Hypercharge Unboxed Byte Size Review

I’m of an age where the release of movies like Toy Story and Small Soldiers in the 1990’s where a big deal. Following on the back of old school Saturday morning cartoons, these movies really did play on the ‘toys to life’ wish of many a child. Enter Hypercharge Unboxed. A game that targets those ‘feels’ and will make big kids everywhere want to pull out their GI Joes. And to be honest, you are likely to have far more hours of fun with your Joes than with this game.

Hypercharge Unboxed is a first-person or third-person shooter that combines engaging gameplay with elements of tower defence. The game features richly-detailed stages that would have featured in many homegrown toy battles. Coming from a dedicated developer it has taken some time to reach console, the PC release that now feels ages old alway looked fresh and exciting and we couldn’t wait to get into it. Sadly, however, it falls short in a few areas.

Play with the box or the Action Figure?

Visually Hypercharge is bright, engaging and full of detailed environments that are fun to poke around at first. The training setup in a toyshop was made for me to get close up to all the knock off toys, train-sets and educational building block cartons. Having grown up on classics like Micro-Machines, its a dream come true to run around in first person from a toy’s perspective, like a toy bull in a toy shop.

Throw in some wave based gameplay, it has the nuts and bolts to be engaging, but there is something about the control scheme holding me back. Combat feels a touch removed, yes, they are toys, but there’s a lack of connection or impact, movement is missing some finesse.

For the single player campaign there is a lack of development or reward, leaving you wanting for something more than another level of the same chaos. That said, Hypercharge does have its merit in its multiplayer modes, whether offline or online playing co-operatively does add a dimension to spice things up a bit.

There is definitely some fun to be had here and the nostalgia hits hard, but the poor control scheme that kills it for me.

Hypercharge, conceptually great, but…

In summary; Hypercharge Unboxed offers fun moments, especially in multiplayer, but its single-player experience falls flat. If you’re a fan of cooperative shooters, it’s worth a try, but be prepared for some control frustrations. I really do love the ideas here, but they just run out of batteries. Using the existing assets to create a great single player campaign, with better controls, would be the go. If you want a bit of Toy reminiscence fun, try the Hot Wheels games.

Feel free to explore it further, and perhaps you’ll find more enjoyment in the cooperative modes!