Best games
Best Shooter games of 1992
The 8 best Shooter games released in 1992, ranked from 1,045 critic and player ratings.
The best Shooter game of 1992 is Wolfenstein 3D, with a critic score of 80/100 — updated September 2026.
How this ranking is built
- Games are ranked on the aggregated critic score out of 100 imported from IGDB and Metacritic, never on Tier's own grades.
- A game only enters the ranking with at least 30 external ratings, so a single enthusiastic review never outranks a proven classic.
- Community grades from F to S are shown next to every game, and only stated as a fact above 5 Tier ratings.
- Release window covered: 1992.
- 8 games are listed on this page, carrying 1,045 ratings between them.
- Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 29 September 2026.
Top 8
01
Wolfenstein 3D
World War II rages. The Nazis are planning to build an unstoppable, mutant army. On a mission to steal the secret plans, you were captured and imprisoned. Now, a lucky break gives you the chance to escape, but a maze of passages and trigger-happy Nazis stand in your way.
80
/100
02
Aero Fighters
There are eight stages in this game. The beginning stages consists of randomly chosen areas from nations of unselected fighters (assuming those fighters have nations). If Rabio or Lepus is chosen, all four rival nation stages become playable. After completing all rival nation stages, there are four more stages. Player and team-specific endings occur after completing the first loop. After completing the 2nd loop, the ending consists of all pilot pairs giving a speech, with the second pilot in the last pair giving a cheat code.
81
/100
03
Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf
Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf, commonly known as Desert Strike, is a shoot 'em up video game released by Electronic Arts (EA) in February 1992 for Sega's Mega Drive. The game was later released on several other formats such as the SNES, including a much upgraded version for the Amiga home computer. The game was inspired by the Gulf War and depicts a conflict between an insane Middle Eastern dictator, General Kilbaba, and the United States. The player controls a lone Apache helicopter and attempts to destroy enemy weapons and installations, rescue hostages and capture enemy personnel, while managing supplies of fuel and ammunition.
79
/100
Wolfenstein 3D
World War II rages. The Nazis are planning to build an unstoppable, mutant army. On a mission to steal the secret plans, you were captured and imprisoned. Now, a lucky break gives you the chance to escape, but a maze of passages and trigger-happy Nazis stand in your way.
80
/100
02
Aero Fighters
There are eight stages in this game. The beginning stages consists of randomly chosen areas from nations of unselected fighters (assuming those fighters have nations). If Rabio or Lepus is chosen, all four rival nation stages become playable. After completing all rival nation stages, there are four more stages. Player and team-specific endings occur after completing the first loop. After completing the 2nd loop, the ending consists of all pilot pairs giving a speech, with the second pilot in the last pair giving a cheat code.
81
/100
03
Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf
Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf, commonly known as Desert Strike, is a shoot 'em up video game released by Electronic Arts (EA) in February 1992 for Sega's Mega Drive. The game was later released on several other formats such as the SNES, including a much upgraded version for the Amiga home computer. The game was inspired by the Gulf War and depicts a conflict between an insane Middle Eastern dictator, General Kilbaba, and the United States. The player controls a lone Apache helicopter and attempts to destroy enemy weapons and installations, rescue hostages and capture enemy personnel, while managing supplies of fuel and ammunition.
79
/100
04
Mega Man 5
In the fifth chapter of the original Mega Man series, the battle is closer to home as Mega Man fights to save the world from further destruction. Gain the advantage by picking up items and successfully defeating bosses to gain their weapons as your own. Get ready for intense action-platforming in 13 stages before taking up battle against Protoman!
77
/100
05
Contra Force
Contra Force is an action shooting game released by Konami for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1992 in North America. It is a spinoff of the Contra series, being the third game in the series released for the NES following the original Contra and Super Contra, although the game's plot and setting are unrelated to previous entries, as the villains in the game are human terrorists instead of an alien menace
71
/100
06
Contra III: The Alien Wars
This game is action from beginning to end, do not think that you will have a moment of peace, even because Aliens are at war with planet earth, and resting will be your least concern.
70
/100
07
Robocop 3
RoboCop 3 is a side-scrolling platform shooter. You get missions (such as rescuing your colleagues who are being kept hostages), which are divided into several smaller levels. The levels usually consist of several platforms, and are heavily populated by enemies who shoot at you. You can gather special repair kits, which will be used to restore your health after you've completed a level. "RoboCop 3" is more of a shooter than its predecessors, having more and tougher enemies.
63
/100
08
Wolfenstein 3D
Wolfenstein 3D is a first-person shooter presented with rudimentary 3D graphics and a follow-up to the top-down infiltration game Castle Wolfenstein. The game is broken up into levels, each of which is a flat plane divided into areas and rooms by a grid-based pattern of walls and doors, all of equal height. Each level is themed after Nazi bunkers and buildings. To finish a level, the player must traverse through the area to reach an elevator. Levels are grouped together into named episodes, with the final level focusing on a boss fight with a particularly difficult enemy. While traversing the levels, the player must fight Nazi guards and soldiers, dogs, and other enemies while managing supplies of ammunition and health. While the name was kept the same as the original release, this and future releases of the game came with the base campaign and the Nocturnal Missions expansion campaign together.
56
/100
Mega Man 5
In the fifth chapter of the original Mega Man series, the battle is closer to home as Mega Man fights to save the world from further destruction. Gain the advantage by picking up items and successfully defeating bosses to gain their weapons as your own. Get ready for intense action-platforming in 13 stages before taking up battle against Protoman!
77
/100
05
Contra Force
Contra Force is an action shooting game released by Konami for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1992 in North America. It is a spinoff of the Contra series, being the third game in the series released for the NES following the original Contra and Super Contra, although the game's plot and setting are unrelated to previous entries, as the villains in the game are human terrorists instead of an alien menace
71
/100
06
Contra III: The Alien Wars
This game is action from beginning to end, do not think that you will have a moment of peace, even because Aliens are at war with planet earth, and resting will be your least concern.
70
/100
07
Robocop 3
RoboCop 3 is a side-scrolling platform shooter. You get missions (such as rescuing your colleagues who are being kept hostages), which are divided into several smaller levels. The levels usually consist of several platforms, and are heavily populated by enemies who shoot at you. You can gather special repair kits, which will be used to restore your health after you've completed a level. "RoboCop 3" is more of a shooter than its predecessors, having more and tougher enemies.
63
/100
08
Wolfenstein 3D
Wolfenstein 3D is a first-person shooter presented with rudimentary 3D graphics and a follow-up to the top-down infiltration game Castle Wolfenstein. The game is broken up into levels, each of which is a flat plane divided into areas and rooms by a grid-based pattern of walls and doors, all of equal height. Each level is themed after Nazi bunkers and buildings. To finish a level, the player must traverse through the area to reach an elevator. Levels are grouped together into named episodes, with the final level focusing on a boss fight with a particularly difficult enemy. While traversing the levels, the player must fight Nazi guards and soldiers, dogs, and other enemies while managing supplies of ammunition and health. While the name was kept the same as the original release, this and future releases of the game came with the base campaign and the Nocturnal Missions expansion campaign together.
56
/100
Frequently asked questions
What is the best Shooter game of 1992?
Wolfenstein 3D currently tops the ranking with a score of 80/100 across 355 ratings. Ranking updated September 2026.
How is this ranking built?
Games are ranked on their aggregated critic score out of 100, with a minimum vote threshold so a single glowing review never outranks a proven classic; the Tier community's own F-to-S grades are shown alongside each game.