The 8 best extraction shooters -

One of the most popular new genres in gaming is undoubtedly the extraction shooter. It is a battle royale-inspired genre that revolves around storming a level, getting as much as possible out of it, and getting the hell out.

8. Dark and Darker

After suffering more than a few controversies and legal battles, Dark and Darker remains a favorite among many fans of extraction shooters. Though not a “shooter” per se, seeing as it’s a fantasy RPG, it still has those elements that make an extraction shooter: looting and extractions. Players can continue down levels that offer more loot but are more dangerous and are always on the lookout for a shrinking zone, funneling them forward.

It’s a real gem; it offers tight, crisp, and satisfying fantasy gameplay with myriad classes and weapons. It isn’t available on Steam due to the legal issues we’ve mentioned, but it’s nonetheless available on Ironmace’s website and playable through its launcher.

7. Quasimorph

Brutal, gory, turn-based, asymmetric, horror-infused extraction shooter? Who wouldn’t like to experience that? Quasimorph is a unique title, combining elements of several genres to create a fantastic-looking, playing, and sounding game that can run on just about any machine out there. Players take control of a private military contractor fighting clones in space in a very grotesque fashion.

It’s an Early Access title, and that comes with its own implications, but we can safely say this game is worth the $20 price tag even now. It has enough content and fun to justify it, and there’s a lot more to come with developers Magnum Scriptum planning to release new missions, planets, systems, and more across 2024.

6. Marauders

Unique concept after unique concept, the extraction shooter genre seems to have it all. Marauders is a fantastic example of combining several settings and concepts to create something most people could never have thought of. Set in a world where World War I never ended, Marauders revolves around players exploring space to gather resources since none are left on wartorn Earth.

Players are basically space pirates armed with ancient but somewhat upgraded weaponry, scouring derelict spaceships with dangers lurking around every corner. There are a couple of game modes to choose from, with the primary one being the usual extraction shooter shenanigans, where players enter ships, get loot, and escape via extraction points. It’s available on Steam.

5. Zero Sievert

Zero Sievert is a post-apocalyptic, top-down extraction shooter with players exploring procedurally generated environments doing the usual extraction shooter stuff. Loot is scattered across the world, you can pick it up from dead enemies, and it’s all-in-all a tense and challenging game that only appears simple on the surface.

When I first looked at Zero Sievert, I was reminded of the olden days of Flash games, whose style closely resembles that era. Given how popular the game is among extraction shooter fans, it makes me happy that such a style still prevails in 2024.

4. Deceive Inc.

Offering a spin on the classic extraction shooter genre elements, Deceive Inc. is basically Spy Fortress 2. Players take the role of one of the available agents and apply all sorts of trickery to reach the objective and extract with the loot.

It’s vastly different from games like Marauders or Escape from Tarkov seeing as there is no permadeath, loot loss, or anything of the sort. Deceive Inc. may be the perfect choice for those who like to play with friends and get a more laidback experience from extraction games.

3. Escape from Tarkov

Escape from Tarkov can essentially be viewed as the benchmark for extraction shooter games. Entries in the genre are gauged by how similar or different they are from Tarkov. Its reputation among enthusiasts of realistic, gritty, and down-to-earth shooters is unprecedented and it can easily be put in the same weight class as mil-sim classics like ARMA.

It is aimed at more hardcore players, with the game barely assisting newcomers. It’s a grueling experience but it is often rewarding and resembles old-school shooters where skill was earned through blood, sweat, and tears. As soon as you adjust to the fact that you’ll die and lose your loot more often than not, the game becomes genuinely fun despite all the hurdles it throws at you. Escape from Tarkov isn’t on Steam—you’ll need to get the game’s launcher to access it.

2. Deep Rock Galactic

Deep Rock Galactic is set in a universe where dwarves, the most industrious of fantasy races, discovered faster-than-light travel. Once up there, they naturally created a system of conglomerate megacorporations that care little for dwarven lives and use them to exploit planets for rare resources.

It’s not a traditional extraction shooter and more closely resembles Left 4 Dead, but it does have the usual get-in and get-out type of gameplay that has become a staple of the extraction shooter genre. There are four classes, or characters, to choose from and countless levels that you can explore. Not only that, the developers pride themselves on never including any microtransactions besides cosmetic DLC (some of which are pretty decent-looking). So, if you’re in the market for a weird blend of L4D and extraction mechanics, Deep Rock Galactic is for you.

1. Hunt: Showdown

If you thought Crytek was only capable of creating what was possibly the biggest gaming graphics achievement in gaming history, you were dead wrong. I mean, though it has been outmatched in the years following, Crysis still holds up, and its level of impact as a game of high fidelity echoes even today. But I digress, as Crytek has done a lot more in the meantime since Crysis‘ release.

Enter Hunt: Showdown. A Gothic Horror PvPvE extraction shooter set in the American South during the Civil War era. It has players clashing against each other on a tight map, where they must look for clues to defeat the map boss (or bosses) and extract the loot. It contains elements of numerous genres, is a challenging fps with a high skill cap, and takes a lot of strategizing and tactics to overcome. It’s a fantastic game, especially when played with friends, and there is nothing like it on the market right now.

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