I only came across Severed Steel by chance, as it was a game I got in a bundle about 2 years ago. While I thought the game looked cool, It was never high priority on my list. Only about a week ago, I had to look through my game library for FPS games that I could research for a college project. By chance, I remembered Severed Steel, and a lot of the people agreed this would be a good game to use as research. So I sat down, played for a little bit, and was absolutely blown away by how great it was. I was already in the middle of playing a long game at the time and I wanted to finish that game before finishing anything else, but I knew that once I finished that game, I had to play Severed Steel next. And so, that’s what I did.
Severed Steel is a lot of things. It’s SUPERHOT inspirations are quite noticeable, and I feel like there’s some Metroid Prime inspiration in there as well. The Arm Cannon’s design in particular is what I find reminiscent there. But while there are some noticeable inspirations, what this game is able to do makes Severed Steel such an amazing game. It’s far greater than the sum of its parts, creating an absolutely amazing movement shooter.
The actual gunplay in Severed Steel rocks. Every gun has limited ammo and no way of reloading, which means you’ll be constantly switching which guns you use, which is really cool. Some of its guns are definitely similar in functionality, however this method creates an amazing and natural way of necessitating switching your weapon without it being forced. And the way you switch guns is that you can either throw your gun at an enemy to stun them, or you get close to the enemy to steal their gun. That creates a really fun dynamic too, as you’re putting yourself closer to danger in order to obtain a new weapon. That in itself is so thrilling. And I have no complaints with the guns either, each gun feels absolutely great to use, though of course the shotgun is my personal favorite. One (relatively minor) thing I have to compliment about this game is the sound that plays when you beat an enemy. There’s such as satisfying thing about the sound that plays, I can’t really put it into words.
Of course, one of the major mechanics of Severed Steel is its Bullet-Time. With it, whenever you hold down the right mouse button, you’re able to slow down time to better aim while mid-movement. And while it’s obviously not unique to Severed Steel, I adore how it’s done. You have a limited amount of time you can have Bullet-Time active, which is typical, but you recharge it by beating enemies. That means if you’re able to beat enemies back to back, your Bullet-Time will last longer and longer. It feels so satisfying to be able to pull it off, especially when you’re in a room with a lot of enemies. What adds to this as well, having no Bullet-Time is such a stressful situation, in a good way. It’s somewhat terrifying having no Bullet-Time to use, yet again, it’s just really thrilling!
As mentioned prior, Severed Steel is a movement shooter, and its movement options are just amazing! Being able to slide, lunge, wall-run, double jump, wall jump, at normal or slowed speed is so fun. You’re able to go across the map in such fun ways that I can only imagine that no two people go through the game’s levels in the exact same way. The game is so open in that regard. Slides, Wall-Runs and Lunges allow you to avoid enemy fire, so they’re great ways to protect yourself, while still moving. Slides and Lunges also hurt enemies that get hit by them. Though my favorite movement option, if it counts as one, is the kick. Kicks can be used to kick off walls if you’re running on them, but I love their interactivity with enemies. Kicking an enemy can disarm them, but as well if you kick an enemy with the shield, not only does the enemy drop the shield, but you get launched into the air. This game’s movement is ridiculously fluid in the best way possible.
And of course, what exemplifies how good the movement in the game is, is the game’s levels. Level design of course varies from level to level, but god they feel so fun to play. The open areas value having a massive amount of air-time, and being able to dash around the enemies below you. The more closed-in areas are perfects for slides and lunges, and getting up close and personal with the enemies. Most levels do have common goals. Get to the end of the level, defeat all the enemies, destroy an amount of things, or collect an amount of things. And honestly I really like these levels, but I’m also glad that the last set of levels also alternate between things. My favorite level is still the Train level though, it’s just the best to me. One particular level I’m reminded of is “The Wall”, which exemplifies one of my favorite things of Severed Steel.
Within each level of Severed Steel, every level is destructible. Walls, floors, doors, the entire environment, you can destroy EVERYTHING. And god, it’s so fun! You can make what were previously walls into new pathways to areas you’ve been or need to go to. If you got a good gun on you, you’re able to shoot enemies through walls. And some of the levels can be beaten ridiculously quickly just by destroying the environment around you. And later on in the game, some levels actively require you destroy them, which feels amazing! Not many games have a destructible environment like Severed Steel, and I absolutely love it here.
I primarily played the main campaign for Severed Steel, and through that, I was able to beat it in under 3 hours. While it has a story, the story is very minimal, which I’m fine with, Severed Steel as a game is very much gameplay first. And honestly, I think the main campaign being under 3 hours isn’t too bad, the game is meant to be replayed over and over as you get better and better. Each level can typically be beaten in under 3 minutes, maybe faster if you’re a master at the game. But with that in mind, this game has so much additional content to it. It’s got multiple built in bonus campaigns and levels, it’s got a roguelike mode that you can play, and with a level editor to boot, the game practically has an infinite amount of potential content. In that regard, Severed Steel blows me away, and I definitely want to play the additional content at some point.
Severed Steel is an example of a belief I have where some of the best games out there are the ones you stumble upon. Being told or knowing that a game is amazing beforehand sets up an expectation of things, and even if its true, the impact is different. But just stumbling upon a game, playing it, and being blown away by it is just something else. I only found Severed Steel by chance, if I never got that bundle, I would’ve never had this game, and I probably would’ve never gotten it otherwise. And I’m really glad I was able to play this game, as it absolutely blew me away.
Severed Steel is a lot of things. It’s SUPERHOT inspirations are quite noticeable, and I feel like there’s some Metroid Prime inspiration in there as well. The Arm Cannon’s design in particular is what I find reminiscent there. But while there are some noticeable inspirations, what this game is able to do makes Severed Steel such an amazing game. It’s far greater than the sum of its parts, creating an absolutely amazing movement shooter.
The actual gunplay in Severed Steel rocks. Every gun has limited ammo and no way of reloading, which means you’ll be constantly switching which guns you use, which is really cool. Some of its guns are definitely similar in functionality, however this method creates an amazing and natural way of necessitating switching your weapon without it being forced. And the way you switch guns is that you can either throw your gun at an enemy to stun them, or you get close to the enemy to steal their gun. That creates a really fun dynamic too, as you’re putting yourself closer to danger in order to obtain a new weapon. That in itself is so thrilling. And I have no complaints with the guns either, each gun feels absolutely great to use, though of course the shotgun is my personal favorite. One (relatively minor) thing I have to compliment about this game is the sound that plays when you beat an enemy. There’s such as satisfying thing about the sound that plays, I can’t really put it into words.
Of course, one of the major mechanics of Severed Steel is its Bullet-Time. With it, whenever you hold down the right mouse button, you’re able to slow down time to better aim while mid-movement. And while it’s obviously not unique to Severed Steel, I adore how it’s done. You have a limited amount of time you can have Bullet-Time active, which is typical, but you recharge it by beating enemies. That means if you’re able to beat enemies back to back, your Bullet-Time will last longer and longer. It feels so satisfying to be able to pull it off, especially when you’re in a room with a lot of enemies. What adds to this as well, having no Bullet-Time is such a stressful situation, in a good way. It’s somewhat terrifying having no Bullet-Time to use, yet again, it’s just really thrilling!
As mentioned prior, Severed Steel is a movement shooter, and its movement options are just amazing! Being able to slide, lunge, wall-run, double jump, wall jump, at normal or slowed speed is so fun. You’re able to go across the map in such fun ways that I can only imagine that no two people go through the game’s levels in the exact same way. The game is so open in that regard. Slides, Wall-Runs and Lunges allow you to avoid enemy fire, so they’re great ways to protect yourself, while still moving. Slides and Lunges also hurt enemies that get hit by them. Though my favorite movement option, if it counts as one, is the kick. Kicks can be used to kick off walls if you’re running on them, but I love their interactivity with enemies. Kicking an enemy can disarm them, but as well if you kick an enemy with the shield, not only does the enemy drop the shield, but you get launched into the air. This game’s movement is ridiculously fluid in the best way possible.
And of course, what exemplifies how good the movement in the game is, is the game’s levels. Level design of course varies from level to level, but god they feel so fun to play. The open areas value having a massive amount of air-time, and being able to dash around the enemies below you. The more closed-in areas are perfects for slides and lunges, and getting up close and personal with the enemies. Most levels do have common goals. Get to the end of the level, defeat all the enemies, destroy an amount of things, or collect an amount of things. And honestly I really like these levels, but I’m also glad that the last set of levels also alternate between things. My favorite level is still the Train level though, it’s just the best to me. One particular level I’m reminded of is “The Wall”, which exemplifies one of my favorite things of Severed Steel.
Within each level of Severed Steel, every level is destructible. Walls, floors, doors, the entire environment, you can destroy EVERYTHING. And god, it’s so fun! You can make what were previously walls into new pathways to areas you’ve been or need to go to. If you got a good gun on you, you’re able to shoot enemies through walls. And some of the levels can be beaten ridiculously quickly just by destroying the environment around you. And later on in the game, some levels actively require you destroy them, which feels amazing! Not many games have a destructible environment like Severed Steel, and I absolutely love it here.
I primarily played the main campaign for Severed Steel, and through that, I was able to beat it in under 3 hours. While it has a story, the story is very minimal, which I’m fine with, Severed Steel as a game is very much gameplay first. And honestly, I think the main campaign being under 3 hours isn’t too bad, the game is meant to be replayed over and over as you get better and better. Each level can typically be beaten in under 3 minutes, maybe faster if you’re a master at the game. But with that in mind, this game has so much additional content to it. It’s got multiple built in bonus campaigns and levels, it’s got a roguelike mode that you can play, and with a level editor to boot, the game practically has an infinite amount of potential content. In that regard, Severed Steel blows me away, and I definitely want to play the additional content at some point.
Severed Steel is an example of a belief I have where some of the best games out there are the ones you stumble upon. Being told or knowing that a game is amazing beforehand sets up an expectation of things, and even if its true, the impact is different. But just stumbling upon a game, playing it, and being blown away by it is just something else. I only found Severed Steel by chance, if I never got that bundle, I would’ve never had this game, and I probably would’ve never gotten it otherwise. And I’m really glad I was able to play this game, as it absolutely blew me away.