ExtermiHate Early Access Preview

There are a few cringe elements about ExtermiHate which are a bit cliche with the genre, but irrespective of how simplistic it can be, the core gameplay of this twin-stick shooter might hit the spot if you want a good old-fashioned blaster without being bogged down by silly mechanics.

Coming soon to an Early Access Steam platform near you, this game from IceVayne Games gets to the point from the get-go. You play as Raven ‘Luna’ Ticke, the first bit of cringe in the backstory about Earth 2 being overwhelmed by an alien invasion. The only one who can save humanity, you go in, guns-a-blasting, and kill everything in sight.

I love a good story, and while this sounds like a straight-to-video Starship Troopers wannabe, it delivers on the action. Just don’t expect anything mindblowing at this stage, as it’s currently in development.

ExtermiHate Early Access Preview

My gut instinct was this would be a modern version of Alien Breed. To some extent, it is, but as it stands, all of the random maps take place outside, and they don’t have much going on. But you shouldn’t be here for the scenery as you’re soon be fighting back the hordes in what is the definitive run and gun stance.

Standing still in ExtermiHate results in death, as Luna is clearly outnumbered. I played most of this on the Steam Deck, and while it ran fine – aiming with both the analogue stick or that trackpad thingy on the right was decent, and there wasn’t any evident slowdown.

My issue was with the key binding as it wasn’t intuitive how the specials (such as a rain of fire) could be used without switching to the desktop. Duh… there’s keybinding available, and what with the swinging camera angles, there’s no reason why you can’t get on with the mechanics.

You’re Not The Boss Of Me

Though the gameplay is fine and entertaining enough, it does get pretty repetitive switching between waves and ‘kill ’em all’ sessions. A challenge where you have to protect a unit named B.O.B. was ruthless. The only way to survive is by shooting every enemy so they turn their attention to you. And that’s nigh on impossible.

Between runs, you can unlock new gear and carry mines to wipe out groups of enemies (essential), but build upon the infinite ammo that comes with your pistol. The latter is serviceable, but you’ll want to get a bigger boat. I mean gun.

In its current state, ExtermiHate is an indie worth your time if you like top-down shooters. I have to reiterate that it’s in the Early Access stage, and nothing remarkable differentiates this from anything else within the genre, but at least give it a go. There’s a playable demo on Steam now, so why don’t you give it a look?