John Wick Hex is the first John Wick PC/console game inspired by Lionsgate’s hit action franchise. From acclaimed Game Director, Mike Bithell (Volume, Thomas Was Alone, Subsurface Circular), John Wick Hex is a fast-paced, action-oriented strategy game that makes you think and strike like the professional hitman.
Created in close cooperation with the creative teams behind the films, John Wick Hex is fight-choreographed chess brought to life as a video game, capturing the series’ signature gun fu style while expanding its story universe. Players must choose every action and attack they make, while considering their immediate cost and consequences. Every move in John Wick Hex feels like a scene from the movies, and every fight contributes to your progress on the job and requires precise strategic thinking.
Perform well and progress in the main story mode (which features an original story created for the game) to unlock new weapons, suit options and locations. Each weapon changes up the tactics you’ll use and the manner in which you’ll play. Ammo is finite and realistically simulated, so time your reloads and make the most of weapons you scavenge on the job.
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A fun-enough tactics game that I don't think I'll feel a need to go back to. Lots of missed opportunities for creativity and more polished execution in the pre-deployment planning phase, the gunplay/weapon mechanics (when my ammo runs out I can't find a pencil to use in any of these offices?), and especially the end-of-mission replays (which have so much potential given the source material, but I didn't end up with a single one that looked cool, largely due to the choppiness/repetitiveness of the animations). Really tedious dialogue, but then again that's faithful to the John Wick franchise.
I have a newfound appreciation for this game and how it adapts the action of them after rewatching all the movies and giving it another try, some of the levels were very tough but it was satisfying trying over and over and then finally winning, cool game hope we get more John wick games of other genres in the future
Nothing special, really. It's a great concept, but the execution isn't all there. I honestly would've much preferred something more resembling Hitman. I'm all for a good strategy game, and I do like what they went for here, but it was just kinda poorly implemented, and it can be a little annoying if you don't have a great deal of patience, and can't/don't want to think a few steps ahead
much more fun that i was expecting, very satisfying
John Wick Hex has a lot going for it but it also misses the mark in a few categories. Immediately one flawless element is the aesthetics. The fantastic music and solid visuals establish a powerful tone. Combined with the shadows that fill in on the fly based on line of sight and the colour palettes of the various unique levels, every set piece was brought to life.
In terms of the strategy and tactics, there are a lot of well thought out elements. The hex grid, represented by dots provides the amount of options in each action that you need when playing a tactics game that only has one controllable character. The timeline as a turn based/real time hybrid is a great idea. Straight forward at first but requires a deeper understanding on the harder levels. The balancing of resources between ammo, focus and time is a captivating trio.
Narratively, John Wick Hex isn't doing anything special, but neither do the the movies so this didn't bother me. Having two actors from the movie was a nice touch and Troy Baker kills it as Hex. It's clear the scope was kept small but the use of smaller voice roles or dialogue from Wick (Keanu or otherwise) could have been nice additions to flesh it out.
I had a good time with this game but there were a few things that kept it from reaching that next level for me.
1. Difficulty curve is way off, second half of the game is way too easy.
2. There were multiple times that it bugged out and I had to restart a level, losing my progress. This is years after release on PC, still these issues remain.
3. There is a lack of layering. After the tutorial, the only new things are weapons and enemy types. No new mechanics beyond I guess elevators, not that that has a major effect on gameplay.
4. The cinematic replay is cool but the janky movement kind of ruins its potential. I wasn't compelled to use it after the first 2 or 3 levels.
5. The cutscenes are also bugged. Spoken dialogue not lining up with the subtitles, making the visual novel cutscenes hard to read and get invested in.
1. Difficulty curve is way off, second half of the game is way too easy.
2. There were multiple times that it bugged out and I had to restart a level, losing my progress. This is years after release on PC, still these issues remain.
3. There is a lack of layering. After the tutorial, the only new things are weapons and enemy types. No new mechanics beyond I guess elevators, not that that has a major effect on gameplay.
4. The cinematic replay is cool but the janky movement kind of ruins its potential. I wasn't compelled to use it after the first 2 or 3 levels.
5. The cutscenes are also bugged. Spoken dialogue not lining up with the subtitles, making the visual novel cutscenes hard to read and get invested in.
Ultimately I would love to see some of the concepts here refined in either a sequel or a spiritual successor, or even another indie dev inspired by it. Still this was an enjoyable playthrough with a nice runtime. I'll take this any day over any of the movies and is a cool addition to the world of John Wick.
A simple enough game that doesn't take too long to beat, but doesn't add too much in that short runtime either. John Wick Hex is very stylistic in both graphics and gameplay, and I did enjoy the neon aesthetic that harkens back to the movies. Where the game begins to fall apart for me is in the mixed bag of a gameplay system. At times, when it worked, it really worked, and I honestly did feel like I was choreographing these action segments with ease. This was helped by the option to view back your gameplay in a more cinematic style, an addition I really appreciated. However, those moments felt a little sparse compared to the moments of clunky movement and awkward positioning, which oftentimes brought more frustration than enjoyment. Moving on from gameplay, the voice acting was overall very good, an obvious standout would be Troy Baker's performance as Hex. The writing of the dialogue felt reminiscent of the Wick movies, and that was always enjoyable, but these cutscenes served more as a scene setter than anything else, considering the length of the game, the little emphasis on the story is understandable. Overall, John Wick Hex is a game where, when it works, it is a genuinely fun ride, however, this experience is marred by a lot of clunky gameplay and the story is too sparse to separate those unenjoyable moments.