Opinions on this title are based on the demo, not the full release, so it’s all subject to change.
Were Hunter S. Thompson, Max Payne, Jacket from Hotline Miami, Moon Night, John Wick, and a bunch of Tarantino characters to perform a carnal act, the resultant child would be Jackal. Developed by Transhuman Design, this game oozes style - combining noir, Egyptian mythology, 70’s fashion, and brutally chunky ultra-violence.
Within the game you take on the role of a “coked-up force of nature loose in Sin City’s underbelly” - essentially a drug fuelled hitman with a burning desire to butcher his way through Las Vegas. It’s brilliant fun, and through the various cutscenes, you’ll experience the protagonist’s wit and charm, as well as his Payne-esque poeticism.
Entering the game proper, you might be surprised to find that the mechanics are relatively straightforward, given the rather over the top premise. You click to attack, you can dash to take enemies by surprise, you can knock weapons from your foes, or kick furniture at them, you can chuck weapons as them too, and you can beat the ever loving shit out of them as well… oh, and you can occasionally use magic on them too - the ability to use such supernatural powers are granted to you by Anubis, of course, because you’re sort of chums with him (although maybe it’s all just the drugs).
Levels play out very much like the aforementioned Hotline Miami (which the developers cite as a prime inspiration), although this title certainly looks far prettier, and as such is a tad more gory. Levels consist of a series of interconnecting rooms within which a variety of baddies reside (and occasionally civilians). Your task is to hack your way through and to fully clear the space… without dying. If you do perish, and you probably will, the room just restarts, and you keep on trying until you overcome the challenge. Once you’ve mastered a raid though, returning again will offer a different experience, with randomly generated rooms, differing enemies, various finishers to take down your foes, as well as gameplay modifiers, such as harder enemies, or randomised starting weapons.
Weapon variety is very good, with all sorts of melee offerings, such as fringing pans, knives, pool cues, katanas, baseball bats, along with a whole raft more. Ranged weapons are a little more limited, but you can expect the usual array - pistols, shotguns, and submachine guns (there may be more, but that is all I saw in the demo).
There is no stealth mechanic, and no real subtlety, but that’s the point with this one. You are a very blunt instrument, and it’s an absolute joy to just go charging in. Kicking down a door, chucking a bat at some blokes head, then running off to bludgeon the rest of the goons there is endlessly enjoyable, and the fun and excessive gore, along with the lovely aesthetics of the world around you make for a visual treat.
The story is somewhat vague in the snippet offered in the demo, but the storytelling, the visuals, the voiceover, the music, and the general quality of the experience is incredibly impressive, very evocative, and certainly makes you want to learn more, and more importantly, play more.
Overall, Jackal is a breath of fresh air. There is a simplicity to it that, despite the almost preposterous levels of violence, brings a sort of zen quality, and murdering your way through hotels and casinos, and various other locales in Vegas is as calming as it is thrilling. While you’re here, check out previous Next Fest posts, perhaps you’ll find something that has passed you by!
STEAM NEXT FEST
Demos hold a lot of memories for people of a certain age - the fabled disk of unreleased treasures stuck to the front of a magazine. Often the only source of new gaming experiences outside of occasional gifts, rare renting opportunities, and negotiated trades amongst friends. For a long while, demos seemed to fall out of favour, but in recent years they have made a comeback, thanks to the easy of access afforded by Steam, and the Next Fest, which regularly shines a light on new and upcoming releases, allowing developers to show of their games to a wide audience. What follows is a list of games I’ve covered from past Next Fests.
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