‘Ready or Not’ gets close quarters combat right in a videogame

I’m a sucker for realistic first-person shooters, so videogames like Ready or Not are right up my alley. I dived into the game with a few friends from my Marine Corps days and I was blown away. I never got much into the modern Call of Duty titles.

I don’t want to have to learn to slide cancel to avoid getting schmacked by someone rocking a Nicki Minaj skin. I prefer slower, more methodical first-person shooters.

It’s tough to call any videogame realistic, but games like Ready or Not are a lot more realistic than most.

Bring order to chaos

Developed by VOID Interactive and released in 2023 for PC and in July 2025 for PS5 and the Xbox X and S series, Ready or Not has you playing as a SWAT team captain in the fictional city of Los Suenos – a fictionalized version of Los Angeles, but the violent crime is amped up to 11.

The game lacks an overarching narrative, instead offering a variety of missions set in different locales. You lead two teams of SWAT officers that make up a five-man SWAT team.

The team behind Ready or Not combined traditional crime and locations with modern elements. For example, Mission One tasks you with responding to a robbery at a gas station. That’s relatively traditional, but the next mission has you as a SWAT Officer participating in a SWATing, which is a false 911 call that has resulted in real-world deaths.

The game is dark and not for kids. The missions and operations can take some really dark and twisted turns. You’ll find yourself dealing with child exploitation, cartel violence, human trafficking, and more.

Gear up

Ready or Not console trailer. (IGN via VOID Interactive)

The game allows you to use a variety of weapons and high-tech gadgets to accomplish your mission. One of the mottos of the Los Suenos SWAT is that your mission is to bring order to chaos, not to create widows and orphans. To help you live up to this promise, you can use a variety of non-lethal tools to subdue threats and bring them in.

You get a ranking issued after every mission, and the only way to get an S-tier run is to go completely non-lethal. That’s a challenge unto itself. The game encourages you to conduct non-lethal runs and to act as a police officer more than a soldier.

It’s clear the game’s designers did a ton of research into firearms, gear, and tactics. Most of the game’s guns and gear are based on real-life guns, optics, lights, lasers, and more. You can even customize what and how much armor you wear. Obscure guns like the Flux Raider and Benelli SuperNova are nice touches amongst a field of various 5.56 assault rifles and 9mm submachine guns.

You have multiple tools for breaching doors, distracting opponents, and navigating obstacles. Each level is a puzzle, and these tools are the pieces you use to put it together.

The game features some nice touches that keep you thinking. For example, if you use a laser or light on your firearm, the enemy can see that and will react accordingly. Different weapons have different lengths, and that’s reflected by the way the gun interacts with walls and doors.

Related: How video games can make you a better fighter pilot

Slow is smooth

Ready or Not gameplay screenshot. (VOID Interactive)

The game encourages slow, methodical gameplay. Behind every door could be a threat or maybe nothing at all. Going in guns blazing is a great way to get the Game Over screen. You can die very quickly because game doesn’t allow you to use med kits or heal; the closest you get to that is stopping the bleed.

You want to slowly check each corner and door, taking your time when possible, but moving quickly and decisively when necessary. The game encourages you to use real-life close-quarter battle tactics, like checking your corners, moving through the fatal funnel, pieing doorways, and using known and unknown space.

Don’t go into this game expecting a lot of firefights. Some missions only have four bad guys in total. When it comes time to engage the threat, you have to watch your fire as these levels are filled with civilians. You must maneuver around them and avoid hitting them or allowing them to be hit in the crossfire. The penalty for civilian deaths is high.

In some scenarios, you have openly hostile enemies who will kill civilians or take hostages. You must think quickly about how to resolve these issues using the tools at your disposal. The missions are always different, so when you replay them, the location of civilians and enemies changes. This keeps you on your toes and allows for excellent replayability.

Multiplayer engaged

Ready or Not gameplay screenshot. (VOID Interactive)

Playing Ready or Not on multiplayer was some of the most fun I’ve ever had. I get sucked into the game and found my hands sweating and my body leaning forward, trying to inch ever closer to the TV. Communication becomes critical, and if you want to win and succeed, you’ll need to communicate and listen to your fellow players.

Before every mission, you and your team must coordinate your equipment. If everyone brings breaching shotguns, you’ll have limited solutions to a multitude of problems. Pre-mission planning is critical, which is also an essential aspect of real-life operations.

As much as I love Ready or Not, it’s not perfect. The game’s graphics appear a bit dated and leave something to be desired. Also, the move from PC to console introduced some bugs. Some gadgets, like the CS Gas Grenades, appear to be completely ineffective. Additionally, fixes seem to be slow-rolling, so it might be smart to wait a few months for the fixes to take effect.

Nevertheless, Ready or Not is an immersive experience, and that’s what I like most about it. It’s a game I can sink myself into for a quick 15-minute mission and have a total blast. It demands total focus, and I can appreciate that.

If you’re a fan of slower, more methodical first-person shooters with a decent single-player campaign, give Ready or Not a try.

Feature Image courtesy of VOID Interactive

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