This game released in 2017, back when steam (and videogames as a whole) we're looked at differently, and I found most of the reviews (Most of them literally being sponsored, steam was weird back then) to not really represent the way games are looked at today, and a vast majority of them being from 2017. And I also wanted to gush about it a bit. So what's the deal with this little, and i really do mean little, its only 300 or so megabytes, game?
I genuinely adore this game, i got it for free some years ago and it has collected dust on my steam library for god knows how long, ive been on a bit of a 90s fps kick as of recently (thought ill forever be a fan) and was very pleasantly surprised by this game
Judging off the graphics, you'd think this game doesn't particularly have much going for it, but this game never markets itself for the graphic fidelity, its catered to fans of the "old FPS games that defined the genre" (It even features classic centered weapon poses, which I immediately chose) as seen on the steam page lol. So it's all in the gameplay, and how is it? well in my opinion, It's genuinely amazing.
I played this game on the normal difficulty expecting an easy playthrough and was thoroughly surprised by the challenge this game offers, if you aren't experienced in the rhythmic dance and dodging of doom/quake-likes this will probably be a more prominent struggle, to toot my own horn a bit, I found the rhythm of this game rather quickly, but still very enjoyable
This game features a whopping THREE enemies, which initially sounds like a turn off to most, but this game truly makes the most of this incredibly small variety, their positioning throughout all the levels are honestly perfect, I won't be too specific, but the game is generous but at the same time reserved with the enemy placement, and it never feels too empty or too full. The "gore" is also great, its nothing crazy, simply blood decals, but they're surprisingly effective, fit with the aesthetic, and are plentiful
Speaking of enemy placement, the level design is super intuitive, it uses at most a very standard key system featured in lots of old fps games, and it doesn't even feature 3 like doom, its at maximum two, but the levels never feel confusing or maze like, which even in a lot of my favorite doom clones is a pretty prevalent issue. Its clear the creator of this game clearly has a knack for it, they flow incredibly well, and if you happen to get lost, the simple map is always there and very helpful. Like in most doom era fps games, early unlocks and powerups are available early through secrets, but the game does a pretty good job introducing everything to you quickly but not fast enough for the rotation to get boring.
If I had to voice one gripe, itd be that while the game is purposefully simple, the variety of levels *aesthetically* is a bit dull, some are more creative than others, but its a lot of green (then again, looking at the quake side of things a majority of the first entry is poop brown, so this is more a nitpick than anything) But even then the levels sometimes occasionally play around with lighting, and architecturally they're all quite unique, the occasional crushers, pits, and thin platforms to induce some ptsd, and plenty of door fighting.
The weapons are the most in depth in this game, none of them are particularly unique, they stick to the close formula presented in most old fps games, but i find them all to be useful and fun. The shotgun especially, is your workhorse through the whole game (like in old fps games, im gonna keep saying this, its kind of the main selling point) It is extremely satisfying to shoot, and idk if its a stock sound effect or something made especially for the game but I adore hearing it, every good boomer shooter needs a great shotgun.
In terms of replayability, this game is great! It features 5 difficulty settings with even some added modifiers, leaderboards, best times, scores, and achievements, and the already mentioned secrets throughout every level. I went the entire game on my first playthrough without the jump boots (I was too lazy to look for them) and the level design still worked perfectly, and just gave me another reason to replay. This is a small little game, the campaign for anyone experienced could be finished in under a day, but it offers enough to make me want to come back. (And that isnt even mentioning that it has user created levels on the workshop, how cool, albeit not very active anymore, this game is super old)
Overall, do I think this game is some underground masterpiece? No, but the term "hidden gem" is actually very fitting for once, the game is cheap and ive seen very few people talk about it, but if you're a fan of any of the classic doom games, clones, or quake-likes, this game in my opinion is a perfect little package at an extremely reasonable price (This game also occasionally goes on sale for lower than a dollar, wow!)
