Skip to Content
Tier
Tier Your gaming journal
Get
Best games

Best Shooter games of 2012

The 17 best Shooter games released in 2012, ranked from 11,624 critic and player ratings.

The best Shooter game of 2012 is Far Cry 3, with a critic score of 90/100 — updated November 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 80 external ratings, so a single enthusiastic review never outranks a proven classic.
  • Each game is ranked in one genre only, the one that defines it best, so the same title never tops two different genre charts.
  • 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: 2012.
  • 17 games are listed on this page, carrying 11,624 ratings between them.
  • Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 13 November 2026.

Top 17

Played them? Give your tier with the + next to each game. No account needed to try — create one to keep your tiers.

01 Far Cry 3 A Far Cry 3 2012 · 2,243 ratings · 11 Tier votes · finished by 38% · 16 h to beat Explore an island playground as stunningly beautiful as it is diverse – from mountain ranges to swampy grasslands and white sandy beaches. Fight your way through the island’s towns, temples, river ports and more. Encounter a diverse and realistic cast of characters, including one of Far Cry’s most notorious villains: Vaas Montenegro. Dive into this deep and enriching story where morals are questionable and hope is all but abandoned. 90 /100
02 Max Payne 3 S Max Payne 3 2012 · 1,166 ratings · 2 Tier votes Max Payne 3 is a third-person shooter in which the player assumes the role of its titular character, Max Payne. A new feature to the series, introduced in Max Payne 3, is the cover system, which allows players to gain a tactical advantage, and avoid taking damage from enemies. To progress through the linear story, players take on enemies throughout levels. The game features interactive cutscenes which transition seamlessly into continuing gameplay; there are no loading screens across gameplay and cutscenes. 89 /100
03 Kid Icarus: Uprising Kid Icarus: Uprising 2012 · 91 ratings One of the most beloved franchises in Nintendos long history makes its glorious return in spectacular 3D! Pit of Kid Icarus fame is back in a new game designed specifically for the Nintendo 3DS system, by Masahiro Sakurai, creator of the Kirby and Super Smash Bros. franchises, and his development team at Project Sora. Kid Icarus: Uprising is a fast-paced and action-packed blend of aerial and ground-based shooting built on elegantly intuitive and streamlined play control. This follow-up to the original Kid Icarus released for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1987 has been at the top of gamers wish lists for years. Boasting gameplay that is easy to pick up but incredibly deep, the game is sure to satisfy novice gamers as well as fans who have been clamouring for a new installment in the franchise. The hero, Pit, teams up with Palutena, the goddess of light, who bestows on him the miracle of flight for limited stretches. With this gift, Pit soars through the skies, shooting down swarms of enemies, then alights and engages in frantic ground-based battles against Medusas underworld army. Find and collect numerous weapons and items that offer bonuses and ability boosts. Players can choose weapons before they send Pit into battle, giving them countless layers of strategies in each level. Players can choose between a basic Blade, basic Claws and a basic Orbitar weapon. Blades are well-balanced, Claws have limited reach but increase running speed and the Orbitars can shoot two shots that grow in power over distance. 88 /100
04 Halo 4 Halo 4 2012 · 547 ratings · finished by 29% Halo 4 marks the start of an epic new saga within the award-winning Halo universe. The Master Chief returns in this award-winning first-person shooter developed by 343 Industries. Shipwrecked on a mysterious world, faced with new enemies and deadly technology, the Chief returns to battle against an ancient evil bent on vengeance and annihilation...the universe will never be the same. 88 /100
05 Hotline Miami A Hotline Miami 2012 · 1,274 ratings · 1 Tier vote · finished by 25% · 5 h to beat A top-down slasher/shooter with unlockable gameplay-altering masks and weapons, featuring a neon-flavoured electronic aesthetic, in which a hitman receives anonymous calls ordering him to travel to certain residences and crime dens and massacre those within, as he stumbles through unreal visions and inconsistencies without any answers to how, why or who. 86 /100
06 PlanetSide 2 PlanetSide 2 2012 · 112 ratings · finished by 2% PlanetSide 2 is a Massively Multiplayer first person shooter that delivers truly epic, massive combat on a scale never before seen in stunning, breathtaking detail. Battles take place not between dozens of troops, but thousands; with air and ground vehicles slugging it out alongside squads of troops. Whether in open fields, tightly-packed urban centers or enormous structures, winning requires strategic teamwork and a quick trigger finger. 83 /100
07 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive C Counter-Strike: Global Offensive 2012 · 1,353 ratings · 6 Tier votes · finished by 8% · 64 h to beat Counter-Strike: Global Offensive expands upon the team-based action gameplay that it pioneered when it was launched over 2 decades ago. CS:GO features new maps, characters, weapons, and game modes, and delivers updated versions of the classic CS content (de_dust2, etc.). 81 /100
08 Borderlands 2 Borderlands 2 2012 · 1,875 ratings · finished by 18% · 11 h to beat A new era of shoot and loot is about to begin. Play as one of four new vault hunters facing off against a massive new world of creatures, psychos and the evil mastermind, Handsome Jack. Make new friends, arm them with a bazillion weapons and fight alongside them in 4 player co-op on a relentless quest for revenge and redemption across the undiscovered and unpredictable living planet. 81 /100
09 Syndicate (2012) Syndicate (2012) 2012 · 137 ratings Set in 2069, Syndicate takes players into a dark, Machiavellian world run without government oversight with many syndicates vying for total dominance of their local market place. With no one to question their intentions or actions, three mega corporations - Eurocorp, Cayman Global, and Aspari - are at the forefront of this brutal war for control of the pivotal American market. In the world of Syndicate, everything is digitally connected, including the people. Players aren't limited to the weapons in their hands. Through DART 6 bio-chip technology implanted in their head, players can slow down time and breach the digital world around them to take down their foes using a variety of upgradable hacking mechanics. Syndicate's blend of fast-paced, futuristic, action shooter settings and story combined with innovative chip breach gameplay instantly immerses players in a unique digital world. 79 /100
10 Spec Ops: The Line D Spec Ops: The Line 2012 · 923 ratings · 1 Tier vote · finished by 21% · 6 h to beat A third-person shooter in which three American soldiers led by Capt. Walker are sent to Dubai in order to recover whoever remains of an infantry unit, the 33rd Battalion, until they decide to take action against the militants situated in the city. As they progress, however, the logistical and ethical complexity of their objective deepens, and their perception of themselves, and their enemy, is put into question. 77 /100
11 The Darkness II The Darkness II 2012 · 255 ratings 77 /100
12 Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Future Soldier 2012 · 110 ratings 75 /100
13 Binary Domain Binary Domain 2012 · 113 ratings · finished by 9% 72 /100
14 Call of Duty: Black Ops II A Call of Duty: Black Ops II 2012 · 928 ratings · 13 Tier votes 70 /100
15 Sniper Elite V2 S Sniper Elite V2 2012 · 241 ratings · 1 Tier vote · finished by 10% 67 /100
16 Medal of Honor: Warfighter Medal of Honor: Warfighter 2012 · 162 ratings 49 /100
17 Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City B Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City 2012 · 94 ratings · 1 Tier vote 44 /100
Browse all Shooter games

Other years

Best Shooter games of 2025Best Shooter games of 2024Best Shooter games of 2023Best Shooter games of 2022Best Shooter games of 2021Best Shooter games of 2020Best Shooter games of 2019Best Shooter games of 2018Best Shooter games of 2017Best Shooter games of 2016Best Shooter games of 2015Best Shooter games of 2014

Same year, other platforms

Best PC games of 2012Best Xbox 360 games of 2012Best PlayStation 3 games of 2012Best Mac games of 2012Best Linux games of 2012Best iOS games of 2012Best Android games of 2012Best PS Vita games of 2012Best Wii U games of 2012Best Nintendo 3DS games of 2012Best Wii games of 2012

Nearby rankings

Best Shooter games of 2011Best Shooter games of 2013Best Platformer games of 2012Best RPG games of 2012Best Strategy games of 2012

Catalog statistics

Most abandoned gamesMost completed games

Frequently asked questions

What is the best Shooter game of 2012?

Far Cry 3 currently tops the ranking with a score of 90/100 across 2,243 ratings. It holds a A grade from the Tier community — updated November 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.