Third person games can be amazing and I prefer that experience. Sadly, most of them are mediocre, that's why I play FPS games more.

fps. feels more natural to me, quicker and smoother.

First person, no contest.

I think I prefer first person, because it's more intense. Third person just adds this layer of separation, reminding you, "hey, you're not here, you're playing a video game". That said, I'm the sort of guy who loves taking cover, and I'd like to see a better implementation of that in FPSes.

@Stunt said:

Third-person. I like seeing my character. Especially if he/she's bad-ass. Because I'm bad-ass, too. So together, we're a collaboration of bad-ass. We're bad-ass squared.

I know right? In first person, your can't really see the character and your just like, what? In TPS, your actually seeing everything going on around you and have better awareness. TPS FTW

In ArmA 2, you can switch between first and third person.   When running across larger distances, I switch to 3rd person.

When it comes to just shooters my choise is first person but in role playing games I prefer 3ps.

FPS. TPS seems slower to me, especially with cover since it always slows things down. Then there's always issues with cameras and such, and I feel like FPSs are easier to control and are more fluid, so you can do things quicker.

TPS. I love cover mechanics in my shooters. I do still like FPS's, though.

Overall I would say third-person but a lot of my favorite multiplayer games are in first person and I wouldn't have it any other way; my all-time favorites TF2 and CS and also current generation favorites MW2 and BFBC2.  

2nd person.

First, because I'm a twitch-aiming kind of guy.
 

I've enjoyed plenty of third-person shooters though.

First Person.
 
Keep Third Person the hell away from me if Shooter is a part of the sentence.  Though I will play cool third person stuff like Lead and Gold, Monday Night Combat, Red Dead Redemption, Sniper Elite, etc.  I just will wish they were first person *smirk

I like first person views for the immersion...

TPS, with FPS close behind.

third but only because I believe that uncharted 2 is the best shooter of any kind to date.

Both.

Third person. I like seeing my character.

Vertical. 
 
Oh, wait ..

Third-person, mainly because I've become tired of first-person shooters lately. (The only FPSs I'm looking forward to are Halo Reach and freaking Bulletstorm, maybe Rage too).

second person

Third person. Being able to tell where the hell you are in a game is nice, as is occupying space and not being a floating camera (I'm looking at you Half Life). It also lets you take in the atmosphere better, and you can platform.
 
Yeah...I have a personal grudge against First Person. It feels gimmicky and detached.

Both have their pro's and cons.

They can both be great genres in their own right but in general I've enjoyed the first-person shooters I've played more than the third-person shooters.

First person, makes you feel part of the game more than a third person.

Third person

Third.

Third-person. I like seeing my character. Especially if he/she's bad-ass. Because I'm bad-ass, too. So together, we're a collaboration of bad-ass. We're bad-ass squared.

First!
 
Generally more intuitive and immersive.

I like playing Vampire Bloodlines because it has a first person view and a third person view option, which you can switch from with the press of a button and both work perfectly. I know Fallout 3 and the Elder Scrolls games do that too, but not quite as well as Vampire.
 
If I had to choose though.... I'd go with 3rd person, I think it gives you a better view of the level, since you're not restricted to seeing only what's directly in front of you at any given time.

 Third person

Why wasn't this a poll?
 
Depends on the game. Gonna say First Person with bonus stuff like head tracking or whatever.

FPS more, but I still like some TPSs.

I usually prefer first person to shoot bad guys like Fallout 3, but sometimes I use third person to move around.

Third-person shooters for choke-holding hostages as meat shields.

It depends on the game.

I like games that are really well done. So, I would take Uncharted 2 over 99% of first-person shooters, but it just happens that the average first-person shooter is better than the average third-person shooter.

" Third persons shooters for me. "

Third person.
 
I really dislike the viewing range of a FPS, no matter how big my screen is.

" I like to shoot people while narrating in the third person. "

Third persons shooters for me.

I like to shoot people while narrating in the third person.

First!

first for shooting and third for other things than just shooting.

3PS...
 
I like seeing the character.

That's tough. I guess FPS when it comes to purely shooting.
 
But I love third person games that aren't strictly shooter based, like the Metal Gear Solid series or the Grand Theft Auto games.

fps 4 lyf 
it's just preference. tps and fps games both work, but FPS games that i have played always seem to play better 

Which one do you prefer?