter. Originally a Quake 3mod, now a standalone game. | |
Warmonger: Operation Downtown Destruction | NetDevil | 2007-11-28 | 2009-08-27 | Windows | Unreal Engine 3 | GNU GPL (code), Proprietary license (media) | High-end Free-to-play first person shooter with destructible environments.. |
Warsow | Warsow team | 2005-06-08 | 2016-04-14 (2.1) | Linux, OS X, Windows | GNU GPL (code), Proprietary license (media) | Quake style deathmatch focussed on high-paced action and trickjumps. | |
Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory | Activision, id Software, Splash Damage | 2003-05-29 | 2015-08-21 (ET:Legacy 2.74) | Linux, OS X, Windows | id Tech 3, ET:Legacy | GNU GPL (code), Proprietary license (media) | Intended expansion pack turned freeware. WW2 multiplayer team combat |
World of Padman | Padworld Entertainment | 2007-04-01 | 2011-07-16 (1.5.4 beta Windows/Linux), 2011-01-24 (1.5.1 OS X) | Linux, OS X, Windows | GNU GPL (code), Proprietary license (media) | A free Quake 3 like comical FPS game | |
Xonotic | Team Xonotic | 2010-12-23 | 2017-04-01 (0.8.2) | Linux, OS X, Windows | DarkPlaces Quake engine | GNU GPL | Fork and direct successor of the Nexuiz Project. |
Team Fortress 2 | Valve | 2007-10-7 | 2019-3-28 | Windows, Mac OS, Linux. | Source | Proprietary license | Also available on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, formerly pay to play, squeal to Team Fortress Classic. |
Freeware clients[edit]
Some free-to-play online first-person shooters use a client–server model, in which only the client is available for free. They may be associated with business models such as optional microtransactions or in-game advertising. Some of these may be MMOFPS, MMOTPS or MMORPG games.
Title | Developer, Publisher | Release date | Operating system | Engine | License | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Blacklight: Retribution | Zombie Studios | 2012-04-03 | Windows | Unreal Engine 3 | Proprietary license | Online multiplayer, futuristic setting. |
CrossFire | Z8Games | 2006 | Windows | Lithtech Jupiter | Freeware | Modern team based shooter. Lots of game modes. |
Mission Against Terror | Kingsoft Dalian JingCai Studio, Wicked Interactive / Suba Games | 2012 | Windows | Proprietary license | Free-to-play online fps, developed by KingSoft, published by Wicked Interactive / Suba Games. | |
Fallen Earth | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | Online multiplayer[3] |
Heroes and Generals | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | Online multiplayer[3] |
War Rock | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | Online multiplayer, features controllable vehicles |
Combat Arms | Nexon | 2008-07-11 | Windows | Lithtech | Proprietary license | Online multiplayer, modern setting; microtransaction business model. |
CrimeCraft | Vogster Entertainment | 2009-08 | Windows | Unreal Engine 3 | Proprietary license | Massively multiplayer online with 3rd and 1st-person perspectives; microtransaction business model. |
PlanetSide 2 | Sony Online Entertainment | 2012-11-20 | Windows | Forgelight Engine | Proprietary license | Massive battles with 2000 players per continent at a time. 3 factions fighting over 4 continents. Player customization, microtransaction business model. |
Sudden Attack | Nexon | 2005-4-11 | Windows | Lithtech | Proprietary license | Online multiplayer |
Tribes: Ascend | Hi-Rez Studios | 2011-12 | Windows | Unreal Engine 3 (modified) | Proprietary license | Online multiplayer; microtransaction business model. |
Game engines[edit]
First Person Shooter Games On Mac
Engine | Developer, Publisher | Release date | Linux | OS X | Windows | other | License | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aleph One | Bungie (originally) | 2000-01-17 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Mac OS, BSDs | GNU General Public License | Aleph One is an open-source project based on the Marathon 2: Durandal code, which was released to the public by Bungie. |
Build engine | Ken Silverman/3D Realms | 2000-06-20 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes[which?] | Custom licence, GNU General Public License | First released by Silverman; 3D Realms later did GPL releases of Duke Nukem 3D and Shadow Warrior |
Cube Engine | Wouter van Oortmerssen | 2001 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | zlib License (code), Individual licenses (media) | FPS with sandbox style level-editor |
Cube 2 Engine | Wouter van Oortmerssen | 2004 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | zlib License (code), Individual licenses (media) | FPS with sandbox style level-editor |
Dim3 | Brian Barnes | No | Yes | Yes | No | MIT License | Development set | |
id Tech 1 | id Software | 1999 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | GNU General Public License | Known as the Doom engine, originally used for Doom, Doom II, and clones |
id Tech 2 | id Software | 2001-12-22 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | GNU General Public License | Quake 2, CRX and Qfusion are open-source derivatives |
id Tech 3 | id Software | 2005-08-19 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes[which?] | GNU General Public License | Quake 3, ioquake3 is an open-source derivative |
id Tech 4 | id Software | 2011-11-22 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes[which?] | GNU General Public License | Doom 3 |
Quake engine | id Software | 1996 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | GNU General Public License | Quake, DarkPlaces is an open source derivative |
Torque Game Engine | GarageGames | 2012-09-20 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | MIT License | |
Unity | Unity Technologies | 2009 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Purchasable license for commercial use, iPhone license, Free indie license | Development set |
Unreal Engine | Epic Games | 1998 | Yes | Yes | Yes | PlayStation 4, Xbox One, iOS, Android | Proprietary | Free to download and use |
Wolfenstein 3D engine | id Software | 1995 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | GNU General Public License | Also available from Blake Stone: Planet Strike source release; earlier versions in Hovertank 3D and Catacomb 3D source releases, and further developed in Rise of the Triad source release |
References[edit]
Multiplayer First Person Shooter Games For Mac Air
- ^Red Eclipse
- ^Unvanquished
- ^ abList of free MMOFPS games