These are the best multiplayer shooters in 2021: You have to play this
These are the best multiplayer shooters in 2021
A short round after work or eSport that - at least before Corona - fills large halls: Multiplayer shooters are an absolute long-runner. The spectrum ranges from fast shooters that require reaction and skill to huge battlefields that can only be tidied up in a team with the right tactics. So that you can find out at a glance which shooter is the right one for you, we have put together the ten most popular genre representatives for you in this shopping guide.The 15 best Xbox Series X/S games to play in 2021
Thanks to the new consoles still being less than a year old, many of the best Xbox Series X games (and Series S games) are cross-generation ones. But the new ones are beginning to trickle through, and thanks to that full backwards compatibility - and the huge range of next-gen-optimised games that Xbox has assembled - there's plenty of choice. If you want that full backlog taken into consideration, take a look at our best Xbox One games list, which has some lovely picks, from major classics to hidden gems, and our lists of the best Game Pass games and all Xbox backwards compatibility games are probably of interest to you, too.
For this list, like our best PS5 games list, we're focusing purely on actual Xbox Series X/S games. What does that mean? Well, we've defined that here as games that are either: exclusive to the consoles (of which there are only a couple at present), new cross-gen games that arrived on Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S simultaneously, or earlier Xbox One games that have been updated with significant Xbox Series X/S patches, which Microsoft handily labels as 'optimised for Xbox Series X/S'.
Because of the much greater number of 'optimised' games that the Xbox Series X/S has compared to the PS5, we've expanded this list slightly to 15 games, but you can expect this list to grow quickly as the library for Microsoft's latest machines is fleshed out.
Eurogamer newscast: what Xbox's Bethesda exclusives mean for the future
Call of the SeaThe idea was to recreate a game like Riven or Myst, with a dash of Lovecraft, and Call of the Sea does absolutely this. It's striking how refreshing the formula feels today. There being no combat brings a wonderful sense of calm to the game: an unusual feeling. A calm from which you are able to better appreciate the settings around you, the lavish tropical island, and the eerie mystery pulling you along.
And no, it's not a blockbuster, but it still manages to pull off some show-stopping set-pieces. Seeing the island literally unlock in front of you, and open to reveal its secrets, is majestic. And that indie heart beating inside of the game: that's what keeps it endearing. It's a wonderfully self-contained, few-evenings'-worth of sun-drenched mystery adventure.
Call of the Sea reveal trailer
Want to read more? See our full Call of the Sea review and buy it now from Microsoft.
Hitman 3007's on the horizon for IO Interactive, but before all that the studio has unfinished business with Agent 47 - and Hitman 3's as considered and creative a thing as the most meticulously planned kill in this deliciously macabre series. For the final installment of this modern trilogy, IO doesn't overload the player with new features (the boldest addition, VR support, is currently limited to PSVR), but instead packages up all the playgrounds offered so far in the series with some next-gen thrills.
Head to one of the new levels, such as Dubai, and this can be a seriously pretty game. It's a seriously detailed one, too, its levels full of surprises that actively encourage creative play, and a murderous toolset that can be applied in so many different ways. It's the dream Hitman game, essentially, and the perfect send-off for 47.
Digital Foundry's Hitman 3 PS5 vs Xbox Series X/S Comparison: An Xbox Advantage At 4K
Want to read more? See our full Hitman 3 review and buy it now from Amazon.
Devil May Cry 5Have you noticed that Capcom is really hitting it out the park of late? Resident Evil's back on-track and delivering the kind of slick chills fans have been pining for - as well as a villain that's captured the attention of the internet, for better or worse - while Monster Hunter goes from strength to strength, with Rise being maybe the best in the series yet.
Devil May Cry 5 might be a more conservative affair than the makeovers Capcom's other series have received in recent years, but after the divisive DMC - a brilliant game, for what it's worth - you get the sense a conservative approach is what the fans were looking for. The result is a game with the spirit and hard-edged action of a PlayStation classic, served up with the pizazz and polish of a modern-day 4K blockbuster. And it turns out that's quite the thing.
Digital Foundry's Devily May Cry 5 next-gen performance face-off
Want to read more? See our full Devil May Cry 5 review and buy it now from Amazon.
GroundedIs Honey, I Shrunk the Kids even a reference that works these days? Regardless, being shrunk to the size of an insect, in a back garden, is a powerful set-up for a game. And it's a ridiculously charming place to be. It's a survival game so you need to eat and drink, but you eat adorable aphids, and slurp drops of dew you knock down from blades of grass that tower up high above you. The small-made-big world of Grounded is a constant source of wonder.
And terror. Because, yes, those tiny insects you find a bit creepy in real-life are actually terrifying when they're much bigger than you. Spiders, particularly. Or wasps. Or a bird the size of a helicopter, or a fish the size of The Meg. Don't let its cute exterior deceive you: here be very real danger. But therein lies the thrill, and a thrill you can enjoy with friends. Plus, Grounded has only grown - and will grow - over time, so it's better now than ever.
Grounded gameplay: making spiders cuter with arachnophobia mode
Want to read more? See our full Grounded impressions and buy it now from Microsoft.
Forza Horizon 4The best racing game of the last generation? Sure, why not. Playground Games' homecoming to the dales and lazy afternoon drives of the UK was pretty much as good as it gets on the last generation, an open world racer with a spring in its step and a wealth of brilliant diversions to boot. Perhaps it's fairer to not think of it as one of the best racing games of recent years, but one of the best open world games too.
Panic Button's decent if not quite perfect port more than does the trick on Xbox Series S/X too - play it on an X at 4K60 and you've got what remains one of the most visually striking experiences available on Microsoft's most powerful console.
Digital Foundry takes a look at the Forza Horizon 4 next-gen upgrade
Want to read more? See our full Forza Horizon 4 review and buy it now from Amazon.
Tetris Effect: ConnectedTetris Effect was already great of course. Tetris wasn't bad by itself. But then Mizuguchi covered the whole thing in glitter and stardust and loosed the whales and that level about travelling into space. Horses and jewels and Prohibition Chicago. And the tempo changed and went back and forth rather than merely getting faster so it was like Lumines, and you could go into the zone and stack and stack and stack your way to Ultimatris!
And then Connected added multiplayer and in amongst multiplayer is this beautiful riff on Monster Hunter of all things, three of you against one of them, blocks and blocks and then these magical instances where you work together to defeat your enemy, all three of you playing the same game of Tetris. And it's covered in the zodiac, of course, and there's that wonderful music and the whole thing is just completely transporting. Wow.
Tetris Effect: Connected Gameplay Deepdive
Want to read more? See our full Tetris Effect: Connected review and buy it now from Microsoft.
Rainbow Six SiegeThe most incredible thing about Ubisoft's Rainbow Six: Siege? Maybe it's how it's grown so, so much in the five years since its launch, and how Ubisoft's smartly managed to maintain the momentum over all that time so it still feels remarkably fresh. Maybe it's how the next-gen update introduces 4K and 120fps - the latter the perfect way to highlight this slickest, smoothest and most suspenseful of shooters.
Really, though, one of the most remarkable things about it all is how few imitators there have been since. Rainbow Six Siege isn't like other online shooters - it's uniquely tense and tactical, with depths you won't find elsewhere. It's a modern classic, essentially, as playable now as it's ever been.
Rainbow Six Siege - Next Gen Trailer
Want to read more? See our full Rainbow Six Siege re-review and buy it now from Amazon.
It Takes TwoCo-op, particularly local (sofa) co-op games, seem to be a dying breed. Not only is It Takes Two enormously welcome for being one of them, it may be the best we've ever played. This is a joyously imaginative and energetic adventure entirely for two players. In fact, you can't play it alone (which is why it comes with a free online code for a friend if you have no one at home to play with).
The result is everything designed for two: the puzzles, the special weapons you get every level, the set-pieces, the surprise mini-games. The story, which we're not so keen on. Regardless, this is another small-made-big world filled with toys that will keep you happy for hours. It's beautifully made and flies along, revelling in a sense of movement and speed. If co-op in any way appeals to you, it's, quite simply, a must.
It Takes Two - Official Gameplay Trailer
Want to read more? See our full It Takes Two review and buy it now from Amazon.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2Cor, Tony Hawk has always felt like a bit of a tech-pusher to me. Back then I couldn't believe a game could feel this human, have this much gravity kicking around inside it. With the remakes/remodels/remasters, it's that same joy in animation and texture, environment and surface detailing and the sheer simple pleasures of what you're up to.
Play this because it's one of the best games about moving ever made - an absolute delight in the matter of getting from A to B and what you choose to do in between. Its progression system encourages curiosity and experimentation and its tricks are absolutely stellar. What an absolute treat: in 2021, the sheer design of the thing still feels like it has stuff to teach us.
Digital Foundry on the 'game changer' next-gen update for Tony Hawk
Want to read more? See our full Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2 impressions and buy it now from Amazon.
FortniteFortnite is a treat on Series X/S, smooth and tangible with truly lovely lighting effects. But in truth, Fortnite is a treat on anything, a game that looked decent running on a phone and still has a certain charm on the Switch.
This is a Series X standard for me - the game I play most often, I suspect. And you know what, Fortnite's actually wonderful. A shooter and Battle Royale, yes, but also a weird blend of Animal Crossing and RPG and make-your-own-game software. It's surprisingly deep, endlessly generous, and far more charming than a mega-hit of this size should be. Even if you've been keeping away from it, maybe give it a cheeky go now.
Team Eurogamer plays Fortnite Primal Chapter 2 Season 6
Want to read more? See our latest Fortnite thoughts and download it now from Microsoft.
The FalconeerOne person made this game! It's not the reason you should play it of course but it is a remarkable achievement. And, actually, it's from it the game's super-power comes. This is a deeply personal game disguised as an aerial combat game. Yes, you fly around on the back of a giant falcon, and yes, it's endlessly fun, but it's what lurks beneath that really stays with you.
It's the meaning in the world, this strange world, this dark and stormy - and sometimes golden and tranquil - archipelago world which will pull at you. What does it mean? What is the mythology getting at? What do the actions of the warring factions equate to? What is the game trying to say? And it's when you tackle some of this that the real magic of The Falconeer emerges.
Digital Foundry on how The Falconeer pushes high-end display features
Want to read more? See our full The Falconeer review and buy it now from Amazon.
Destiny 2There have been so many Destiny imitators over the years that sometimes it's refreshing to go back to the source. Like its predecessor, Destiny 2 hasn't been short of problems, but like its predecessor it's overcome them to become a shooter of remarkable scope. It's a shooter with remarkable shooting, too, as you'd probably expect from the gunsmiths behind Halo, and of course the next-gen update helps in that regard too.
If you're intimately familiar with Bungie's console past, as I'm sure most of us are, there's something almost sacrilegious about playing one of them at 60fps, but after a period of adjustment there's no denying the weight and momentum of these firearms has only been helped in the process. Oh, and the best skyboxes in all of video games have never looked better, either.
Digital Foundry on the 'tangible advantage' of Destiny 2 on next-gen
Want to read more? See our full Destiny 2 next-gen thoughts and buy it now from Microsoft.
Control: Ultimate EditionControl is such a console game at heart - its lineage lies with Remedy's earlier games, sure, but also with consoley delights like Stranglehold and Psi-Ops. It never really worked that beautiful on last-gen consoles, though. On the latest machines, it feels like coming home.
And weirdly, given this entire game is set inside an office building, upgrades matter. A lovely framerate gets the best out of your magical powers as you take on eldritch nightmares, and the world of Control has never looked better either. Polished concrete, Bakelite, anti-matter blobs all over the place, Control is a game of textures and surfaces. Finally console players get to see what a gorgeous thing this is.
Digital Foundry runs the rule over the enhanced Control: Ultimate Edition
Want to read more? See Digital Foundry's full Control: Ultimate Edition tech review and buy it now from Amazon.
Sea of ThievesSea of Thieves is just magic. How many 'hobby' games are there, these days? That is a rhetorical question but there are a lot. How many of them would you say are 'healthy?' I am going to say not a lot. Sea of Thieves is that: this is a hobby game, a game you can put all of your spare time into, learning to improve, grinding to progress, forming or joining like-minded hobbyists in its many communities - and it is also a game that makes you feel good.
It is gorgeous, more gorgeous thanks to the X/S upgrade obviously, but that is slightly besides the point. Pastels, sunsets, sounds. The sounds are the thing, really - I maintain this is the best sounding game there is. Listen to the whoomph of a sail as you catch the wind. The creak of the bow. The ticking turns of the wheel. The ocean. Just listen to it. I could play nothing else.
Here's a big catch-up on everything new and old in Sea of Thieves
Want to read more? See our full Sea of Thieves review and buy it now from Amazon.
Halo: Master Chief CollectionHere we go again! An Xbox, you say? Have you heard of Halo? You have? Well, still. The Master Chief Collection is all the good Halo games plus Halo 4. Some of them have fancy campaign remasters where you can toggle between old and new versions with the press of a button, which is a fascinating but also very ageing experience. All of them are essential. This is history, right here: it's the throughline from the first Xbox to the Series X, the Duke to the wonderful current-day controller that's too perfect to have a nickname. It's Microsoft's entire marketing strategy in a box: the good old days, at 4 whole Ks, in 120 slippery smooth frames - if your TV can even handle it.
But it's also more than that. Halo is no joke. It's total mastery of craft, an oddly gravitational shooter about momentum, physics, weight, kinetic energy stored in a suit and discharged through a clonk to the back of the head. It's unafraid of making your core weapon feel terrible, if it means you're more likely to try something else new. Unafraid of feeling slow, if it means it's more deliberate. It's the original multiplayer playground. It does not get better.
Here's what's new in Season 6 of the Master Chief Collection's online events
Want to read more? See our full piece on the playground genius of classic Halo and buy it now from Amazon.
For more curated best-of lists like this, meanwhile, feel free to argue in the comments section of the following, too:
We've also got the latest updates on Xbox Series X stock and where to buy it, if you're still hunting down a next-gen upgrade!
