Another modern boom shoot. Made by one dev from Czech Republic that takes place in a brown, yet absurd and dangerous 1986 Czechoslovakia.
The great thing about indie games, especially solo devs, is how much insight you're given into the creator by simply playing their game. They aren't bounded by many restrictions, which makes the games feel more personal. Especially considering the setting here is a exaggeration of the creator's home country, albeit after a certain disaster that spawned monsters and imparted madness across the country that the silent protagonist must trek through. Hrot balances horror and comedy surprisingly well. It forces you into many cramped, dark tunnels where even your flashlight uncontrollably flickers as you nervously hold your weapon forward, then the next level will allow you to feed a dog so many treats that they puke. To explain every crazy enemy and encounter would ruin a lot of this game's charm, albeit the wildest of shit happens in the second and especially the third episode. If Episode 1 is not gripping you, you're free to skip to Episode 2 or 3 whenever; and I have seen people struggle to engage in the game early on.
As for the gameplay, it's Quake-like with high importance on explosives and shotguns, but doesn't retain the sequence breaking rocket jumps even with the high movement speed. Gunplay is nothing too remarkable, but most of your arsenal have several applications to use them in fun ways. Definitely a high emphasis on the shotguns though, ammo is extremely common for them, maybe even more than pistol ammo. The most unique thing you'll get in combat is deflecting grenades back at enemies with a kick, something that they don't teach you, but once you learn it then it becomes a engaging ammo saving method where you're redirecting the explosives into crowds of unfortunate foes. Apart from that, you're encountering the frankly absurd number of enemies while scouring for secrets and even the cute Easter egg here or there. Again, nothing that hasn't been done before, but the execution of the level design I have to give credit for. Despite the endless brown and dreariness of all 24 levels, I've never found myself completely lost on where I am and what I need to do. I have backtracked before, but a lot of times it's because I miss a frankly obvious sign that'd point me in the right direction, without ever being a literal sign.

Certainly a dev to keep your eye on, what Hrot lacks in exceptional combat it makes up in atmosphere, level layouts, variety, and some splendid humor. A game that, embarrassingly, got me to laugh at potty humor surely is doing something right... or maybe I have low standards.
After beating the final level of an episode, you get a recipe. As in, a real life recipe on something you could actually cook.

If Dusk is colorful Quake, then why someone decided to bring us brown Dusk?

Jokes aside, Few games can approach minimalism the way HROT does. Simplicity is the basis of almost everything here: No strange mechanics, weapons that everyone are familiar about, level design that is open but without being too complex or large. The colour palette is as minimalistic as it gets. And the story? Minimalistic is too much to describe it: There’s no story at all. Not even a minimum backstory to serve as a an excuse for the action, which is what usually happens in this kind of games. Here, no story at all. Just pure action and atmosphere.

Aesthetics are a very important thing for me when it comes to videogames. At times, they might even do the trick for me even when the gameplay is not that great (which is not the case of HROT, whose gameplay is excellent). That’s why i like to play games done in GZDoom: Even if the mechanics are always the same, sometimes i just want to see some nice things and hear some nice sounds and all of that. My first impression with HROT, wasn’t a very positive one. It’s not that i straight out disliked it’s aesthetic, actually i found it very attractive: Sepia is essentially the colour of everything that’s old, the colour of the memories, and therefore, it was a very sensitive choice considering this game was supposed to be inspired by the nostalgia of 80’s communist Czechoslovakia. HROT is supposed to look like an old photograph, and i find that even poetic (specially for a boomer shooter). But on the other hand, a part of me was seeing a brown Dusk, suspecting that this whole minimalism would end up becoming pure monotony. Thankfully, i was completely wrong actually. I don’t think i have the exact words to express how or what made the aesthetic not only sustain and keep me hooked but also how it managed to surprise me at many times. I guess it must be mostly due to the subtle changes in themes and general mood throughout the episodes.

So i played the first episode expecting some kind of spooky or even depressing mood, but truth is, i felt none of that. I would even describe the first episode as a comfy gaming experience, meaning of course i enjoyed it pretty much. Until Episode 2 for sure, which is where the heavier horror elements start playing a role, just like in Dusk’s Episode 2, because even if Dusk is entirely built around horror tropes, is in the second episode when you deal with something more akin to the typical survival horror experience. And then the Episode 3 is the one featuring the most surrealistic and absurdist elements, just like in Dusk’s episode 3. Also, despite having some dank humour all around the game, i think this third episode is the one featuring the funniest and most bizarre ones.

Weapons are pretty damn good, they are actually pretty similar to the ones from Dusk. And there’s even a crossbow, which i forgot to use during enormous chunks of the game, just like it happened to me when i played Dusk. There’s something very interesting about weapons here, and it’s their sound. Weapons in HROT don’t sound as explosive as they usually do in this genre. The sound design applied specifically to the weapons is another thing that could be described as minimalistic. Most of them are even pretty quiet. But defying expectations, they are incredibly satisfying. I think it is quite an achievement to design weapons and making them super fun to use without being all over the top, which is something that has become quite of a norm in this genre.

In conclusion, i loved this game. I wish there were more games like Dusk. I-i mean like HROT.

It's very rare that I find myself re-playing a game.

Even rarer that I replay it soon after I finished it.

Even More So that I replay it so many times I decide to tackle the highest difficult available and do challenge runs, I finished this game on Very Hard pistol starting every level and getting all kills and secrets.

This is a genuinely excellent boomer shooter that does, basically everything right.

The levels are incredibly fun to explore and, despite the game's overly brown color pallet, are incredibly distinct from each other and an absolute joy to play.

The enemies are challenging and fun to take down, the weapons feel amazing to use, the environments and music are really eerie and atmospheric, I genuinely adore this game, one of my all time favourites!

One thing to note though: the gameplay and movement feel, despite the game's obvious Quake influence, is a lot more akin to Duke Nukem 3D than it is Quake, so, be wary of that!

It's difficult to pinpoint exactly what caused the rise of retro-styled first-person shooters as of late. Many games have been wildly popular, well-received, and commercially successful since. While it could be traced back to Interceptor Entertainment's Rise of the Triad remake in 2013, I'd argue it truly kicked off with David Szymanski's excellent modern classic Dusk in 2018. Naturally, there's been a lot of these games since then as the genre has exploded into mainstream popularity. HROT is one of many, and it's in a bit of a confusing place. HROT genuinely feels like a passion project from developer Spytihněv. None of it feels trend-chasing or cynical, and yet, I can't help but feel HROT fails to make a significant mark in a genre filled with games of this style past and present.

HROT's gameplay is as standard as retro shooters go. You're given the standard assortment of weapons, from pistols, to shotguns, to grenade launchers, et cetera. The enemies are all fairly derivative, too. Kejdovecs are just ogres, and konfidents are just scrags. None of this is necessarily a bad thing. Genres are inherently derivative, and all of these retro revivals take influence from previous games in obvious ways, such as Dusk with Doom/Quake and Ion Fury with Build engine shooters. The problem for me is that HROT on a gameplay level just doesn't do enough to distinguish itself. Everything from the base game mechanics, to the enemy design, to the level design, is all perfectly functional and often fun. They all perform their jobs quite capably but aren't anything particularly unique or interesting. Standard enemies and mechanics isn't uncommon in this genre, and it's a genre that primarily lives and dies on its level design. I can't point to any level in particular that is necessarily worse than the others. However, I simply think that these levels are largely standard and I also, by consequence, struggle to remember them individually as well. There has to be at least three levels set in a train station that look and play essentially the same. Complaints about unoriginality aside, I did enjoy my time with HROT. The guns mostly feel pretty good to use. I hear a lot of complaints online that the weapons feel unimpactful, but in this case I think it works, as the broken-down look and sound of your weapons enforces the hopelessness of the 1980s Soviet atmosphere. Even on hard mode HROT feels largely fair, there weren't many moments where I felt the game was cheating me, though occasionally I felt ammo was overly sparse. I do wish the levels had more verticality - for the most part enemies are on the same playing field as you, and even Doom had enemies on different levels of elevation. It can sometimes make HROT feel a little static when enemy placement doesn't change heavily. I'm bitching and moaning, but no one should take HROT as merely mediocre. It is a fun time with occasionally creative moments (such as a mine cart ride) that unfortunately blends together into an entertaining albiet unmemorable mush.

HROT, like Quake before it, is a bleak and unsettling descent into a country slowly crumbling apart. Many of HROT's levels are pulled from real life Czechoslovakian locations which ground the game into a level of deep rooted and personal culture that, while I can't entirely empathize with being an American, can at the very least appreciate. In a generation where most games want to be colorful and cartoony, HROT's dedication to dust, grime, and diesel is admirable and helps it stand out from the crowd. There are many surrealist touches to the game that lend it an eerie feeling. For example, the player is never sure if the military forces they are fighting are human or distorted monsters, facsimile of people. The low-poly graphical style compliments this well, with its chunky character models and pixelated textures not only feeling highly authentic but also adding to said surrealism, and I love the ability to choose between software and OpenGL looks. There's even a good bit of humor, too, such as a boss fight consisting of enemies on bumper carts and a level where you fight off an army of newts. This gives HROT a lot of personality, a good sign that Spytihněv is having fun with his work. If there's any part that I disliked, it's that the game doesn't truly support framerates above 60 FPS, simply duplicating identical frames and giving the game a choppy feeling. Either truly support high framerates or cap your game at 60, because this middle ground is worse than both of those.

Unlike a lot of retro-style shooters which opt for heavy metal or classic MIDI for their scores, HROT's score from Sjellos consists largely of dark ambient undulations and menacing beats. It's not particularly memorable work, but it underscores the action decently enough. The soundtrack is, fittingly, as oppressive as the Soviet regime, pulsing and pounding whereever necessary while reeling back for more atmospheric moments. The lack of memorable melodies hurts it, I can't recall a single song from the game or album off of the top fo my head, but it's effective enough for what HROT needs.

Among the retro shooter craze, HROT feels like a bit of an oddity. While it doesn't do anything particularly new and interesting on a game design level, it's dreary atmosphere, roots in Czechoslovakian history, sense of humor, and retro sensibilities will easily find it a niche with the right audience. The problem is mostly that HROT, despite all of this, just isn't as inspired and creative as many of its contemporaries. It's a competent and enjoyable ride, but one I won't be leaping to replay or recommend anytime soon. If you're itching for a new retro shooter, HROT may be up your alley, but there's certainly better out there.

A mix of Quake, Doom 3 and Duke 3D with a very unique, personal and genuine premise. It's pretty obvs where the quake influence goes, the author clearly loves Quake's brown textures but knows how to make the game not feel samey visually, it's more brown than Quake ever was but you'll never get tired of it. There's some Doom 3 in the more limited mobility and resources being scarcer than average for the genre. Duke 3D plays a big influence in the level design and soul of the game, levels feel like real places that are also made for a videogame like all good Duke 3D levels do, also the frequent and many elements of interactivity and humor which give a one man feel to game in the best possible way. The gameplay loop isn't as good as other games of it's ilk but it makes with level design and charm, most I can complain is that some projecticles might as well be hitscans but it's not a big issue.

Marrom

Isso mesmo, marrom.

Foi a palavra que achei pra definir a estética e experiência de HROT, que lembra bizarramente jogos como quake e doom, nesse estilo retrô de FPS, mas claro.. o mercado indie já ta meio com jogos demais desse estilo e HROT é meio mais do mesmo em quesito de gameplay, mas a ambientação e o humor que ele coloca no jogo, lembrando até um pouco daquele humor ácido e psicodélico de My Friend Pedro mas se assemelhando mais com Duke Nukem.

De toda forma, HROT tem um mapa extremamente bem feito, da pra tu se perder mas se você não for lerdão como eu, consegue se encontrar no mapa e prosseguir com o objetivo bem rápido, só prestar atenção.

E sobre sua jogabilidade, como eu havia dito não é nada la inovador, mas como eu gosto de mais do mesmo, eu achei o máximo, o bom é que o jogo é curto e quando você sente que ele ta saturando, ele acaba.

Recomendo muito HROT mas jogue ele com calma, é um jogo curto que não merece ser rushado e dê umas pausas caso sinta algo relacionado a cinetose enquanto joga.

Really liked this for the most part and I guess it's just a good combination of satisfying shooting mechanics crossed with this atmosphere that seems bleak and depressing, but then more and more it becomes surrealistic, absurd and even outright humourous at points. Has a very vacant quality to it I think, sort of scratching the same sort of itch that the original Quake had, and I dunno, something about this game captures a similar sort of vibe as when you're having a proper sick day where you feel really ill and a bit dissociated and what not. A lot of gross-out elements in this, tbh, and I guess it does take a particular sort of mood to vibe with this game. Quite satisfactory, but then I guess this was something where I felt like it was more just amusing than something that blew my socks off. Quite short as well unless you're like going on the higher difficulties and repeating levels over and over again, but even then, you know.

Also of note, but I completed the bulk of this game in May and then finished the third episode in August. Game is not that long, I just took a substantial break from playing this game, for whatever reason.

i see so many people call this a Quake-like when the only similarities this game has to Quake are the swathes of brown textures and some of the enemy roster, most notably an obvious spin-off of Quake's ogre. This is at its core, a Chasm-like with Duke Nukem 3D in the mix. and being a Chasm-like means it's more like Wolf3D than Quake. wait i gotta add that its also atmospheric like Quake so i guess its equal parts Quake and Wolf3D. Chasm was originally supposed to be a competitor to Quake but when playing it, it feels more like a more 3D Wolfenstein3D with an Eastern European flavor. so HROT is essentially all of that. A game that has the maze-like levels of castle Wolfenstein with Quake's violence and despair with Eastern European culture plastering it in Duke Nukem 3D's playful interactivity. HROT is a passion project. its a love letter to its inspirations and the developer's homeland's history and culture. even ignoring that, it's a fun time. gunplay is decent with the low fidelity presentation but lackluster sound design, but the enemy encounters are what make the combat fun. especially in episode 2 and some of episode 3, the game gets creative with its imposed limitations to make some fights memorable. the boss fights are the most notable of these encounters, usually being the highlight of an episode with not just their arenas and build-up but also by their uniqueness. the other memorable part of the game is the dense atmosphere in its simple presentation. the ambient soundtrack underscores the dreadful world painted in sick browns, nauseous greens, and pale offwhites. its mundane and haunting, full of otherworldly horrors and boring miscellanea like canned meat. horror contrasted by absurdity while all being equally normalized to its grounded setting. pairing the passion with this atmosphere is what pushes me into the "yea this is my shit, i love it too much" camp. i can set aside most of its shortcomings just because of the sheer passion put into this. a fun trip of love to surpass its labyrinthine sewers, currently one of my favorites of the year.

I knew going into HROT that it's a competent FPS styled after the original Quake with the aesthetic of drabness maxed out for scenery composed of 50 shades of brown. What I didn't expect was how there's a pervasive oddball sense of humor threaded throughout the dingy dystopia that endeared the project to me beyond simply providing some top-notch shooting action.

I'm pleased to report that enemy HP values and attack patterns provide plenty of variables to consider in the middle of a firefight, and that the levels "flowed nicely" at least by my standards.

A worthy addition to any FPS aficionado's collection.

One of the most atmospheric, creative, and surprisingly hilarious shooters I've ever played. Everything from the ground up is built around this hyperspecific time and place of 1980s Czechoslovakia that makes it feel so personal. This is not the kind of game that would ever come from a committee, this is the work of one lunatic through and through.

The "game-feel" is one of the biggest challenges for retro shooters in my opinion and HROT nails it. The weapons aren't the most unique but they all serve their purpose well and are satisfying to use. Beyond the gameplay there's just so many bizarre and memorable things in this game that I could easily ramble about for hours but I'd rather not spoil them all. All I'll say is the amount of work that must have gone into one-off gags just makes them all the more hilarious to me. Play this game. It's legitimately one of a kind.

This game is like if s.t.a.l.k.e.r and quake had a baby but they doubled up on weirdness, so many wacky, off the walls moments lol i suggest just playing cause of that

but honestly im a sucker for the boomer shooter genre
not to much to say other than run around, circle strafe and collect keys.

it doesnt invent the wheel, buuut its very good at what it does, the atmosphere is so forboding and creepy and one level scared the shit out of me, even! you always feel uneasy.
cool enemy design as well

if you love this genre its a most have so check it out whenever you can

I can't pin down exactly why but I find this game really nice in a way I don't usually. I think it might be the fact I played the demo a bunch? It's not a feeling you get often now but there's something cool about building a familiarity like that with a game before you play it properly, makes it feel kind of homely which along with the nostalgic-y inspirations makes this really comfy, it's the same as listening to an album's singles before the full thing's out. The muddy, dingey look and claustrophobic environments as well make this feel like something I played on a demo disc when I was 3 that I wasn't allowed to. You could probably say this about quite a few games but the fact this is explicitly a game rather than a horror experience makes it feel more genuine to me. Not finished it yet but really enjoying what I've played :)

edit: (finished it now and ye it's good, it's a lot like Quake for obvious reasons but also the fact that the kind of standard gameplay is held up by really cool vibes)

The Committee on Science, Arts and Culture declares that HROT does not contradict the party's policy on the ideological and cultural front but needs corrections.

The events in HROT are not entirely connected with the daily lives of the workers and peasants. Therefore, the developer is obliged to re-write HROT or [REDACTED].

Glory to the Party! Long live the Socialist order!