The Finals vs. Fortnite: Which Free Online Shooter Should You Play?

You won’t find the time to play all the multiplayer shooter games currently flooding the gaming scene in one lifetime.

That’s why choices matter. If you’re into online shooters, chances are you’ve got more than two games to pick from. But if you’ve already narrowed your choice to The Finals or Fortnite, this guide should help you pick the best option.

Disclaimer: For the purposes of this comparison, I’ll be excluding the LEGO, Rocket Racing, and Fortnite Festival modes. After all, it’s the online shooter aspect we’re interested in.

Game Modes & Multiplayer

Fortnite is all about survival of the fittest in a solo or team battle royale format. The Finals’ 3v3 game mode is about stealing money. While both require skill, The Finals demands a strategic approach; mindless killing won’t get you far.

In terms of dynamics, Fortnite allows for solo adventures, while The Finals is strictly team-oriented. Team play is extremely fun if you’re playing with friends on a voice channel, but it can be frustrating if you’re playing with strangers who are not communicative and have a different strategy from yours.

Shooter Mechanics

While in Fortnite, you’ll search ammo boxes and loot corpses to get more bullets; in the Finals, you’re never out of ammo. This might seem like a tiny detail, but it spares you the embarrassment of looking your enemy in the eye, attempting to shoot, and then realizing that you’ve run out of bullets. It’s an awkward scenario that often results in death followed by humiliating emotes.

Regarding the core shooter mechanics, The Finals seems to have more depth. The weapons are a bit more realistic, and there’s room for builds: the agile light, the rounded medium, and the bombastic heavy.

Fortnite doesn’t have any builds, which means everyone plays more or less the same way. In a regular battle royale match, people build random structures to shield themselves from bullets. In Zero Build, they’ll just hop like crazy in a desperate attempt to avoid incoming fire. That’s it. Despite efforts to spice up gun customization, Fortnite’s gunplay doesn’t match The Finals in my book.

Story (or Lack Thereof) and Overall Game Feeling

Fortnite has, whether you’re caught up with it or not, an overarching story. The Finals focuses solely on the competitive contest aspect. Embark Studios could go one or the other way with the story behind the world that hosts a money and power-hungry contest. 

In Fortnite, you can build silly little wooden structures. But in the Finals, you destroy. You can break down walls, floors, and roofs to wreak havoc everywhere. This interactive arena is key to ensuring The Finals’ four medium-sized maps look and feel different each round. 

Every player can bomb a neon-soaked casino until it crumbles into a mere pile of fallen debris. And while I’ll say this is one of the strongest points of The Finals, it can also ruin its beauty. The Finals relies heavily on its appearance: it’s flashy and crisp, but too many explosions can make it look like a rundown hell. At the end of a match, you’ll be running over piles of fallen walls (or maybe that was a roof, not sure) in a desperate attempt to make things right for your team, and that ain’t a pretty sight.

Matches & Replayability

Everything about the Finals is satisfying. From the sight of coins dropping everywhere when you take down an enemy to the casino-like ka-ching sounds you get from successfully executing a Cashout. It’s gratifying and addictive, especially because you can quickly come back to life after being eliminated or restart a match after it’s over.

Fortnite hits pause once you’re out, making you wait in the lobby until enough players gather for another bus ride. For me, two matches a day satisfy my Fortnite fix. But The Finals’ quick turnaround after a setback is addictive, drawing you back in for round after round.

Skins & Overall Look

Fortnite’s look lies on the animated side, whereas the Finals goes for a more realistic, grounded look. This becomes especially visible when you look at the game’s skins.

Over the course of its 7-year lifespan, Fortnite has given birth to an endless roster of skins, styles, and emotes that are borrowed from whichever TV show, game, or anime was popular at the time. It’s a rich and whimsical environment full of Eren Jaegers who throw Halloween candy at an impossibly buff kitty, Lil Wayne style. 

Related: Top 20 LEGO Fortnite Skins

The Finals, on the other hand, features original skins and much more customization. You can change everything from hairstyle to eyes to body paint. Sure, you may not be running around as a brightly colored Peter Griffin, or wearing Brian the dog as a backpack. However, I’d say it’s a much healthier and well-rounded space. Though there aren’t many skins available yet, the ones you can currently grab are coherent with the game’s style and look. It is highly customizable, too, just so you don’t mix up allies with foes just because they have the same skin.

The Verdict

I’ve become addicted to Fortnite’s high-speed gameplay and the rush of constant updates and rewards. The FOMO-driven progression keeps me hooked, eagerly awaiting the next challenges and skins. If fast-paced action is your thing, Fortnite nails it.

As for The Finals, it’s a more stable gaming experience but lacks lasting excitement. Grinding through its content takes longer, yet many have already exhausted it. Still, this young multiplayer has potential, and I’m eager to see its evolution. If that piques your interest, The Finals might be worth a shot.