The Borderlands series has remained popular for 16 years, multiple core entries, and a few spin-offs, a testament to the strength of the core idea. Now that Borderlands 4 has finally been released and globally available, including platforms such as G2A.COM, it’s a perfect opportunity to take a look at the broader genre, commonly referred to as looter shooters.

The genre primer

But first… what even is a looter-shooter in the first place? The standard was set by the original Borderlands, which was, understandably, compared to Diablo at the time. Both games put a strong emphasis on looting tons of equipment from defeated enemies. 

They would also generate these items semi-randomly, with various statistics and special traits, providing a strong incentive to fight more foes, complete more quests, find more loot crates to find the best items for your build. Except, while Diablo would be about magic staves and suits of armor, Borderlands is very much firearm minded. It’s also a first-person shooter, not an isometric hack’n’slash.

In other words, “shoot enemies, get stuff.” The stuff is usually new gear, but it can be resources used to make the gear, too.

Let’s loot some shooters!

With all that in mind, let’s move on to the meat of this article: a ranking of the best looter-shooters you could play in 2025, with both classics and hot hits. 

With so many options on offer across various platforms, including G2A.COM, it might be hard to sift through them all, so this ranking should help you get the best ones!

Ranking factors

How do we rank these games? The contributing criteria include:

• Loot diversity
• Moment-to-moment gameplay.
• The “cool” factor.
• Longevity
• Multiplayer and community

6. Deadzone: Rogue

A real newcomer on the block, Deadzone: Rogue only launched out of early access in early August 2025. It marries the looter shooter gameplay to a Rogue-like structure, resulting in an interesting blend likely to keep you coming back for “one more run.” Cool loot, permanent and run-specific progression, and a satisfying co-op? Easily interesting enough to land a spot here.

5. The Division 2

The Division 2 cuts in above Deadzone Rogue for its persistence. This 2019 looter-shooter has lost some of its luster and playerbase, but remains a great proposition. It also keeps things refreshingly down-to-earth, compared to the bombastic and wacky options the genre typically goes for. 

Putting the action in Washington D.C. slightly rundown after a plague outbreak, makes TD2’s theme and setting easy to grok. It lands this low largely because the loot and “cool factor” are both, by necessity, rather mundane compared to the other games here.

4. Outriders

Outriders, by People Can Fly, lands the 4^th spot because, despite not being a huge success, it remains a pretty damned satisfying looter shooter. Outriders stands out as a more focused, gritty counterpart to Warframe (more on that soon), with fun, often bizarre guns, and satisfying superpowers.

Outriders has a very strong cool factor, in a grim-weird way, and the immediate action is very solid. It’s now pretty much as complete as it gets, so it has more replayability than longevity, but it’s a worthy pick all the same.

3. Destiny 2

One of the big three, Destiny 2 has had its difficulties, but it keeps its coolness, looks great, and its first-person perspective gunplay remains remarkable. There are hours and hours of stuff to play through, be it solo or in multiplayer, plenty of guns to find and earn, and superpowered classes (and subclasses) to experiment with as you seek a new build to excite you.

The base game is also free-to-play, so you can take it for a proper spin before diving into paid content.

2. Warframe

Warframe is a bit of a genre oddball. While you do grab a ton of stuff on any given mission, 99,9% of the time it’s not new gear. Instead, it’s resources for crafting it. There are hundreds of creatively designed, visually and mechanically customizable firearms and melee weapons and a few dozen superpowered Warframes.

Twelve years since its initial launch, Warframe has an absurd diversity of modes and mechanics. It’s also free to play in its entirety, while the existing monetization is largely cosmetic and mostly avoidable by trading. 

1. Borderlands 4

And finally, in an entirely unsurprising first place, the new installment of the series that started it all. The September 12 release of Borderlands 4 was a smash hit, with the game peaking at over 300 thousand players on Steam alone. With four new characters taking the lead in a solo or co-operative adventure, and fresh story set on planet Kairos controlled by a tyrannical Timekeeper, BL4’s story takes a bit more serious theme, all while keeping a lot of the series’ iconic silliness. Loads of guns, a thrilling open world, cool abilities, and memorable graphics. A recipe for the first place, isn’t it?

If you’d like to hop on the hottest looter-shooter of the year while it’s still fresh, scout out a deal on G2A.COM and save money for snacks, DLC, or some cool indie game. Don’t let the excitement pass you by and get some friends on the hype train!

Ranking in a nutshell:

Picking and choosing

So which game will be the best for you? Borderlands 4 will be the best if you want the purest looter-shooter in existence, while Warframe is a living game with a cool-weird futuristic aesthetic and wild ideas. 

If you’re into neither wacky nor weird, The Division’s grounded setting might be your vibe. Or perhaps you want something with a structure and challenge built it? That’s Deadzone: Rogue, right there. Whichever you finally find the most appealing, you’ll find a deal on G2A.COM, unless it’s Warframe, which you can just start playing.

Looter-shooter briefing:

• Games you could spend as much time as you have with
• Seeing loot drops never fails to excite thanks to tangible sense of progress
• You can find deals on them on stores like G2A.COM to save money for other cool stuff
• Come in interesting mixes with other genres and settings
• Great for co-op with friends, as long as you can stay civil about the loot.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What is a looter shooter game?

It’s an action game which puts a strong emphasis on acquiring new, often procedurally generated, equipment to make the player character stronger and more dangerous.

Which platforms is Borderlands 4 available for?

BL4 is available right now for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series XS, with a Nintendo Switch 2 released planned for October 3, 2025.

What is the best place to buy Borderlands and other looter shooters?

You can find great deals if you browse the offers on marketplaces such as G2A.COM.