Superhot isn't your typical FPS, its defining gameplay mechanic being time only moves forward when you act, meaning everything moves only when you do. It's a smart concept that required me to constantly think my moves through, when should I shoot, throw my weapon, or avoid fire. At first, the game doesn't seem like much but the mysterious story slowly unveils itself leading to a narrative that gradually messes with your mind. It's one of the most bizarre and entertaining games I've played this year.

Superhot looks like your typical FPS game. You're charged with eliminating all the Red enemies in each given area. However, unlike other shoots enemies only move when you do. This changes the dynamic, encouraging planning and execution over reflexes and precision shooting skills. Everything dies in one fatal hit, including you and being aware of where enemies are, what weapons are in-use, and preparation is essential to victory.

You can carry only one item at a time and can be throw to temporary disable enemies, forcing them to drop their weapon. Each weapon has their own strengths and weaknesses and knowing what is ideal for each situation can be the difference between failure and success. For example, there are 3 types of guns; pistols have moderate reloading speed and precise aiming, shotguns have short-range and long reloading speeds, and assault rifles are quick to reload but can only shoot in a burst of 4. Melee weapons such as the baseball bat and crowbar are typical one hit kills, but katanas are the only weapons can be thrown for an instant kill. 

The game starts with basic tutorials, how to use weapons, disarm enemies, and use the time-based mechanic. Eventually, situations become more elaborate, requiring you to use all the tools you've learned. Best of all is that there's no one way to complete each level. You're given free range of how to finish each stage and when completed a replay is shown without any of the stops.

Once the training wheels are removed Superhot's levels become varied, requiring you to multitask, think creatively and orchestrate complicated maneuvers. In one level you can jump on your adversary or use a bottle to smash his face in before using his own gun to kill him. The gameplay doesn't change much, you'll kill the same Red Avatars through a series of environments with the occasional break for cutscenes. And that's how Superhot prevented itself from getting dull, the story.

Superhot's world is presented through a VR simulated computer, with levels being stored in files. At first, I dismissed this as a clever way the developers to display the interface. Flashes of dialogue appear on the screen that sometimes informs you of critical information such as where enemies will appear or if you're out of ammo. I assumed, like the interface, were phrases were just there to indicate the end of a level or add clever dialogue. But as the story progress, it became apparent that everything in Superhot was designed for a purpose. That's the defining characteristic of Superhot, the story isn't simple in the least.

The game constantly delivers cryptic messages throughout the adventure. It starts off simple with a chat program and someone offering you the chance to play an amazing game called Superhot. As you play things begin to unravel, what seemed like a fun game of killing Red Avatars quickly becomes something complicated.

Once you finish the 2-hour campaign the game does have over 200 challenge levels, an endless horde mode, and mini-games hidden within the game's interface. It's a short game but the lasting impact it had on me when the credits started rolling still has me lamenting on what exactly just happened.

Superhot is an interesting game. The time-bending gameplay doesn't evolve much the story was a rollercoaster ride of obscure information and unnerving situations. For a game where I spent most of the time killing Red Avatars Superhot is a surprisingly clever and thought-provoking FPS experience.

Adam Siddiqui, NoobFeed
Twitter | YouTube | Facebook