A Decade In, BlackMill's WW1 Series Lands on the Ottoman Fronts
A Dutch indie studio's decade-long WW1 FPS series lands on the Ottoman fronts. Authentic, team-dependent, and not for lone wolves.
Worth a Look
A nicely polished entry in a decade-old WW1 series, and the most authentic team shooter in its lane.
Good for: WW1 history buffs, milsim fans, squads that play together regularly, anyone tired of arcade shooters holding their hand.
Skip if: You want a solo campaign or story, or sprint-and-slide gunplay is your comfort zone.
BlackMill Games has spent ten years building a World War 1 FPS series and a lot of players quietly love it. Verdun came out in 2015, Tannenberg in 2019, Isonzo in 2022, and now Gallipoli lands on the Ottoman fronts. The Dutch indie studio is not chasing trends. They are sticking to their lane, and Gallipoli is the most polished entry yet.
What you actually do
Gallipoli is a 25v25 multiplayer first-person shooter set on the Gallipoli peninsula and in Mesopotamia during World War 1. You pick one of ten classes, from officer to stretch-bearer, and fight objective-based battles with up to 50 players. There is no campaign, no solo play, and no lone-wolf heroics. You win by holding ground with your squad, not by racking up kills.
The weapons are the point. Authentic rifles, machine guns, and sidearms, each with real handling quirks. A Lewis gun cannot be fired from the hip. You have to go prone or deploy the bipod. A bolt-action rifle takes three seconds to cycle if you panic. The game does not reward twitch reflexes. It rewards patience, positioning, and knowing when to hold your fire.
Where it shines
A few things stood out in our early hours:
The landing feels brutal. The ANZAC beach assault has you rowing toward shore in small boats under machine-gun fire. There is no cover, no respawn, and no way to rush it. You either coordinate with your squad or die in the surf.
The class system matters. Ten roles, from heavy machine-gunner to ammo carrier. Each one has a job, and the team falls apart without support classes. It is the opposite of every arcade shooter on the market.
The terrain is real. BlackMill used photogrammetry to build the cliffs and trenches. The ground looks like dirt, not a texture. When you go prone, you are in the dirt.
The studio ships updates. Verdun and Isonzo still get support years after launch. BlackMill does not abandon their games.
Where it wobbles
Simply put, Gallipoli is not for everyone. The learning curve is steep, and the first few hours will feel like you are dying for no reason. The game does not hold your hand. Machine guns must be deployed, rifles must be aimed, and movement is slow. If you want to sprint and slide, this is not your game.
The bigger catch is the team dependency. Public matches fill with randoms, and one squad that does not support the team can cost the battle for everyone. Game is fun even when solo, but it truly shines if you have a coordinated squad.
There is also no single-player content. No campaign, no story, no progression beyond unlocking weapons and uniforms. However, it has an offline mode with full bot support and full offline progression. So you can play it alone with bots if you want.
Is it worth your money?
At $13.99 (with a launch discount to about $10.49), Gallipoli is priced like an indie game, not a AAA shooter. For the price, you get a polished, authentic WW1 multiplayer experience with long-term support from a studio that cares about the niche. But you also get a game that demands patience, teamwork, and a tolerance for dying a lot before you get good.
If you are a WW1 history buff or a milsim fan who wants a team-based shooter that does not hold your hand, Gallipoli earns a spot in your library. If you want a solo campaign or arcade action, skip it.