It’s hard to talk about Vendetta Forever without talking about a game that no doubt inspired it: Superhot. The original flat version is a classic for good reason, and the VR spinoff is considered as an essential purchase to anyone with a headset. Whilst I don’t deny that it is a fantastic game, I do think that it is held back by being released in 2016 – mainly because being an early VR title resulted in them sticking to a single static location.

Vendetta Forever feels like what Superhot VR would have been like if it was released today whilst still being unique enough to not feel like a copycat.

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VENDETTAS ARE FOREVER
Forgoing any type of story, Vendetta Forever instead opts for 60 movie-like set-pieces for you to shoot your way through. I was admittedly rather disappointed at any lack of narrative framework, but the sheer variety of scenarios feels like a pretty fair tradeoff, and I always found myself eager to find out just what is next in store.. You could be shooting up a club one minute as you hunt down a VIP, only to find yourself in a Wild West style shootout the next.

Even though the game has a rather simple aesthetic, it’s more Pistol Whip than Superhot. Everything is clear enough to be able to identify enemies, guns, bullets, and the like, whilst still allowing them to make each scenario visually identifiable. A pirate ship will look like a pirate ship with its clear blues and reds, and a Western will be filled with sandy floors, wooden buildings, and a bright orange sky.

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The general concept of the game can be summed up by its tagline: shoot to kill, kill to move. Enemies usually die in a single shot (although they may be armoured), and grabbing their gun with either hand will warp you to their position. There’s no free movement, so this is the only way to move around – but that doesn’t mean you’ll be staying still. Enemies often surround you, so you’ll need to swing around 360º in order to take everyone out. Heck, in one stage you fall down the middle of a spiral staircase as you shoot opponents on the stairs. It’s one hell of a workout, and the fast reaction times needed means that there’s little time to think about the way forward.

That lack of thinking time often means you’ll be dying quite a lot; however, this is offset by stages being extremely short, typically taking less than thirty seconds to complete. You’ll fail quite often, but I never found it much of an issue either; much like Superhot VR, the ability to quickly restart removes a lot of the frustration.

It’s not perfect, however, as I think the main problem with the game lies in the difficulty curve. Whilst I don’t think any of the levels themselves are unfair, I do disagree with the order in which they are placed. It’s not uncommon to be placed into a brutally tough stage that takes you numerous attempts to get through, only for the next one to be a complete doddle. I think some of the levels feels like they’re not placed in an appropriate position, and could really do with being reorganised.

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But with about sixty stages in the game, I suppose it’s understandable that some will be more difficult than others. You can see that the developers were spending more time creating loads of different ideas for what to do next that they didn’t concern themselves with how the difficulty is. Sure, the brief length of each level still means that the game is still relatively short, but the wonderfully creative design makes playing them incredibly addictive as you go back for a high score and better rank.

If you’re really after a challenge though, the game does allow you to customise your experience. You can turn off the aim assist if you want to test your skills, or activate armour if you want to clear a stage that’s really giving you trouble. There’s a lot of reasons for you to keep coming back for just one more play session – especially as enemy weapons are somewhat randomised each time too.

VERDICT
It’s unfortunate that the release date means that Vendetta Forever is competing with Batman Arkham Shadow for both your time and money, as this will no doubt get overlooked by many who are too busy cleaning up Gotham. Don’t lose sight of this game though, as this fast-paced arcade puzzle shooter is arguably the best of its kind.