Field guide · Nineties bunny hopping, low poly architecture and dynamite gunplay

Games like Quake and Blood: classic 90s style shooters on Steam

By Ekin, a solo developer in Istanbul (Whale Development Studios), maker of Iron Curtain Call. Published 8 November 2026; every price, release date and platform below was checked on 8 November 2026 against the US Steam store and the sources at the end.

Fast nineties style campaign gunplay aboard a 1965 train in Iron Curtain Call
Iron Curtain Call pairs nineties movement speed and a full weapon wheel with 1930s rubber hose cartoon art. Free demo on Steam.
The short answer

The nine games at a glance

Two 1990s classics still define how modern retro shooters move and hit: id Software’s Quake (1996), with its bunny hopping, rocket jumps and gothic slipgate labyrinths, and Monolith’s Blood (1997), with its thrown dynamite bundles, cackling cultists and Build engine interactivity. When I built Iron Curtain Call as a solo developer in Istanbul, I took that nineties responsiveness (instant movement acceleration, an eleven gun weapon wheel and zero reload waits) and dressed it in 1930s rubber hose cartoon ink.

If you want the official enhanced editions of id Software’s nineties landmarks, start with Quake ($9.99) and Quake II ($9.99). If you want modern shooters built directly on the bones of Quake’s low poly speed and Quake engine technology, play DUSK ($19.99), HROT ($19.99, free demo on Steam), WRATH: Aeon of Ruin ($24.99) and AMID EVIL ($19.99, free demo on Steam). If you want the modern heirs to Blood’s dynamite throwing occult horror and Build engine level design, play CULTIC ($9.99, free demo on Steam) and Ion Fury ($24.99). And if you want nineties boomer shooter speed in a satirical 1965 cartoon Cold War, play the free Steam demo of my game Iron Curtain Call (out 11 March 2027).

At a glance

The nine games at a glance

US Steam store prices, release dates, platforms and free demo availability checked on 8 November 2026.
Game90s lineage (Quake or Blood)Signature weapons and movementFree demo on SteamUS priceOut
Iron Curtain CallMy game90s speed + 1930s cartoon animationDash, grapple, parry and 11 gun weapon wheelYes, free: Mission 1, about 15 to 20 minutesNot priced yet11 March 2027Free demo since 28 October 2026
QuakeThe 1996 id Software original (Enhanced)Nailgun, Thunderbolt, rocket jumping and bunny hoppingNo$9.993 August 2007First released in 1996
Quake IIThe 1997 id Software sci fi sequel (Enhanced)Railgun, Super Shotgun, BFG10K and Stroggos hubsNo$9.993 August 2007First released in 1997
DUSKQuake + Blood hybrid retro revivalDual shotguns, hunting rifle, strafe jumping and slidesNo$19.9910 December 2018
CULTICDirect spiritual heir to Blood (1997)Lit dynamite bundles, lever action rifle and hatchetsYes, free$9.9913 October 2022
HROT1996 Quake brown low poly aestheticVz. 58 rifle, double shotgun and lightning ball launcherYes, free$19.9916 May 2023
WRATH: Aeon of RuinBuilt on the original Quake 1 engine sourceBlade dash, Retcher cysts and nonlinear hub realmsNo$24.9927 February 2024
Ion FuryBuilt on the original 90s Build engineLoverboy revolver, Bowling Bombs and interactive roomsNo$24.9915 August 2019
AMID EVILQuake speed + 90s dark fantasy arsenalStar of Torment, Whispering Edge and Planet launcherYes, free$19.9920 June 2019
Game by game

Each game, its nineties DNA and how it plays on modern PCs

Each card covers the Quake or Blood inspiration, the movement and weapon loop, and its verified US Steam store facts on 8 November 2026.

Iron Curtain Call

My game

Play it if you want nineties shooter speed and a full weapon wheel inside a 1930s cartoon world.

In Iron Curtain Call, you carry eleven weapons and a freeze grenade at once on a classic weapon wheel, from The Diplomat shotgun and The Typewriter submachine gun to The Telegram lightning gun and The Care Package rocket launcher. Mission 1 is free on Steam right now for Windows, macOS and Linux, and a 60 second browser trial runs at /play/.

Developer and publisher
Whale Development Studios
Out
11 March 2027
Free demo out
28 October 2026
On Steam
Windows and macOS (demo on Windows, macOS and Linux)
US list price
Not priced yet
Demo
Yes, free
Gameplay trailer · 1:00 · Twelve chapters in sixty seconds. YouTube · Video page

Download the free Steam demoPlay 60 seconds in your browser, no download

Quake

Play it if you want the 1996 masterpiece that invented true 3D rocket jumping and bunny hopping.

id Software’s Quake (3 August 2007 on Steam, originally 1996, $9.99) includes Nightdive Studios’ enhanced widescreen restoration alongside the original 1996 expansions and new episodes by MachineGames.

Developers
id Software, Nightdive Studios and MachineGames
Publisher
Bethesda Softworks
Released
3 August 2007
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$9.99
Demo
None on Steam

Quake II

Play it if you want the 1997 Stroggos campaign that gave FPS history the Railgun.

id Software’s Quake II (3 August 2007 on Steam, originally 1997, $9.99) pairs interconnected planetary base objectives with the enhanced Nightdive edition and MachineGames’ Call of the Machine campaign.

Developers
id Software, Nightdive Studios and MachineGames
Publisher
Bethesda Softworks
Released
3 August 2007
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$9.99
Demo
None on Steam

DUSK

Play it if you want the modern indie shooter that fused Quake’s air control with Blood’s horror.

David Szymanski’s DUSK (10 December 2018, $19.99, Windows, macOS and Linux) starts in a backwoods cult barn straight out of Blood and descends into gravity bending Escher cathedrals worthy of Quake.

Developer
David Szymanski
Publisher
New Blood Interactive
Released
10 December 2018
On Steam
Windows, macOS and Linux
US list price
$19.99
Demo
None on Steam

CULTIC

Play it if you miss throwing lit dynamite bundles at robed cultists in Blood.

Jasozz Games’ CULTIC (13 October 2022, $9.99, free demo on Steam) captures everything fans loved about 1997’s Blood: hooded fanatics, crunchy headshots, thrown dynamite and shooting your own explosives in mid air.

Developer
Jasozz Games
Publisher
3D Realms
Released
13 October 2022
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$9.99
Demo
Yes, free

HROT

Play it if you love Quake’s brown software rendered look and secret packed levels.

Spytihněv’s HROT (16 May 2023, $19.99, free demo on Steam) recreates the exact unlit polygon look and crisp mouse movement of 1996 Quake inside 1986 Czechoslovakia.

Developer and publisher
Spytihněv
Released
16 May 2023
On Steam
Windows (demo on Windows)
US list price
$19.99
Demo
Yes, free

WRATH: Aeon of Ruin

Play it if you want a dark fantasy shooter running on the actual Quake 1 engine.

KillPixel Games and Slipgate Ironworks’ WRATH: Aeon of Ruin (27 February 2024, $24.99, Windows and Linux) uses the original Quake technology to build sprawling, nonlinear ruins and soul tethered save shrines.

Developers
KillPixel Games and Slipgate Ironworks
Publisher
3D Realms and Fulqrum Publishing
Released
27 February 2024
On Steam
Windows and Linux
US list price
$24.99
Demo
None on Steam

Ion Fury

Play it if you want a modern masterpiece built in the authentic 1990s Build engine.

Voidpoint’s Ion Fury (15 August 2019, $24.99, Windows and Linux) pushes the Build engine (Blood, Duke Nukem 3D) to its absolute limit with heat seeking Bowling Bombs and multi storey cyberpunk streets.

Developer
Voidpoint, LLC
Publisher
3D Realms
Released
15 August 2019
On Steam
Windows and Linux
US list price
$24.99
Demo
None on Steam

AMID EVIL

Play it if you want Quake’s slipgate episode structure with cosmic fantasy weapons.

Indefatigable’s AMID EVIL (20 June 2019, $19.99, free demo on Steam) honours Quake’s hub portals and secret hunting while swapping nailguns for celestial staffs and axes.

Developer
Indefatigable
Publisher
New Blood Interactive
Released
20 June 2019
On Steam
Windows (demo on Windows)
US list price
$19.99
Demo
Yes, free
Why 1996 and 1997 still set the bar

Instant acceleration and projectile physics never go out of style

Both Quake and Blood trusted the player with immediate movement speed, dangerous splash damage and levels full of hidden switches. Every game on this list carries that design philosophy forward.

Questions

Questions players ask about games like Quake and Blood

What modern FPS is closest to 1997’s Blood?

CULTIC ($9.99, free demo on Steam) and DUSK ($19.99) are the closest modern successors to Blood’s occult atmosphere, dynamite physics and fast gunplay.

Which games like Quake and Blood have a free demo on Steam right now?

Four games in this guide have a free playable demo on Steam right now: Iron Curtain Call (Windows, macOS and Linux, plus a 60 second browser trial), CULTIC, HROT and AMID EVIL.

What PC and indie games are coming out in 2027?

More than one page can hold: Steam shows a lot of PC and indie games with a 2027 date, and dates keep moving. What we checked on Steam on 7 November 2026 are the shooters and the Mac action games, in two dated lists: upcoming FPS games and upcoming Mac games. Iron Curtain Call, our own cartoon noir shooter, is due 11 March 2027 on Windows and macOS, and its free demo is on Steam now.

What games release on 11 March 2027?

Among the shooters we checked on Steam on 7 November 2026: Blood of Rations (11 March 2027) and Iron Curtain Call (My game, 11 March 2027). We only checked shooters, so this is not the full set for that day; Steam’s own Coming Soon page has the rest.

What is a good new single player FPS I can play for free right now?

Iron Curtain Call has a free demo on Steam (Mission 1, about 15 to 20 minutes) and a free 60 second browser trial with no download. It is a single player cartoon noir shooter, and it is our game, so weigh that. For other free shooters, our list of free FPS demos on Steam holds the best rated ones.

Sources and when we checked them

Every release date, US list price, platform flag and demo entry on this page was read from the official US Steam store API and Wikipedia/Wikidata on 8 November 2026.

  1. Iron Curtain Call, Steam store page
  2. Quake, Steam store page
  3. Quake II, Steam store page
  4. DUSK, Steam store page
  5. CULTIC, Steam store page
  6. HROT, Steam store page
  7. WRATH: Aeon of Ruin, Steam store page
  8. Ion Fury, Steam store page
  9. AMID EVIL, Steam store page
  10. Quake (video game), Wikipedia
  11. Quake II, Wikipedia
  12. Dusk (video game), Wikipedia
  13. Cultic (video game), Wikipedia
  14. Wrath: Aeon of Ruin, Wikipedia
  15. Ion Fury, Wikipedia
  16. Amid Evil, Wikipedia

Try Iron Curtain Call free on Steam or in your browser

Download the free Steam demo on Windows, macOS or Linux, play 60 seconds in your browser with no install, or wishlist the full game ahead of 11 March 2027.

Download the free Steam demoWishlist and Follow on SteamPlay 60 seconds in your browser, no download