By Sebastion Mauldin

Reviewed on the Xbox Series X|S

Have you ever wanted to play a game that has 2016s Doom and Doom external gameplay, but with the retro low resolution polygonal art style? If you have Prodeus is the game you are looking for. Prodeus is a indie first-person shooter that was developed by Bounding Box software. The game had a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2019. So how is the game? Does it hold up to other boomer shooter? It’s it worth your time?

Let’s dive right into it.

In Prodeus, you are a cyborg and one of the last remaining humans. You’re given the task to take down demons in front of you and do you ever. If you have an appetite for gory and bombastic violence then this FPS is an all you can eat buffet.  

Gameplay:

Let’s talk about the gameplay. If you’ve played Doom then you understand exactly how this game plays. For the unfamiliar, you are giving guns and placed in a fast –paced warzone where it’s good to have the mantra “Shoot first or die first.” For the most part Prodeus does everything it sets out to do exceptionally well. While I would have liked some more enemy types, the ones we face off against are well designed. The developers made it to where enemies could be splattered, dismembered, and each posses multiple death animations. These details add a level of immersion and help prevent the game from feeling repetitive.

That’s lead me to the overall plus of this game. It’s the swift kinetic movements and the way this game always makes you feel fast yet in complete control. Everything comes at you at a fast pace, but the game does a masterful job of still making you feel like you can turn the tide of every battle.

Pros:

The atmosphere and level designs are top notch. Even though this game clearly has a 90s retro filter, it still look detailed thanks to the realistic lighting and particles effects. I love how many secrets were packed into each level. It gives you something to look for when you aren’t mowing down enemies. I will warn you that each level is huge. Very reminiscent of the lengthy levels in Halo Combat evolved. For some that might sound daunting, but the action and exploration keeps the levels from feeling overstuffed and bloated.

There is an art to making gun play in games feel right. The kickback, responsiveness, sound and impact all has to feel right in a shooter. Thankfully this game nails each of those aspects. Every gun feels good to play with and no gun really feels like a dud. The way you quickly reload every weapon is a huge plus as well.

Another plus of the game is the solid level editor. On Pc you can dive right into creating levels for others to enjoy and on consoles you can download and check out these community made levels. It’s not a thin surface level creation suite either. If you can dream it, it’s likely that you can create it with the tools that you are given here.

Cons/Flaws:

Here are the flaws I found in this game. First was the lack of direction the game provides. It is easy to get lost, and that’s impressive considering this game has a map. The problem lies in the fact that said map is challenging to read. It’s not the biggest issue, but one that plagued me nonetheless.

Another negative I had was the thin narrative. I get it. You don’t play these types of Boomers shooters for the story, but it would have been nice to a story-centric reason to invest in the action.

Overall/Should You Play Prodeus:

Overall Prodeus is a wildly fun time. It is a true love letter to retro shooters, but also a well designed modern shooter. There tons of replay value here due to the games insanely detailed and robust level crafting system. This game is so good that you wouldn’t have guessed that this was a crowd funded project. Seriously Prodeus is one of the best shooters of 2022.This is definitely a game fans of the genre should have their collection.

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