Action Puzzler ‘Superhot’ Might Just Be the ‘Portal’ Successor We’ve Been Waiting For
It’s been lurking in the shadows for almost three years, but action puzzler ‘Superhot’ is finally on Steam and it looks like this could be a game changer.
You’d think a game that was composed of one simple mechanic might be a pretty tough sell unless you were talking some mobile time-waster. Sure match-threes are OK for a bus ride, but when you get home you want to play a title that allows for some depth and some variation, and one single gameplay mechanic won’t get the job done. Then, this happens:
In case you’re not down with minute-long montages of vintage John Woo-level action, allow me to explain. Superhot — yes, it’s a stupid name, just move past it — is a highly stylized first-person shooter in which time moves forward normally only when you’re moving. When you’re still, you have time to examine the scenery, scout potential attacks, and plan a Matrix-style massacre of your opponents. As explained by the game’s developers, the Superhot Team:
“[There are] no regenerating health bars. No conveniently placed ammo drops. It’s just you, outnumbered and outgunned, grabbing the weapons of fallen enemies to shoot, slice, and maneuver through a hurricane of slow-motion bullets.”
In essence, it’s just a series of increasingly challenging set pieces in which your character must leap, swing, shoot, and ambush their way to victory. The expansive possibilities of the mechanic are limitless.
After less than a day in release and nearly 100 user reviews, nearly 90 percent of feedback on the indie title has been overwhelmingly positive. Words like “unique,” “immersive,” and “addictive,” are used with frequency while the rare negative reviews tend to focus on hardware problems more than the game itself.
In short, after three years of development, Superhot is out, it’s challenging, and it freaking rules.
