You fight through a base overrun by demons, and staying aggressive is actually the safe choice, since finishing off a weakened enemy in a brutal melee move called a Glory Kill refills your health. Big encounters throw multiple enemy types at you at once, forcing you to keep moving and switch weapons constantly. It moves fast and expects you to commit to that speed, so playing cautiously often gets you killed faster.
Gameplay video
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Screenshots & review notes
Why it lands
This reboot understood that speed is the point, turning a genre that had gone quiet and tactical back into pure adrenaline. It remains one of the smartest shooter redesigns of the decade.
How it plays
Glory kills aren't a gimmick, they're the whole engine — stand still and you die, so the game trains you to run at danger instead of away from it. Brutal, elegant, addictive.
Style and score
Mick Gordon's industrial score does half the emotional heavy lifting, and the fact that this runs as smoothly as it does undocked is honestly impressive engineering. Hell has never looked this good portable.
Who it's for
Short campaign, but built for replays on higher difficulties, and Snapmap adds a little extra mileage. Perfect pick-up-and-slaughter session for anyone who wants violence without a homework assignment.
Frames captured from the gameplay video above; notes are our own take on the game.
What it's like to play
You play an unnamed marine dropped into a Mars research facility that has torn open a gateway to hell, and within seconds you are handed a pistol and told to start shooting. You move fast with the left stick, aim with the right, and switch between a growing arsenal of shotguns, chainguns, and rocket launchers as you find them scattered through each level. The game quickly teaches you its central trick: walking up to a stunned enemy and pressing a single button triggers a violent finishing move that spits out health, so standing still and playing it safe is actually the more dangerous choice.
Each level is a self-contained arena of corridors and open rooms where waves of demons, from small scurrying imps to hulking armored brutes, pour in until you clear them out, and you'll spend your time working through room after room while collecting armor, ammo, and hidden collectibles tucked into side paths. Levels take thirty to forty five minutes each, and the campaign runs somewhere around twelve hours if you explore for secrets along the way. Difficulty ramps up steadily, introducing tougher demon types and busier rooms as you go, though you can adjust the challenge at any point if a section feels unfair.
On Switch the picture is softer and the frame rate lower than on other consoles, which is noticeable in the busiest fights but doesn't ruin the feel of the shooting. The pounding metal soundtrack does a lot of work to keep fights feeling exciting rather than exhausting. If you want a fast, violent shooter that rewards charging forward instead of hiding behind cover, this is one of the best examples of that idea on the console.