Angerfoot!!
“A lightning-fast hard bass blast of kicking down doors and kicking ass”
This indie gem from Robbie Frasier, Luc Wolthers, Jem Smith, and Jason Sutherland of Free Lives came stomping into the Indie scene during the 2020 7dfps game jam. A challenge in which developers must make a game for entry in seven days, impressive, huh? Luckily for us, Angerfoot is still in development. The game is continuing to grow and becoming meaner and angrier than ever!
Angerfoot is a single player, door-busting, fast-paced FPS (first-person shooter). You control a hot-headed, battle-frenzied maniac in practical kicking shoes. You will kick down doors, blast goons with guns, and kick people to death… That sounds like fun, right?! You better believe it! Let’s break it down…
We are welcomed with a hardcore bass track almost like that of a thumping heart from game launch. It gets the adrenaline pumping. The game is set in Shit City. Yes, that is its actual name, and I am sure I grew up there. As of now, there are seven locations in-game to unlock. The first location is The Slums. This is a three leveled trashy tower block housing estate. You will battle through, kicking as many residing goons to death as needed to reach the stairs to the next level. It’s pretty simple and to the point.
You will meet a variety of quirky enemies throughout the game. There are alligator men with baseball bats, purple tracksuit wearing guys with handguns. Later in the game, shotgun-wielding guys with a literal middle finger gesture for a head. Those are the few I have encountered during my time with the game, but I haven’t completed it yet. Things definitely get crazy in Shit City.
The game is fast-paced. Using keyboard and mouse controls, you have to move quickly on your “angerfeet” as baddies are out to get you. Some enemies have melee weapons that charge you. Some have guns and will take you down quickly. You don’t have a health bar, so a couple of shots will leave you dead. If you die, it’s back to the beginning of the level to start the chaos again. You will die a lot when first playing. Luckily, levels are relatively short and fast so getting back progress isn’t too painful. You do get a weapon. But you may have to fight for it. The guns you get have limited ammo. There is no reload, so once the gun is empty, you have to toss it away, find another from a fallen enemy, or fight for it! Beware, though, goons are smart about their movements. Enemies aren’t standing targets. They hide behind walls to wait for you, kill you, and then twerk over your bleeding corpse while you watch.
There is an in-game clock that counts up during play. It doesn’t seem like the game times you out if you take too long. It does feel like you can take your time to get through the levels and look around. Beating levels under a certain time does help you unlock achievements and rewards. Unlockables include Power Hooves for extra kicking power and Bombverse AllStars that turn doors into bombs…
The game has a quirky, cartoonish style in graphics. There are plenty of small things for the player to look at if they want a break from the killing activities. During my playthrough, I noticed the carpet from The Shining as well as posters from such movies as Maniac Cop to nerd on. The character animations are well done. It is satisfying to watch goons fly across the room when being murdered. The guns are fun to fire and feel powerful. There is also the appearance of everyone’s favorite exploding red barrel that destroys everyone in the room when shot. It feels a little too fun to stomp so many goons into a puddle of their own multicolored goo.
Now, I understand that this game may not be for everyone. This game is violent! There is a lot of shooting, leaving piles of bodies in your wake and drug references. A common comparison to this game is Hotline Miami. Angerfoot is the kinda game that will make your parents disappointed, but that makes it even cooler for us kids!
The game does feel relatively short at the moment. I feel I got through almost half of the game in one relaxed setting of a couple of hours. The levels are pretty repetitive, with the goal for each level being relatively the same. We see some variation in the location from apartment buildings to a sewer with some added difficulties such as locked doors. There are different enemy types, and some puzzling to change things up a little. The game is still in development, so more features are being added. Right now, Angerfoot is making waves in the Indie community but is catching the attention of big streamers such as Jacksepticye, who played the game on his channel. I played the game myself with fellow CouchSoup contributors Dan Morris and Luis Reza for our video Indie Insights. You should check it out:
Angerfoot feels good for a short burst of silliness when you just want something fun to play. I am enjoying it, and I am looking forward to following the progress of Angerfoot and seeing all the new features that are coming in the future.
Angerfoot is a super fun game to play, and right now, it’s free to download here, but please give a donation! It’s worth it! Tell your friends and support the Indie gaming community. Kick on!