Best 40 Action Games for PC: Ultimate List
- 4/11/2019

If you’re on the prowl for the best action games for PC, you can sit down, relax and look no further. The list below ranks top of the line PC-friendly action-packed games from cult classics to revolutionarily new titles that have already caught gamers’ attention. Challenging combat encounters, thrilling adventures, stunning visuals, fast-paced gameplay - these and countless other benefits await you within the below selection of the best PC action games of all time.
Pick the game you fancy from our Best 40 Action Games for PC list to enhance your game library and refine your online gaming experience.
- Counter-Strike
Release Date: Nov 8, 2000.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Modern, Tactical, Modern.
Developer: The Counter-Strike Team.
- Portal
Release Date: Oct 10, 2007.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: Valve Software.
- The Orange Box
Release Date: Oct 10, 2007.
Genres: Action, Shooter, Compilation, First-Person, Sci-Fi.
Developer: Valve Software.
- Half-Life 2
Release Date: Nov 16, 2004.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: Valve Software.
- Team Fortress 2
Release Date: Oct 10, 2007.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Modern, Tactical.
Developer: Valve Software.
- Day of Defeat: Source
Release Date: Sep 26, 2005.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Historic, Tactical, Arcade.
Developer: Valve Software.
- Max Payne
Release Date: Jul 23, 2001.
Genres: Action, Shooter, Third-Person, Modern, Arcade.
Developer: Remedy Entertainment.
- Left 4 Dead
Release Date: Nov 17, 2008.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: Valve Software.
- Unreal Tournament
Release Date: Nov 30, 1999.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: Epic Games.
- Black Mesa
Release Date: Sep 14, 2012.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: Black Mesa Modification Team.
- Doom II
Release Date: Sep 30, 1994.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: id Software.
- VANQUISH
Release Date: May 25, 2017.
Genres: Action, Shooter, Third-Person, Arcade.
Developer: PlatinumGames.
- Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory
Release Date: May 29, 2003.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Historic, Arcade.
Developer: Splash Damage.
- Quake
Release Date: Jun 22, 1996.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: id Software.
- Psychonauts
Release Date: Apr 19, 2005.
Genres: Action, Platformer, 3D.
Developer: Double Fine Productions.
- The Operative: No One Lives Forever
Release Date: Nov 11, 2000.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Modern, Arcade.
Developer: Monolith Productions.
- Clive Barker’s Undying
Release Date: Feb 21, 2001.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Fantasy, Arcade.
Developer: Dreamworks Games.
- Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis
Release Date: Aug 30, 2001.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Tactical, Modern.
Developer: Bohemia Interactive.
- Blood
Release Date: May 31, 1997.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Modern, Arcade.
Developer: Monolith Productions.
- Hidden & Dangerous 2
Release Date: Oct 21, 2003.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Tactical, Historic.
Developer: Illusion Softworks.
- G-Force
Release Date: Jul 21, 2009.
Genres: Action, 3D.
Developer: Eurocom Entertainment Software, Eurocom.
- Ori and the Blind Forest
Release Date: Mar 11, 2015.
Genres: Action, Platformer, 2D.
Developer: Moon Studios.
- S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat
Release Date: Feb 2, 2010.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: GSC Game World.
- Mortal Kombat Komplete Edition
Release Date: Jul 3, 2013.
Genres: Action, Combar, 2D.
Developer: NetherRealm Studios.
- Duke Nukem 3D
Release Date: Jan 29, 1996.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: 3D Realms.
- Aliens versus Predator 2
Release Date: Oct 31, 2001.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: Monolith Productions.
- Braid
Release Date: Apr 10, 2009.
Genres: Action, Platformer, 2D.
Developer: Number None Inc., Knockout Games.
- INSIDE
Release Date: Jul 7, 2016.
Genres: Action, Platformer, 2D.
Developer: PLAYDEAD.
- Hotline Miami
Release Date: Oct 23, 2012.
Genres: Action, Action Adventure.
Developer: Dennaton.
- Insurgency
Release Date: Mar 1, 2013.
Genres: Shooter, Modern, Action, First-Person, Tactical.
Developer: New World Interactive.
- The Swapper
Release Date: May 30, 2013.
Genres: Action, Platformer, 2D.
Developer: Facepalm Games.
- Star Wars Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
Release Date: Mar 26, 2002.
Genres: Action, Action Adventure, Shooter, First-Person, Sci-Fi, Arcade.
Developer: Raven Software.
- Altitude
Release Date: Dec 4, 2009.
Genres: Action, General.
Developer: Nimbly Games.
- Pac-Man: Adventures in Time
Release Date: Oct 31, 2000.
Genres: Action, General.
Developer: Creative Asylum.
- Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Release Date: Aug 23, 2011.
Genres: Action, Action Adventure, Shooter, Sci-Fi, First-Person.
Developer: Nixxes Software.
- Bastion
Release Date: Aug 16, 2011.
Genres: Action, Role-Playing, Action RPG.
Developer: Supergiant Games.
- Call of Duty
Release Date: Oct 29, 2003.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Third-Person, Historic, Tactical, Arcade.
Developer: Infinity Ward.
- King Arthur’s Gold
Release Date: Sep 4, 2011.
Genres: Action, Platformer, 2D.
Developer: Transhuman Design.
- F.E.A.R.
Release Date: Oct 17, 2005.
Genres: Action, Shooter, First-Person, Modern, Arcade.
Developer: Monolith Productions.
- Sonic Mania
Release Date: Aug 15, 2017.
Genres: Action, Platformer, 2D.
Developer: SegaSoft, Sega, PagodaWest Games.
Needless to say that the PC represents some true classics of the genre, some of which you’ve enjoyed playing since your teen years. Some of the titles below are powerful enough to have significantly altered the history of online gaming. What are your thoughts on the issue of top PC-friendly action games of all times? Perhaps, you have your own PC action games list? You’re welcome to participate in the discussion below and share your opinion with other FragRun readers. Alternatively, you can check out our lengthy list of the best action games for Nintendo Switch.