One would think that a third-person shooter would be more forgiving than a first-person shooter. After all, players get a wider perspective and more time to react to threats. But for certain games, the opposite is true. Third-person shooters can be just as difficult or even more so, compared to their first-person counterparts.
That's because plenty of horror games are set in the third-person so that players can see more and be more afraid. Granted, not all of them are set in the horror genre. Some third-person shooters are simply made of sterner stuff. That's why it's best not to underestimate the following titles.
8 Dead Space
- Release year: 2008
- Platforms: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Cloud Gaming
Dead Space was such a horror cornerstone that it easily deserved a high-quality remake which is coming out in 2023, thankfully. It was a unique idea that combined several successful genres and mechanics such as Resident Evil's sluggish gunplay and Alien's space horror.
The result was a frightening and traumatic experience that will keep players on their toes. Playing Dead Space for the first time will often result in numerous panicked deaths. Moreover, it also has some survival elements. For example, ammunition is scarce so players will need to be conservative with their guns, further compounding the game's difficulty.
7 PUBG: Battlegrounds
- Release year: 2016
- Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Android, iOS, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5
PUBG might not be the battle royale powerhouse it once was, but it still holds an important spot in gaming as a genre pioneer. Still, it's easy to see why a lot more players prefer alternatives such as Fortnite or Apex. PUBG's insistence on being a semi-simulation and adherence to realism makes the learning curve much higher.
Third-person movement can feel stiff, especially for people used to more agile animations and frames. Moreover, the nature of the gameplay loop itself means players usually don't always win. Fighting against 99 other players in a king-of-the-hill match typically yields low chances of success.
6 Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow
- Release year: 2004
- Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Xbox, Java
Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow is primarily a stealth-action game, but it does give players the chance to shoot silently as an elite spy and covert ops veteran, Sam Fisher. What makes it difficult compared to the succeeding Splinter Cell games is how it often prefers a path for players.
Deviating from said paths or lateral thinking and improvisation can often result in Sam Fisher getting killed or ruining his stealth run. By comparison, the newer Splinter Cell games gave players more freedom. Pandora Tomorrow often tasks players with finding the ideal gameplay avenue through trial and error to see which one the game prefers.
5 Control
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- Release year: 2019
- Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Amazon Luna, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Stadia
Control was one of the oddest sleeper hits of 2019 and this underrated gem follows the story of a janitor named Jesse who suddenly got promoted to an executive and now has to find her kidnapped brother inside her own office. It's a lot more serious than it sounds, okay?
In any case, Jesse's escapades in this Kafkaesque environment are mired with difficulties both in story and gameplay. Despite having some cool supernatural powers, her enemies are just as formidable. Most combat encounters in Control will throw swarms of enemies at Jesse. Coupled with some unforgiving checkpoints, it's easy to see why players often quit and complain.
4 Resident Evil: Code Veronica
- Release year: 2000
- Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 2, Dreamcast, GameCube, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Resident Evil: Code Veronica holds a special spot in many fans' hearts. It's among the most unanimously considered difficult Resident Evil games in existence, perhaps surpassed only by Outbreak (but that's due to poor AI). Code Veronica's difficulty spikes are deliberate attempts by developers to turn the players' lives into a gauntlet of hell.
In-game, there's a crippling scarcity of ammo and healing items paired with too many fetch puzzles. The map design was also tediously designed, forcing players to go from end to end just to place key items. Running past enemies is also tougher here since they seem to have an unfair grab range compared to other Resident Evil games.
3 Remnant: From The Ashes
- Release year: 2019
- Platforms: PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, Microsoft Windows
When Remnant: From the Ashes was released back in 2019, it quickly earned a notorious reputation as "Dark Souls with guns." The game might not be as difficult as its prime genre inspiration, but this Soulslike game was well-noted for its lack of explanations or instructions for its important mechanics.
At release, the game didn't explicitly tell players how its level adjustment system works. Thus, it's easy to ruin or handicap a playthrough by committing upgrades blindly, unlike in games like Dark Souls. Of course, the enemies and boss fights themselves are just as brutal. It's a Soulslike game, after all.
2 Returnal
- Release year: 2021
- Platforms: PlayStation 5
One would think that Returnal would make itself more accessible to a wider range of audiences on the consoles since it's one of the first few PlayStation 5 exclusives, but it chose to be a Roguelike game. That dip into the genre immediately gave Returnal an infamous shade, and those who decided to bite the bullet and play the pretty and shiny PS5 exclusive were in for a cruel surprise.
In true Roguelike fashion, Returnal made newbies quit due to the overbearing difficulty and having to restart all over again upon death. Returnal does have its strong points since it seamlessly ties its intriguing sci-fi plot into its gameplay, but the Roguelike mechanics can be a bit too much for many people.
1 Risk Of Rain 2
- Release year: 2019
- Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, Google Stadia
The first game could also count here, but Risk of Rain 2 has better graphics and more frenetic gameplay. It's close enough to Returnal since this one is also a Roguelike game. The big difference is that enemies scale in difficulty based on the player's items, so if players don't build their characters to be overpowered through passive stacking, it's easy to get overwhelmed.
In fact, a lot of players end up leaving Risk of Rain 2 after being unable to handle the difficulty spikes and the Roguelike mechanics. Don't be fooled by the vibrant graphics, Risk of Rain 2 is a nerve-wracking bullet hell game that demands ingenuity and a metric ton of perseverance from players.