Cruel is the perfect roguelike shooter to kick off your 2025
You should be stepping into January with Cruel intentions
Hello! I've been fighting the bitter cold (in real life) by enduring the cold (in virtual life) in Escape From Tarkov, and trying and failing to get into Marvel Rivals yet again. I suspect, as I did with Overwatch, that there's something about Marvel Rivals that I'm just not getting – while my friend Chris flies overhead as Iron Man and racks up an MVP performance, I'm desperately trying to avoid getting punched to death by Iron Fist yet again.
I suspect I'm just getting old. This hypothesis is backed up by a declining kill/death ratio and multiple parts of me that hurt when I wake up. So it goes.
I've spent a little time diving into some boomer shooters over the last week too, so let's cut the preamble shorter than usual so I can tell you what's good about Cruel, eh?
Cruel should be simple. Battle through 10 floors of a hotel filled with bad guys and you're done. In reality, it's anything but. The game's first level has a fire burning away behind you. You'll rarely see it, because Cruel is a game where you'll rarely stop moving forwards. However, you will often hear it crackling at your heels every time you slow down.
Backpedal and you're dead. Slow down too long to aim your shots? Dead. The only way to heal is with cans of soda you can find during each floor, but at the end of each floor you have the chance to pour this off-brand soda into the mouth of a waiting dog to get a roguelike-style unlock. These unlocks are niche and encourage exploration. One unlock promised to add deflected bullets to my magazine, which clued me into the fact I could deflect bullets with the melee weapons I was often clutching in my offhand. Another provided bonus armour for defenestrating my foes, which made me start punting enemies from the hotel's many windows.
Slowly, you build a moveset. In my first run I was sluggishly lining up headshots with the revolver as the fire burnt its way up to join me. Later I started charging through like a heavily armed Olympian, completing my own bizarre triathlon of sprinting through levels, kicking my enemies to the group and shooting anyone still standing. All the while, grimy electronic beats with an aggressive synth soundtrack the violence.
The headshots will definitely be some of the best executed in 2025 and they perfectly exemplify the top-notch nastiness at the heart of Cruel. Even your little revolver will tear the head from an unlucky opponent, splattering blood around the place. You should barely have time to notice, but each time a head pops like a champagne cork, you'll see it and smirk. It's a crowning moment of glory for each enemy, who are otherwise pretty identikit. Want to see a cultist in a robe with a revolver? A man with a baseball bat and a white vest? Cruel has you covered.
Honestly, Cruel feels a little simple in places. After two hours of play I think I've gotten about as far as I'm going to manage. I know there are other weapons in the game because I've seen them in screenshots, but I haven't gotten to them yet.
Still, there's something about Cruel that I like. I haven't played enough for a full review and I think, honestly, I'm pretty much done with it. But I paid £8.50 for Cruel and don't regret my decision. Maybe you might dig it, too.
Gibs
- I played a little Mekkablood: Quarry Assault. I enjoy the clunky mech cockpit and the general vibe, but the game uses generative AI for both the music and textures in the level, which has left me a little cold. I'm not sure if there's a place for AI in games development, but I do know that using it for the creative player facing parts makes me feel like you're a little lazy. Still, look at that cockpit.
- Breaking news, but the Fortune's Run developer is halting development on the game as they are going to prison for three years. I have questions, but Fortune's Run was well regarded, so this is worth noting.
- Marvel Rivals seems to be sneakily putting bots into quickplay matches to help players on losing streaks. Perhaps I'm not losing hard enough. Morgan Park at PC Gamer investigated this and it holds water. I'm not sure if I'm as dismissive of it as he is, although that could be because it's probably the only way I'm getting any wins.
- Also on PC Gamer, I wrote about the 11 FPS games I'm most excited for in 2025.
- Alameda's I Already Dug Your Grave is a more summery pop song than the winter outside deserves, but I'm into it.