I remember a long time ago when I used to play stickman mini-games and watch a plethora of stickman animated videos with intense fighting and gunfights, and I always was fond of playing those games. Well, in Stick it to the Stickman, I found those intense and highly enjoyable memories flooding back.

Published by Devolver Digital, and developed by Free Lives, it brought all the best things together in this rogue-like action-brawler game that grabs the stickman genre and takes it up a notch.

As the story goes, you must climb the corporate ladder a defeat your enemies in order to keep your job and become the most powerful CEO. Bring forth the variety of haduokens, ninja stars, and groin kicking at your disposal to defeat the varying enemies that you may face.

The preview only provides us with one location, an office skyscraper, but the other locations do offer a little visual sneak peek of what is to come, each one looking more intense than the other. I am keen on driving around a forklift and mowing down enemies, but sadly, it won’t be up for release until 2023.

What the game does offer is several types of employee styles that you can unlock and master, such as the coffee drinker that throws coffee cups at enemies, but more attacks can be unlocked and upgraded as you progress up the corporate ladder. These promotions give you an extra edge in the fight, and having the ability to perform telekinesis against your enemies is highly enjoyable.

The battle system offers the special ability of slow motion, but the most interesting part is the attacks. Each attack is performed in a particular order that is displayed to the player but is also different for each type of employee you choose. Those moves can be upgraded as stated before, and with the promotions, additional perks can be unlocked, for example, obtaining heath upon hits to enemies’ groins.

The game highly recommends using a controller, and I recommend it as well due to the game’s intense gameplay. While I did play the game solo, it is stated that you can play the game with another player, and I look forward to the full release to see if an online option is available in the future.

Stick it to the Stickman’s style for the playable level is side-scrolling, but the game does show other views rather than just one angle teased in the level previews, and being a physics-based battle system, kicking an enemy through a window or across the room is highly satisfying, but it also affects items and environments.

Overall the game looks amazing, even with a simple premise in the game’s stick animation. Sometimes something simple can look great, especially when you’re kicking groins and throwing knives. I look forward to the game’s full release and hope they offer an online option in the future, as I’d love to share this game with friends and battle away with them.

Written by: Simon Hayward