That’s a wrap!
The conceit behind Immortal Redneck is the kind of thing that could only work as a video game. After all, how many movies or TV shows can you recall where the premise features an American tourist meeting his untimely demise, before finding himself scatter-shooting his way through three floors of an ancient pyramid in search of the reason why? Not very many I’d wager. However, for as zany and 90s-esque Immortal Redneck might sound on the surface, it’s clever genre blend of procedural level design and tight First-Person shooting works well on Nintendo Switch.
Rogue-likes live or die on their ability to provide a meaningful gameplay loop that is fun to rinse, repeat, and repeat again. Thankfully Immortal Redneck nails this, throwing you almost immediately into to the deep end during your first run, before eventually introducing you to the all-powerful skill tree. With your basic task being to make your way to the top of three ancient pyramids, encountering many a randomised room and boss fight on the way, only by purchasing these skills with the currency you’ve accumulated will you stand a chance at succeeding.
This kind of set up means that the majority of your runs early on in Immortal Redneck will be failure for two specific reasons. Firstly, it takes time to become familiar with the particular kind of room layouts to expect – most follow a recognisable template! Secondly, you simply won’t have unlocked the skills required yet to make any true progress. The carrot on the end of that stick is miles away to begin with, but eventually it will feel closer over time.
So what does the actual gunplay feel like? For the most part, as you’d expect. Playing shooters in portable mode on the Switch can feel like a chore the best of times, but Immortal Redneck wisely incorporates the console’s gyro functionality. Essential, for the precise aiming required to shoot far off mummies and flying enemies. The experience is ultimately a better one when played on the big screen, but it’s also one that works mostly fine on the go.
What keeps you barrelling your way through each floor in Immortal Redneck is the setting itself. Don’t get me wrong, this is far from the jaw-dropping golden sands that filled Assassin’s Creed: Origins’ Ptolemaic Egypt last year, but the inner-pyramid locations you’ll be exploring are engaging enough. There’s no risk of losing your whereabouts when undergoing a run despite the game’s procedural nature, all thanks to a handy map which makes the challenge of reaching the top feel fair.
Sadly, it’s when Immortal Redneck does lean into its Roguelike sensibilities that the challenge does feel misjudged. Rooms aren’t afraid to throw waves and waves of enemies at you, for instance, being a major problem when so few drop ammo. There’s also no default melee attack to help account for this either, leading some run-throughs to come to an unfair end.
Ultimately, there’s a lot of fun to be had with Immortal Redneck. Many elements which appear like they shouldn’t work eventually do, other than the slight niggle present with ammo. With each pyramid roughly taking around 20 minutes a piece depending on your skill tree unlocks, it’s a game you’ll be able to return to for some short-burst fun time and time again.
Summary
There’s a lot of fun to be had with Immortal Redneck‘s clever blend of procedural room generation and tight-ish gunplay. It’s ability to reward you the more you fail is a hard hook to jump off of, especially when there’s a new adventure waiting for you each time.