A World War One FPS set in the Alps
Isonzo is a realistic tactical multiplayer first-person shooter by BlackMill Games, the studio behind Verdun and Tannenberg. It moves the WW1 Game Series to the Italian Front, where the fighting took place among mountain trails, hillside fortresses, trenches, vineyards and the streets of small northern Italian towns. Matches cover key offensives of the campaign, from the Sixth Battle of Isonzo to the Strafexpedition, and are built around 48-player battles over shifting frontlines. Weapons, uniforms, sounds, houses and terrain are recreated from research and field trips, so the setting reads as a real historical battlefield rather than a generic war map.
Playing together as a squad
This is a team-based game, so a group of friends slots into the same match and picks roles that cover each other. Six classes are available, each with its own historically accurate equipment, perks and weapons from a pool of more than 50. You might play Marksman and pick off enemies from a distance, take Assault to storm the line, or go Officer and issue tactical orders to the squad. Loadouts are also customizable with uniforms, accessories, headgear and several wartime mustache styles.
The flare gun system is where teamwork pays off: mark targets to call in artillery strikes or biplane flybys, then push in with bayonets and trench clubs to finish the job. Not every role is about shooting. You can cut barbed wire, crew heavy machine guns and mortars, or supply the team from ammo crates. Placing sandbags, barbed wire and ammo crates lets you reshape the battlefield, while trench periscopes and sniper shields give you ways to look and shoot without exposing yourself.
Before you start
Alpine terrain decides most fights, so learning the lay of the land matters as much as aim. Keep cover between you and the ridgelines, use mountain trails to flank rather than charging head-on, and watch for gas attacks and artillery barrages, which punish anyone caught standing still in the open. Expect realistic pacing and lethal firefights rather than fast respawn action.
Authenticity runs deep here, from the class-specific roles to the recreated trenches and vineyards, so taking a moment to read what your class is meant to do will make the first matches smoother. The standalone titles Gallipoli, Tannenberg and Verdun cover the Ottoman, Eastern and Western Fronts if you want to carry on with the series afterward.