Calling a game a boomer shooter has always been more of a joke than an official classification, but no more. On Steam, games that take inspiration from classic first-person shooters can be labelled as boomer shooters, separating them from more modern FPS titles.

This development, reported by GamesRadar+, is already live on Steam, making it easier to browse for games that are inspired by the likes of Doom, Quake, and other classics in the FPS genre. It means that retro fans won't have to dig through modern FPS games to find the one they're after - a huge improvement when boomer shooters often feel so different to play than their current-day counterparts.

The term "boomer shooter" was a lovingly cheeky term we saw used once when developing Dusk as a description for Doom. So we ran with it because it was funny. It would go on to be associated with a entire genre of shooters.

Today it's a category on steam.
I love this reality. pic.twitter.com/gts1D5Dnzu

— Andrew Hulshult (@AndrewHulshult) January 4, 2024

The boomer shooter page on Steam is live and ready to view, listing the releases that fall into this category. The genre isn't proving restrictive too, it seems, as some of the games do have more modern graphics, not the pixelated 3D effect that earlier entries in the genre sported. Still, judging from gameplay trailers, they all have that boomer shooter feel, even if they go for a different aesthetic.

Boomer shooter becoming a real genre on Steam shows how far the term has come in recent years. On the face of it, it sounds like an insult, since the term "boomer" is rarely used as a complement. Still, classic FPS enthusiasts have largely embraced the label, proud of their love of the iconic shooters that made the genre what it is today. If a game is inspired by 1990s shooters, that's certainly nothing to be ashamed of too, and being able to advertise as such might just help it stand out from the crowd on services like Steam, so no one goes in expecting Call of Duty.

Ultimately, Steam won't struggle to fill the page with new entries - it's full of boomer shooters already. Just the other day, we reported on Mouse, the upcoming classic FPS with a Steamboat Willie-esque artstyle. It doesn't have the boomer shooter tag on its own Steam page yet, but looking at the gameplay footage we have so far, it definitely looks like it would be at home in this classification.

Posted: Jan 10, 2024 12:26 pm
Related Forum: PC Gaming Forum

Source: https://www.thegamer.com/steam-officially-recognises-boomer-shooter-as-a-genre/