Summary
Fantasy games paint a whimsical and surreal world setting that is teeming with unique lore, magic, and even their own religious beliefs. These settings are home to fantastic creatures of myth and usually draw a large portion of their mythos from a medieval esthetic. Shooters, on the other hand, draw most of their appeal from high-octane action.
One of the most popular sub-genres uses a first-person perspective. Shooters esthetics can draw from any genre, be it modern, futuristic, post-apocalyptic, and beyond. However, mixing anFPS shooter with fantasy elementsresults in something truly epic.
7Ziggurat 2
Choose Between Magic Spells Or Alchemic Arms
Ziggurat 2is a first-person roguelike shooter that draws heavily from fantasy elements. Players will be able to make use of awide arsenal of weapons;these include magic wands, magic staffs, and magic spell tomes. However, players don’t have to be spellcasters.
They can explore the game’s range of Alchemy weapons that include both guns and throwables. Being a roguelike, theZiggurat 2has a massive amount of replay value and various different esthetics to keep runs from feeling stale.
6Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep
A High Fantasy DLC to One of the Best Looter Shooters Ever
Borderlands 2is by far one of the best looter shooters in gaming history. There is something for everyone from its character designs, core mechanics, unique character classes, and what many gamers credit as their favorite villain. While the core game itself was a real treat, its 4th story DLC shook things up in a whole new way.
Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keepsees the game’s vault hunters playing a tabletop game similar to Dungeons and Dragons, but with the gameplay ofBorderlands 2— complete with all the humor one would expect.
Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keephas somephenomenal weapons worth looking intothat work well for builds in bothBorderlands 2and its stand alone version.
WRATH: Aeon of Ruinis a hardcore boomer shooter. For those that are not familiar with the term, these are games inspired by old-school classic shooters such asQuake,Doom, andCastle Wolfenstein.WRATH: Aeon of Ruintransitions from more medieval fantasy esthetics into its source material as players progress.
However, players will face off against plenty of iconic fantasy-inspired monsters that mimic zombies, golems, and beholders that have a surplus of jaws rather than eyes. Players looking for a game that blurs the lines between old-school shooters and grimdark fantasy will love this entry.
Like the previous entry, Project Warlock draws a lot of inspiration from old-school shooters. However, it’s esthetics are more retro and bend more towards traditional fantasy elements. Players will explore the kinds of environments one would see on graph paper and find items that resemble potions and crystals.
While the player controls a warlock, they will favor using a massive arsenal of guns rather than spells. Some are realistic and modern, some are sci-fi and futuristic, but there are also some rustic weapons like a crossbow and throwing a stick of dynamite.
Tiny Tina Wonderlandsis more than just a DLC this time around. The game takes everything learned from making Borderlands 3 and builds upon it, but with enough changes to make it its own game. All players have a melee weapon that can work into different builds and spells instead of grenades.
In fact,Borderlands 4draws inspiration fromTiny Tina Wonderlandsin regards to its spells. This title truly feels like the high-fantasy little sister that Borderlands can be proud exists.
Doom: The Dark Agestakes all the heavy metal and carnage the franchise is known for and wraps it in a dark medieval fantasy coat. Players still have a monstrous variety of guns to blow enemies to pieces; they also now have a shield they’ll need to work into the mix.
This shield can be used to block, parry, and throw at enemies. While this shield spins like a buzzsaw while stuck in the chest of an enemy, players can pile on even more damage. This makes forone of the most engaging and high-octaneDoomgamesyet.
WhileDoom: The Dark Agesmixes both fantasy and shooter energy flawlessly, it still puts players in the mindset of a fast-paced shooter.Witchfirealso blends both elements perfectly but will have players backing up and jumping around as if they were playing anElder Scrollstitle. There are plenty of necromantic and otherworldly elements in the world — such as flying pirate ships.
However, when it comes to gameplay, players will have a range of witch hunter-style classes. Each havingdifferent stat point allocationsand firearms. While the shooting combat is still fast-paced, it slows things down a bit to enjoy the macabre serenity of the world.
Choosing betweenWitchfireandDoom: The Dark Agesfor the number 1 spot on this list is no easy task; both of them are incredible and many will takeDoomevery day of the week. However,Witchfirefeels like it accomplishes mixing fantasy and firearms in equal amounts, rather than one that is a shooter first.
