‘HellStuck: Rage With Your Friends’, a game by Terror Dog Studios, gives you all the fun and excitement of the screams and utter chaos from your mates as you watch them finally make the jump just to mess it up and fall ALL THE WAY BACK DOWN IN THE ABYSS.

While it was fun in a way hearing the insanity, I simultaneously found myself wanting to throw my Nintendo Switch and never get another one. I’ll save that for another day however and get into why I think this game is a bit of a hit-and-miss.

Long story, short, you are a little devil character stuck in the deep depths of Hell and it’s your task to escape its horrors by leaping from platform to platform through various levels and make it to the pearly gates of Heaven awaiting you at the top. There is no story to this game sadly, you just load in, have a quick glance at the controls it shows on the loading screen and then start jumping away.

The mechanics of the game aren’t too hard to get the hang of and are simple to use and hard to master. You move with the left joystick and jump with “A”. Before leaping off, the power of your jump depends on how long you hold it. If you hold “A” it will automatically make you jump at max power but if you tap it then you do a small jump, just think of it as an invisible charge metre. In saying that, you cannot strafe mid-air after you jump which really tested my patience, as after countless jumps and falls, I had to make adjustments before I jumped otherwise it would launch me straight up.

There is no real method to it apart from trial and error. No hints or guides, apart from watching YouTube videos, left me scratching my head wondering ‘How in the world can I make that jump?’. I did eventually accidentally discover you can bounce off walls and obstacles which in some cases you need to do in order to reach the next platform.

If it wasn’t difficult enough, it gets harder and harder the closer you get to the top. Some platforms get smaller, some are hidden in the background and don’t even get me started on the sand where you need to spam the jump to get out or ice that has you constantly sliding around. On top of this, some platforms require you to stand on what seems like a pixel just to make the jump to the next one which really adds to the frustration and challenge factor.

I’ll be honest after a solid few hours, falling many times and wanting to break my Switch in half, it did get a bit dull and repetitive. No story, no powers or upgrades, minimal controls; just jumping and falling. I did find a second wind of determination with the Multiplayer mode and co-op, competing against my friends to see who would reach the top first or who would launch their controller across the room before me. Thankfully though, there is no collision between players and you can go at your own pace.

I guess you could say the game does look kind of retro and reminds me of ‘Jump King’ but that wasn’t enough to keep me hooked with it lacking that dark and unsettling atmospheric kick that I expected from being in Hell.

On the bright side, the background and pixelated graphics for me were pretty cool. I often found myself taking a break on one of the platforms to take in the scenery and admire what was going on in the background.

The start levels are dark and gloomy with certain bits of contrasting brightness but transitions to lighter, yet still gloomy colours as you get closer to the gates of Heaven. There are also background figures either tied up, in cages or being whipped for example, that further add to the stuck in Hell theme the developers were aiming for.

The ambient sound effects were fairly simple with the jump sound reminding me a little bit of ‘Super Mario’. The background music does change with each level but still keeps the dark and gloomy vibe eventually having a more upbeat tone when I made it to the top. I did however find it very fitting for the overall ambience of the game and the scream from my character as I fell was also definitely a nice touch.

Overall, HellStuck: Rage With Your Friends wasn’t all bad. Even though it got a bit stale at times, it was a very fun game to play and rage at with friends just like it name says. The graphics and overall look of the game I really enjoyed and I definitely think it’s still worth a try. I do see it as being one of those games you play once and then forget you have though. Have fun being stuck in the fiery pits, If I can make it then I’m sure you can too!

Written by: Larry