Call of Duty: Modern Warfare

• It is difficult for players to go more than five minutes in a "Call of Duty" game without finding themselves smack in the middle of a fierce firefight, but "Modern Warfare" takes the franchise to a new level. From close combat shootouts with Russian Special Forces or Spetsnaz to full-scale invasions of modern day Iraq, "Modern Warfare" offers non-stop thrills with barely enough time in between to reload.
  
  

Bioshock

• Taking place deep beneath the Pacific Ocean, this thriller takes shootouts to a new level of intensity. Players take on heavily armed anarchists in a worn-down, underwater city teeming with lowlifes and killer robotic drones. What's more, the city was once a scientific hub for genetic experiments. The result is enemies that don't just fight with guns--they fight with their minds. Enemies and players are forced into deadly shootouts with telekinesis, fireballs and electric currents as well as all standard weaponry from machine guns to rocket-propelled grenades.
  
  

Gears of War 2

• Shootouts are a staple of the "Gears of War" franchise, and "Gears of War 2" is certainly no exception. Fighting against a horde of alien enemies, players must rally the human survivors of the broken planet Serra if they are to have any hope of survival against a ruthless enemy onslaught. Players have shootouts in majestic granite mausoleums, caverns deep within the Earth and even the belly of a giant city-devouring worm. And just when it seemed the game couldn't get any more intense, they added a chainsaw to players guns for when shootouts get a little too close for comfort.
  
  

Halo Reach

• This shooter pits players against yet another alien invasion. Outgunned and outnumbered, players must fight waves of different enemies that each alter the conditions of combat. Shootouts with "elites" require cover and crafty tactics to outwit enemies that are trying to flank and surprise players at every opportunity. Battles with "brutes," however, take fast reflexes and even faster thinking, as heavily armored enemies barrel down on the player with brute-force charges. Combat is rarely the same twice.
  
  

Rainbow Six: Vegas 2

• This game follows a team of U.S. Special Forces as they complete infiltration missions in the Las Vegas strip. Shootouts abound both in traffic-jammed downtown streets and the flashy nearby hotels, giving the term "Sin City" a whole new meaning. Players must also breach and clear rooms using flash-bang grenades and precision timing. One slip-up can lead to a deadly shootout--making the high-stakes of the casinos about more than just gambling.