I Am Your Beast (2024)

Holy cow; download this on GamePass right away. This has the best intro sequence I've seen since the I Expect You To Die games. The writing is so good and engaging; the story is that you're a covert-ops Jason Bourne type guy who is refusing to take "the one last job" from his government and so the government has sent a bunch of goons to take you out. The back and forth between the agent and the boss and other characters that come up is so quick-witted and fun. The gameplay feels as quick as the dialog; the whole thing is a speedrun of taking out soldiers and completing objectives in levels that are usually barely longer than 90 seconds.

Really slick game, another GamePass banger.

The core gameplay is very driving, the music hits the ears and even deafens in a good way, the story and the main character are too dammit cool and brutal, although the plot itself is quite dramatic, I guess...

So, why did I remove one star?

Firstly, I feel that way, and secondly, the locations, especially at the beginning of the game, seemed too small to me... Also, the obligation to fulfill additional goals to open new levels is infuriating, especially at one level there was a task to kill 3 stealth enemies... How the damn I should do this?

HOWEVER, if you have a free evening and your hands are itching to have a fierce fighting and a bloodbath, buy it, you won't regret.

My thoughts on this game are in some ways very succinct, and in others, very uh...not. I instantly became interested in this after learning it came from the same studio that made the excellent El Paso, Elsewhere of last year. That game was a weird of mix of excellent gameplay, and a big melodramatic monologue-heavy supernatural romance/revenge story that I found very compelling.

I Am Your Beast is kind of in line with those action movies where the main character gets called in for "one last job." But for Alphonse Harding, he's had to do that a few times. And he's sick of it.

I Am Your Beast is sort of a combination of Neon White and Hotline Miami. A super high speed "murder 'em up" where you also try to complete levels under a certain time. Different mechanics are applied bit by bit as the game goes, so your skill gradually rises to meet the challenge. It's very rewarding to go back to early levels and steamroll them with your greater skill.

In my review for El Paso, Elsewhere last year I mentioned something like "you can dive through a window and shoot a werewolf with your dual pistols" and this game has a similar level of awesomeness to its combat. This is a game where you'll knock a guy out with a tree branch, snatch his knife out of the air, throw it into the head of another enemy, catch his pistol and pop three heads in quick succession. This game at its highest level of action is STUPENDOUS.

This game is fairly short. There are 27 levels which can go by in minutes if you're trying. That might be a downside for some people. Each level is great, though, usually having different gimmicks to them like snipers, bear traps, or an attack helicopter. There's even a short arc where Harding struggles due to So if you want something super compact and focused, this is that.

The story is told almost entirely through radio conversations between faceless characters. The acting is very good, though. Once again lead designer Xalavier Nelson Jr. plays our main character. The story is very well presented, but I'm not sure how someone critical of violence in a video game would like it. Harding is intent on living a peaceful life, and ironically he's doing everything he can to make his former COs life a nightmare. There could be something in there about the cycle of violence? Can somebody move past the horrors in their life and learn to enjoy birds? Maybe it says something about human nature? You might have some of the dreaded ludo-narrative dissonance in this game.

Also, for being faceless mooks, the enemies are weirdly well characterized. They have distinct voice actors and funny lines. If one manages to kill you they might say "employee of the month, here I come!" or something like that.

I massively enjoyed I Am Your Beast and I'm looking forward to whatever else is coming from Strange Scaffold.