Shotgun Cop Man is the latest Devolver ass Devolver game to hit digital storefronts. Developed by My Friend Pedro’s DeadToast Entertainment, you know what you’re getting into by the game’s name alone. It’s easily the silliest platformer/shooter I’ve played in a while, and at that it’s just the right amount of a challenge to make me feel more skilled that I definitely am not in any way, shape or manner.
There’s not much of a story to the game, really. It opens with a quick expletive-riddled exchange between the hero and the devil and it’s off to the races. Tasked with arresting the horned one, you have to shoot a path through 9 worlds split into 17 levels each. They are short and can be played in quick succession if you so wish, a very pick up and play download for sure; all with a special focus on extremely hectic – but still very possible to achieve – objectives in the form of end level rewards.
Wherein Pedro took a cue from Max Payne’s book, Shotgun Cop Man plays like a speedrun-friendly platformer in the vein of Super Meat Boy with the catch that the main character can’t jump unless he fires his shotgun at the ground, like Downwell. Differently from Team Meat’s classic, though DeatToast’s new game is somewhat more forgiving, offering not only the chance to revive by picking up your escaping heart but also with numerous conveniently placed checkpoints as you tear through levels that are decidedly pretty short to begin with.
That in and of itself might prove to be an issue with some people who are used to the merciless nature of the “masocore” platformer, where there’s plenty of trial and little room for error, where here, a death doesn’t pull you back too far. It’s something that those with lofty expectations in regards to Shotgun Cop Man being the next I Wanna Be The Guy-like that takes the Internet by storm. It won’t, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth checking out.
Everything about the game is just tight. The levels are designed in a way that allows for quick traversal if you have the reflexes to pop your shots off of walls and obstacles like a gun-riddled bellarine of death, minding your timing and such in order to make it to the end unscathed, exhilaratingly so as you do it, or play them like me, the very opposite of that while still having a lot of fun.
It controls well. The left trigger pops off a shotgun shell that propels you further than the right one, which handles whatever other weapon you happen to have at your disposal. You start off with a simple handgun and are able to pick up others, including an automatic shotgun, each with their own firing rates and power, and are lost if you happen to get hit. Those secondary guns also allow you to briefly float in the air by mashing the respective trigger, handy for getting through tight spaces surrounded by dangers, or longer gaps, for instance. Plus, you can pick up and throw enemies into spikes or one another, which is always entertaining.
In terms of presentation, Shotgun Cop Man is among the kind of crazy that Devolver is usually associated with. The hero is a stocky fellow with a huge Agent 47-y face that grimaces whenever he dies, but otherwise, during gameplay, it looks sharp and simple, a lot like a vector-based arcade game of old. Nothing gets in the way of the action and it’s easy to keep track of what’s going on at all times.
While not mind blowingly original, Shotgun Cop Man succeeds in what it aims for, making it for a much more approachable game that a wider array of players might have a better chance at finishing and at the same time proving that Devolver’s curation is still as sharp as ever.
