Back 4 Blood is the best feeling FPS on console I've played in ages

I don't pretend to be great at shooters, but I do enjoy them for the most part. I was a huge fan of Left 4 Dead, the four-player co-op, zombie shooter, so Turtle Rock and Warner Bros' spiritual successor, the four-player co-op, zombie shooting Back 4 Blood, had me very interested. I didn't play the beta, so went into the final game not really knowing what I was in for.

And what I was in for, it turns out, is an FPS that controls superbly on console. I'm playing on Xbox Series X, with a standard Xbox Series controller, and I'm taking down the zombies (the game calls them Ridden, before someone jumps in to correct me) faster than Scrooge took down his Christmas decorations.

It all comes down to how the guns feel when using the console controller. With auto-aim on and aim-down-sight snap to target on, the whole thing just clicks. And while those assists are on (by default), it doesn't feel too strong. The feeling is almost like being at one with the guns, rather than having a heavy hand wrestle the controls from you. It's how it should be.

Of course, on PC this isn't needed if you're at all experienced with the kind of quick precision a mouse can offer, but on console there's no shame in it. I'm all for assists that make things more fun. Why struggle when there are options available to you? Who cares if someone on Twitter decides you aren't good enough to play an FPS. Quite frankly, screw them.

It's worth noting that the assists here don't turn Back 4 Blood into a GTA-style shooter. It's not an aim-lock; you still need to aim. And it's still very, very possible to miss and get overrun. In fact, I'd say the key to lots of Back 4 Blood, at least during my first few hours with it, is often crowd control. Dealing with the odd Ridden is pretty simple, but it's when a horde comes at you that things become tough.

That's all I've got to say, really. Some shooters on console end up falling on either end of the aiming spectrum. You either can't aim for s**t or you could let a hamster play and get more or less the same results. Turtle Rock has got it spot on. As an often awkward, bearded, geek man, I can't say this very often, but Back 4 Blood is doing an awesome job of making me feel like a badass.

Back 4 Blood is out now if you buy the Deluxe or Ultimate Edition, but on October 12 for everyone else, when it also comes to Game Pass for console, PC, and Cloud. For more upcoming games, head over to our video game release dates page.

Disclaimer: Tested on Xbox Series X. A copy of the game was provided by the publisher.