Exploring Free Games You Never Played

Today Rye Games explores free games, both on and off the steam platform with release dates ranging from 2007 to present day.
1. TF2 store.steampowered.com/app/44...
2. Enlisted enlisted.net/en/
3. Silhouette manikin.itch.io/silhouette
4. X-moon leafo.itch.io/x-moon
5. Hired Ops store.steampowered.com/app/37...
6. Zombie Panic! Source store.steampowered.com/app/17...
7. Caliber store.steampowered.com/app/30...
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Production music contributed by Epidemic Sounds: www.epidemicsound.com/
If you read this all you're a legend :)

[@skye_music]

The merge for Enlisted means that you can't choose the battlefield and there will be a tech tree like in War Thunder + they will bring a tier system so you will play with people that have similiar weapons tiers as you for balance. The first games you play in that game is with bots but after a few games you will play with sweatlords

[@histhoryk2648]

I rather buy Easy Red 2, it doesn't have grind, has map editor and there's no MTX's

[@jimfoster3575]

@@histhoryk2648 you have a point but you know enlisted is just free sooo... i been playing for a while and i hate the balance and the grind is kinda just a pay to win game rn. but you can have fun with the basic stuff and it easily runs on anything

[@skye_music]

​@@jimfoster3575 The game in general is Pay to progress not Pay to win. The only difference are premium squads which are cool looking but often worse than regular weapons. They are a money trap. In the balance department it is more a brain game when you have the low level stuff but the more you play the better stuff you unlock of course.

[@jimfoster3575]

@@skye_music I disagree, there op AF machine guns and classes that take ages to unlock and are a great advantage. The weapons let you know people down. Tanks and planes are worse. Tanks are op so even a fully upgraded basic one can't pen it + you get 1 shot. And the planes just bomb the hell out of the map and god knows when I can reach that. I have played for a while and it takes ages for progress

[@SaltSpirits]

@@jimfoster3575neither of you have heard of Operation Harsh Doorstop and it shows.

[@nqgames2954]

I played Enlisted and didn't realize the first 3 games were against bots. I was getting over 100 kills just chilling. then the 4th game happened. Explosions everywhere, tigers rolling down the streets, pain.

[@qpqp342]

Real 😔

[@conservativedemocracyenjoyer]

Welcome to Gaijin :)

[@bobertmcgonagueeue5077]

Wait so after 3 games you face real players?

[@qpqp342]

@bobertmcgonagueeue5077 yep, like 2-4 games

[@bran1886]

I remember blowing up 9 tanks with a Piat in one match, it was so fun but also a lot of pain lol.

[@Rusu300]

I played Enlisted for quite a bit, and I can tell you that the game starts off with easier lobbies in order to get people to play more. After like 5 or so matches, thats when you get to the real deal, where AI just one shot you if you are outside cover for more than half a milisec lol, it is still genuinely a good and nice experience. And that's when your AI is also starting to put up some numbers, I remember some AI rifleman from my squad racking up like 8 kills in a single life, because of how well he was positioned.

[@ViLeHih]

but still they walking around like a bot

[@Rusu300]

@@ViLeHih oh yeah of course, its just that they are a bit better

[@ViLeHih]

@@Rusu300 better at moving around tactically or at aimbotting?

[@Rusu300]

@@ViLeHih oh sorry, better at aimboting forgot to mention lol, but I believe you can make them move around and tell them where they can stay and stuff, which is useful

[@ViLeHih]

@@Rusu300 thanks for the info man

[@Piiotreq]

0:10 TF2 1:53 Enlisted 4:20 Silhouette 4:50 X-moon 5:30 Hired Ops 7:15 Zombie Panic! Source 9:57 Caliber

[@cornmonk9212]

hey, you should try rouge glitch and synthetic arena. they are hella great

[@SurelyNotClover]

TF2 should not be in this video but Enlisted is arguable

[@user-on7ed4bc5z]

interesting that most of these games i played next time can you make video about point blank, crossfire, sudden attack, counter-strike: online, warface (maybe?), alien swarm? I think it would be interesting to see upd: about truy kich too

[@FrostBeam009]

only decent here is Caliber and its super heavy grind.

[@tonnyhuy2869]

​@@user-on7ed4bc5zvietnamese player ??

[@RogueBeatsARG]

Enlisted has a only real players mode and its filled with people that dont wanna fight bots

[@adikhoja1384]

I just want to say how much I love this video. Unlike other youtubers who give lists and dont really explain the game and if so its really vague and brief and you're not able to get anything out of it. Not only do you go in depth but you also take time and effort to explain everything about the game.

[@jango5794]

Hired Ops was formerly known as "Contract Wars" and it was web based, I remember that it was full of players back then it was fun and looking like realistic shooter it was ahead of its time, but now when it became Hired Ops it was like another generic fps with much more microtransactions (Becoming heavily P2W was the start of the downfall of Contract Wars before becoming Hired Ops). Fun Fact: The Devs of the "Escape from Tarkov" was also the devs of Contract Wars back then they just part ways with the devs of "Hired Ops". Making both games a sequel of "Contract Wars" (That's why when you look at the old gameplays of Contract Wars you'll see the similarities of Escape from Tarkov)

[@GangstaPichu]

To add to the Fun Fact, even after the Devs left it was a sister company of Tarkov. They still communicated and such since the main owner of Tarkov was a head leader over at that company. Just stepped out to do his own thing. To be honest, the vibe I got he was like a co-owner or something of that company. That's why they still keep in touch. I don't know where it's at now with things, but I know that was the case.

[@GoRideLP]

i still remember playing contract wars back in 2014 on my browser on kongregate.. my favourite map being that lake map where everyone just camped everyone.. the kac pdw was menacing tbh

[@mohamadamirul3060]

​@@GoRideLP Brought back old memories

[@GundAme412]

@GoRideLP i played CW on facebook games, along with dead trigger 2 and ballistic ops (which was transfered to steam as "ballistic overkill" and became a dead game since) ... good old days ...

[@blueberrypimp8460]

Contract wars was really fun game, I miss playing it on Facebook in 2017

[@madiskruusmann302]

I've played Enlisted a lot and it's an amazing game. I love it to bits.

[@osmacar5331]

It's shit

[@Idkwhattoput151]

@@osmacar5331how?

[@osmacar5331]

@@Idkwhattoput151 the fact you are asking that says all i need to know about you and your addictions.

[@shikonp2438]

@@osmacar5331 says the one who deleted their comment 💀

[@osmacar5331]

@@shikonp2438 it's still there you mong

[@missheepious]

I loved enlisted, but the longer you play and the farther you level up the more you start to realize the bugs and issues

[@youtubeuser9090]

It’s free🤷‍♂️ it’s by far the most fun free game I’ve played

[@shrimpfry8657]

boy why your tf2 so saturated

[@the_bomb.]

Nvidia probably

[@Epic-ft2bg]

The scout is literally orange holy shit

[@VinnyUnion]

​@@the_bomb.That cheat tool

[@FingyDingy243]

Exactly

[@the_bomb.]

@@VinnyUnion cheat what?

[@lucid5183]

Enlisted is actually an amazing game. I started playing it when it came out. Great decision.

[@djketoldaluusbkabel585]

same, shame they'll mess up the whole point of the game with the merge, if I can't choose where I want to play and have to leave 9/10 matches I get connected to, then why play at all?

[@fugisek]

i freaking love your voice man, it feels kinda calming with the Minecraft music in the behind, i love it, big up.

[@AZEOforreal]

For Enlisted for most matches, each team has a certain amount of respawn soldiers. You have to take as many points as you can, and which ever team captures all the points first or kills all of the enemy team wins. It’s very fun.

[@andrejrozmaring]

I'm surprised games like Galaxy Life (a relaunch of a nostalgic Facebook game) or Unturned (a Rust x GTA x Minecraft combo love child) weren't mentioned. The chosen ones definitelly stand out and I'm glad you're bringing attention to free, playable and actually fun games. Have you thought of making a part two perhaps?

[@Jon_Hawke]

He's made part 2 and 3 i believe

[@hevytheghost5233]

Love the choice of music Rye ;D. You hit me with some nostalgia, and i really thank you for that.

[@nesyboi9421]

I played Enlisted a while ago when it first became open to the public and it was a lot more difficult than what you had, probably because when it first became public there was an actual large amount of players playing the game. I do think what you were in were beginner lobbies though, considering another game gaijin developed, war thunder, does the same thing.

[@M3PH11]

no it's becasue gaijin screw with the matchmaking to entice you into playing consistanly then bait and switch to a grind fest with bad rewards so you feel like you have to buy a premium account and some premium squads and vehicles.

[@SomeOrdinaryJanitor]

War Thunder/Enlisted player here! the first like 3-4 matches you play are entirely bot lobbies because Gaijin makes games with a billion different controls and features, but i'll give em credit where it is due, they add an INSANE level of depth and functionality that you literally cannot get anywhere else outside of pure simulators, and this is very much so the case with war thunder. say what you will about Gaijin as a developer, but they pay so much attention to detail, it's borderline excruciating at times.

[@Dregomz02]

And with Enlisted you can see some really obscure weapons that are rarely seen in WW2 games if ever.

[@David_Quinn_Photography]

Hired Ops is formerly Contract Wars and the BSG team were the devs of that game when it was a buy to play.

[@Nebula-wu7qr]

Enlisted is one of my primary games. I mostly play Allies on Normandy (because I'm a WW2 nerd who really likes studying the allies in the European Theater.) While the AI can be... lacking sometimes, a lot of their use comes out of the "y" key, which allows you to swap between the different squad members. This isn't important at first, until you have squad members with different abilities, such as snipers for long range, assaulters for close range, engineers to build things, and so on and so forth. I highly recommend it.

[@justsomesaltyboi8716]

i remember playing ZPS back in 2009 as i was looking to play a good burner game before i played No More Room In Hell. I honestly miss those days to be honest. I even remember the old days of when minecraft was a free game to download as a .zip file! To this day i feel a bit of sadness when looking back and seeing myself having so much fun in these free to play games that i have forgotten some of the people ive met that may very well not be alive anymore, and thinking on that, you play the minecraft default theme? man, you really did hit me in the feels.

[@MightBLucky]

always a pleasure to watch a true fellow gamer. keep up the good work♥

[@loadofhoopla]

the new maps and addition of a community made gamemode into and actual one is pretty nice, the maps are fairly well made and all have the classic tf2 silliness and charm to them all, overall the update is pretty good and very enjoyable

[@m4rsianer]

The best HL2 mod is Zombie Master. It came out 6 months earlier than Zombie Panic. You can play as master in top down view and spawn creatures in. Place traps. Turn lights off. Start explosions. You are basically a game director for players which have to complete missions the level. Finding fuel cans for generators. Find a blowtorch to manual torching steel doors. It is the best zombie game in my list, even before left 4 dead.

[@sofiyums]

Seeing the Nerd3 video in the short Silhouette section almost made me cry from nostalgia. He was such a pioneer for British variety gaming youtubers and he was also a huge part of my teenage years.

[@toecurlersupreme]

havent heard that name in AGES

[@Bamboodium]

Would like to see you playing enlisted The grind is crazy hard, The AI is braindead, but it's still fun. It's the kind of game where i hop in, shoot, hop off.

[@xboneava]

As someone who played tons of free fps during the 2007-2012 era when the Korean games were coming into American market check out these- soldier front 2, sudden attack, combat arms, alliance of valiant arms, blackout. Idk if they are still active but this will be a great series for ur channel.

[@tashkent561]

Ahhh, I remember playing a lot of Combat Arms, Sudden Attack and Alliance of Valiant Arms back in 2013-2014. Loved them so much. Experiences that can't be replaced, that specific genre of game was wonderful. Sadly most of them all shut down, so no, they're not played anymore.

[@peakdinosaurthe508th9]

Enlisted is a great game. At first you get dumb ai with rifles, but as you progress you get smarter Ai with a range of weapons, which began to make the game feel more and more realistic as you now have a diverse squad with its own strength's and weaknesses. And also there are vehicles which is cool depending on the map your playing.

[@someonegameing]

As a person who plays a lot of enlisted I can tell you that the more you play the worse it gets not the game but the difficulty wait until you get some phosphorus grenades

[@Zaczac111]

Man, Zombie Panic Source brings me back. Loved hurriedly trying to barricade rooms to block the infected on survive maps and then having to beat tactical retreats on escape maps. Favorite spot was the bathroom with a couch wedged in the hallway to prevent the zombies from getting to you.

[@kiritsakis1]

I was one of those lucky guys who had the honor of buying tf2, the same week it became free 😂 There should be a steam badge just for that 😂 Just saying.

[@plund8928]

You got a hat at least

[@catgaeming2025]

@@plund8928 still better than the crap cs:go players got

[@firegod5457]

oh man, you make videos so similar to pyrocynical that i completely forgot i was watching you. great content man

[@DekkerDave]

Jesus Christ, that Crab spy bug pulls a real nostalgia. I remember when it was fresh and how the whole team swapped to spies and did a crab wave once the game started. The amount of laughter was insane.

[@JUICECAT187]

I used to play the living shit out of Zombie Panic! Source like in 2008-2010. So many good memories from that game 🥰

[@Pierrekira]

Nice list! Im surprised Planetside 2 not in the list !

[@MrXaniss]

Agreed!

[@mrfoxsir]

You should talk about blockade 3d. I remember in the early 2010’s playing that game with my friends after school. So nostalgic.

[@agentbasil618]

i play enlisted so much im addicted to it

[@Deadleaf01]

the thing about enlisted is that when you first start you will get new players your rank and skill but as time goes on the bots get slightly more advanced and you get in bigger lobbies with more player

[@jojomaster7675]

Until you're fighting maxxed out sweatlords and can¨t even get to the battlefield because of all the explosion spam

[@gibbygarage2928]

I’ve played enlisted since late 2021, since then the game has improved 10 fold, if you haven’t played within the last 4 months it’s worth a revisit.

[@endereyehd2147]

Love your Videos! You could also test Planetside 2, as its free to play and has a nice concept.

[@Eyepoke42]

I always had so much fun on zombie panic. great game lol

[@victorwallec2534]

as a tf2 veteran ... this update is okay. Its great dont get me wrong, but the community expected more. If this updated never happend, Tf2 would still be at the same state in my opinion. Its still the best game out there xD

[@jamesabestos2800]

Still waiting for the heavy update

[@nastaselalexandru7947]

The problem with Hired Ops, is that this game is launched from even 2018 as a paid game and a predecessor of Contract wars. The problem with this game is mostly the COVID and what happens in Ukraine, the Dev team for this game and also Tarkov well they are from Russia soo they have the worst luck ever. Fist Covid made the devs make the game free, then the war came and they got racked by the sanctions. A similar this is facing another game called Save the Earth (basically plague inc with more positive and fun outcomes). Mostly from what I found online most Russian devs have the same problems money aren't coming in and the profits you are making are send to war bullshit even if you want or not soo most Russian games are on hold till the war is ending

[@definitegames4017]

This video has been very educational. :)

[@ThaHound115]

The fact that I've died to the same players as you while streaming on Enlisted is hilarious 😂.

[@Boofmauler]

all the calm music in this video made me think I had my game open at the same time of watching this video

[@OwOUwUOnO]

It would be rad to see Zombie Panic receive a VR update

[@yourlocaldoomer]

I love enlisted! It's like cod multiplayer but you are a commander of squads and its historically accurate

[@kamdensteiner5151]

Enlisted has to be my favorite free game of all time. Mostly because It's kind of like a free version of battlefield

[@lsp5401]

Enlisted is one of my favorite games ever thanks for giving it a mention

[@mauricio6614]

Fist Full of Frags fits very well in this list, a very good and almost unknowed game in the steam.

[@100cabelos]

Really great channel bro, what mic did you use ?

[@CanadianPenguin_]

Shatterline is a really good free game on Steam with the main thing being PVP but has some fun coop PVE modes

[@metalmaniac1836]

Enlisted is the only game I've ever played that makes me feel like I'm in an actual war

[@codycigar6542]

Play ARMA 3, Squad and Hell Let Loose.

[@ITheGuy]

“Some older than you” went straight for blood 😂😂

[@SurelyNotClover]

I jumped into free games myself and I found some interesting ones too. • Open Mod • Retail Royal •Lost Light (Have not played them, but soon will)

[@r3dsnow757]

Totally Accurate Battlegrounds

[@sharkey5_]

Enlisted one of top played games. Freakin love it!

[@tufanaydin6340]

i loved "Enlisted" i downloaded after the video. Game looks very good. Have big potential.

[@GiCo_]

yeah it is good,honestly a shame it is a pay to win

[@gabrielgregomonkeyboy2959]

we need more vids like this

[@Eluzv]

Man I’m so happy enlisted is final getting some attention I love that game

[@erixIsOffline]

i didnt even know that this cs mode got its own game its sad that i never try it but i thnk im going to change it also great video

[@yesseru]

I only got into caliber because it was advertised as a milsim 1st person shooter, the ad i saw was literally tarkov footage as it turns out.

[@negativeplayer4446]

My guy, there's a game that I want you to try out. It reminded me of Caliber, but I think the game's older. It's called "Battle Prime" and somehow, the devs managed to stuff visuals inching ever so close to Caliber in a mobile game.

[@thetechcorner7204]

Enlisted actually comes from the game Cuisine Royale, released much earlier in 2019. Cuisine Royale is now called CRSED. Enlisted came out in 2021. The reason why I have never tried enlisted, is because it is way too similar. It's basically a re-skin.

[@tashkent561]

It's the opposite, actually, Cuisine was a joke mode made by the Enlisted developers while they were making the game, and they released it as a full game as April's Fools. It's not a reskin, Cuisine is a reskin of Enlisted.

[@thetechcorner7204]

@@tashkent561 actually looked this up. Because it was the first game they released I thought enlisted was the copy.

[@mahengodha2482]

You missed out on one of the biggest free to play games called Unturned

[@RoberBot]

"me and the chat gpt boys" Lol, u got me bro... this one broke me

[@SCP_Foundation...]

Enlisted is an awesome game, the ai is your squad which you upgrade and grow, you can still have players join your party to play together

[@colowrs6969]

the hired ops game is a game that i used to play in 2013-2014 on facebook it was named contract wars or something like that

[@NewEnglandGetsBusy]

Giant contention with how you characterized TF2 at the beginning. While it's a classic it certainly stood on the shoulders of giants. Considering this is a video about free games it's odd you didn't start with the free game that had global reach and a massive dedicated base of players years before TF2 came out: Wolfenstein E.T.

[@Yolby_]

bro the minecraft music in the backgrond is fire ❤‍🔥

[@Scribbles69]

enlisted is fun i only played it on launch tho on ps5 so of course it was popping then no idea what its like now

[@t_f_weston]

Dude.. your Minecraft background noise constantly going had me thinking I was going insane

[@DIMITRI97]

No more room in hell and Zombie panic source. Classic.

[@jaluhd_official4603]

first video i saw and direct follow i love you video and our voice

[@mr.snowcone6067]

gotta add 'No More Room In Hell' to the free to play list. One of the best!

[@Medoxic]

Hey man since you mentioned enlisted I wonder if you ever tried or made a video on War Thunder. It's one of the best free games I have played and it is by the same publisher as enlisted. The gameplay, the graphics and the concept are all really great and i absolutely love to grind on that game.

[@jojomaster7675]

Yeah it's free, it only costs your soul...

[@charredleaves1464]

Enlisted is one of my favorite games to play, there was a time when planes could damage teammates when they did bombing runs. Obviously this meant I had to bully my friends who were new to it…

[@KhaledIron]

dude dont hit me with that minecraft nostalgic music that activates 50+ memories in my head stop!

[@FlashbacksZA]

Yo, Rye. Have you ever seen Veiled Experts. Very new game, But I love the PVP only issue is servers

[@Notabl3]

0:19 before the whole orange box in general lol

[@MorpheusGI]

Theirs a game in on playstation (and I think Xbox) called Vigor. It's an Extraction Battle Royale game - you have a homebase you have to upgrade with resources you find in the game mode, you then find and walk to an extract with those resources. I've been binge watching these series so curious what yout hink of that.

[@Paco_Gaepedores]

Amazing ❤

[@jc_hunter]

Have you also tried Combat Arms? Fun little free game as well

[@snifik]

Similar character or class system was first introduced in Return to Castle Wolfenstein and after that in the standalone Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory. Just so you know. :)

[@kylemulkey9659]

I just started playing Caliber, its pretty fun

[@Siss88]

lol i was watching this video and in the middle i got a ad for enlisted

[@DennisRisadinha]

the minecraft soundtrack made my tear up from nostalgia idk why

[@user-lp5wb2rb3v]

hired ops is the same devs as EFT, but they were originally a browser game called Contract Wars. CW was my first FPS game XD

[@proelitematthew7811]

shatterline is sooo slept on

[@M1551NGN0]

You should include eve online as well. It's a subscription based free to start game but you can do just as good as a subscribed player. It's a sci-fi game set in a dystopian future when humans have took to the stars and reached new frontiers

[@Scrawwlex]

3:00 what's that soundtrack playing there called, It sounds so familliar but I cant recall from where I know it from

[@cxpone6669]

Love ur vids bro

[@axonice]

I'm quite literally addicted to the soviet sniper class in the Moscow campaign.

[@MadsenTheDane]

Man Zombie Panic Source was the shit, i miss my young days where i played that all night :(

[@Brown_Water]

the only reason why i love steam and pc gaming in general is because there is a community for everything which is just so cool

[@teloxyz]

feels like im watching a documentary about haunted games

[@dangerdorito1107]

The stalker series of games is pretty good as well

[@laurac0rd]

enlisted gets so hard when it actually puts you in player lobbies the first 5 ish games are begginner

[@LegendaryNuggets]

4:43 "I ended up playing with myself" Pornhub intro plays

[@user-pm9yb2zr8i]

You should do a video on contagion

[@Neo-pk4be]

contract wars and hired ops are games from the tarkov team and kinda where there first steps in to modern day fps