15 Action First-Person Shooter Games Like 'Borderlands 3'

This one may seem obvious, but many people who played 'Borderlands 3' have never touched the games that came before it. We know that because the game sold 50% more copies than 'Borderlands 2' in just five days. Fans of the series describe the new game as a sort of polished version of the second one but just for the sake of context and experiencing some similar mechanics, it’s definitely worth giving 'Borderlands 2' a try.

Borderlands 3 is a game that people take seriously, but it doesn’t take itself too seriously. The exact same can be said for Gearbox’s Bulletstorm. Just aesthetically, it looks like your average game but peels back a layer and you’ll see that that’s not the case at all. The game rewards you for killing in creative ways. The tone is so similar to the Borderlands series that you get the feeling that Stygia might be very close to Pandora.

Aesthetically, Halo looks quite a lot like Borderlands 3 in some places, but it’s Bungie’s other game Destiny 2 that is a more similar gaming experience. Destiny 2 takes Halo’s best elements like its shooting and puts it into an open world that might give you flashbacks of Pandora. The better equipment and armor you get, the better you’ll do against the swarms of varying kinds of enemies. Pick up and play a free version with a friend too.

For those who already have some knowledge about Diablo, it might not seem like the right fit for this list. But at the end of the day, people like Borderlands 3 for different reasons. Fans have joked that Borderlands is like Diablo if it were an FPS, and that’s actually fairly accurate. The game’s plot is infamously iffy, but aspects of the gameplay like collecting loot and destroying hordes of enemies will give you a similar buzz to Borderlands 3.

Dying Light is the result of Techland taking what they learnt from doing the Dead Island series and applying it to a more smoother zombie survival experience. It is arguably the best zombie game out there. Although the characters in Dying Light are a bit blander than Borderlands 3, how could they not be? The combat is still more fluid and the campaign is especially immersive.

There are differing opinions about the best game in the Fallout series, but with some of the changes it made for its fourth title, it’s certainly the best if you’re looking to recreate the buzz of Borderlands 3. Fallout 4 comes across less like an RPG and more like a dungeon crawler due to its shift in focus from making decisions to exploration and combat. If you were a fan of just how many weapons there were in Borderlands 3, Fallout 4’s weapon modifications will rival it and the S.P.E.C.I.A.L. skill point system is perfect for leveling up.

Although at a quick glance it might look like it would be a totally different gaming experience to Borderlands 3, Path Of Exile shares a few similar elements in that it has quite an advanced loot system and you fight enemies in large waves. It might not be an FPS but just like Borderlands 3, you can play the entire thing through with friends and just like Borderlands 3, the world is like nothing you’ve seen before. Oh, it’s also free.

Payday 2 is probably meant to be played more tactically and in a stealth-like manner than Borderlands 3, but you’re well within your rights to do away with all of that if that’s your thing. The reactive heists that you play through with friends take skill to figure out and as you work your way through the skill tree, you’ll find out what the best way to rob a bank is.

Things with Borderlands 3 can get a little hectic at times, especially if you chose the overly aggressive Amara: The Siren as your Vault Hunter. If that’s your kind of thing, then it’s worth giving Rage 2 a shot. The games share more than just aesthetics. Sometimes the best way to play Rage 2 is to spray everything in sight. Rage 2 also takes a light-hearted approach to an otherwise serious world in which fans of Borderlands 3’s tongue-in-cheek humor will appreciate.

Risk Of Rain 2 and Borderlands 3 are similar right off the bat because they both look like something out of a comic book. But the similarities don’t end there. This game sees you fight your way through an onslaught of enemies to pick up loot that varies in how useful it is. The boss fights require strategy and just feel spectacular. There’s also a four-player co-op mode. Risk Of Rain 2 feels like a smaller scale Borderlands game.

I picked the remastered version of The Second Encounter because it’s from 2010 but truthfully, the entire Serious Sam series is worth a look. Things kicked off with it in the early 2000s but nothing has been quite like it since. Its tone is humorous and the weapon selection is more than respectable given the times – you can kill enemies with explosives, flamethrowers, chainsaws, etc. The whacky world of Croteam’s series should satisfy you.

Obsidian Entertainment’s The Outer Worlds has some striking resemblances to the Borderlands series, largely in its weapon variants and the communication between characters. Though there are nowhere nearly as many weapons as Borderlands 3, how creative the guns are more than makes up for that. The dialogue has a daft tone to it in the most complimentary way possible.

This game is essentially a shooter RPG but looting is an incredibly important part of it. The game takes place in a dystopian Washington, D.C. and is one of the more serious, tactical shooters you can play. The environment makes for a chaotic feel. Just like Borderlands 3, you can take on the dark task with a friend and if higher stakes and more valuable loot is your thing, then trying out Dark Zones is a must.

Warframe is a third-person action science-fiction game that continues to grow in popularity, boasting tens of millions of registered players across its many platforms. This is largely because it’s free to play, but don’t sleep on the gameplay. Once you get yourself used to the game’s complex systems, it’s a blast. There are dozens of different frames to choose from and you can always upgrade your frame and further your capabilities.

Wolfenstein: Youngblood is a bit of a stray away from the main series and focuses more on co-op as opposed to a solo campaign. Instead of being BJ Blazkowicz, you’ll take on the role of his daughters who are just like their father in all the best ways. In a nutshell, the game takes place in an open world, killing enemies helps you level up and side quests provide just as much entertainment as the main storyline.