Cruelty Squad

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Cruelty Squad
Cruelty Squad Steam Header.jpg
Developer(s)Consumer Softproducts
Publisher(s)
  • Consumer Softproducts Edit this on Wikidata
EngineGodot
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
ReleaseEarly Access
4 January 2021
Full Release
16 June 2021
Genre(s)First-person shooter
Mode(s)Single-player

Cruelty Squad is a tactical first-person shooter developed by Finnish[1] studio Consumer Softproducts and released in early access on Steam on 4 January 2021 and fully released in 16 June 2021.[2] In the game, the player takes on the role of a biologically augmented assassin employed by the titular wetwork security company, Cruelty Squad. The player is tasked with performing black operations for Cruelty Squad's host conglomerate, and must kill various targets in order to progress.[3] The game has been described by the developer as “an immersive power fantasy simulator with tactical stealth elements set in a sewage infused garbage world”.[4] The game is notable for its surreal psychedelic aesthetic, which is inspired by the likes of Hotline Miami, LSD: Dream Emulator and Super Mario 64.[5]

Gameplay[]

The player chooses their two of 29 weapons and four of 48 equipment and implants before starting each of the 19 missions present in the game, and then must traverse open, sandbox-style levels in order to neutralize targets.[6][7] Health lost during combat can be regained by using certain equipment, consuming cooked giblets, or even consuming corpses should the player die enough times on a level ("Power In Misery", the easiest difficulty mode). While there is no penalty for killing civilians during a mission, silent and non-lethal solutions are also possible outside of the necessary killing of targets.[8][9] Outside of missions, the player can trade human organs and fish on a dynamic stock market for money, or explore their headquarters.[10]

Synopsis[]

Setting[]

Cruelty Squad is set in a dystopian biopunk future of corporatocracy where corporations possess overwhelming influence over police and government affairs; technological advances allow people to be resurrected after death, rendering much of humanity immortal and cheapening the perceived value of life; indiscriminate killings are commonplace, and armed security is a fixture of virtually every populated area; human organs are sold on the stock market, and invasive biological implants and augmented organs are used by security forces and assassins to aid in combat.

Corporate contract killings are handled in part by Cruelty Squad, a wetwork security company working under the umbrella of a large conglomerate.

Plot[]

After being discharged from the SEC Death Unit and falling into depression, the unnamed protagonist receives a phone call from his handler, who offers him employment within eponymous Cruelty Squad. He is tasked to kill a number of people who have drawn the ire of conglomerate "higher-ups"; these include anti-corporate politicians, armed cultists, corrupt police officers, delinquent employees and rival CEOs.

Development[]

Prior to the development of Cruelty Squad, lead developer Ville Kallio worked as a hobbyist cartoonist and illustrator. In 2019, Kallio created Venmo Combat, a multimedia art exhibition hosted at the SIC Gallery in Helsinki, Finland. Kallio described his work as an illustrator as "a black hole with no future", and commented that pivoting to game development "started making more sense" due to his past art being heavily inspired by video games.[5] Cruelty Squad was produced within the Godot game engine.[11] It was fully released on Steam on 16 June 2021.[12]

Reception[]

James Brod of Third Coast Review described the game as "grislier than Hotline Miami" and recommended it to fans of "old school tactical shooters".[15] Jake Tucker of NME declared Cruelty Squad to be the "most compelling game of the year", awarding it five stars out of five.[16] Zoey Handley gave the game a 7.5 out of 10, describing it as "a swirling vortex of bad design", but also as "awe-inspiring".[17] Many outlets also commented on the harshness of the visuals, with Rock Paper Shotgun's Graham Smith dubbing them "sensorally aggressive".[18] Zoey Handley of Destructoid described Cruelty Squad as a "purposeful desecration of the holy grounds of game design," while James Davenport of PC Gamer called it "some prime existential PC gaming horror."

In June 2021, the protagonist of Cruelty Squad was added to the video game Brigador as a playable character, under the name "MT Foxtrot".[19]

References[]

  1. ^ https://twitter.com/CSoftproducts[bare URL]
  2. ^ "Cruelty Squad on Steam". store.steampowered.com. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  3. ^ Davenport, James (2021-07-02). "Cruelty Squad review". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  4. ^ "Ville Kallio finds the violence in corporate infrastructure in Cruelty Squad". Fact Magazine. 2021-03-03. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  5. ^ a b Christopher Good (2021-08-19), "Artist of the Week - Ville Kallio", lvl3official.com, retrieved 2021-08-23
  6. ^ Davenport, James (2021-01-11). "Cruelty Squad is a depressing Rainbow Six fever dream". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  7. ^ "Cruelty Squad review: this game is too cool for me, probably". Rock Paper Shotgun. 2021-07-01. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  8. ^ Andrew King (2021-02-16). "'Cruelty Squad' is the Shooter '90s Parents Were Worried About". Bloody Disgusting!. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  9. ^ "Cruelty Squad: Skurriler Taktik-Shooter verlässt den Early Access". 4Players (in German). Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  10. ^ "Cruelty Squad Is The Video Game Equivalent Of A Contact High". Kotaku Australia. 2021-07-06. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  11. ^ "【PCゲーム極☆道】第八十三回『Cruelty Squad』ゲームの法則を破壊するサイケな見た目のオールドスクールFPS". IGN Japan (in Japanese). 2021-01-24. Retrieved 2021-05-11.
  12. ^ Consumer Softproducts Oy [@CSoftproducts] (2021-06-01). "Cruelty Squad leaves early access on June 16th, becoming the first video game to do so on Steam t.co/W3VMNUtiGi" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 2021-06-24. Retrieved 2021-07-18 – via Twitter.
  13. ^ Davenport, James (2 July 2021). "Cruelty Squad review". PC Gamer. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  14. ^ Handley, Zoey (19 June 2021). "Review: Cruelty Squad". Destructoid. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  15. ^ Brod, James (2021-03-17). "Cruelty Squad Early Access Preview: Immersive Sin". Third Coast Review. Retrieved 2021-03-31.
  16. ^ "'Cruelty Squad' review - An anti-capitalist screed that's the most compelling game of the year". NME. 2021-07-05. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  17. ^ "Review: Cruelty Squad". Destructoid. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  18. ^ "Cruelty Squad is "an immersive power fantasy simulator set in a sewage infused garbage world"". Rock Paper Shotgun. 2021-06-19. Retrieved 2021-07-06.
  19. ^ "The Blood Anniversary Update Is Now Live", store.steampowered.com, June 7, 2021
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