Eurogamer’s review of the new Hell Let Loose: Vietnam expansion this week landed under the header “Minor Hanoiances.” That is roughly how the community reaction has felt on the Hell Let Loose subreddit too, and it is a good excuse to line up the Hell Let Loose alternatives on PC for anyone who wants the same 50-versus-50 tactical shooter energy from a different game. Every pick below is a real, actively updated shooter with living servers as of 2026.
We stayed away from arcade shooters, casual battle-royales, and single-player campaigns. What is here is squad-based, coordinated, and rewards playing your role.
Quick comparison
| Game | Best for | Player count | Setting | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Squad | Modern combined-arms mil-sim | 100 | Modern | Paid |
| Post Scriptum | WWII with a Squad-style engine | 80 | WWII | Paid |
| Enlisted | HLL feel with a bigger unit unlock loop | 20 v 20 + AI | WWII, Korea | Free-to-play |
| Insurgency: Sandstorm | Faster tactical rounds with fewer players | 16 v 16 | Modern insurgency | Paid |
| Arma Reforger | Sandbox mil-sim with modding | 128 | Cold War | Paid |
| Rising Storm 2: Vietnam | The 64-player Vietnam shooter people already know | 64 | Vietnam | Paid |
| Ready or Not | Small-team modern police tactics | 5 co-op / small PvP | Modern SWAT | Paid |
Why people are looking away from Hell Let Loose
Three complaints come up on the HLL subreddit right now.
The first is match balance after the last few live updates. Newer players struggle to close the gap on tank crews and commanders who have been playing since the Early Access days, and the sub is full of first-round quitters.
The second is Vietnam expansion pricing. The Hanoi expansion added a new theatre but it also split the community across new servers before those servers were populated, and the review-bomb wave landed the day it shipped.
The third is scale envy. Squad, Arma Reforger, and even Enlisted put more players in a single fight than HLL now caters to, and the alternatives ship maps that feel wider without feeling emptier.
The alternatives
Squad — best modern combined-arms mil-sim
Squad is the tool the HLL team openly cites as an influence, and it is the most obvious cross-over. 100 players on a server, real infantry roles, drivable armor, helicopters, and voice-first squads. The learning curve is real and the community enforces it, but the payoff is a shooter where a coordinated eight-person squad actually turns a battle.
Where it falls short: Modern setting, so no WWII. Communities on some servers gatekeep hard.
Pricing:
- One-off around $49.99 on Steam.
Migrating from HLL: Habits transfer directly. Play a rifleman for the first ten hours, join a squad that runs mic-required, and Squad clicks.
Bottom line: The right pick if HLL taught you to love squad discipline and you want a bigger battlefield.
Post Scriptum — best WWII with a Squad-style engine
Post Scriptum is HLL’s closest cousin: WWII, tactical, squad-based, on the Unreal Engine 4 that Squad also uses. It leans further into vehicle simulation than HLL and its maps span very large historical operations (Market Garden, Bulge). Player counts are smaller than they were at launch, but the servers that survive are dedicated.
Where it falls short: Community is thinner than Squad or HLL. Peak hours matter more than in a busier shooter.
Pricing:
- One-off around $34.99 on Steam.
Migrating from HLL: UI feels familiar, vehicle sim is deeper. Set expectations lower on server population and higher on realism.
Bottom line: The right pick if you want HLL’s setting with Squad’s philosophy and you can plan around active hours.
Enlisted — best HLL feel with a bigger unlock loop
Enlisted is Gaijin’s WWII squad shooter with AI-controlled squadmates alongside human players. It scales down the raw player count (20 v 20 with AI filling in) but keeps the pace up, and the campaign-style progression across Normandy, Berlin, Tunisia, and the Pacific gives the loop that HLL famously does not have.
Where it falls short: Progression-heavy, so early loadouts feel thin. Free-to-play grind is real.
Pricing:
- Free-to-play, optional squad and vehicle packs from around $10 each.
Migrating from HLL: Faster time-to-fight than HLL. The AI squadmates take getting used to, but the tactical shape stays intact.
Bottom line: The right pick when you want the WWII feeling without paying up front and you accept the free-to-play loop.
Insurgency: Sandstorm — best faster tactical rounds with fewer players
Insurgency: Sandstorm is the modern-day, smaller-scale tactical shooter that keeps HLL’s lethality without HLL’s downtime. Round-based rather than persistent-front, 16 v 16 by default, one-shot kills common on the head, and a co-op vs AI mode that runs when the servers are quiet.
Where it falls short: No armor sim, no 100-player fronts. Not the game to scratch the HLL scale itch.
Pricing:
- One-off around $29.99, frequent sales cheaper.
Migrating from HLL: Lower TTK, faster rounds. Voice comms still matter but on a squad of four not a squad of eight.
Bottom line: The right pick when you want the tension of tactical fights without the twenty-minute walk to the objective.
Arma Reforger — best sandbox mil-sim with modding
Arma Reforger is Bohemia’s stepping-stone between Arma 3 and Arma 4. It runs on a modern engine, hosts 128 players, and its mod tooling is what keeps Arma communities alive for a decade at a time. Official game modes include Conflict (Cold War combined arms) and Game Master (a person builds the mission live), and community mods cover everything from WWII to modern.
Where it falls short: Simulator, not shooter. The gap between “read the manual” and “have fun” is wider than any other game on this list.
Pricing:
- One-off around $29.99.
Migrating from HLL: More logistics, more sim depth, slower fights. Ideal for the HLL players who wanted more of the seven-minute walk, not less.
Bottom line: The right pick if HLL wasn’t quite realistic enough and you have friends who agree.
Rising Storm 2: Vietnam — best the 64-player Vietnam shooter people already know
Rising Storm 2: Vietnam is Tripwire’s 2017 Vietnam shooter, and it is still the answer most HLL players give when someone asks about a Vietnam alternative. 64 players, deep asymmetric factions (US vs NVA/VC), commander abilities, and helicopters flown by real players. The community is smaller in 2026 but the peak-time servers still fill.
Where it falls short: No sequel on the way. Updates are minimal. Some maps go quiet outside peak.
Pricing:
- One-off around $24.99, frequent deep discounts.
Migrating from HLL: Faction asymmetry is stronger than HLL’s, and the pace is higher. Voice comms still central.
Bottom line: The right pick if the HLL Vietnam expansion put the setting on your mind and you want the older, sharper version of the theme.
Ready or Not — best small-team modern police tactics
Ready or Not is the modern-day SWAT successor a lot of people were waiting for. Co-op raids with an AI or human squad of five, breach-and-clear tension, real consequences for civilian casualties, and a growing bank of missions that keep it feeling like a proper single-shooter campaign.
Where it falls short: Not a 50-versus-50 game. PvP is the smaller part of the offering.
Pricing:
- One-off around $49.99.
Migrating from HLL: Very different scale. Shared DNA is “one bullet ends the fight, coordinate or die.”
Bottom line: The right pick when the HLL habit you want to keep is squad discipline, not vast fronts.
How to choose
Pick Squad if you want HLL scale in a modern setting.
Pick Post Scriptum if you want HLL’s WWII setting with more sim depth and you can live with smaller player counts.
Pick Enlisted if you want the WWII feel free-to-play, and you accept AI squadmates and a grind.
Pick Insurgency: Sandstorm if HLL rounds felt too long and you want faster tactical fights.
Pick Arma Reforger if you want the deepest sim and the biggest sandbox, and you have a group willing to learn it.
Pick Rising Storm 2: Vietnam if the HLL Vietnam expansion put the setting on your radar.
Pick Ready or Not if what you want from HLL is squad discipline, not the 100-player scale.
Stay on Hell Let Loose if you already have the friends, the servers you like, and the muscle memory. The Vietnam expansion divided the community, but the base game still delivers what it always did.
FAQ
Is Hell Let Loose still worth playing in 2026?
Yes for anyone who has a group and knows the maps. The Vietnam expansion is optional, and the base 100-player WWII loop remains the strongest version of what HLL is famous for.
What is the best free alternative to Hell Let Loose?
Enlisted. It is the only free-to-play game on this list that lands close to HLL’s WWII squad shape, even with AI squadmates filling the count.
Are Squad and Hell Let Loose similar?
They share the tactical, squad-based, communication-heavy DNA. Squad is modern, HLL is WWII. Squad has more vehicle depth and larger battlefields; HLL has stronger commander roles and a more focused two-side loop.
Is Post Scriptum still active in 2026?
Yes, on peak-time European and North American servers. Off-peak populations are lower than Squad or HLL, so plan around active hours.
What game feels most like Hell Let Loose Vietnam?
Rising Storm 2: Vietnam. The 64-player faction asymmetry, helicopter roles, and jungle firefights are why HLL fans have been comparing the two since the expansion dropped.
