HYPERCHARGE Unboxed Switch Review – The Toys Are Real

When you were a kid, did you ever play with your toys and thought what would happen if they came to life? I know that Toy Story has explored this narrative, but when I was small I used to play with He-Man and Ninja Turtles. I used to imagine crossing universes and creating my own stories and scenario. HYPERCHARGE Unboxed is a realization somewhat of my imagination when I was a boy, so for me it is somewhat nostalgic. I try to take nostalgia out of the equation when reviewing a game, because like love it’s a very powerful emotion and can often blind you to the obvious faults.

Without further ado, though, let’s get into the review, shall we?

HYPERCHARGE Unboxed is a first-person shooter where you can play cooperatively with a friend to fight off the hordes of enemies to protect toys from being forgotten by people. Okay. It’s not going to win any awards for the story, so you will have to use your imagination like I did.

In terms of gameplay, the game is best played with friends either online where four of you can play as a team, or you can also play PVP if you so desire. There is a single player mode, but to be completely honest, this becomes stale rather quickly. Please don’t buy this for the solo experience. This is one for you to pick up if you have some friends willing to do the same or to play with some randoms online. Although for me, it was best played with friends.

I was surprised that exploration is quite a key part of the game. You are a little toy soldier in some room in a house that become a massive playground for you to explore. Jumping from platforms to higher shelves to the top of a door using your double jump ability is loads of fun. The main purpose of the levels is to simply protect the Hypercore systems dotted around the map. Enemies will target these, but you can’t be everywhere at once. That’s why using the build mode between waves is essential to set up defenses such as walls or explosive traps to blow up the toy robots which try to ruin your day. Coins are used to build better defenses, so it’s essential to collect these coins when enemies are destroyed.

Testing split screen, I found that it ran okay. At times, a little slowdown would show up, but it was nothing that ruined the experience. Online works really well, and I am glad that the small indie team persevered to include this as it certainly adds a lot of value. Other modes are included such as team death match, which is a cool distraction, to working your way through the games stages with a friend. There is Plague mode too which was rather fun, but it was not my favorite mode by any means.

After finishing a stage, the game does a great job presenting the players with some entertaining accolades for some healthy banter and bragging. Finishing stages with high rankings as well as collecting hidden items will help you unlock more skins, items, and guns. This just added so much more to the experience and made each game unique as we anticipated who had the worst accuracy.

As with many FPS games like these where jumping is involved, it can be rather hit-or-miss in terms of judging the distances and can lead to frustration as the controls are tight but not quite tight enough. Aiming and shooting feels good, and in my time it was certainly fun getting through each new level, especially with a friend. The enemy waves get harder and are more varied as you progress, but it becomes a little bit repetitive. I would have liked a little more to do. But otherwise, in the gameplay department, this is a solid effort.

The music and sound effects in HYPERCHARGE Unboxed are great. Each stage has its own unique music that really fits the atmosphere, and the final wave music turns it up a notch and makes for an even more epic time.

The sounds of the various enemies and guns that you use are wonderfully authentic and add so much to the experience. The cues the game uses to help you understand what enemies are approaching the Hypercore systems being attacked are helpful. You can tell the team put a lot of effort into making the game sound great, and it benefits the player tremendously.

I was rather impressed with the visuals for HYPERCHARGE Unboxed. The backgrounds look as if there are toys everywhere, and it is certainly varied and interesting in terms of the environments. It all looks massive, and it is so odd seeing it through a little toy’s perspective. But that’s the point, and it’s implemented very well indeed.

The design of the various toys, including the soldiers that serve as your characters, are all amazing. It really helps to immerse you into a world that is both real and fantastical.

For the most part, the game performs really well, but it does stutter a little bit in splitscreen. Other than that, it runs smooth and looks great in the process.

As always, value is subjective. The game is $19.99, but I did find it to be fun. However, it is an experience that needs a little more depth to keep you coming back for more. This is only worth it if you have some buddies to play with or if you don’t mind playing with randoms online. From front to back, HYPERCHARGE Unboxed is solid. Unfortunately, those looking for a solo experience will need to look elsewhere.

Although it does have a single player experience, it becomes impossible after the first couple stages to clear alone. That’s why the value of this game depends heavily on your desire for a multiplayer experience. If that is what you’re craving, then we definitely recommend checking this out.

HYPERCHARGE Unboxed is certainly a unique game and one that is superbly fun with friends. If you enjoy blasting away in multiplayer first-person shooters, then this is certainly for you. It is a beautiful looking game with a terrific soundtrack with loads of stuff to do and unlock. However, and I cannot stress this enough, the game is absolutely at its best as a multiplayer experience.

HYPERCHARGE Unboxed Review provided by Nintendo Link
Developer: Digital Cybercherries
Release Date: Jan. 31, 2020
Price: $19.99, £19.99, €19,99
Game Size: 4.2GB