Something is rotten in Shit City. It’s not the urban decay, the bizarre vibes, or even the reign of gangs dedicated to Violence, Pollution, Business, and Debauchery – those are all normal. What is unacceptable is the theft of four unique pairs of Preemo sneakers from the green-skinned frog-man shoe obsessive Anger Foot. This is a crime that cannot go unpunished, and prompts a one frog-man quest for justice. Anger Foot will kick down doors, not to mention everyone and everything that gets in his way.
Anger Foot is a fantastic first-person action game developed in South Africa by Free Lives, who came to prominence as the makers of Broforce. A slick expansion of what began as a game jam entry, it is an ultraviolent, hyperactive, and frequently funny experience set in a deliriously trippy world. While the titular green avenger is a capable gunman, the game is built on a gloriously powerful kick that is even more fun than the one that debuted in Dark Messiah of Might and Magic nearly 20 years ago.
While putting the boot in in Dark Messiah was comically incongruous, in Anger Foot it is completely in keeping with this legitimately (and literally) unhinged setting. The first time the player kicks a door clean out of its frame, crushing the crocodile-man thug on the other side, Anger Foot crosses a Rubicon into a world of supercharged and surreal violence. This kick clears rooms; smashes foes down staircases; deflects grenades; activates switches, and can save (or doom) a city.
The campaign is divided into four episodes, each set in one of Shit City’s districts. Level design is quite prosaic in the first zone, where the lowly Violence Gang hold sway. As the appropriately threadbare story progresses, Free Lives become more confident and throw in more thoughtful locales with better use of fun gimmicks and verticality. There is good reason to revisit the levels; completion awards a single star, but two more can be won by completing various challenges. Stars are exchanged for new shoes, each with their own gameplay modifiers.
The obvious comparison is with Hotline Miami, and it is completely justified. Anger Foot strongly resembles a first-person take on that earlier game, which was also published by Devolver Digital. While Dennaton’s hit debut could become depressingly bleak, though, Free Lives’ approach is more irreverent. Anger Foot is packed with humour, from visual gags to comical sound effects and dialogue. Short, freely explorable interstitial sections let Anger Foot talk to his would-be enemies, and these are very similar to Sludge Life 2.
Talk takes a back seat to action, however, and this is where Free Lives have excelled themselves. Anger Foot is a fundamentally a very straightforward game, which wears its game jam origins on its sleeve. This, though, is a virtue. Our hero has just a handful of actions: move, kick, shoot, and throw his current weapon. It brings to mind the elemental simplicity that powered the Halo series for so many years. In both cases, what matters is that these few actions are hugely satisfying.
While the kick is at the core of Anger Foot, the shooting also works well. Many enemies carry specific weapons, and drop them on death. Crucially, weapons cannot be reloaded so throwing them when they are empty – and stunning enemies hit by them – quickly becomes second nature. Gradually, simple pistols and shotguns give way to more exotic fare, like a minigun and a flamethrower. Surprisingly, Free Lives found time to add code for fire propagation, which can cause havoc in these tight, freely destructible environments.
While the unlocked shoe types are something of a mixed bag, the best ones are a pleasure to use and some can even open up novel new strategies. The “Size Threes”, for example, dramatically cut Anger Foot’s height. This provides new routes through the levels, which help make tough speedrunning challenges quite doable. Unfortunately, the weakest shoes are completely pointless – one of the worst pairs condemns Anger Foot to unending drunkenness, which reduces visibility almost to zero with no upside.
Anger Foot isn’t for everyone – its humour will be off putting to some, and its breakneck pace won’t suit others. However, those who buy into its bizarre world, comical ultraviolence, and tricky challenges will enjoy the ten hours or so it will take to see the story through to the end. Much more time can be spent tackling the various challenges and unlocking all of the shoe types. Anger Foot is a simple but thoroughly well made action game, a perfect fit for Devolver’s stable and delirious, brutal fun.
