Turbo Overkill: Really committing to its title and letting you put the pedal to the metal as Johnny Turbo is quite the speedy killing machine. “Johnny will return...”, but should he? I've seen worse and I've seen better, so I'd say "No" if it's just more of the same.
I've more cons than pros with Turbo Overkill, and while the pros are pretty strong, I just don't think they're quite enough.
This game doesn't run very well which I don't understand. As I type this, it's stuck loading the main menu from the credits since I've just beaten it. I had long loading screens on an SSD (why is dying four times faster than reloading a checkpoint?), bullets freezing in midair, enemies dying but their bodies remain upright and running, FPS drops with seemingly no source, some cutscenes seem to be missing audio cues (which is either a glitch or bad design), terrible checkpoints, and I'd frequently slide into corners/under objects where I'd get stuck. Doesn't feel very “turbo” to get wedged under a rock. I just Alt-F4'd the game to get out of that aforementioned freeze.
The visuals kinda gave me a headache given time. I was reminded of the System Shock remake, only I think I grew accustomed to the blaring lights there and just never quite did here. Maybe this is boomer-brain creeping in as I age, but it was a bit much. When you pick up the DOOM-like upgrades of power fists and what-have-you, it puts a color filter on the screen that made it even harder to see and stand.
Environmental dangers insta-kill you at times which obviously grinds the pacing to a halt for those rooms. Again, not very turbo.
The entire thing is reminiscent of Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon but lacks its charm. I don't mind aping off of something else as long as you separate yourself somehow or at least do a damn good job. I don't think they did either of those, here. I don't think it was ever “cringy” but even calling it “serviceable” may be a stretch.
I found myself almost dying instantly, losing all armor and nearly all health, from mid-to-low tier enemies when they used certain attacks like explosives or fire. This was wildly frustrating and didn't make sense to me. I found some of the earlier enemies harder than later ones because of this potential. I played on Street Cleaner (Hard) and there are two difficulties above that, I cannot even imagine how annoying those are.
But the pros I mentioned: Gotta go fast. Johnny Turbo and his chainsaw leg (called a “chegg”, what a gross word) go fast. Some upgrades are just a waste of time and some are obvious necessities, like the one that turns all enemies into health packs if you cut right through the crowds with your chegg. With the right upgrades and the grapple hook, you can basically fly, which felt great.
The weapon upgrades are all pretty good and turn previously useless weapons into powerhouses, like the pistol getting an upgrade to do tons of damage as long as you build up a streak and don't miss. Everything was already pretty tense, but now you feel like every shot needs to count, which can be thrilling.
Some levels have very good arenas and accompanying soundtracks, such as “The Wastes”. I made note of that level because it really nailed both of those, though it did have a lotta green going on and again, potential headaches. Not every level will hit the highs of this one, either, some just suck.
The vehicle segments are all pretty good. Fortunately there are only a few, but I think they were handled well.
You can “cancel” animations and reloads by switching weapons, which Dusk didn't have and drove me insane. Here, it keeps things fluid and fast with the player having the option to do more and get more out of it.
I think Turbo Overkill has shown me that these games need to be short and sweet. Both this and Dusk were too long.
Despite liking some things here, I think I don't really recommend Turbo Overkill. I got it on sale but this was one I could have just missed, easily. It was fun becoming a living chainsaw with guns, but I had to put up with a lot of problems to get there. If you love boomer shooters, you'll enjoy this, but for me? The price of admission felt too high.
I've more cons than pros with Turbo Overkill, and while the pros are pretty strong, I just don't think they're quite enough.
This game doesn't run very well which I don't understand. As I type this, it's stuck loading the main menu from the credits since I've just beaten it. I had long loading screens on an SSD (why is dying four times faster than reloading a checkpoint?), bullets freezing in midair, enemies dying but their bodies remain upright and running, FPS drops with seemingly no source, some cutscenes seem to be missing audio cues (which is either a glitch or bad design), terrible checkpoints, and I'd frequently slide into corners/under objects where I'd get stuck. Doesn't feel very “turbo” to get wedged under a rock. I just Alt-F4'd the game to get out of that aforementioned freeze.
The visuals kinda gave me a headache given time. I was reminded of the System Shock remake, only I think I grew accustomed to the blaring lights there and just never quite did here. Maybe this is boomer-brain creeping in as I age, but it was a bit much. When you pick up the DOOM-like upgrades of power fists and what-have-you, it puts a color filter on the screen that made it even harder to see and stand.
Environmental dangers insta-kill you at times which obviously grinds the pacing to a halt for those rooms. Again, not very turbo.
The entire thing is reminiscent of Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon but lacks its charm. I don't mind aping off of something else as long as you separate yourself somehow or at least do a damn good job. I don't think they did either of those, here. I don't think it was ever “cringy” but even calling it “serviceable” may be a stretch.
I found myself almost dying instantly, losing all armor and nearly all health, from mid-to-low tier enemies when they used certain attacks like explosives or fire. This was wildly frustrating and didn't make sense to me. I found some of the earlier enemies harder than later ones because of this potential. I played on Street Cleaner (Hard) and there are two difficulties above that, I cannot even imagine how annoying those are.
But the pros I mentioned: Gotta go fast. Johnny Turbo and his chainsaw leg (called a “chegg”, what a gross word) go fast. Some upgrades are just a waste of time and some are obvious necessities, like the one that turns all enemies into health packs if you cut right through the crowds with your chegg. With the right upgrades and the grapple hook, you can basically fly, which felt great.
The weapon upgrades are all pretty good and turn previously useless weapons into powerhouses, like the pistol getting an upgrade to do tons of damage as long as you build up a streak and don't miss. Everything was already pretty tense, but now you feel like every shot needs to count, which can be thrilling.
Some levels have very good arenas and accompanying soundtracks, such as “The Wastes”. I made note of that level because it really nailed both of those, though it did have a lotta green going on and again, potential headaches. Not every level will hit the highs of this one, either, some just suck.
The vehicle segments are all pretty good. Fortunately there are only a few, but I think they were handled well.
You can “cancel” animations and reloads by switching weapons, which Dusk didn't have and drove me insane. Here, it keeps things fluid and fast with the player having the option to do more and get more out of it.
I think Turbo Overkill has shown me that these games need to be short and sweet. Both this and Dusk were too long.
Despite liking some things here, I think I don't really recommend Turbo Overkill. I got it on sale but this was one I could have just missed, easily. It was fun becoming a living chainsaw with guns, but I had to put up with a lot of problems to get there. If you love boomer shooters, you'll enjoy this, but for me? The price of admission felt too high.