What's the best tactical shooter?

I'm looking for a game that allows for deep tactical movement and maneuvering. It does not need to be realistic, and it doesn't need to be slow either. It just needs to not be a mindless grind of shooting.

I want a game that makes me worry about recoil, or having me pinned down by suppressing fire (perhaps impossible since I don't care about losing my virtual leg), or holding lines, or breaking them by enfilade. I don't want a game where I can snap onto cover with my handy dandy third person camera and lock my crosshairs onto someone's head before even raising my own head out of cover.

I also want this game to reward communication heavily. Is there any shooter with a leader that gives orders to a unit that listens? What about a shooter where the situation changes and the group has to adapt, rather than simply saying "I'm going back to that bush and just sniping again".

Is there a game that fits my requirements?

SWAT 3 and 4.
 
Also the original Ghost Recon is pretty good.

Red Orchestra 1 or 2

Rainbow six series for the pc.

@hencook said:

It does not need to be realistic, and it doesn't need to be slow either. It just needs to not be a mindless grind of shooting.

Is there any shooter with a leader that gives orders to a unit that listens? What about a shooter where the situation changes and the group has to adapt, rather than simply saying "I'm going back to that bush and just sniping again".

Is there a game that fits my requirements?

This recommendation is sort of on a technicality but as huge a fan of 'tactical shooters' - but none comes close to the amount of fun I've had while playing Valkyria Chronicles. Really gave that 'under suppressed fire', desperate fight feel and the fact that members of your squad die permanently meaning the choices you make as a leader really feel important.

It's not super great on the realism aspect though....

I seem to remember that Arma 2 and America's Army (free) were hailed for their realism in such regards. There's also Full Spectrum Warrior, it's not first-person, but it is an excellent tactical shooter (i.e. maneuvering, cover, squad tactics, et al.).

Brothers in Arms: Hell's Highway is sort of tactical I think.

Freedom Fighters

Give the free version of ARMA 2 a try. There´s a mode in there where you just go on a patrol with your team and HQ will give you random missions. Basically the whole game is a big war-sandbox- vehicles, authentic guns, civillians (you can toggle those off) and weather/time of day simulation. It´s a little rough around the edges and the free version doesn´t look all that hot but it´s a nice game if you´ve got the time and patience for it.

Do yourself a favor though and don´t watch the Quicklook.. not a very accurate representation of what this game is about in my opinion.

• Arma 2
• America's Army
• Swat 3 & 4
• Full Spectrum Warrior
• Operation Flash Point
• Rainbow Six series for the PC
• Ghost Recon

Operation Wolf

Red Orchestra 2 is pretty good. ArmA 2 (and 3, coming soon) would be great. I really want to get into those, but I would need to find people willing to squad up with me and take it seriously (fun, but seriously). Also, there's always Counter-Strike. Of course, counter-strike is usually using a different set of tactical skills than the other games, I think.

Valkyria Chronicles if you want a turn based one... otherwise it's not really a shooter but really good.

@Jams: Full Spectrum Warrior is frustrating as hell sometimes.

Tom Clancy stuff on PC.

@axlrose15 said:

Freedom Fighters

Tom Clancy's Rainbow 6, if you set it up right you never had to fire a shot

Rainbow Six series.

Rainbow six series for the pc.

Duck Hunt.

TF2 and BF3 :p

Ghost Recon 2 is mad old.

Ghost Recon. If you want a strategic and tactical shooter, try Rainbow Six.

ARMA 2 is what I hear from people who care about those types of games

I still have a soft spot for ranbow six 3: raven shield but the ARMA series hands down is the most tac-ky.

Rainbow6 3 is probably the best R6 game of the series. The first Ghost Recon is good too.

Edit: If you have BF2 the Project Realism mod is pretty good as far as realistic multiplayer is concerned.