MULLET MADJACK

[h2]Role Model[/h2] [b][i]Mullet Madjack's world paints a bleak, consumerist future—but the one the game itself paints for retro shooters is that much brighter.[/i][/b] https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3456369068 [hr][/hr] Picture this, if you will: somewhere, on the Internet, New Blood CEO Dave Oshry makes a funny joke, YouTuber Civvie11 finally uploads his latest video, and voice actor Gianni Matragrano has found more work. That’s right—a new boomer shooter has been released. There was definitely a chill down my spine as I was getting into Mullet Madjack, the debut title from developer Hammer95, as its marketing, at least on a surface level, made the game seem like “just another” boomshoot described above, minus a soundtrack from Andrew Hulshult. The retro-cyberpunk paint job that’s been splattered across its every surface, the word “Mullet” not just making up half of the title but it being in all caps, the sweet, sexy eurobeat that plays as soon as you hit the main menu—I was convinced I was walking into yet another “Doom clone” with its own overreliance on some kind of aesthetic gimmick. Then I hit play and watched the intro cutscene. By the end of my first session, I realised I couldn’t have been more wrong. Six hours later, I cleared a few secondary modes and finished my second playthrough of the story. I sat there and lamented that there wasn’t more I could sink my teeth into. [h3]The Cure to Male Loneliness[/h3] If you’re like me and late to the party, you’re in luck, because Mullet Madjack’s soda-fueled premise is easy to relate to: the year’s 2095, Robillionaires have taken over the world, and humans have become addicted to dopamine. They fuel this addiction by a) mass consumerism, b) killing said Robillionaires, and c) watching people kill said Robillionaires. Haven’t you ever? You get to experience this messed-up future as “moderator” Jack Banhammer, the kind of guy who gets his fix through option b), downing one can of soda after another in the process, especially now that a group of ‘em has kidnapped the unfathomably popular Influencer Princess. Jack himself isn’t a stranger to content creation, as how you’ll be getting a lil’ lick of that succulent dopamine is through a camera in his sunglasses, presented as a livestream by PEACECORP, the benevolent conglomerate running the show. [quote]For some expanded thoughts on [i]Mullet Madjack[/i] and how it compares to your average boomshoot, feel free to check out the uncut version of this article on the [b][url=https://summitreviews.biz/]Summit Reviews Website[/url][/b].[/quote] See, like a boomer shooter Mullet Madjack does look, but like one it does not play. Of course, a certain “feel” can’t be escaped, but you won’t find yourself blasting around arenas or steadily revealing a maze-like map trying to find the next coloured key. No, the dominant way you’ll be experiencing these levels—and the word ‘level’ is used quite literally—is by moving forward, if you want to live, that is. When the game tells you humans are addicted to dopamine, it means it. On the left side of your screen is a handy-dandy device that’ll count down from ten to zero, adding precious seconds every time Jack kills an enemy. This timer also represents the health bar, and letting it empty out, either through receiving damage or going long enough without kills, means that the mullet is no more. The levels in question are, well, levels of a high-rise that the Influencer Princess has been taken to by one especially smugly-unhinged prick, Mr. Bullet (hello, Gianni!). Reaching the elevator that takes you further up is an exhilarating bloodbath that lasts about a minute as you race forward, popping groin shots, sliding on walls, and kicking enemies out of your way and into the various hazards dotted about. In these circumstances, there’s no room for elaborate level design or time for prolonged fights. A “prolonged fight” in Mullet Madjack is clearing a room of baddies and scrounging up anything useful you might find in about five seconds tops. There’s also a bit of a roguelite in there, so in-between floors, the handler of your stream—a commanding anime gal—will offer you a few upgrades to choose from, all the while a colourful chat scrolls by in the background. And should you die, down you go ten levels, or wherever you ended up after your last boss fight. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3669940526 Having all of that laid out, the cynic in me still wants to scoff at the notion of a first-person roguelite with an ironic retro aesthetic being anything to write home about. And if we stopped right here, he’d have a point. As solid as Mullet Madjack is, it’s hardly the first game to mix and match these things. For one, the mechanical foundation itself—blazingly-fast yet flashy movement, a glass cannon avatar that heals from killing enemies, short levels that encourage perfection rather than a mere clear, all wrapped up in a retro package—is building off of Ultrakill, and stumbling onto 2020’s Post Void reveals similarities that make me wonder if I can call Mullet Madjack a remake and get away with it. So, why? Why am I so impressed by it, regardless? Why did it not only stick to my mind so tightly that thinking of it still gives me a rush, but also made me dig into retro shooters like never before to see if anyone else is trying something equally fresh? Think back to that ridiculous premise, its neon lights, and eurobeat soundtrack. It’d come across as vapid parody, were it not so well thought out. The premise itself is how Jack’s health bar comes about in the first place; without it, and the need to wrap things up as soon as possible, there’d be no gameplay. Without the world of 2095 being the way it is, there’d be no livestream to watch, nothing to participate in. That sort of cohesion ties all of Mullet Madjack together. It feels like its own genesis, and not a different game someone wanted to redo. Gameplay is no exception—the boomer shooter that doesn’t play like a boomer shooter; so much so, that its highly requested boomer shooter mode (which gets rid of the time limit in favour of a traditional health bar) ends up as an undeniably inferior way of playing the game. It even tries to tell a story, tweak and throw curveballs to its core loop when that story requires it, ending in a bossfight so bombastic it somehow stands out in a game that’s pure adrenaline. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3669941273 The idiosyncrasies in Mullet Madjack, imperfect as you may find them, come together to deliver a game that’s excellent front to back, and bring the kind of originality I’d like to see from the genre more broadly applied, rather than settling for reiterating on the same old same old. I guess we haven’t fully brought back Duke Nukem yet, so we’ve still a ways to go! As for the Mullet, it’s over the top just enough in its presentation to come across as sincere, rather than trying too hard. Its retro elements and FPS fundamentals are tasteful, supporting the rest of the game rather than the game itself serving as mere window dressing for another bout of interactive deja vu. At the very least, a hearty characterisation of its leading man (hello, [url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darryl_Kurylo]Darryl[/url]—wait, what?!) that’s just…well, perfect would be the world I’d use, makes it quite hard not to find cute. When Mullet Madjack tells me to “stay in school”, I listen. When he muses on how you should “make a new friend every day”, I aspire to heed that advice. When he riffs “all shell, no ghost”, I put on a movie I haven’t seen before. When he proclaims that it’s “mullet time”, I believe him. After everything is said and done, I guess there’s one final question to ask: [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-_fR_Sv9JA]“How’d I do?”[/url]. [hr][/hr][i]A copy of Mullet Madjack was provided to Summit Reviews for the purpose of this coverage.[/i]

It's really engaging and fun and funny and you get to kill a lot of billionaires and that's something we should all strive for not only in games but also very much in real life.

[h1]Brasil fez bonito demais[/h1] Mullet MadJack é um game que mostra o potencial do Brasil para fazer jogos, e que jogo bom. E não digo [b]“bom por ser brasileiro”[/b]; ele é realmente muito bom. Identidade forte, gameplay viciante, estética extremamente chamativa, misturando animes clássicos dos anos 80 e 90, [i]Cyberpunk[/i] (que eu amo demais), VHS, e pra galera ansiosa de hoje em dia vídeos curtos e lives. A localização, junto com toda essa estética, te joga direto dentro de um anime clássico. Jack Banhammer é dublado por [b]Luiz Feier Motta[/b], simplesmente a voz do Toguro Ototo em Yu Yu Hakusho e do ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ Rambo. A Streamer é dublada por [b]Isabel de Sá[/b], que fez personagens como Marin de Águia em Os Cavaleiros do Zodíaco e Jessie em Pokémon. Já o vilão Sr. Bullet é dublado por [b]Gilberto Baroli[/b], o próprio Saga de Gêmeos/Kanon de Dragão Marinho. E claro, não são só esses dubladores; citei apenas os que mais me marcaram. [b]Jogo de muita qualidade, estiloso, viciante e com uma personalidade absurda, recomendo demais![/b] [hr][/hr] [i]English translation generated with the assistance of AI.[/i] [h1]Brazil Really Nailed It[/h1] Mullet MadJack is a game that shows just how much potential Brazil has when it comes to making games, and damn, what a great game. And I don't mean [b]“good for a Brazilian game”[/b]; it's genuinely really good. Strong identity, addictive gameplay, and an incredibly striking aesthetic that mixes classic 80s and 90s anime, [i]Cyberpunk[/i] (which I absolutely love), VHS, and, for today's anxious crowd, short videos and livestreams. The Brazilian localization, combined with all that style, throws you straight into a classic anime. Jack Banhammer is voiced by Brazilian voice actor [b]Luiz Feier Motta[/b], known in Brazil as the voice of Younger Toguro in Yu Yu Hakusho and freaking Rambo. The Streamer is voiced by Brazilian voice actress [b]Isabel de Sá[/b], who voiced characters such as Eagle Marin in Saint Seiya and Jessie in Pokémon. The villain, Mr. Bullet, is voiced by Brazilian voice actor [b]Gilberto Baroli[/b], the iconic Brazilian voice of Gemini Saga and Sea Dragon Kanon in Saint Seiya. And of course, they're not the only Brazilian voice actors in the game; I just mentioned the ones that stood out the most to me. [b]A high-quality game, stylish, addictive, and absolutely overflowing with personality. Highly recommended![/b]

Girls DO love basic hygiene! Post Void, but Duke Nukem, but neon! Addicting gameplay, great art, crude humor, heavy satirical anti-corporate/anti-consumerist messaging. Go get that DOPAMINE!

you get to rescue a tig ole bittied anime chick while another anime chick calls you a good boy and enslaves you to be her boyfriend. what more do you want? 5 out of 5 on the squrbo scale. this game gets the squrbo stamp of approval

很早就被此游合成器浪潮&复古未来（风味90s）的表皮所吸引。流程很短，但短得不亏。 人机对立让人想起终结者，不过天网偏运动，本作偏商务。AI控制的机器人用奶头乐和消费主义圈养人类，网络飞升的赛博人10s得不到多巴胺就得光速去世。 反叛被包装成了商业活动，妄图打破规则的主角则将自身性命绑给了直播间（直播公司霸王条款）：不杀人→观众得不到刺激→直播间无人点赞→多巴胺注射系统10s内被切断→主角暴毙。 换句话说，这种绝对狠活儿直播，玩家10秒内不杀人就会死。此游的基调就是短·平·快，平均不到一分钟就能通完1层，每10层刷出一个boss + 特色动画小演出。后期厮杀敌人基本都是条件反射般地——速杀/处决/环境击杀，偶尔电光火石间地选择玩点花样，配合build能适当延长秒数（续命）。 本作地图设计也是全方位配合这种快节奏战斗，除去象征性的小分岔，四舍五入就是一条大路直通出口，没有找钥匙只有破门，唯一的解谜可能是你得琢磨着怎么快点延长自己只有10s的生命。难得有这种略去了跑图、解谜、甚至连切武器花样击杀也无需考虑，玩得大脑褶皱都快被抚平了的FPS肉鸽爽游。关于肉鸽部分，你甚至都不怎么需要考虑build。 当然坏处就是玩法较浅，腻得略快。然而短流程又弥补了这个短板，如果并不反感花五六十买个4h左右流程的游戏，那么本作值得考虑购入。 顺便，赛博朋克风必备典中典元素： [list] [*]自个儿掏腰包在广告时间用工资升级装备武器 [*]脑袋别在裤腰带上的奖励是印有大大CONSUME logo的球鞋 [*]被爆头后考虑到直播间收益，将你的大脑修复到了95% [*][spoiler]你以为在反叛垄断大公司，其实主角战斗和追寻的“意义”已被提前设定好了[/spoiler] [/list] 这种高科技，低低低生活是有股子黑色幽默劲的。配合欧美风味Anime画面，也能在突突突之余，发掘品味别样乐（恶）趣。 （彩蛋） 武器成就刚好能摆出个： M U L L E T ——“鲻鱼头Time！（Streamer音）”

A great game for life advice and killing billionaire clankers. also just really pretty

once it clicks, you cannot stop playing. The 10 second time limit gets you into a quick thinking flow state where you're able to headshot, kick bots into instant kills and execute them with physical copy of the game and still have some time to spare (PD: Peace Corp. lady marry me)