Superhot is a 2016 independent first-person shooter video game developed and published by Superhot Team. Though the game follows traditional first-person shooter gameplay mechanics, with the player attempting to take out enemy targets using guns and other weapons, time within the game progresses at normal speed only when the player moves; this creates the opportunity for the player to assess their situation in slow motion and respond appropriately, making the gameplay similar to strategy video games. The game is presented in a minimalist art style, with enemies in red and weapons in black, in contrast to the otherwise white and grey environment. The game originated as an entry in the 2013 7 Day FPS Challenge, which Superhot Team expanded into a browser-based demonstration that September. Widespread attention from the demonstration prompted the team to develop the full game, using Kickstarter to secure funding to complete the title. Superhot was released for Linux, macOS, and Microsoft Windows in February 2016. Versions for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch were released in May 2016, July 2017, and August 2019, respectively. A rebuilt version of the game to better support virtual reality, Superhot VR, was released for the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PlayStation VR headset devices. A sequel, Superhot: Mind Control Delete, which utilizes roguelike elements such as procedural generation and permadeath, was released in 2020. The game was met with positive reception, with reviewers considering the title to be an innovative take on the first-person shooter genre.
Gameplay
Superhot sets the player in a minimalistic environment, taking out hostile attackers that are trying to kill them. Weapons picked up by the player have limited ammunition and break easily, requiring the player to rely on defeating enemies to attain new weapons, or making melee kills. Taking a single hit from an enemy bullet kills the player, requiring them to restart the level. Though the game mechanics are typical of most shooters, time only progresses normally when the player moves or fires a gun, otherwise time is slowed; this is described in the game's tagline, "Time Moves Only When You Move". The game originally was a three-level prototype browser game. In expanding to the full game, Superhot Team created a campaign mode across approximately thirty-one levels, estimated to be as long as Portal. The full game includes additional weapons, such as new kinds of firearms, explosives, melee weapons, and improvised weapons like billiard balls that can be thrown at enemies, and introduces AI enemies that have similar awareness as the player and can dodge the player's bullets. One significant change from the earlier prototype is that the player does not automatically pick up a weapon when they pass over it but must enact a specific control to do so, enabling the player to selectively choose and use weapons, or grab weapons dropped by enemies. The full game enables the player to jump and as long as the jump button or key is held, the player can slow down time to plan and perform actions, enabling aerial gun combat. In the last portion of the campaign, the player gains the ability to "hotswitch" into an enemy's body, wherein they take control over the target, with the previous body dying. The manoeuvre allows the player to escape projectiles they cannot dodge, but has a cooldown timer that prevents repeated use, and the new body also drops its weapons upon the player entering it. In addition to the campaign mode, the full release of Superhot includes an "endless" mode, where the player survives as long as they can against an endless wave of enemies. A "challenge" mode allows players to replay the campaign mode levels but under specific restrictions or requirements, such as completing the level within a limited amount of time or only using a specific type of weapon. The final game includes a replay editor to allow users to prepare clips to share on social media websites.
Superhot VR A new set of levels was developed for the virtual reality version of the game. The player's avatar reacts to the player's body, head, and hand movements. In keeping with the "time only moves when you move" concept, in-game time only progresses when the player makes deliberate movement with their body; turning their head to assess the situation, or making small twitches to the body do not cause time to progress. The player's avatar can only move in a small space from their location on the level (mapping to how the player moves around themselves); after defeating a small wave of enemies, they grab onto a virtual object to jump them to a new location within the level. Replacing the hotswitch ability is a "mindwave" allowing players to telepathically kill an enemy while unarmed. Following the campaign, the player unlocks a similar endless mode as the non-VR title.
Superhot: Mind Control Delete
The sequel retains the original time-manipulation mechanics, but wraps the game into a roguelite framing, as well as adding power-ups.
Superhot JP A Japanese-themed Superhot title, Superhot JP, began development by GameTomo in 2018 with support of the Superhot developers. It is initially planned for a Japanese release for PlayStation 4 and Windows, but other regions and platforms may follow.
Plot
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