The easiest way to describe Redacted is ‘Hades in a prison’. Whilst it’s true that the two games share many similarities – a Roguelike structure, an isometric viewpoint, and lovely comic book visuals – that lazy comparison does Redacted a disservice. Striking Distance Studios has made its own game, for better and for worse.
Sharing a setting with The Callisto Protocol, Redacted takes you to Black Iron Prison, a state-of-the-art penitentiary placed out of the way on Callisto, Jupiter’s rather chilly moon. The prison has become overrun with hordes of infected inmates, armies of militant mutants, and a conglomeration of other hideous beasties. You take on the role of a hapless prison guard, one who must blast, bash, and bludgeon their way to the last remaining escape pod and thus complete the game. Thing is, this being a Roguelike, you are not going to manage that for around 15 hours. Most of your time will be spent dying, getting incrementally more powerful, attempting another run, and then dying again. You know the drill.
First off, Redacted is gorgeous. The chunky, American comic book inspired visuals are absolutely my cup of tea. Bright, bold, punchy; the denizens of Black Iron are an unmitigated delight to maul and murder. Combat is fast and satisfying; the kick of a shotgun blast as it launches a slobbering zombie into an electric trap is unexpectedly meaty, particularly for a game played from an isometric viewpoint, which can often have a distancing effect on the action. Your prison guard can dash, back attack, and grenade launch in such a responsive and dynamic manner that even Zagreus would be impressed. In short, Redacted plays really nicely. Each self-enclosed arena is a Potpourri of intense chaotic violence that will get your heart pumping and your fingers twiddling with excitement.
Complete a room by killing all the enemies and you’ll be rewarded with a power-up, some of which will offer you a boost for your current run, while others provide you with new abilities, perks, and upgrades that will benefit you through this and every subsequent run. Your standard Roguelike, then.
Death comes frequently in the world of Redacted. A tad too frequently in my humble opinion. This is a hard game, offering a much steeper challenge than Hades. Whilst your prison guard consistently increases in power, the enemies you face match you every step of the way. It often frustratingly feels like you aren’t making much progress, the game cackling in delight as in throws ever more obstacles your way, ensuring you are stuck on the second stage for hours and hours before you finally break through to the next section. Progress can be frustratingly slow and irksome, rather than addictive and compelling.
Missing the iconic Greek gods of Hades, Redacted offers a smart alternative: you aren’t on your own in attempting to reach the last escape pod and other employees and inmates are racing against you. There’s some fabulously over-the-top voiced characters to encounter, though the RPG obsessed super nerd, a lewd dinner lady, and a symbiote infected hapless admin guy, are the stand outs. Your rivals will mock you or occasionally offer you tips during your run, and they’re even able to attack you remotely – adding exploding enemies to a room or foes that have increased freeze damage, that kind of thing. In the reverse, you’ll gather and charge power-ups – input through a QTE – to slow your rivals down, weaken them, or expose vulnerabilities. Catch up with them in an arena and you’ll have an epic boss battle on your hands, survive and you’ll unlock dossiers that will further weaken your rival until they can eventually be defeated.
It’s an addictive gameplay loop, one that will keep you hankering after just one more run, even if the slow progress elsewhere might have you chewing on your controller with rage. Not that that happed to me. Honest.