Developer: Cascadia Games
Publisher: ChilliDog Interactive
Platforms: PS4. Xbox One, Switch
Tested on: PS4
Ammo Pigs: Cocked and Loaded – Review
Ammo Pigs: Cocked and Loaded is a 2D action platformer developed by Cascadia Games and published by ChiliDog Interactive. With the only species alive next to the pigs being chickens, the pigs are “cocked and loaded” to save the few remaining chickens from the hands of the AI-controlled robots that have eradicated all other life. With a big emphasis on running and shooting, this should be a good recipe for a good platformer, but is it really that fun?
Story
In the world of Ammo Pigs: Cocked and Loaded, it’s the year 2049 AD, and all existing life has gone extinct except for pigs. The pigs have managed to evolve and arm themselves with conventional weapons. Now, it has been discovered that chickens are still alive as well, and they are held captive by the AI-controlled robots that have eradicated all life on the planet. It’s now up to the pigs to rescue them from their cages. While this is how the background story is built up, you will encounter snakes, rats, and bats that are very alive, which means that not all life has been eradicated. You won’t find any references to the story further into the game as you’ll only progress from level to level after starting the game.
Graphics
With Ammo Pigs: Cocked and Loaded being a retro platformer, the developers have chosen the same type of graphics that was the standard back in the days. With the pigs, robots, and chickens all looking their part, we can conclude the assets are quite decently made. As you progress through the game, you will encounter different environments, but they all look fairly plain, but the nostalgic feeling certainly is present.
Sound
Both the soundtrack and all the sound effects are exactly in tune with the nostalgic feeling this game wants to give you. With jumping, shooting, and all other effects sounding like they came straight from the 80s, the sound and music are perfectly in sync with the game’s graphics.
Gameplay
Ammo Pigs: Cocked and Loaded is a 2D action platformer where you are on a mission to save all surviving chickens from the AI-controlled robots’ claws. Ammo Pigs: Cocked and Loaded is a simple game with some basic controls for movement and shooting.
As you explore each level, you’ll encounter a variety of different robots that will attack you whenever they spot you. Some of these robots walk in circles while others are waiting for you to get close before they engage. You’ll also encounter mine robots and other obstacles that will hurt you a lot when you touch them. To defend yourself, you are armed with a pistol that simply shoots bullets in front of you. With the fairly high damage output of your weapon, most enemies are fairly simple to eliminate, but a few enemies can take a lot of hits and will come rushing toward you with no way to escape. For example, there’s a saw blade robot that will come rushing towards you at high speed when you hit it, and they can take quite a lot of hits before they get destroyed. As you play the game, you’ll learn how every enemy will react, and the game will turn into a very simple game.
As the pigs have found out that some chickens are still alive, they’ve decided to rescue them. You’ll find three chickens stuck in cages in each level. When freed, they will follow your movements and you won’t have to worry about hurting the chickens when you shoot in their direction as they are impervious to your bullets, but they will get killed when they get hit by the enemy robots. The saw blade robot mentioned before is a perfect example of a huge threat to your chickens as it will come rushing towards you and can mean a quick death for the chickens following you. The easiest way to provide a safe passage to the end of the level for the chickens is to destroy all the robots along the path to the end of the level before you free the chickens. This way, you ensure that there are no robots that can kill the chickens following you.
You’ll find coins scattered throughout each level that can be used for purchasing a few upgrades. These coins can also be earned by destroying robots. There are several upgrades you can purchase at ammo stations to make you stronger. Examples of these are dual pistols that shoot in both directions, rockets that deal more damage, a triple shot that shoots three bullets in a cone, and a bubble shield that will block the first hit you take. The weapon upgrades are purchased in the form of bullets, and when you run out, you will return to using your standard pistol that has an infinite amount of ammo.
Sadly, even though the game looks and sounds pretty fun, the gameplay is pretty wonky. You’ll encounter stairs that can only be climbed by jumping on them, which makes it quite difficult to get to a certain height for reaching other platforms. Lift platforms are also pretty buggy, as they will only move up and down when you stand still on them. When moving up and you jump, it will stop moving up and go down. Another issue with the lifts is when you get underneath them and jump, you’ll be launched in the air for no reason. The chickens following you will also get stuck a lot during your playthrough and this can be quite frustrating, which also is another reason to free the chickens after you’ve destroyed all the robots in your path. Lastly, coins that appear after killing robots can get stuck outside of the map, where you can’t reach them.
Conclusion
Ammo Pigs: Cocked and Loaded is a simple 2D platformer with a retro style that takes you back to the 80s. Sadly, although this game may look interesting, it certainly doesn’t feel polished. With frustrating stairs, buggy lifts, and chickens that get stuck all the time, the game doesn’t entice you to keep on playing. The game’s gameplay is limited to destroying robots, freeing chickens, and reaching the end of rather easy levels, which doesn’t make it fun to play. If you’ve got some spare money you’d rather lose than buy something good with it, you could use it to buy this game, but really, we wouldn’t recommend doing that.
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