This was originally posted on the now-defunct Random Fury! videogame blog.
Here’s the concept: In this game, time only moves when you do.
You are dropped into a super-stylised world (which I thought was very Mirror’s Edge), and large, caps locked words immediately bark instructions at you – and your instinct is to obey, and enjoy. Little do you realise your obedience is not simply you going through the traditional videogame tutorial ritual…
As far as time only moving when you do – it’s a great Braid-esque twist on the first person shooter genre. You run around a level at normal speed, going about your business, then you spot a blood-red enemy-man. When you stop walking to take aim the world slows to a crawl giving you precious seconds to line up your shot. Move quickly and your bullet moves quickly, connecting with that guys head in satisfyingly wet sounding way. Later levels up the ante with more enemies and more complex environments and it starts to feel more like a puzzle game than a straight up shooter. Knowing when to move and being aware of bullet trajectories are key!
Despite the visuals and premise being quite fantastical, Super Hot’s approach to weaponry is very much based in reality. There’s no such thing as infinite ammo in this world. Run out of bullets? You need to find a new gun. In fact, you never even start a level with a pistol, you always have to find one – be it already in the environment or floating slowly out of a dead guy’s slowly disappearing hand.
Hey – I can honestly say that that was my first experience using a mouse and keyboard in an FPS. It kinda hurt.
I urge you to give this game a try – it’s browser-based, so if you’re reading this on a desktop then there’s no excuse. That URL again, just in case you missed it: http://superhotgame.com/
