Hell Is Other Demons Review

Hell is Other Demons on Steam

A Demonic Thrillride-A Hell Is Other Demons Review

Other than a completely ridiculous title, Hell Is Other Demons brought a lot of interesting ideas to the table in making yet another meticulously crafted, pixel art, indie game. I've played so many games of this ilk that steam now feeds them to me with everlasting palette of roguelikes, so I was extremely surprised to see that this game has an actual CAMPAIGN. It's quite interesting to see that as the sphere of gaming has shifted and developers have changed their preferences accordingly, that some devs still run the "risk" of not making some procedurally generated bollocks to pad out their primary gameplay loop to death. 

Hell Is Other Demons (I'm calling it HIOD from now on because im tired of a game title also being its own independent clause) is a platform based, wave based combat shooter in which you annihilate all the baddies hell has to offer. It is masterfully drawn, featuring deeply detailed pixel art contrasted with a simple two-color contrasting art style in similar vein to stylized games like Downwell. Because of this drastic color scheme, HIOD features a myriad of unlockable color schemes that add their own little extra flair to the gameplay. Not to mention a killer synthwave soundtrack that features plenty of variety to add to the main story mode. 


The main story mode is quite short, taking anywhere from 3-6 hours to complete, but the ability to replay any level and go for optional goals like not taking damage, using weapons, or unleashing ultimate moves did add for a bit of replayability. The game's 5 main bosses were all brilliantly unique, forcing players to adapt to their room layouts and strike back accordingly. Each world of the main story held its own gimmicks and enemy types, but none were that particularly different. With that said, enemy types transcend worlds later on, and it lead to me wanting to fight a more diverse set of demons as it went on. 

In addition its story mode, HIOD features a fun little score attack arcade mode as well as a much less fleshed out lava jump mode. The arcade mode feels like what this game started out as, and it is almost telling of the entire industry that this could've been its own standalone roguelike game. Thankfully for HIOD, this small side mode remains just that-a side mode-and doesn't overstay its welcome. 



The same cannot be said for the aforementioned lava jump mode, which just comes off as a lazy side edition to a really solid game. For a game which is wholeheartedly focused on combat, it is strange that they would ever make a mode that would strip away that entire concept. While it isn't terrible, it's simply mediocre. 



Verdict

I was so pleasantly surprised with the main game of HIOD, and it held my full interest all the way to the end. With one really fun side mode and a great field of in depth pixel art, HIOD is certainly a hidden gem amongst the hell that is pixel art indie games. 

9/10-Haptic Hellfire and Fury




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Monolith Review

Image
Roguelite Majesty-A  Monolith Review Monolith is a blatant hidden gem, and a concept I haven't seen done much recently. Yes, it is a roguelite, the superhero movie genre of video games, but it employs mechanics from most modern bullet hell space shooters to create a more unique experience.  You are a little spaceship in search of exploring the procedurally generated vault of levels to reach the end and obtain the power that lies within the monolith. Ain't much more than that, and what else is needed? Claustrophobic Combat The game has a great sense of space, forcing you to make split second decisions and rely partially on your instincts. As you improve, you learn to utilize all of the space you've been given, no matter how tiny the room. By shrinking the scope of the playable screen, combat is always active and keeps you focused through an entire run.  Couple this combat with expert visual design and a killer soundtrack, and each combat encounter is both...
Read more

Exo One Review

Image
  Missing the Mark-An Exo One Review Previously I really enjoyed these sort of open ended and abstract experiences, specifically Giant Squid's Abzû and its great sense of aquatic atmosphere. Having not played many of the other examples of the genre, namely Flower and Journey, I decided to check out the newly released Exo One from Exbleative to make a return back into these types of games.  Misreading the Room Ultimately, Exo One falls short of capturing the essence of what made these games engaging enough to enjoy. Looking to Abzû, there was an emphasis of smooth and coherent movement-you could kick your flippers through the water rhythmically to gain speed or grab onto animals and use their unique features to ride through the water. Exo One has a similar sense of momentum, as you turn into a ball to roll down slopes then transfer out into a disc to fly forward at maximum speed.  And this deeply satisfying, however, this is all Exo One ever does for the en...
Read more

Downwell Review

Image
  Confidence in Simplicity-A Downwell Review With every generation of new hardware and consoles the push in the gaming sphere has always been the same: better graphics, bigger scope, and just MORE. Downwell, to me, exists as a prime example as to why simple can be infinitely more enjoyable than complex. However, Downwell is a bit more sneaky in its execution, offering a lot of little details that add so much depth to a novel concept.  Ojiro Fumoto’s vision for Downwell seems to be that of a game jam game. For those who are unaware, a “game jam” is a competition in which upstart developers are tasked with making a fleshed out concept and prototype for a game in a short timeframe, typically 48 to 72 hours. The goal of these competitions is to get people creating as quickly as possible, and to not overthink so much that you don’t even start a project. Fun fact, the acclaimed indie shooter Superhot was the result of a game jam, eventually evolving into a full experience worthy of ...
Read more