Unstoppable Review (PC)

Since scrubbing the likes of Midnight Fight Express and, for argument’s sake, My Friend Pedro, clean of all their gun-toting criminals and shady underlings, I’ve been yearning to return to a good old-fashioned, quality hack-and-slash beat ‘em up brawler. To scratch that itch, I recently resorted to plucking the bare bones of Funnylocks Corp’s Unstoppable, a top-down survival-horror that goes hard on the gore, and even harder on the unhinged mechanics. Was it worth the time and effort? Meh. Did it manage to remediate that alluring itch? Double meh.

To put you in the picture, Unstoppable is an indie game in which players fill the weighty boots of a generic bullet-hungry character—an unlikely hero who, in the aftermath of a deadly gas leakage, sets out to not only escape the aptly titled Schindler Tower, but also discover a cure whilst battling with his own deteriorating immune system. It’s very Dying Light, in the sense that you’re always fighting to keep your sanity afloat, as well as your powers intact whilst you battle to locate new remedies and areas to unlock.

Granted, Unstoppable isn’t the longest game in the world, nor is it one that’ll keep you engaged for days, weeks, or perhaps even months on end. On the contrary, it’s a one-and-done sort of gig, which means, if you are on the prowl for something that’ll keep you entwined for the long haul, then you might want to shuffle your deck and reconsider your options. Still here? Then let’s press on.

The World in Tatters

It goes like this: you’re a courier (or a Night Runner, to be more precise) who’s been despatched to deliver a package to a towering hub known as Schindler Tower. However, what’s unknown to you at the time of your arrival is that there’s an underlying plot breaking out from the outskirts of the complex — a scheme that just so happens to break loose once you’ve successfully managed to ride the elevator to the farthest point in the building. Surprise surprise, a lethal toxin has been unleashed in the airways, and it’s forced the staff to lose control and become zombie-like monsters. This is where you, the helmet-sporting hero, will begin your journey — bound for the exit, and in search of a cure that’ll reverse the side effects that have conquered the populous.

Concept-wise, Unstoppable shows a great deal of promise, though perhaps not enough to be able to sing its praises for all eternity. Graphically, there’s also a lot to write home about — especially in the occasional cinematic that crops up every once in a blue moon. Its voice acting, too, isn’t half bad, and in no way awful enough to conjure up a wince or piece of secondhand embarrassment, either. But unfortunately, that’s about all there is to praise, as its gameplay, sadly, isn’t all that compelling, nor is it fluid enough to warrant a second, or even a complete sitting.

The goal of the game is relatively straightforward: move from room to room, floor to floor, and eliminate the enemies en route to the exit. There’s an underlying plot to unravel, too, but for the most part, your only objective is to whittle down foes with a selection of melee and ranged weapons, and use a flashlight to maneuver through some dimly lit areas. That’s about it.

I’m Going to Stop You Right There

The thing that lets it all down is the fluidity, or the sheer fact that, as far as controlling the character goes, it’s like shoving a concrete wardrobe around who, annoyingly, can’t seem to figure out whether to walk directly into walls, or strike in the opposite direction of an enemy that’s, laughably, directly in front on them.

Unlike a lot of games of its kind, Unstoppable doesn’t make the simplest of features any easier to operate, let alone master, which often leads to some pretty tedious moments throughout the campaign. And, given the fact that the campaign is, weirdly, only sixty minutes in length, that isn’t great.

There’s a certain clunkiness to the whole thing that makes an otherwise intriguing story fall short in more ways than one, and it begins to appear from the moment you begin your journey and cross the threshold into Schindler Tower, annoyingly. For this reason alone, it’s hard to recommend Unstoppable in its current state. However, if the devs were to tighten a few screws and overhaul the mechanics, then sure, I’d happily retract that comment. For now, though, there’s still a lot of work that needs fixing, and it’s a crying shame that such issues weren’t resolved before shipping the final product, truly.

When all’s said and done, there should be a sense of enjoyment in the tasks that you do — especially when said tasks involve mindlessly butchering monsters with pipes and projectiles. But for Unstoppable, however, it just isn’t there. It isn’t fun, and if anything, it’s slightly frustrating, to say the least.

It Isn’t All Doom and Gloom

I will give credit where it’s due and say that, from a bird’s-eye view, Unstoppable does come across as a pretty elegant-looking game. Sure enough, each corridor is filled to the core with minor details and theme-appropriate elements, which, in all fairness, does distract you from the fact that the gameplay just isn’t that sleek. Having said that, it’s hard to ignore a lot of things — the fact that there is no controller support, being one of them. Due to the game restricting itself to a traditional mouse and keyboard setup, certain prompts and executions aren’t exactly easy to implement at short notice. As a result of this, combat isn’t quick and fluid, but more clunky and perplexing — even at the best of times.

For the short time I spent romping around in Schindler Tower, I struggled to grasp the mechanics, let alone learn from my mistakes in order to get better on a later attempt. Enemies, for example, needed a lot of patience to execute, what with the controls being so unresponsive, that so much as a single strike could take several attempts before finally hitting the desired target. And not just enemies, but even tackling basic environmental obstacles, too. Truth is, at no point could I ever just “get it done” and act on impulse; every action required a great deal of thought, which often derailed the immersion and left me feeling more frustrated than satisfied. Again, not great.

Controls aside, Unstoppable does boast a hearty four-tier campaign to shovel through, with each of the four chapters featuring their own locales, enemies, and collectibles, to list just a few. And so, from a visual standpoint, it’s worth taking a look at, if only in short bursts. For everything else on the docket, though — see previous points, basically.

Verdict

It’s hard to recommend a game that, in its current state, at least, isn’t entirely playable, let alone digestible. Don’t get me wrong, there could be a good game here, but in order for it to reach that point, it needs to return to the drawing board for a few more revisions. If Funnylocks Corp can do that, then I’d be happy to give it another whirl, if only to witness the potential of the project in the virtual flesh, and without the added baggage and mismatched mechanics weighing it down — of which there is too much to fathom.

On the plus side, Unstoppable does provide a quality selection of levels to sift through, and not to mention a solid variety of weapons to utilize, too. What’s more, it also makes an effort to include some pretty convincing dialogue every now and again — even if said dialogue is often replaced by the sounding of blood splatters and the cliche POP, POW, and WHACK. But that’s just it, and it’s honestly disappointing to see that the game’s core elements just don’t make it up to scratch.

To answer the question, is Unstoppable worth playing in 2024? No, it isn’t — and for good reason, too. Having said that, if you’re one for throwing yourself into the thick of relatively short romps through the motions, then I’d recommend keeping it on your radar for a good few months before sweeping it beneath the rug altogether. It isn’t ready, but that isn’t to say that it won’t be at some point in the (hopefully) not-so-distant future. Staple it to the back burner, is what I’m saying.