izigame.me

Short form:
- Synthwave soundtrack
- Great sound and level design overall
- Relatively fast-paced gameplay
- Game is 3-5 hours long, but it's just enough to have a blast of an evening.
If you fancy yourself some sidescrolling run-and-gun action like Contra or Metal Slug or even old Judge Dredd game (no longer on Steam btw), you are in the right place.
10/10. Strong recommendation.

Long form review part, so here's your only warning if you pressed "Read more".
UPD: Fixed typos and whatnot.
Story:
Huntdown is a sidescroller shoot 'em up about bounty hunters trying to make a living by killing morally reprehensible gang members and their respective leaders. Clearly you are here for the action. However, you get an achievement by listening to all briefings, so at least for the first run just hear Wolfmother out. After all, she knows her children.
All in all, it's an action flick type of story done in order to justify it being there. Glad that the developers respect their audience and aren't beating around the bush.
Sound:
First of all, gotta commend that there's voice acting present in the game. Even briefing parts are nicely voice acted and I feel like the VA part of the game is very good. Characters aren't shying away from throwing occasional one-liners akin to old-school FPS games. The lines are said with enough consistency to not be annoying, and somehow it's always on point, keeping that entertainment value along with giving characters enough of a distinctive personality, so it's worth replaying the game at least once per every character just to hear their lines, because even in briefings they reply to Wolfmother differently, even if they're essentially agreeing to take her contract. Still, it's a good touch.
Over the span of the game you encounter different gangs, and each of them also say lines respective of the gang they belong to, and it's not just grunts saying those lines, even the bosses will occasionally say a one-liner that befits them as leader of their group, and I'm glad that small details like these are included within the game. It's full of these little touch-ups and I am all here for that.
The soundtrack is superb. I know that synthwave nowadays is nothing to write home about unless it is done by some exceptional artists, or if it's a Furi/Hotline Miami OST. And yet it has enough impact in itself to perfectly fit within the setting. Makes me think of the montages by the 80's Guy where he edits footage from action classics of the 80-90's and puts synthwave on top of it. That's the kind of feeling this game gives me, and it's perfect for what it is, even if not specifically outstanding.
There's a pretty wide array of weaponry in the game, each weapon sounds different and satisfying, as it should. Every weapon has a solid punch to it, not just in sound, but in animation as well.
Animation and visual quality:
Like I said prior, the game is abundant in details. I probably realized it later than I should have. At least the extent of the detail. I was just looking for stashes, minding my own business, and one of the sections had chain hooks. And when I jumped up to touch them and see what happens, expecting to phase through it like it's a piece of background, chains actually reacted to my presence and dangled. That's when I started paying attention to visual details and cues much more. And there's plenty of things to notice. Movements of hostiles, their jumps, idle postures whenever you're far enough or they don't see you, a character reloading each weapon differently (to name just a few, pay attention to rocket launcher and sawed-off reloads), it's all very dynamic and very reactive, so I encourage you to hunt for these details.
Also, few extra details before I finish this section: First, this game has an achievement for making a dog fetch your grenade. Cruel, but funny. Second: gibs. Third: easter eggs to the action movies of the golden era.
Gameplay:
This section will be shorter because if you played any Contra game, then you already know the drill. You have your shooting button, your jump, your dash that has i-frames on it and acts like slide in Contra Hard Corps. The only difference that sets it apart is that the enemies drop all sorts of weaponry, and it's free for the taking. Sniper rifles, shotguns, sawed-off, assault rifles, SMG, flamethrowers, remote bombs. You even get to carry a portable howitzer on your shoulder at one point. Pretty impressive stuff. All of it serves only one purpose: making your enemies regret being on the other end of your weapon of choice.
You have a choice between three different characters: Anna Conda being agile member of the group with fastest firing primary at her disposal, John Sawyer being the "heavy" class and having the most damaging but slowest primary in the game, and Mow Man being the balance between the two. Secondaries, those being whatever you pick up from dead enemies are the same for everyone.
The only major difference from your "normal" run 'n gun is that this game has cover system. Approach any obstacle and your character will take cover. Be careful though, covers are destructible. Especially cars.
And that's your gameplay loop.
Difficulty:
The difficulty is very fair. I'm not the one for ridiculous challenges or for extremely hardcore difficulties. With that out of the way, I found the game to strike the perfect balance between being challenging and fair at the same time. Deaths feel fair and I never felt like I'm at developer's wrath and that I should learn the trajectory of every bullet in the game to start enjoying it. No, in this game, regardless of difficulty, you're only as good as your momentary decision making skill is. Each attack and the appearance of every enemy is well telegraphed and I never had a section for which I wasn't prepared, because nothing ever shot me off-screen before I could even see it. The game prepares you for everything with enough timing. While not holding your hand necessarily, it's not beating you to a pulp either.
One small complaint I got is that there's no player characters animated avatars in Points Shop. Perhaps something to consider? I'd love to have Mow Man animated profile picture! Wonder if developer is still reading these...
Conclusion:
Meticulously designed run-and-gun side-scroller with great pacing, great sound design, level design and balanced difficulty. A throwback done absolutely right. I wish I could have a "double recommend" button, or something that would express my satisfaction with the game in a proper manner, but alas. If you've made it this far, thank you. Have a good time of your day, and good hunting. The huntdown is initiated.
Reminder: don't kill unarmed people and leave the cats be!