Taking place in a crazy version of a not-so-far flung future, Mullet MadJack is a mad dash towards the finish, drenched in some of the best cyberpunk aesthetics I’ve ever seen in a videogame. Brazilian studio Hammer95’s debut game is an incredibly violent, blood-pumping adventure that keeps on giving, stage after stage of fast action and a level of excitement that’s comparable to the seminal indie classic Hotline Miami.
50 years from now, humans will become fused with the internet. Having only 10 seconds to live before more dopamine has to be administered to these beings, their livelihood is constantly on the line. As the titular MadJack, your objective is dead simple: kill as many robots as possible and become the ultimate moderator! It’s this crazy premise that powers Mullet MadJack, as if a story was needed for as mindlessly fun as a game that it is.
It all takes place on a series of floors that host all manner of dangers and opportunities for you to pull off awesome kills, all followed by one of the best audiovisual presentation that you’ll see this year, not to mention deceptively simple gameplay and the constant rush of adrenaline provided by the near nonstop wave of enemies.
Punch, kick and shoot your way much like you might have done in recently released Anger Foot as you look for new kills before time runs out. Death means instant teleportation to the very start of whatever level you might be in, so by all means, don’t die. I know, it’s a lot to ask, but hey, it’s what all of us do daily in our lives, so why not live by the same code in a game, especially one as enjoyable as this? Doesn’t make any sense? Well, this is my review so you’re gonna have to bear it.
Be it as it may, some might be turned off by the game because of that very reason. Mullet MadJack has no qualms with its approach, it absolutely revels in the sheer chaotic form that it provides as a means of entertainment, but it’s certainly not for everyone. It’s graphically gory, intense, and in your face at all times, which is a way of delivery that isn’t everyone’s cup of tea to be sure.
On the other hand, if you come into this without expecting much in the way of storytelling but in its place an insane amount of no frills fun, well, it’ll surely do that at just about every second you spend on it. Mullet MadJack is the sort of game that comes every so often that proves that videogames as a medium has infinite ways to be innovative, while building upon established quirks in hugely surprising ways.
Some of the things that it does might seem obvious at first glance, like the way it treats kills as extensions of not only time but your character’s life bar, or how it’s all packaged and presented, poking at established tropes through the veil of nostalgia for a bygone era of gaming. It’s all so damn well done.
Hammer95’s to be lauded by their sheer audacity putting out such a provocative game, not just because of its tone alone, but for taking what’s already a tired theme in cyberpunk and spinning it on its head the way that they did with this title. I would be remiss if I didn’t consider it for my upcoming ‘game of the year’ list as one of the standout releases for 2024. If you’ve yet to give it a go, by all means – strap yourself in and go for broke.
