Within minutes of entering Shit City, I had killed a man sitting on the toilet with my own bare feet and had crushed a crocodile to death with another crocodile. If that sentence doesn’t capture the essence of Devolver Digital’s soon-to-be-released shooter Anger Foot, I have no idea what will. But I’ll do my best to elaborate further on what was a truly outrageous 2.5 hours of gameplay.

Anger Foot, the upcoming first-person shooter from Free Lives of BroForce and Gorn fame, plays like a cross between John Wick and Beavis and Butthead. A chug of an energy drink called “ThirstFucker” induces a period of super-speed that is nearly dizzying, but allows players to dodge attacks and gunshots while taking down an entire room of armed thugs. Tight, responsive combat and gunplay that make the player feel powerful without sacrificing a sense of challenge (save for the occasional victim of the game’s door-launching kick mechanic). Levels usually have one (or more) memorable set-pieces straight out of an action movie, like jumping gaps between buildings or evading fire from a sniper’s nest, that keep the game exciting and interesting.

Anger Foot’s basic concept is not an unfamiliar one, taking very heavy nods from fellow Devolver title Hotline Miami. But Anger Foot wears this inspiration like a badge of honor, swapping animal masks for fresh sneakers and going to the next level with the ideas from the 80s-inspired top-down shooter. Your main weapon is your melee kick, which will kill any thug with one hit and kick doors with enough force to send them flying into enemies across the next room. You can also loot single-clip guns from the floor after killing enemies, which are also a one-shot kill, and throw them for a stun attack when ammo is depleted. This makes for a total of three moves (outside of basic jumping, walking, etc.) that are all you will ever need. The main gameplay loop is moving from room to room, clearing the area of enemies, and escaping (not all enemies need to die in order for you to escape). Additionally, there is the inclusion of bonus challenges (more on these later) which range from comical to seemingly-impossible. But the impossible always feels like its just within reach when playing Anger Foot, and while the player doesn’t have very much room for taking damage (maybe 2 or 3 bullets, and death after one well-placed melee attack), thugs become easier to neutralize as you learn their behaviors.

While the enemy move-sets remain fairly simple like those in Hotline Miami, the addition of a third dimension to the formula gave the devs the ability to add some new mechanics. Enemy types are varied by the weapons they carry, each corresponding to a different kind of bipedal creature that one could expect to see in an all-Muppets adaptation of West Side Story; crocodiles in slick jackets wield bats and crowbars, dogs in designer pants run around shooting you with SMGs, and tentacles with shady tattoos hold knives or pistols. While playing, I began to observe that each species of enemy had a different unique trait that could be used against them. Pigeons are equipped with a riot shield and a pistol, shooting you from afar while blocking incoming ranged attacks. But, they are also unable to shoot while blocking incoming bullets, leading the player to unload a clip into the pigeons shield while running at him, getting close enough to then kill him with a melee attack and grab his pistol. This particular piece of strategy feels like a gunkata move straight out of a John Wick movie, and (without spoiling any more) is not the only instance of Keanu-level badassery occurring on a regular basis in this game.

Guns are extremely powerful, but just like in SUPERHOT (another Hotline-like indie FPS) the player does not have the ability to aim down the sights of their guns. This isn’t a bad thing in any way; the game is a series of fast-paced, high-octane battles that at no point calls for the precision or patience of ADS. I switched between playing on controller and mouse and keyboard throughout my playthrough, eventually settling on the mouse and keyboard for the accuracy added to the wild and chaotic shootouts. That being said, there were times where I missed the comfort and convenience of having triggers individually mapped to kick with my left hand and shoot with my right, as well as the freedom of movement given with a joystick over WASD. For the build that I played, the team at Free Lives had done a great job at balancing controls for both mouse and keyboard and controller to feel slick and reactive.

By the time I was 30 minutes into Anger Foot, I had clenched my jaw so hard that it activated my TMJ and I had to take painkillers. It was worth it for sure, but readers be warned that this game follows in Hotline Miami’s challenging and high-difficulty footsteps. While at first the one-hit kill system makes for fun sandbox-esque murder sprees, eventually rooms full of multiple armed enemies require more strategy and focus to clear without dying. Sneakers help make things easier, giving the player an additional move or a way to earn back ammo. But the game is not just mowing down enemies in a blind rage (although there is plenty of that, as well), rooms may require taking cover, aiming your door kicks, or scavenging bodies for a better gun before entering. Additionally, each level features a 3-star rating system, giving players one star for base completion, and two additional stars available for corresponding challenges. Some challenges are goofy, like destroying a toilet while tripping after eating a psychedelic lizard, and others are truly difficult, like exiting an entire level with 5 seconds of beginning it. I went back and perfected a few levels for the sake of earning stars, which are the only way to earn new sneakers (and therefore, new abilities). I should note that I was only given access to the first two acts of the game, and it seems that there will be five acts upon release. There’s no doubting that difficulty and variety continue to increase after the point my preview ended, with several enemies and weapons being displayed in the game’s trailer that I never encountered.

The graphics of the game are charming and bright, getting the job done more than well while complimenting the game’s wacky art style (I played on a mid-tier gaming laptop, and the pre-release build ran perfectly fine at full graphics settings.) Anger Foot’s lighting capabilities gives the overall look that extra push from looking solid to really cool, with moody shadows following objects affected by the entertaining physics engine. The game embraces street culture and street art heavily, with enemies dripping in sublime streetwear fits and walls adorned with bright neon graffiti. Progression comes in the form of collecting new sneakers, each coming with a powerful new trait that the player can choose for their next run. The abilities given by the sneakers can be truly game-changing, and I found myself analyzing which pair I should be wearing for levels I was struggling to complete or earn 3-stars on.

The game is set in the aptly-named “Shit City”, a town where “crime is the law” and everybody is a criminal. I was given a chance to wander small sections of the urban wasteland a handful of times, and while it may not be the most in-depth universe, it serves its purpose very well. The game’s lighthearted tone and writing never gets in the way of gameplay, serving instead to get players into combat faster. Plot is minimal, dialogue is short, and humor is quick and to-the-point (if you tire of middle-school-tier potty humor, you’ll probably find yourself skipping past more humorous encounters quickly).  Walls and billboard everywhere are covered in curse words and toilet humor, making Anger Foot feel like it was taken straight from the mind of a middle-school boy. The game will surely be rated M for language and some violence, but gore was cartoonish and sexual references were basically non-existent (genitals of enemies found on toilets are cheekily censored with reality-show-style pixelation.) I’m not saying you should let your kids play it, but I’ve seen worse in some PG-13 fare.

Anger Foot was truly a blast to play, and I’m looking forward to completing the rest of the game when it releases later this year. I highly recommend checking this game out when it drops if you’re a fan of first-person shooters or challenging indie games, and it surely will be a must-play for fans of Hotline Miami and similar titles like Katana Zero or SUPERHOT. Anger Foot doesn’t have a set release date outside of its 2024 release window, but it’s possible we could hear more news about it at the upcoming Devolver Direct showcase on June 7. For now, PC gamers can play a demo of the game on Steam, or check out one of the many dev diaries or trailers from the team at Free Lives.