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Action Games In past years, the action game has been king. Recently, real-time strategy has snatched the crown from such favorites as Quake II, but the genre is far from dead. With the advent of the 3D accelerator, the action game has become much more than just a shoot-em-up. In fact, the last few months have seen the release of our top picks for the season, combining truly stunning graphics with wild and wooly action. Unreal 
For years, Epic MegaGames promised its first-person shooter would deliver the most stunning and realistic graphics ever to be seen. It did. Unreal is the perfect tour-de-force for the high-end PC, and it's a great action game to boot. After a prison ship crash-lands, you escape your cell to find yourself marooned on a strange, wonderful, and dangerous planet conquered by a savage alien race. You must find a way off the planet, and in doing so help free its indigenous people. You'll find a host of powerful weapons along the way that should help you leave a lasting impression.
Read the review Shogo: Mobile Armor Division 
Monolith Productions' first-person shooter is inspired by Japanese animation classics like Macross and Mobile Suit Gundam. You'll have to fight your way both on foot and within the confines of a gun-toting robot using an arsenal of ballistic and energy weapons. But don't mistake this for a sluggish simulation; despite their size, the giant robots in Shogo are lightning-quick, limited only by the reflexes of their human pilots. Along with its unique premise, its great graphics, interesting story, and fast pace help make Shogo a solid and thoroughly enjoyable shooter.
Read the review Get the demo Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six 
This innovative shooter based on Tom Clancy's novel blends action and strategy together with a big dose of reality. You're in charge of an elite international special forces team charged with all-important assignments from hostage rescue operations to infiltration missions. It's good to know that you won't have to fight alone, unlike the typical first-person shooter. That's not to say you can just rush your team in, guns blazing. For one thing, the terrorists will know you're on to them. For another, just like in real life, one good shot and you're dead.
Read the review Get the demo Sin 
Ritual Entertainment's premiere is a first-person shooter that emphasizes the genre's classic traits: big guns, lots of ammo, and tough bad guys. Which isn't to say Sin doesn't offer anything in the way of innovation. On the contrary, it breaks from the norm in as many ways as it adheres, with vehicles that you can pilot, the most interactive environments yet, an in-depth story, and locational damage. The last point means that when you're fighting thugs in bulletproof vests, you'll have to aim for the head (or the legs!) to put them away. Sin also offers great multiplayer features.
Read the review Get the demo Half-Life 
What first seemed like just another Quake II-engine first-person shooter from the new developer Valve Entertainment has quickly escalated into the single most highly anticipated game of the year. This incredible game blends suspense and storytelling with traditional shooter elements with such tact and style, that you'll actually feel like the star of a first-rate action film when you play. When a high-risk experiment goes wrong in a top-secret research facility, you must find your way to the surface while fending off hordes of otherworldly mutants. But even when an escape is in sight, an even more sinister plot unfolds.
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