S&S Indie Review: Heavy Recoil

Title: Heavy Recoil
Format: Xbox Live Indie Game
Genre: Shooter
Release Date: December 12, 2012
Developer: Wild Pixel Games
Price: 80 MSP
Rating: Violence = 1/3, Sex = 0/3, Mature Content = 0/3

Are you longing for a hardcore retro, side scrolling shooter? Heavy Recoil delivers a classic arcade shooter experience to the Xbox 360, and made sure not to skimp on the retro look and feel. The music is great and the graphics are beautifully low-res, but Wild Pixel Games didn't stop at aesthetics. The game play is strikingly close to the shooters of the 90’s from top to bottom. There are no continues in this horizontal shooter, and you’ll certainly be met with challenge even though your objective is straightforward.

The story revolves around two mechanical soldiers, charged with the task of rescuing those taken captive in the midst of battle. Matt I (who is apparently is wearing the latest model of armor) is fast, but only has two health bars and low firepower. His comrade, Max, is injured so his speed is greatly reduced. He does have the advantage of having the most health and greatest firepower. Matt is better suited for players that enjoy blasting through levels and can stay out of harm's way most of the time. Max is a beast when it comes to how many hits he can take, but his lack of speed can make a stage take forever. Luckily, there is local co-op so a friend can help you blast the baddies. The downside, however, is that both players must be the same character, so there’s no taking advantage of both Matt I and Max’s unique stats.

As with other shooters, there are various weapons and abilities to collect, such as power, grenades, and the especially helpful jump. As implied, the jump upgrade allows you to jump higher than normal. Unfortunately, if you die you lose it and won't be able to collect hard to reach items until you obtain another jump upgrade. And you're likely to run into this scenario because Heavy Recoil can be unforgiving at times. With just two or three hit points and a barrage of brutal robots, it's easy to die fairly quickly. There are no continues, so expect to get very familiar with each stage, because it will definitely take you a few times to clear them.

Overall, Heavy Recoil is a challenging horizontal shooter that is extremely hard to put down. If you're looking for a retro shooter with a fair amount of challenge, then this is the game for you. If you haven’t already tried it, there is a free demo available and the full version is priced at only 80 MSP.

S&S Rating: 7.5/10

About: Jennifer Roger is a fine arts student from the Chicagoland area. You can follow @missjendie on Twitter or visit her blog at missjendie.com.