14 DAY TRIAL // 
I jump off one railcar, pushing Shift to dash while in the air as I move toward a safe landing space. You see, the floor, or actually the dirt and tracks between these moving trains, is lava. It’s not safe to touch and I will take damage if I do. Unfortunately, my dash does not get me where I want to be so I also launch by grappling hook to make sure I land safely.
The bad news is the hook fails to hit the metal of a car. The good news is it grabs an exploding enemy and still pulls me toward him. My trusty shotgun kills him in the air, eliminating a sniper that was handing out near. I finally, safely land on a hard surface and pivot around to see if any threats are incoming.
A sniper's infrared beam shows me the route to another group of enemies. I dash my way to them, keeping my heart rate as high as possible to make sure I get a bit of health back and eliminate them via a combination of shotgun and Duke Nukem-style kick. One manages to land a hit which drives me off the side, dealing damage by making me touch the lava. Another train is coming on a parallel track, so I run, jump, dash, and hook to get to it, ready for another fight as I create a bloody trail toward the level’s end.
Meatgrinder is developed and published by Vampire Squid. I played using Steam on the PC. The title offers a first-person shooter that mixes in some platforming and a focus on constant action.
The game offers no narrative or motivation. The main character is massively inspired by the gruff, no-nonsense, no-emotion characters that featured in classic shooters. He spouts some one-liners and grunts when hit but he doesn’t talk about motivation. He’s just here to kill enemies and look as cool as possible while doing it.
Meatgrinder asks players to constantly move between safe platforms, which range from trains to trucks to planes. He has a decent set of abilities, including a classic jump, a big dash, a grappling hook to cover even more distance, and the ability to slow down time. Because the ground kills, it’s important to chain these moves quickly and efficiently.
Dashing can be activated three times in succession and slowing down time is important because it gives players a few seconds to figure out where to go and how to best get there. The constant ability-powered movement also keeps the avatar’s heart rate and excitement level up. If our hero isn’t stimulated he loses health. If adrenaline is constantly flooding his system, he might actually heal. Staying put for even a few seconds is a bad idea.
Because Meatgrinder is a first-person shooter, all safe surfaces also house enemies. Some are melee-focused, ready to execute their own big jumps to get to the player. Others carry long-range weaponry, while some are ready to go kamikaze with explosives.
Players can kill them the classic way, by targeting them with their weapons. But that’s slow and can leave players open to attack. It’s a better idea to get close to them and kick them off the platform. Or to blow up things in the environment to ensure their demise. Ideally, players should focus on their movement, with enemies eliminated as they move toward their next objective.
It’s pretty hard to break classic FPS patterns and always concentrate on the environment and on safe platforms rather than incoming opponents. But Meatgrinder gives players all the tools to execute a deadly ballet. Of course, getting there requires failure, some solid reflexes, and fast thinking.
The game also features an Infinite Mode, with both normal and hard difficulties. I love that the Truck Surfer experience moves the action into a weird cyberspace and adds obstacles for players to avoid. Players will need to use their bag of tricks to survive for as long as possible. The game offers leaderboards for bragging rights and the chance to unlock new hardware, including a guitar.
Meatgrinder’s core ideas are good, even if the lack of story is a little annoying. I like the speed and split-second decisions making, the sense that my character is always barely surviving. Platforms always seem to be a little farther than I can move, enemies come in from weird directions, and I stay in one place for a little too long. And every time I die, I just know how to improve my performance and get closer to the end of a level.
Meatgrinder’s presentation is a mix of impressive and weirdly low-tech. When the player is moving from surface to surface seamlessly, blasting and kicking enemies without a hitch, the game is pretty spectacular. Blood splatters everywhere and clear visual indicators are pointing to the moves you can pull and what the next move could be. But it’s easy to sometimes clip through objects and the limited level of detail becomes clearer when spending a little more time looking closely at enemies or even the road.
The game’s soundtrack is the best part of the audio. A variety of hard and fast rock accompanies the player, willing him to move forward, kill more opponents, and grapple and boost to reach safety. The sound effects are also pretty good but most players will quickly become tired of the limited phrases that the main character shouts before getting into the action.
The Good
- Combat and movement mix
- Focus on constant excitement
- Solid rock soundtrack
The Bad
- No story
- Limited world
- Relentless and sometimes overwhelming
Conclusion
The lack of story will make it harder for many players to deal with failure and push forward (the game thankfully has difficulty levels) but I like the focus on non-stop action, with nothing else getting in the way. For players who want a first-person shooter with a well-executed twist, Meatgrinder is fast, tough, and rewards quick thinking.
A review key was provided by the publisher
