HROT - Quake-inspired shooter set in socialist Czechoslovakia - now available on Early Access

[Morenatsu.]

The people making all these retro FPSes really don't know how to make anything interesting.

 

[Wunderbar]

It's good.

- the game is closer to build-engine games than to Q1. Barely any verticality, the levels are designed to look kinda like real places and there are a ton of interactable objects - you can flush toilets, use phones, break garbage cans, etc.
- despite the grey-brownish palette, all enemies have a very distinct look so you instantly know who is who in a gunfight.
- each gun takes its own niche and all of them are useful, even the starting pistol. The sound design is kinda weak, but the guns themselves are functionally good and meaty.
- the combat is fast-paced and challenging.
- there are no bulletsponge enemies, even the fat guys with grenade launchers can be killed with just one well placed rocket/couple of shotgun shots.

My only gripe is that the levels lack environmental assets. For example, one of the levels is a "Palace of Culture", but it's just an empty building - no cultural exhibits, barely any communist propaganda. I don't know if the developer wanted to send a message that life in communist country was grey and drab, but come on.

 

[Pound Meat]

Wait, where's the sassy girl voiced by a communist America hater?

 

[Ol' Willy]

it looks like shit, with dark, depressing and ugly scenarios and crazier people. How close to reality it is, Ruskie codexers?

Don't know, I never was in Colorado

 

[Bad Sector]

For example, one of the levels is a "Palace of Culture", but it's just an empty building - no cultural exhibits, barely any communist propaganda. I don't know if the developer wanted to send a message that life in communist country was grey and drab, but come on.

These Palaces of Culture weren't for exhibitions of culture, but essentially places for people to hang out with repurposable rooms for various activities. There were also thousands of them so it'd make sense for many (if not most) to not be exactly grand in scale.

 

[Wunderbar]

For example, one of the levels is a "Palace of Culture", but it's just an empty building - no cultural exhibits, barely any communist propaganda. I don't know if the developer wanted to send a message that life in communist country was grey and drab, but come on.

These Palaces of Culture weren't for exhibitions of culture, but essentially places for people to hang out with repurposable rooms for various activities. There were also thousands of them so it'd make sense for many (if not most) to not be exactly grand in scale.

i know what palace/house of culture is, but the one in HROT is just pathetic.

 

[Bad Sector]

i know what palace/house of culture is, but the one in HROT is just pathetic.

I haven't played the game TBH, is it worse than the first 15 related images here (minus the rubble) which are from an abandoned house of culture (also taking into account the game's palette/aesthetics and lo-fi visuals)? They're just empty rooms.

 

[Baron Dupek]

Now played by pagb666 in all of his silent glory.



It looks like shit, with dark, depressing and ugly scenarios and crazier people. How close to reality it is, Ruskie postsoviet codexers?

Pretty close I would say.

Didn't like the game, like any game inspired (or should say "imitating") those old games it barely brings anything new and badly parrots the old stuff. Sounds is weak and that's always big no in my book.

 

[Dayyālu]

At least it doesn't look shit on purpose like DUSK (the fact that DuskDev is somehow proud of making shit models on purpose never ceases to amaze me, Quake 1 models are top of the line for their age and show care in their limited resources).

Looks like someone thought that QuakeII was too colourful and we already had the same idea with You Are Empty. For chrissakes retroshooters are starting to become a plague

I'll give the demo a run, let's see if it passes the "why the fuck I am playing this and not a Quake1 map pack again?" test

 

[cvv]

It looks like shit, with dark, depressing and ugly scenarios and crazier people. How close to reality it is, Ruskie codexers?

A faithful past of my country and the future of America.

 

[luj1]

Looks pretty good tbh

 

[Curratum]

The game looks a bit boring boring, almost all sounds seem like placeholders, the levels seem flatter than a pancake and the running and gunning generally don't look too exciting.

I mean, Amid Evil wasn't the absolute best when it comes to the shooting and weapon damage feedback on enemies but at least it looked like nothing else on the market and still does. Ion Fury at least tried and had great visuals in a lot of places. This just looks... Not terrible? I don't think I'll be paying money for yet another boomer shooter that's just not terrible.

 

[prengle]

The people making all these retro FPSes really don't know how to make anything interesting.

i'm biased against EPIC UNITY BOOMER SHOOTERS!!!1!! on principle, but i'll give this one credit for actually using a custom engine with a software renderer and also being soviet

 

[Wunderbar]

It also works on WinXP (supposedly).

 

[OctavianRomulus]

Played it, liked it.

Is the dev a communist though? If he is, will just have to pirate when it comes out.

 

[Citizen]

Played it, liked it.

Is the dev a communist though? If he is, will just have to pirate when it comes out.

Would a communist portray such a bleak and depressing vision of the glorious commie past?

 

[Morenatsu.]

Played it, liked it.

Is the dev a communist though? If he is, will just have to pirate when it comes out.

Would a communist portray such a bleak and depressing vision of the glorious commie past?

Isn't that the entire point of communism?

 

[Lady_Error]

Can you romance Stalin?

 

[Wunderbar]

Can you romance Stalin?

no, but you can kiss a portrait of Gustav Husak.

 

[CyberWhale]

Seems really interesting, but they could have retained the same gloomy atmosphere while using a slightly more colorful pallet. Back, grey, green and even some darker tones of red and blue would have done wonders to improve the visual appeal.

 

[Morgoth]

It's a bit like DUSK, except worse in every respect.

 

[Bad Sector]

but i'll give this one credit for actually using a custom engine with a software renderer

It isn't a software renderer, it is using OpenGL (you can even see the GLSL shader code at the bottom of the executable in the demo - probably the EA too but i'm not into buying EA games).

 

[cvv]

It's a bit like DUSK, except worse in every respect.

Except you're comparing a finished product with with a prototype that's like 2 years from launch.

 

[Curratum]

Dusk was good on eaccess day 1. This just looks... boring.

 

[Riskbreaker]

I'm finding this more enjoyable, more proficiently made than Dusk's E1 was.