25 best multiplayer games

The rise of multiplayer projects occurred in the early 2010s. Since then, they have not lost popularity among players. The market is filled with dozens, possibly even hundreds of titles where users can not only have fun with friends but also compete against other players.

How can you navigate this vast assortment offered by Steam, Xbox Game Pass, EGS, and other platforms? You’ll find the answer in our article, where we've selected the 25 best multiplayer games.

Helldivers 2

Image: Ensiplay

We'll start our selection with a project that has been generating buzz since its release. Despite a controversy with the publisher, users worldwide are uniting in Helldivers 2 to protect Super-Earth from hordes of hostile creatures.

This multiplayer third-person shooter offers players a simple gameplay formula: four players must defend objectives on the map, complete various missions. However, with each minute of combat, the number of enemies increases, and at some point, the session starts to resemble scenes from "Starship Troopers", "Terminator". The detailed explosions and particles make it look truly impressive!

Overwatch 2

Image: mirror.co.uk

Overwatch 2 developers have introduced numerous improvements, enhanced the graphics. The primary change is the reduction in team size to five players, making battles more dynamic, faster, and increasing each player's responsibility.

The shooter features team-based battles on various maps, each with specific objectives such as capture the flag, control the point, and escort missions. Nearly 40 heroes with different characteristics, roles — tanks, support fighters, high-damage dealers — are available, making each game session unique, different from the previous ones.

If you enjoy "hero shooters", Overwatch 2 is definitely the best representative of this genre.

Fortnite

Image: express.co.uk 

The legend of battle royale. It may not have been the first, but nearly every player knows about it: millions of players log in daily from around the world. The game has become an absolute phenomenon in the gaming industry: collaborations with famous brands, franchises, pop culture stars, and more, virtual concerts, and of course, energetic gameplay. In Fortnite, more events happen in 10 seconds than in 10 minutes in any other shooter.

Grand Theft Auto Online

Image: rockstargames.com

GTA Online was released over ten years ago but remains popular with a high online presence! This is not surprising, as the developers gave gamers the ability to create custom servers with their own rules.

You’ll find servers with role-playing models where players must behave in certain ways and sandbox servers whose only purpose is to have fun, create chaos. GTA Online is a place where you'll never get bored!

Because of this, the game has built a huge community, interest in it is unlikely to fade anytime soon.

Diablo 4

Image: uhdpaper.com

The community still has mixed opinions about this title: some praise the developers for the quality storyline, updated graphics, intense mob battles, while others criticize the game for its monetization system and the high cost of in-game items.

Nevertheless, Diablo 4 remains a titan in its genre. In some aspects, it is designed for single-player gameplay, but its multiplayer component is well-developed: PvP battles, boss raids, guild creation, and teaming up with other players to complete challenging quests. The visual aspect is also top-notch: detailed character, object models, dark, gothic locations, advanced lighting, shadows.

Counter-Strike 2

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CS has grown from a simple Half-Life mod into a game with a massive community and its own esports discipline. Unlike "hero shooters", there are no unique abilities or characteristics here. Everything is based solely on gameplay experience, map knowledge, reaction time. However, even novice users will find their place, as hundreds of thousands of players with different skill levels log in daily.

If you dislike cartoonish graphics, flashy designs, and prefer something simple, straightforward, this shooter, already a classic, will be an excellent choice.

Lethal Company

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This game replicated the phenomenon of "Among Us", which was unknown at release but gained explosive popularity thanks to streamers. Lethal Company allows four players to team up and collect items on different planets to accumulate points called "Profit quota".

The main feature of these expeditions is that monsters roam the locations, ready to drag resource seekers into their dark lairs. However, the best part of the project is the voice chat, interaction with teammates. All this combined will give players extraordinary emotions — fear from the dark, grim atmosphere, and fun from team communication.

Mortal Kombat 1

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MK is the perfect project for playing with others. Almost every player knows the gameplay concept — two fighters meet in an arena and engage in close combat using various abilities until the last drop of blood. The multiplayer mode allows you to showcase your skill level to other people.

The latest game in the series has introduced many innovations: improved graphics, detailed environments, characters, their abilities, a new "Invasion" mode, which the developers describe as an RPG. Mortal Kombat features a low entry barrier — newcomers can easily understand it, yet it has many deep mechanics that professional players consider in esports: animation speed, attack interruption, cameos, breakers, and much more.

EA Sports FC ’24

Image: ea.com

The game features a vast number of teams, athletes, allowing each player to assemble a squad to their liking. Many footballers have gained individuality through what is called a playing style, which directly affects gameplay and adds unique characteristics to the heroes. Additionally, female footballers have been included, significantly expanding the pool of players available for club selection.

Currently, EA Sports FC ’24 is considered one of the best football simulators for both single-player, multiplayer modes, where users can test their team’s strength in matches against other users.

Fall Guys

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This project is pure fun. Its essence is simple yet brilliant — 40 players must navigate several obstacle courses. Whoever survives wins. You can grab, push, obstruct your opponents in any way to prevent them from reaching the end of the level. There are also challenges where players need to temporarily team up with opponents for a common goal.

All of this is presented in a visually appealing cartoon style that can't be taken seriously. The soft, smooth environment, light, unobtrusive colors, music — all are designed for relaxation, enjoyment. The elimination-style gameplay can captivate users for a long time.

The Elder Scrolls Online

Image: elderscrollsonline.com

The wait for the sixth Elder Scrolls game has become a meme. Users have explored every corner of Skyrim, and modders continue to release dozens, hundreds of mods for the fifth project in the series. However, only TES Online can offer the experience of traveling through Tamriel with friends. It has all the elements of a high-quality and well-developed MMORPG: crafting, raids, PvP battles with other players.

If you're tired of the original single-player titles in the series but are still captivated by the world and setting, this project will be a great find for you.

Deep Rock Galactic

Image: deeprockgalactic.com

This project combines many elements that users love: procedurally generated levels, exploration, and destructible environments. Players take on the role of beings resembling the classic dwarves from "The Lord of the Rings" who have discovered interstellar travel and found a resource-rich planet. What needs to be done? That's right! Defend yourself from hostile creatures while mining all the minerals you can find!

THE FINALS

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This stylish team-based shooter has a standout feature: environmental destructibility. It's no surprise, given that the project was developed by former DICE members who worked on Battlefield. In terms of gameplay objectives, which players must complete on various maps, the project resembles Payday: in the main modes, players need to steal a money box, carry it to a special receiver, and wait for the funds to be credited to the team's account.

On one hand, THE FINALS captivates with dynamic gameplay, explosions that can make holes in almost any wall; on the other hand, it offers ample opportunities for strategic defense necessary to protect the money transfer: turrets, mines, and various traps are available.

Highly recommended for those tired of classic, mainstream online shooters.

Minecraft

Image: Ensiplay

Not everyone likes the cubic style of Minecraft, but millions of people still play it, and the franchise continues to evolve. Gameplay-wise, it’s an open-world survival simulator with all the classic elements of the genre: crafting, hunger indicators, base building, improvement.

However, the project has gained its popularity not just for these reasons. Like GTA Online, developers have allowed users to create their servers, modifications. As a result, the community continues to grow, with hundreds of unique worlds available, ensuring that every player can find something to their liking.

Left 4 Dead 2

Image: metacritic.com

This legendary title from Valve couldn’t be left out of our list! A lot of years after its release, servers are still alive, and many users continue to fend off hordes of zombies while making their way to safety.

The game features extremely dynamic. The zombies here are not heavy armored creatures like in Resident Evil, but frighteningly fast fiends attacking in hordes that you can't beat alone. Moreover, special enemies can neutralize one of the survivors, and since almost all activities require teamwork, players must engage in close cooperation on every level.

Valorant

Image: overclockers.ru

This highly stylish shooter from Riot Games is a mix of classic Counter-Strike + Overwatch. While incorporating the best elements of these titles, Valorant still stands out: numerous unique agents with special abilities, more dynamic, refined shooting mechanics, matchmaking, a "smart" ranking system, which we discussed in one of our articles.

Therefore, Valorant will appeal to users looking for an unusual and new experience from online shooters.

Party Animals

Image: m.taptap.io

The next project on our list is a spiritual successor to Fall Guys, but from different developers. Players choose one of the small, cute animals to participate in a brutal elimination title where you can push, grab, and throw opponents off the map. It’s a surprising, impressive spectacle!

The gameplay concept is simple but noticeably different from its inspirer. The animals can engage in serious fights, and the levels are not just obstacle courses but standalone locations.

Whether you want to have fun with friends or random online players, Party Animals will be an excellent source of entertainment for many hours.

Rainbow Six: Siege

Image: reddit.com

This project from Ubisoft is quite a unique find in the market. Rainbow Six: Siege is a tactical shooter with partial environmental destructibility, immense variability. Each of the two teams has a wide range of tools, accessories to help in combat and various strategies.

Planning here is even more important than accurate shooting, and often, a match can be won simply because every move was calculated like a chess game. The emotions from defeating an opponent not with a burst from an SMG but with clever strategy are unparalleled in almost any session-based shooter.

League of Legends

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LoL was immediately compared to Dota upon its release. At that time, MOBA games were just gaining popularity, and the niche was gradually filling with projects of varying levels. League of Legends has long proven its quality — millions of players still play this game, it inspired an animated series, and there is even a mobile version.

The title is not as tough as Dota 2: the battles here are faster, more dynamic, and rounds last up to 25–30 minutes.

The project from Riot Games is ideal for getting acquainted with the genre both on PC + on smartphones, tablets, where the version is available under the name Wild Rift.

Warframe

Image: warframe.com

This session-based shooter lets you feel like a cyber ninja, completing various missions, collecting resources, and items for upgrading. You can fight in close combat with a high-tech katana or with ranged weapons, whose arsenal will impress even seasoned users.

The title has many elements typical of MMORPGs: leveling up, clans, player trading, a class system known as Warframes. There are 40 Warframes in the project, so players can choose a fighter that suits their playstyle.

Warframe is perfect for players who love action, fast-paced gameplay similar to "hack and slash" and want to dive into a science fiction setting.

Hunt: Showdown

Image: usatoday.com

Another unique entry in the battle royale genre, but without dynamic gunfights or fast-paced battles. The action takes place in an alternate 19th-century Louisiana, with players taking on the roles of bounty hunters.

The setting justifies the slow pace of the game: every action must be carefully considered, with constant vigilance, listening, as monsters or other hunters could be nearby.

Unlike the fun-filled Fortnite, Hunt: Showdown is a horror where one mistake means permanent death for your character. While this may seem like a harsh punishment, the adrenaline rush is incredible!

We highly recommend it to thrill-seekers and those who enjoy challenging trials.

Among Us

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Among Us is known for its explosive popularity, which has now waned a bit, but the fun remains unchanged. The title captivates with its comedic, absurd situations. There is no complex gameplay: puzzles are simple, the visual style is minimalistic, and the objective on the map is clear: find the impostor before they find you.

The gameplay is heavily based on communication with team members, and the chat is one of the main, decisive features, making the project a hit among users who love interacting with other players.

Tekken 8

Image: xbox.com

The Tekken series is less brutal, bloody compared to Ninja Theory's projects, and the latest installment has reached such a grand scale that its epicness borders on grandiosity.

However, this does not prevent it from remaining one of the best fighting projects. Among people, it is considered quite hardcore, with a higher entry threshold than Mortal Kombat.

The developers have done everything possible in the eighth installment to help new users get accustomed to the game quickly: a very detailed tutorial, the new "Heat" mechanic, which allows players to regain health through special moves. The gameplay itself has become significantly faster and more aggressive than in previous parts, making Tekken 8 an excellent introduction to the genre.

Apex Legends

Image: ea.com

A gem in the battle royale genre, capable of rivaling Fortnite. The title has unique features that set it apart from competitors: a character system with unique skills, progression, a more serious setting, and mechanics that heavily rely on team interaction. Since the shooter was developed by Respawn, the creators of Titanfall, there is no doubt about the quality of the shooting and the balance of the gameplay.

Overcooked! 2

Image: riotpixels.com

This unusual simulator of the tough life of kitchen workers is both simple and complex at the same time. At first glance, the gameplay seems straightforward: a team of four players needs to cook dishes from various ingredients + fulfill orders. But the real fun begins when players need to assign roles in the virtual kitchen, perform their duties precisely, and react almost instantly.

The project is great for playing with friends, which is especially fun, and constant communication, cooperation only strengthen friendships. It also offers several modes, both PvP + cooperative, for online play with other players.

We hope you enjoyed our selection of the best multiplayer games.

Main image: youtube.com/@MKIceAndFire