HROT is a strange, rugged, and dark boomer shooter packed full of great, fun levels and sometimes frightening combat encounters, all wrapped up in a beautifully brown and bloody package. HROT is rough around the edges and has a bit of a rough and confusing start, but what follows is a unique and fantastic experience that every boomer shooter fan must play. Without further-ado, Let’s begin our in-depth review of HROT!
Why Consider Playing HROT?
The retro-inspired FPS revival continues, with plenty of indie and big developer titles dropping one after another. With so many boomer shooters to choose from, why should you consider playing HROT?
HROT is inspired by early 3D shooters that started popping up in the late 1990s, such as Chasm: The Rift or Quake. However, while those games had a limited color palette, HROT chooses to be dark and brown, not only as a stylistic choice but also to help elevate the creepy and unsettling vibe of the setting. We mention this because the simplistic brown and gray art style can be off-putting to some.
HROT combines the aesthetic look, sound design, and level design of games like Quake while having mostly grounded interactive environments like Duke Nukem 3D. It’s a wonderful culmination of a simplistic, solid, and surreal retro FPS. If you’re a fan of games that share a similar style, it’s well worth your time. If you’re new to boomer shooters, this is a great choice to start with.
However, we have a lot more to say about HROT, so let’s continue with the review.
A Return to Old-School Gaming
HROT is heavily inspired by the old Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and some modern parts of Russia, all packed full of historical references and unique commentary on the time period, with a lot of unique humor sprinkled throughout this dark and depressing world. HROT truly feels like a passion project with great attention to detail and spirit, packed into every level, no matter how depressing it is.
From environmental set pieces to the way enemies are dressed, walk, talk, or act, it shows an incredible amount of minor details that make this old world feel somewhat real whenever the supernatural isn’t happening. There are so many small details to discover at every level, and it feels more like a passion project than anything else, which is one of HROT’s most significant charms.
HROT Provides Simplistic, 90’s Fun
HROT truly feels like a game that was made back in the 90s – slick, simple controls; easy to pick up and play. It focuses on fine-tuning responsiveness, enemy variety, level design, and a wonderful aesthetic. It’s just plain great fun without overcomplicating things.
For those looking for a great boomer shooter that remembers to keep in touch with its 90s roots while keeping you guessing, HROT will give even seasoned veterans a good time. Sometimes these elements are what make games stand out the longest.
HROT is amazing because its main focus is how surreal, weird, or scary it can sometimes be. Like Cultic, this game is beautiful for the level of detail in every element it brings.
Reviewing HROT’s Level Design
As of the time of writing, HROT has been fully released with three chapters, each containing over eight levels to explore, with dozens of difficult secrets to find. Each level carries one core element: they feel lived in. It feels like people worked or lived in these environments before the unknown disaster struck.
For example, the first level in Act One is called “Kosmonautů Station,” which is an actual metro station in the Czech Republic that opened in the 1980s. This is one of the several dozen environments based on real places, and because they share this element, each level feels lived in. Whenever it doesn’t, you know there’s something seriously wrong with the place.
The Atmosphere and Sound Design of HROT Impacts the Level Design
Outside of the inspiration for the levels, every environment uses a beautiful amount of ambient sound design to sell the creepy and horrific atmosphere. From haunted abandoned mines to gigantic castles and small remote towns, each level feels different and memorable. As you slowly progress through each chapter, the locations and events slowly start to get stranger.
Given our slight descriptions, you might find the level variety sounds bizarre, but that’s the intended way to experience HROT for the first time. You never know what the next stage will be: an action-packed level with tons of combat or a creepy dark environment with jumps and scares around every corner.
HROT doesn’t over-repeat any of these elements, so it keeps the player guessing. Also, as a small note, there are a handful of grimy sewer levels, and surprisingly, they are fun to play, which is rare for boomer shooters.
Weapon and Enemy Designs
Review of the Weapons Available in HROT Game
HROTs weapons are grounded, simple, and effective. There’s nothing extraordinary other than each weapon fitting the setting and the world perfectly. Not only that, but enemies also use most of the weapons you carry. There’s something special about using the same weapons as the enemies; it creates a feeling of an even playing field. So when something bizarre is introduced, it shakes up the game even more than it would otherwise.
You have your standard pistols, shotguns, SMG, Lightning Gun, and other weapons, all of which match the time period the game is set in and are mainly based on real-life firearms. Every gun feels responsive and good to use, and you can feel the power difference between each gun, which is extremely important for keeping combat fresh. Each weapon feels different.
Enemies in HROT Players Can Look Forward To (And Be Terrified Of)
HROT has a ton of different enemies that players encounter across all three chapters. From humanoids and animals to supernatural enemies, there’s a lot to fight and discover. Sometimes, specific enemies only show up once throughout the entire game, which is an odd choice, but it makes for a more memorable encounter whenever that rare occurrence happens.
The White Lady (And Many Other Unique Enemies) Will Leave Players with Lasting Memories
One of our favorite encounters from our HROT review is the White Lady. Not only does she show up only once in the entire game, but she’s locked behind a secret. While we won’t reveal how to fight her, we will give you a hint that you can find her on the first level of episode two. Even after finishing the game, that single encounter was stuck in our heads, and HROT has dozens of these moments, either scripted or hidden for players to experience.
Reflecting on HROT’s Unique Gameplay Experience
Outside of unique enemies, each enemy is distinct, unique, and surprisingly stands out against the constantly gray and brown environment unless the level is pitch black. What’s excellent about HROT’s enemy design is that many basic enemies you meet in the first few levels feel grounded. Each gives off a slightly different vibe with animations, sound effects, and attacks.
Sometimes, enemies don’t need to have paragraphs of dialogue to convey a personality, and HROT displays this beautifully through its combat encounters and great enemy placement.
The Sounds of a Strange War Made Our Review of HROT Much More Fun
We felt that HROT’s soundtrack during this HROT review varied between atmospheric and robust, resolute combat tracks. Levels are mostly filled with these ambient tracks as the player explores, ducking through houses or abandoned scenery, but it ultimately depends on the level. Each ambient track blends very well with the environmental sounds of each section, which sells the creepy, haunting, or often grimy feeling.
Outside of the soft, creepy tracks, the real, impactful soundtrack kicks in whenever there’s a combat section or a boss. Each track feels tailored for the encounter; some songs instill a sense of pride or duty to defend the motherland, while others amp up the creepy factor. However, no matter the situation, there’s always that eerie, unsettling feeling that every song gives you, and it fits perfectly.
Lots and Lots of References
As a final note for our review, HROT has many references, more than we could even fit into this review. Almost every item, enemy, location, and more has a connection behind it. Health pick-ups, enemies, locations, scattered pieces of lore, and obscure gestures toward historical acts or other media are practically scattered throughout the game.
The best part about these references isn’t just the nod to their source; sometimes, they are used interestingly, including a lot of dark humor. For instance, the first episode is called “Kiss Me, Gustav,” which refers to when Gustáv Husák, a former president of Czechoslovakia, was pictured receiving a kiss from the Soviet Premier, Leonid Brezhnev.
The references continue almost endlessly from the moment you start the game, and we absolutely love it because it reinforces the old humor and the passion that went into this game. Plus, it always makes us smile whenever we see this much time and dedication put into a retro-FPS.
Our HROT Review Final Verdict: 8/10
HROT is a beautiful, atmospheric experience and one of the best Slavic-inspired games to have been released in the past few years. While the constant use of brown textures throughout every aspect of the game can be off-putting, it becomes a shocking and thrilling experience once you get past the introductions. Each chapter gets better and better, and with the last act finally being released, it provides a beautiful conclusion to an otherwise horrific, surreal, and bloody good time.
HROT undoubtedly deserves its overwhelmingly positive rating on Steam, and we promise that whether you are an experienced or new boomer shooter player, you will absolutely love this game. Many fans love to call HROT “Slav Quake” or “Slav Dusk,” and while those comparisons are very true, HROT takes a lot of inspiration but thrives in its own weird dystopian setting. Plus, by finishing the first chapter, you get a pretty good recipe for Beef Stroganoff, something no other boomer shooter has done before, and it fits perfectly into HROT’s strange vibe.
If you enjoyed our HROT review and want to know how to get started, check out our HROT beginner’s guide. For now, happy secret hunting!
If you’re looking for more boomer shooter content, take a look at our review for Warhammer 40K: Boltgun.
HROT is an immersive Slavic-inspired game that offers a unique and thrilling experience. While the constant use of brown textures may initially be off-putting, the game progressively becomes more captivating with each chapter. The recently released final act provides a beautiful conclusion to this horrific, surreal, and highly enjoyable adventure. HROT has received overwhelmingly positive ratings on Steam, appealing to both experienced and new boomer shooter players. Often referred to as "Slav Quake" or "Slav Dusk," HROT finds its own niche in a weird dystopian setting, offering a distinct and memorable experience.
