In the modern age of gaming, free multiplayer games are becoming increasingly more common. You can’t go on any launcher without being bombarded with the latest battle pass or skin packs for these games, and sometimes that just gets a bit annoying.
When you’re sick of the big games that everyone knows about, there’s a great selection of lesser-known games to choose from. We went through a ton of different options on Steam and put together this list of some of the best.
Here are the best free multiplayer games on Steam
Beached
Starting off this list is a free to play early access Rust clone. I actually covered this game in an article a couple months ago, and even since then I can see a massive improvement. A lot of my complaints have been fixed, and the entire game feels much smoother now.
The gameplay is almost identical to Rust. You start off on a beach, make some tools, collect resources, and build a base. You can craft weapons, hunt animals, create buildings, and explore the many points of interest around the map.
Something I mentioned last time is that this game is a lot less toxic than Rust. Most people won’t attack you on site, but rather offer to help you and become your ally. I did run into a couple annoying people, but besides them people were generally pretty friendly.
The artstyle of the game is more minimalistic, and it’s the kind of artstyle that I really enjoy. It’s also a whole lot easier to run than Rust is, and you don’t need to have constant fear of getting raided.
One big feature of the game is both third person and first person view, as opposed to Rust only being first person.
Whether you’re looking for a game to play with friends or just by yourself, Beached is a really good option to try out.
Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1412190/BEACHED/
Alien Swarm: Reactive Drop
Alien Swarm: Reactive Drop is almost a remaster of the base alien swarm game. You are a group of Marines who are charged with going into these alien nests and completing any objectives that were given to you.
Blaze your way through an overrun colony that has been infested with aliens, and find any survivors who are still alive. The game combines teamplay with the top-down gameplay that you might really enjoy.
You can play with up to 4 friends and explore all sorts of weird areas. There are a ton of top-down shooter games, but this one sticks out because of all the info you need to know about the game.
You can have an engineer who can hack into electronics, a mechanic who can weld doors shut, and even a person who can give you more ammo if needed.
This game requires you to work with your team to complete your objectives and it does it very well. If you have some friends, go try this game out for yourselves.
Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/563560/Alien_Swarm_Reactive_Drop/
Of Guards and Thieves
Of Guards and Thieves is a free to play, competitive stealth game that has a really unique spin on the tactical two team shooter genre.
Before I go into what the game is, shout out to Cazyman, a long time subscriber and discord member for recommending this game to us multiple times.
So, the game has two teams, one being the guards, and the other the thieves.
The Thieves team’s goal is to steal high value items from around the map and bring them back to cash them in, while the guards objective is to protect the items from getting stolen.
What really makes this game unique and have a different feel and dynamic is the visibility mechanic.
Now, the thieves are able to see in the dark with night vision, while the guards need to rely on their flashlights and the various light sources around the map.
What makes this cool is that if you are a thief, you want to turn off as many lights as possible because you are just slightly underpowered to the guards, but you can use the darkness to your advantage to sneak up and kill the guards.
No matter what team I played on, I had a ton of fun, and the game has a good amount of variety with the different operators you can play and unlock as you go on.
You can play this on public online servers, or make your own servers to play with your friends privately.
Needless to say, this game is an incredible pick and it’s a whole lot of fun if you enjoy tactical shooters like this.
Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/302590/Of_Guards_And_Thieves/
Sector’s Edge
Sector’s Edge is a first person shooter where you can build and destroy structures during matches. It’s kind of surprising that a concept like this hasn’t been done more often, as it really adds another level of fun to every match.
I heard about this game a while ago, when one of our subscribers named Cazyman told me about it. Since then we’ve streamed it several times and had a ton of fun playing it.
Every map in Sector’s Edge is made entirely of destructible blocks, so the maps get more destroyed as the matches go on. I’ve been in matches where both teams decided to be friendly and destroy large parts of the maps just for the fun of it.
You’re able to make custom quickbuild structures that you can place down for cover, as well as build whatever you want during the match.
The blocks are pretty easy to destroy though, so the cover is best used to throw off your opponents and gain an advantage over them.
Being able to dig allows you to tunnel under the ground and secretly create paths to the enemy’s base. Once they catch on, you can create more tunnels to fake them out.
The one downside of Sector’s Edge is that not many people play it anymore. It used to have a decent player count, but it’s slowly gone down over time. If you can get into a match, or create custom matches with friends, then you’ll have a great time playing this game.
Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1024890/Sectors_Edge/
SYNTHETIK: Arena
Synthetik: Arena is one of those games that is very different from other games like it. It is a top-down shooter, and what makes it unique is the way you have to eject your empty bullet shells out from your gun as well as reload your weapon. It makes for some very interesting fights against enemy soldiers.
Basically, you are a robot that is trying to take control of a giant corporation by taking down all the other robots and people who are working for them. In this free version, you can play arena fights with a bunch of friends and you need to fight through a ton of enemy waves. The longer you last, the more you get to spend on other weapons and gear.
You can also get weapons for the paid version of the game with this free version so if you like the arena mode enough, maybe think about buying the premium version so you can play through the story. The arena mde is also good enough to just play by itself if you really want to.
Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/984110/SYNTHETIK_Arena/
Just Act Natural
Just Act Normal is a strange looking game at first but once you understand the premise and can get some people to play with, can easily be a game you can spend some hours in.
One cool detail about the game that I want to mention before getting into it is that all of the characters and objects are actually claymation that has been imported into the game. Which, that’s a really cool detail that I don’t think I’ve seen done in any other game.
Anyway, the game essentially has you as one of two people. There is a seeker, which has a sniper rifle looking over the entire map, and a hider, or diamond grabber, or, well I don’t know what they call it, but basically the other player type is a person who needs to blend in with the AI in the map.
The job of the people blending in is to last as long as they can without getting killed and to grab the diamonds around the map without being sniped, and obviously the job of the seeker is to spot the real players from the AI and kill them.
If you shoot an AI as the seeker, you lose points, so you need to make sure that you know it’s a real player.
I loved playing each of these roles because it makes things a lot more interesting.
You can play in online public lobbies, or make your own custom lobbies with friends.
I enjoyed this game a lot and the more people the better, so be sure to check out Just Act Natural on Steam.
Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1485080/Just_Act_Natural/
Totally Accurate Battle Simulator
I normally am not a big fan of battle royale games, but Totally Accurate Battle Simulator combines that genre with wonky ragdoll physics to make a really enjoyable and funny battle royale.
This is a game that’s been around for a while, but I never was interested in trying it out. After playing it for the first time, I can definitely see myself playing it more often.
Instead of calmly parachuting to the ground, your character gets flung across the map and smacks into the ground. When you finally pick your floppy body off the ground, you need to find a weapon quickly and get to some cover.
From there you have the typical battle royale gameplay, where you scavenge locations for gear and items. If you do end up getting taken out, there’s a way you can respawn. The game puts you through a midair obstacle course with two stages.
If you complete the first stage, you’ll respawn. If you fail the second stage, you’ll still respawn but with a curse. I’m not entirely sure what happens if you complete the second stage since I wasn’t able to get through it.
This obstacle course mechanic allows you to respawn, giving you a second chance at winning. Overall, TABG is one of the most fun battle royale game I’ve played, and the fact that it’s free definitely makes it worth playing.
Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/823130/Totally_Accurate_Battlegrounds/
Split Gate
Split Gate is free, but you probably already know that. If you are a fan of fps shooters, then you have definitely heard of Split Gate. It is pretty much portal mixed with halo. There is no story to the game, but this game does not need a story.
There are a ton of walls around the arenas and you can shoot portals onto them and use them to your advantage. We have covered this game on our channel before, but this game deserves to be on more than one list just because of how good it is.
We found ourselves enjoying this game a little too much because once you get the movement down, you can do some insane tricks with the portals. What is crazy to us is that this game is absolutely free. I mean you can’t beat free. I know most free games aren’t worth playing, but this one definitely is.
If you like fps games then go check this one out for yourself and get some friends to play with you. Also speaking of free fps games, you might also really enjoy the last game on this list.
Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/677620/Splitgate/
Halo Infinite
Halo Infinite, whether you know the multiplayer of this new game is free or not, it would be a shame to not include it somewhere in this list. The fact that the beloved multiplayer for the new game is out free on steam just blows my mind.
If you’ve never had the experience of playing some of the old Halo’s this multiplayer feels and does the old Halo’s justice. You have a super competitive FPS arcade shooter that has a longer Time to Kill and a lot of focus on team play.
Included in the game are the game modes, capture the flag, fiesta, oddball, slayer, stockpile, strongholds, and total control. All of which are pretty competitive but you have the ability to play them in either ranked or unranked.
The one thing I am not on board with is the fact that you can’t choose exactly what game mode you want to play. For instance, if I am in the mood to play just slayer and have TDM type gameplay, I can’t really choose that and I have to just hope that the shuffle play will land on it.
Now, this is an issue for me only at the time of this recording, so who knows, maybe whenever you are watching this video, they changed that.
Regardless, it’s a super minor issue and I really don’t mind all that much because the game is insanely fun and again, whether you know about it or you don’t, Halo Infinite’s free multiplayer is a must try.
Steam link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1240440/Halo_Infinite/
