Hell is Us
Last updated: 2025-09-29
- Engaging world and narrative
- Rewarding exploration and puzzles
- Exceptional atmosphere and visuals
- Lack of enemy and boss variety
- Repetitive and easy combat
- Absence of a map and navigation aids
Emotions
Players felt satisfied by the game's compelling story, rich world-building, and engaging exploration that often involved solving thought-provoking puzzles without excessive hand-holding. The combat system, while sometimes criticized, generally contributed to a rewarding experience, especially when combined with good performance and atmospheric design.
Disappointment stemmed primarily from the combat, which many found underwhelming, repetitive, and lacking in enemy variety. The ending was frequently described as abrupt, unsatisfying, or unfinished, and some players felt the game didn't live up to initial expectations or its potential.
Frustration was largely caused by technical issues like poor performance and frequent crashes, as well as design choices such as tedious backtracking, cryptic or missable quests, and a lack of clear navigation (no map/markers). Clunky combat, poor hitboxes, and repetitive enemies also contributed significantly to player annoyance.
Players expressed excitement over the game's overall high quality, unique design, and immersive atmosphere, often considering it a 'game of the year' contender or a potential cult classic. The prospect of DLC or a sequel to expand on the captivating world and story also generated significant anticipation.
Enjoyment came from the game's interesting story, engaging puzzles, and rewarding exploration, particularly the challenge of navigating without traditional markers. The immersive world, strong atmosphere, and solid combat (for many) contributed to a fun and captivating overall experience.
Verdict
Mostly positive
Summary
Positive 87% · Negative 13%. Score: 13 / 100
Positives:
- Players consistently praise the game's captivating story, deep lore, and immersive world-building. The narrative is often described as intriguing, mature, and thought-provoking, with environmental storytelling and character interactions effectively drawing players into the game's universe.
- The game excels in its exploration and puzzle-solving mechanics, which are frequently highlighted as major strengths. Players appreciate the lack of hand-holding, map, or quest markers, finding the self-directed discovery and deduction highly satisfying and immersive.
- The game's atmosphere, art direction, and graphics are consistently lauded as outstanding. The dark, grim, and often beautiful environments, combined with excellent sound design and music, create a deeply immersive and memorable experience that effectively conveys the game's themes.
- Many players find the game to be a refreshing and unique experience, standing out from mainstream titles. Its bold design choices, such as minimal hand-holding and a focus on player intelligence, are highly appreciated and contribute to a distinct identity.
- While not always the primary focus, the combat system is generally well-received, described as fluid, satisfying, and customizable. Players appreciate the varied weapon types, abilities, and difficulty settings, making it enjoyable for both Souls-like fans and more casual players.
Negatives:
- A major criticism across reviews is the extremely limited number of enemy types, often cited as only 3-7 variations throughout the entire game. This, combined with a near-total absence of unique or memorable boss fights, made combat encounters feel stale and uninspired.
- Players consistently found the combat system to be shallow, repetitive, and lacking in depth. The limited enemy variety and low difficulty, even on higher settings, led to monotonous encounters and button-mashing strategies. Many felt combat was an afterthought, detracting from the overall experience.
- The deliberate omission of an in-game map and quest markers was a significant source of frustration. Players frequently got lost, struggled to track objectives, and found the lack of navigation illogical given the game's technological setting, leading to artificial time-wasting and tedious exploration.
- The game's puzzle design often led to frustration due to excessive backtracking, cryptic clues, and a lack of in-game guidance. Many puzzles were perceived as tedious 'fetch quests' or simple lock-and-key mechanics, artificially extending playtime rather than providing engaging challenges.
- The game's ending was widely criticized for being abrupt, rushed, and leaving many plot points unresolved. Players felt a lack of closure and explanation, with the finale often described as anti-climactic or a clear setup for a sequel, which disappointed those seeking a complete narrative experience.
Gameplay:
- A core aspect of the game is its heavy reliance on exploration and puzzle-solving, often requiring players to take notes, pay close attention to environmental clues, and deduce solutions without explicit guidance. This 'no hand-holding' approach is a deliberate design choice, encouraging players to immerse themselves in the world and its mysteries.
- The game features combat mechanics inspired by Souls-like games, including stamina management, dodging, parrying, and a lock-on system. However, it offers adjustable difficulty settings and optional death penalties, making it more accessible and less punishing than traditional Soulslikes. Players can customize their experience to focus on story or challenge.
- The game intentionally omits traditional navigation aids like maps, minimaps, and quest markers, forcing players to rely on observation, memory, and clues from dialogue and documents. This design choice contributes to the sense of exploration and mystery but can be frustrating for some players.
- By default, the game features a forgiving death system where players do not lose progress or items upon dying, respawning at the last save point. Enemies also do not respawn unless specific conditions are met or an optional 'death penalty' setting is enabled.
- Character progression is tied to upgrading weapons and a versatile drone companion, rather than traditional character leveling. Players can customize weapons with glyphs and choose from various drone abilities, offering different combat approaches and tactical options.
Performance:
- The game generally runs very well across a wide range of PC configurations and consoles, with many players reporting smooth gameplay, high frame rates, and good optimization. This indicates a solid technical foundation for the game.
- Many players praise the game's optimization, especially considering it's an Unreal Engine 5 title. It's often cited as one of the better-performing UE5 games, showcasing the engine's potential when handled well.
- Despite overall good performance, some players experience occasional traversal stutters, especially when loading new areas or with particle effects. A minority also report frequent crashes, though many others experienced none. This suggests some inconsistencies in stability.
- The game is reported to be playable on the Steam Deck, though it often requires adjusting settings to low or medium for a smooth experience. This offers portability for players willing to make graphical compromises.
- Players noted a significant improvement in performance and optimization in the full release compared to the demo version. This indicates that the developers addressed initial technical issues effectively before launch.
Recommendations:
- Players overwhelmingly recommend the game, often calling it a 'must-play' or 'Game of the Year' contender. They praise its unique qualities, rich lore, and immersive world-building, suggesting it offers a memorable experience for those who appreciate its style.
- Combat is a polarizing aspect; many players warn that it is not the game's strong suit and should not be the primary reason for purchase. It is often described as 'not Souls-like' and can be repetitive, leading some to recommend adjusting difficulty or avoiding the game if combat is a priority.
- Many players express a strong desire for a sequel or DLC, hoping for further expansion of the game's universe, story, and refinement of mechanics, particularly combat. This indicates a deep engagement with the world and a belief in the developer's potential.
- While many recommend the game at full price, a significant number of players suggest waiting for a sale. This often stems from concerns about specific flaws, such as combat, or a desire for more content, making a discounted price more appealing.
- Review scores are generally positive but vary, ranging from 6/10 to 10/10, with many settling around 7.5-8.5/10. This indicates a solid, but not universally perfect, experience, often reflecting the game's polarizing elements.
Miscellaneous:
- Many players initially expected a Soulslike game based on early impressions or trailers, but the game is fundamentally different. It emphasizes story, puzzles, and exploration over hardcore combat, with some comparing it more to Zelda or old-school adventure games.
- Players report varying completion times, with the main story taking around 10-20 hours, but 100% completion, including achievements and side activities, can extend gameplay to 30-50 hours. The game offers replayability for achievements and experimenting with skills.
- The game tackles heavy and dark themes, particularly the horrors and aftermath of war, drawing inspiration from real-world conflicts. It doesn't shy away from showing brutal scenes and the complexities of human suffering, making it a socially critical experience.
- The game does not hold the player's hand, requiring active exploration, attention to detail, and often, external note-taking for puzzles and lore. This design choice is polarizing but appreciated by those who enjoy deep immersion and challenge.
- The game is recognized as an ambitious and polished debut from a relatively smaller studio, reflecting a clear artistic vision. Players appreciate the developers' dedication and hope for their continued success and future projects.
