Developed by Rogueside and published by ININ Games for consoles, Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef is a brand-new sidescrolling shooter set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Over the course of the past few years, we have seen plenty of different genres coming out from this particular universe and not all of them have been good. However, Rogueside decided to go in its own unique direction with Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef and despite many delays, the title is finally in our hands now. This is our review of Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef in which we blow up some robot alligators and take down some of the coolest bosses ever featured in a game.
The story of Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef has a funny start and I find it exceptionally funny that the whole bloodbath and gore you do in the game is only because of a hair squig. Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef is set on the planet Luteus Alpha which is located in the Armageddon Sector and is known for its unique resources. A lot of warlords arrive on this planet to exploit this resource-rich planet and the main villain of this game Warboss Ogruk Gutrekka is no different. However, to kick off things, right after he arrives on the planet, he sees your majestic hair squig, steals it, and throws you out of a flying plane. This begins your journey of retribution against Ogruk Gutrekka on Luteus Alpha.
The whole story of Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef is narrated through meticulously detailed cutscenes complete with audio dialogues and narration. There are plenty of cutscenes throughout the main story of the game and they are filled with humorous dialogue. You start the game by selecting a class and a clan for your orc. If you are familiar with the Warhammer 40,000 universe, you will see plenty of familiar orc clans including Bad Moon, Deathskullz, and Evil Suns. The clan selection is mostly just for visuals and nothing else. The main difference between the selection is the Class and the game features four unique classes, each with its own unique playing style.
The weapons for all classes are the same as everyone starts with the base weapons however you can later upgrade to better weapons which are purchased through the MEK Shop. The in-game currency is called Teef, and each level has plenty of crates filled with Teef that you can collect for purchasing new weapons and hats. The level selection screen also keeps track of any Teef crates that you might have missed in the levels so that you can visit them again to find the remaining Teef crates. While playing the game, you will find these crates located in hidden areas and behind locked doors. Depending on your chosen class, you will be able to use their unique abilities while fighting enemies and if different classes are playing along with you, you will be slaughtering your enemies.
Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef absolutely dominates when it comes to its gameplay. I have played an extremely fun sidescrolling shooter after a long time and I am really happy. For me, it is the perfect game for playing on the Nintendo Switch on the go. You are equipped with a melee ability unique for each class, your grenades, your main weapons, and some cool moves such as a double jump and a dash for moving around and dodging incoming attacks. You carry five different weapons with you at all times, which is one mechanic that I absolutely love about this game. It gives you the freedom of choosing whatever is suited for the current scenario without sacrificing another weapon which might come in handy in another scenario right after the current one. You carry a pistol, assault rifle, shotgun, rocket launcher, and flamethrower with you at the start of the game however as you earn Teef, you can purchase new weapons for each of these categories. The weapons you purchase in each category can sometimes be completely different from each other as well.
For example, if you want to switch out your Flamethrower, you can purchase a Grinder in its place which is one of the best melee weapons in the game and deals massive damage to enemies that come into contact with it. Similarly, you can purchase the Zzapstikk which replaces your shotgun, but it fires several energy rounds that bounce off the walls and apply burning to your enemies. Another cool example is the Bolta which can be purchased, and it replaces your Assault Rifle however it is a little slower, but the bullets explode on contact. All of the weapons in the game are just brilliant and offer tons of fun as you jump and zoom around the levels blasting at enemies and exploding them into bits. Some weapons overheat if you keep firing them and they end up damaging you as well. Each weapon in the game comes with its own unique attributes and you can use them to your will.
Apart from shooting enemies, you will be doing some light platforming in the levels as well. The platforming is not too difficult or obvious in the game, but you will be jumping on platforms or going left and right in order to kill enemies and dodge incoming bullets. Apart from the main weapons and your melee weapons, you also have a limited number of grenades which are great for crowd control if you can throw one in a good spot. Each class has its own unique grenade type as well. When you kill enemies, you will continue to collect energy in your WAAAGH! meter and once this meter is full, you can unleash your WAAAGH! which gives you a massive burst of energy as your firing speed is massively increased and you do not need to reload while this is active. This is excellent for boss fights and when the enemies are trying to box you in.
After you reach key points in the main story, you will come across various bosses which are the stars of the combat. The boss fights in Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef are brilliant, and they really test your mettle. You might be a badass in the game, but these bosses will really punish you during their boss fights as some even come with different phases and if you die during the last phase of a boss battle, you have to start the whole battle from the start. I love the boss designs and their fights as they offer you a fair chance of defeating them if you are good at your weapons and dodging incoming attacks. For normal levels, you will save your progress at various checkpoints that pop up at different spots. Apart from saving your progress, you can also change your loadout and check the MEK Shop in order to buy new hats or weapons using the Teef that you have collected in the game so far. Defeating bosses also unlocks bonus hats for you to equip. The whole game is based on a hair accessory so you should take these hats seriously and give them proper respect.
The level design is another strong aspect of the game. The whole story moves in a sequence, so the levels are somewhat connected with each other. There is a small intermission-type area at the start of every level which shows you exiting the previous level and then entering the new area. This gives you the impression that despite a loading screen between the two chapters, you are still going through an interconnected world. The levels change drastically as you move from orc encampments to human settlements and even sewers while trying to get your hair swig back. As you blast, jump and reload your way through swarms of enemies, you will also get to hear some really cool one-liners at key points of the gameplay such as reloading, or killing certain enemies. The levels are a mix of platforming sections, fight arenas, and boss battle locations and you are free to roam in them until a location is blocked off automatically. You will often find small pig-like creatures running around which give you health in different locations apart from the normal enemies. Similar to most shooters, enemies become progressively difficult as well and each location offers unique enemies to encounter.
Right from the start of the game, Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef gives you the option of playing the game solo, jumping with other players in local or online multiplayer, and even comes with a Versus mode where players can duke it out against each other. If you decide to choose offline or online coop, you are able to join hands with other orcs in your WAAAGH! and play the game together. Before starting the game, each player is able to select their class and loadout and then jump into the game together to play the main campaign of the game. For PvP, Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef comes with its own unique maps which encourage one on one fights. The game also offers three difficulty levels which allow you to tailor the difficulty of the game to your skill level. For online games, the difficulty is set by the host of the game. While you might be inclined towards a specific game mode type, Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef is enjoyable and equally playable in all modes.
While I loved spending time in Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef, there are a few things that really annoyed me during my playthrough, and one of them is the weapon wheel and its selection. By default, you press and hold X to open the weapon wheel and then select the weapon with the right joystick. Even after selecting the weapon, the wheel remains open, and you can only change the key assigned to the weapon wheel. It would have been a lot more convenient if the weapon selection was assigned to the left joystick instead of the right one and the wheel would automatically go away. This causes confusion and sometimes I would end up changing my weapon again because of the weapon wheel staying open and not going away. Apart from this, the rest of the controller scheme feels right at home.
Another issue with the Nintendo Switch version of Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef is the framerate. During certain times, the framerate of the game drops massively, especially when there are a lot of explosions on the screen with the type of weaponry you have in the game and the intense action with plenty of enemies attacking you at the same time, things tend to get pretty crazy and during these moments, the framerates drop too much which is yet another issue with the Nintendo Switch release. Since I only played the Nintendo Switch release of the game, I do not know about the framerate situation on Xbox or the PC release of the title. Apart from these two hiccups, the game ran just fine, and I loved the dialogue, shooting, art style, and the metal soundtrack of the title.
Final Verdict:
Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef is a perfect package of crazy weapons, intense action, and humorous one-liners. The level design is just brilliant, and I loved each and every boss battle in the game. Nothing beats defeating a giant tank while playing as a gun-wielding orc. Out of every tile that has come out of the Warhammer 40,000 universe, Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef easily sits near the top spot with its over-the-top shooting and gameplay mechanics. No scene in the game feels like a dull moment and the beautiful hand-drawn visuals make sure of this as well. Warhammer 40,000: Shootas, Blood & Teef has plenty to offer to players who love sidescrolling shooters or the Warhammer 40,000 universe with its addictive gameplay and cinematic action. Highly recommended for players looking for a solid co-op or solo shooter.
Final Score: 8.5/10
