We seem to be having a resurgence of nostalgia this year, and this love for days gone by shows no signs of slowing down. Turbo Overkill, by Trigger Happy Interactive, has dramatically slid onto the scene with guns and chainsaw limbs at the ready. Published by Apogee Entertainment, this game fuses classic 90s shooters, like Id Software’s Doom and Quake, with the 80s Blade Runner-esque cyberpunk aesthetic and upgrades it into the new age, complete with a hefty mix of first-person shooting and platforming.

The visual landscape of Turbo Overkill delivers the Blade Runner atmosphere from the moment the opening cutscene plays. Smoking a cigar while overlooking a city seemingly drenched in constant rainfall, everything appears very doom and gloom. To combat the foreboding deep blues the city is lit up with neon signage, adding just enough vibrancy to really emphasise the cyberpunk mood. Upon landing in a dingy warehouse, it’s clear the influence of retro graphics is there, though it’s just subtle enough to represent the past while leaning into the future with a high pixel count, resulting in detailed environments with plenty to visually stand out.

The unlikely hero of this jaunt is Johnny Turbo – a former civilian who, through a series of unfortunate circumstances, lost his arm and was forced to become a cybernetic killing machine to survive. In order to maintain what’s left of his body and mind, he made a deal with Teratek; to wipe out the scum on the streets. As a Streetcleaner, Johnny Turbo is tasked with cleaning up Paradise, a city under the control of a super AI called Syn. To do so, Johnny must shoot, slide, and slash through augmented beings to clean up the mess Syn’s created.

I was thrown right into the deep end, with three cyborgs immediately setting their sights on Johnny. Luckily, with some twin Magnums, I made short work of them and swiftly moved into the big bad underbelly of Paradise. Turbo Overkill’s controls are pretty standard shooter fare and it’s an adapt-as-you-go type experience. Within moments, I was blasting my way through groups of enemies. The real hero piece for me was the slide. I love a good slide in my video games, and here is one that takes it to the next level, because Johnny-boy has a chainsaw leg.

A satisfying slide into a bunch of enemies while simultaneously slicing them to bits is exactly what I needed, but didn’t even know I wanted. Couple this with an arsenal of guns, including the Boomer shotgun, Twincendiary machine gun, and my favourite, a good ol’ rocket launcher, and an assortment of augments for Johnny, and there are many ways to clear out the dregs of the city.

Movement in Turbo Overkill lives up to its name, traversal via sliding and running is insanely swift. It takes virtually no time at all to build momentum and makes getting around the map a breeze, though sometimes the speed got the best of me and I got turned around, stunting my progression through the stages.

Speaking of, the main story is separated into three episodes, each with a series of stages filled with their own collectables, secrets, and modifiers, like insta-kill and triple-monster-speed. There’s also an Endless mode and custom maps for even more ways to play. Becoming a killing machine felt great as I bulked up on augments and weaponry to become an actual killing machine.

A big stand out was the music, a synth-rock fusion that made me feel like a certified badass. It hyped me up in a way similar to Mick Gordon’s music in the 2016 iteration of Doom, and that’s exactly how I want to feel playing a shooter. The music was immersive in a way that meshed well with the pacing of the gameplay without overpowering it. Likewise, the sounds of guns and enemies were impactful and fit into the cyberpunk, retro-futuristic world.

It ran well on PC, though loading times at the beginning of stages were surprisingly long for pretty contained environments. My biggest issue though was accessibility. I’m quite light-sensitive, which can prove a struggle in games like this. The speed at which Johnny travels, coupled with some semi-pixelated graphics and plenty of effects could become overwhelming, and occasionally, lead to some feelings of motion sickness. The reliance on speed, lightning-fast reflexes, and precision while shooting and sliding through enemies was a struggle at times. While there are options to adjust aim sensitivity and toggle walk, I would have liked to be able to adjust the speed of movement to take some of the edge off so I could enjoy the game a bit more. Everything mechanically works well together, but for some people, it may become a struggle to play.

Turbo Overkill is an intense fusion of some of the classics of 80s and 90s films and games, delivering a hit of nostalgia with a good shot of modernisation. The fast-paced gameplay might not be for everyone, but if you’re after a game to hype up after a particularly frustrating day, there’s a good time to be had taking it out in the City of Syn.

Written by: Yasmin Noble