Games like Shadowgrounds · Find similar →
Shadowgrounds is hard to replace: few games combine shooting mechanics, dark, oppressive atmosphere and ranged combat in quite the same way. The NextGameLike team compared Shadowgrounds against over 6,700 titles across 15 gameplay attributes and found 50 genuine alternatives — not generic genre suggestions. Aliens vs. Predator, Half-Life 2: VR Mod and World War Z lead the list, with Aliens vs. Predator reaching a 90/100 similarity score. Every game here is ranked by how closely it replicates what makes Shadowgrounds special.
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The closest game to Shadowgrounds is Aliens vs. Predator — scoring 90/100 on our similarity scale. Half-Life 2: VR Mod and World War Z follow close behind.
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Handpicked by our similarity algorithm, these are the titles with the highest gameplay match to Shadowgrounds. Each one has been evaluated across 15 real attributes — from combat style and progression mechanics to world structure and visual perspective — so every recommendation is based on how the game actually plays, not just its genre label.
It meets Shadowgrounds on dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and a sci-fi setting. The common ground extends to single-player focus. Where the two diverge is visuals: a first-person view.
Released 5 years after Shadowgrounds.
The genre is the same as Shadowgrounds’s, and with it dark, oppressive atmosphere, ranged combat and a sci-fi setting. The common ground extends to multiplayer gameplay. Where the two diverge is visuals and game mode: a first-person view.
It comes from the same genre as Shadowgrounds and shares dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and horror setting. The common ground extends to multiplayer gameplay. Where the two diverge is visuals and setting: post-apocalyptic world and a third-person camera.
Released 14 years after Shadowgrounds.
The thread back to Shadowgrounds runs through dark, oppressive atmosphere, ranged combat and horror setting. To that it adds single-player focus. They part company on visuals: this one brings a first-person view.
It predates Shadowgrounds by 9 years, with what that implies technically.
What carries over from Shadowgrounds is dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and horror setting. The common ground extends to co-op play. Where the two diverge is visuals: a first-person view.
Same family as Shadowgrounds: dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and a sci-fi setting. To that it adds multiplayer gameplay. They part company on visuals and tone: this one brings a casual, approachable feel and pixel art.
Released 10 years after Shadowgrounds.
The genre is the same as Shadowgrounds’s, and with it ranged combat, a sci-fi setting and multiplayer gameplay. The common ground extends to a top-down view. Where the two diverge is setting and visuals: a cyberpunk setting and 2D presentation.
Released 19 years after Shadowgrounds.
Shelved next to Shadowgrounds for good reason: dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and horror setting. The common ground extends to multiplayer gameplay. Where the two diverge is visuals and tone: a casual, approachable feel and online features.
Released 3 years after Shadowgrounds.
What carries over from Shadowgrounds is melee combat and single-player focus. Where the two diverge is visuals: 2D presentation.
Released 9 years after Shadowgrounds.
The genre is the same as Shadowgrounds’s, and with it dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and a sci-fi setting. To that it adds single-player focus. They part company on visuals and combat: this one brings a first-person view.
It comes from the same genre as Shadowgrounds and shares dark, oppressive atmosphere, ranged combat and horror setting. To that it adds multiplayer gameplay. They part company on visuals and setting: this one brings a first-person view.
Released 4 years after Shadowgrounds.
The genre is the same as Shadowgrounds’s, and with it melee combat, a sci-fi setting and co-op play. They part company on tone and visuals: this one brings strong narrative focus and a first-person view.
Released 6 years after Shadowgrounds.
Its point of contact with Shadowgrounds is dark, oppressive atmosphere, ranged combat and horror setting. Both also lean on co-op play. The distance is in visuals — its own ground is a first-person view.
Released 4 years after Shadowgrounds.
The genre is the same as Shadowgrounds’s, and with it dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and horror setting. Both also lean on single-player focus. The distance is in visuals and setting — its own ground is post-apocalyptic world and a first-person view.
Released 3 years after Shadowgrounds.
Genre puts it alongside Shadowgrounds, and so does dark, oppressive atmosphere, melee combat and horror setting. To that it adds co-op play. They part company on visuals and combat: this one brings a first-person view.
It predates Shadowgrounds by 11 years, with what that implies technically.
Found one on the list you already love? Open its own list: the games that play most like it, ranked, with the reason for each.
If Shadowgrounds left you wanting more, this is where you narrow it down. Was it the horror or the adventure that hooked you? There is a list of just that. And if you play on Nintendo Switch, PS5, PlayStation and Xbox, filter by platform and skip the games you could not play anyway.
Sometimes what you want is not a Shadowgrounds look-alike but simply the best FPS Games there are. That is what these rankings are for: no comparison to anything, just the highest-rated games. And if you feel like widening the net, the Shooter Games ranking is a good way to run into something you were not expecting.