HYPERVIOLENT Review Summary

Strong atmosphere and aesthetics: The game excels in creating a tense and immersive atmosphere with its retro sci-fi horror vibe. The visuals, music, and sound effects contribute to a cohesive and engaging experience.

Unique visual and audio style: The game features a distinctive pixel art style and a solid soundtrack that complements the retro sci-fi horror theme. The visuals and audio work together to create a cohesive and immersive atmosphere.

Retro shooter with immersive elements: The game successfully blends retro shooter mechanics with immersive sim elements, reminiscent of classic games like System Shock and Doom. It features fast-paced combat, a dark sci-fi atmosphere, and a variety of weapons and enemies.

Dual-wielding combat system: The dual-wielding system is a standout feature, allowing players to use different weapons or tools in each hand. This mechanic adds depth and variety to the combat, making it more enjoyable and visceral.

Engaging gameplay and level design: The gameplay is fast-paced and engaging, with well-designed levels that keep players on edge. The variety of enemies, weapons, and locations adds to the overall enjoyment and replayability.

Clunky controls and UI: The game's controls and user interface are widely criticized for being unintuitive and difficult to manage. Players report issues with camera movement, inventory management, and overall control scheme, making the game feel unpolished and frustrating to navigate.

Unsatisfying combat mechanics: Combat in the game is criticized for being unsatisfying and poorly executed. Issues include weak gunplay, inaccurate weapons, and unbalanced enemy encounters, leading to a frustrating and unenjoyable combat experience.

Poor performance and bugs: The game suffers from significant performance issues, including FPS drops, crashes, and various bugs. These technical problems detract from the overall experience and indicate a lack of optimization and polish.

Lack of content and variety: The game is criticized for its lack of content and variety, particularly in enemy types and gameplay mechanics. This makes the game feel repetitive and unengaging over time.

Poor level and game design: The level design is often confusing and repetitive, with poorly laid out maps and excessive backtracking. Players find the game design decisions confusing and the overall experience tedious.

Inventory and resource management: The game emphasizes inventory and resource management, requiring players to carefully manage their ammo, health, and other resources. The dual-wielding system and limited inventory space add to the strategic depth.

Exploration and level design: The game encourages exploration with its maze-like level design and hidden items. Players must navigate through claustrophobic corridors and solve puzzles to progress.

Retro and immersive shooter blend: The game combines elements of retro shooters like DOOM with immersive sim features similar to System Shock. It features fast-paced combat, dark sci-fi horror atmosphere, and inventory management.

Story and atmosphere: The game features a dark and oppressive atmosphere, with a story inspired by classic sci-fi horror. Players uncover the narrative through logs, emails, and environmental storytelling.

Visceral and satisfying combat: Combat in the game is described as visceral and satisfying, with a variety of weapons and enemies. The gunplay is rewarding, and the game features both melee and ranged combat.

Audio issues: There are significant audio problems, including bugs with sync and repetition, mixing issues, and audio clipping. Players have reported that the audio can become extremely loud unexpectedly.

Saving and loading issues: Players have reported issues with saving and loading game progress, particularly in certain game modes. This includes problems with the game not saving progress in Ironman mode.

Low-fidelity visuals: The game features low-polygon retro assets, which some players find to be of extremely low fidelity. This affects the visual appeal and overall immersion of the game.

Early Access issues: As an Early Access title, the game exhibits growing pains, including various bugs and performance issues. Players understand that these problems may be addressed in future updates.

Mixed recommendations for niche audiences: The game is highly recommended for fans of old-school shooters, horror themes, and retro-style gameplay. However, it is noted that the game caters to a niche audience and may not be enjoyable for everyone.

Buy on sale or with caution: Some players suggest buying the game on sale or at a discounted price, indicating that while it has its merits, it may not be worth the full price.

Quality of life improvements needed: Players suggest various quality of life improvements such as better inventory management, easier ammo pickup, and more uses for tech scrap to enhance the gameplay experience.

Good for specific player preferences: The game is recommended for players who enjoy minimal handholding and are fans of retro shooters and horror themes.

Avoid despite appealing artstyle: Some players recommend avoiding the game altogether, even if the artstyle is appealing, suggesting that the gameplay may not meet expectations.

Steam Deck: The Steam Deck experience is marred by several significant issues, including small text and font readability problems, lack of controller support, frequent game crashes, and the imposition of a third-party launcher. These issues collectively degrade the user experience and require attention to improve the overall functionality and enjoyment of the device.

Early Access Status: The game is currently in Early Access, which means it is still under development and may have bugs or incomplete features. Players should be aware of this before purchasing.

Developer Controversies: The developer has faced criticism for selling keys to an abandoned Early Access game in bundles and attempting to scam gamers by offering discounts. This has led to a negative perception of the developer's practices.

Pricing Concerns: Some players feel that the game is overpriced compared to other quality games available. This could deter potential buyers who are looking for better value for their money.

Motion Sickness Options: Some players experienced motion sickness but appreciated the option to turn off headsway to mitigate this issue. This indicates the game offers some customization for player comfort.

Impressive GameMaker Achievement: Players are impressed that the game was developed using GameMaker, highlighting the capabilities of the software. This point emphasizes the technical achievement of the developers.