Developer: Ultra CDG
Publisher: Perfect Random, Ultra CDG
Platform: PC
Tested on: PC
Washington Prime – Preview
Whenever we preview a game, we’re typically taking a look at an Early Access build. That’s not the case here, as Washington Prime isn’t in Early Access and doesn’t even have a release date at the time of writing. Instead, we’re taking a deep dive into the game’s demo, which was released as part of Steam Next Fest. Without further dallying, let’s take a look at Washington Prime: Limited Demonstration Version, as the demo is so aptly called.
Before we get into Washington Prime’s gameplay, we really need to discuss what drew our attention to the game first. The game’s trailer does a fantastic job of setting up the premise, thanks to the inclusion of deliberately cheesy scenes that mimic ‘90s action movies. We were initially disappointed to see that these weren’t in the demo, but then found out that the full version of the game will rely on FMV cutscenes for its storytelling. We have a soft spot for these sorts of tongue-in-cheek references to the over-the-top badassery of days gone by, so we can’t wait to see what the full game brings to the table in this regard.
In essence, you’re getting a cross between Die Hard and Doom. Our Bruce Willis expy is one Blake Kincaid, a former special agent who has (of course) retired from the force and is now living a peaceful life as a real estate salesman. However, when a close friend of Kincaid ends up trapped inside a downtown office building overtaken by heavily armed mercenaries, our hero is dragged right back into the line of fire. The story is framed as a flashback, taking place during an interview one year later. The demo gives us a two level slice of a single high-stakes night in Washington. For those who want to dig deeper into the lore, the levels are scattered with documents and papers that flesh out the conspiracy, hinting at a much larger plot that will hopefully unravel in the full release.
While the story definitely can do with some fleshing out, the demo already gives a very good idea of what Washington Prime’s gameplay has to offer. Built entirely within the GZDoom engine, the game is a classic ‘90s boomer shooter. Don’t go in expecting a fast-paced Duke Nukem-style experience though, because you’re going to get torn to shreds within seconds. While the game definitely looks like a retro title, it feels quite different. Health resources and armor pickups are incredibly scarce, and enemies wielding high-caliber rifles or shotguns can delete your entire health bar in just one or two shots. This results in a game where the focus is on tactical gameplay. Movement speed is noticeably slow, forcing you to treat it more like a first-person Hotline Miami or classic Rainbow Six. You have to meticulously clear rooms, hold angles, and occasionally camp out to let aggressive enemies come to you. Thankfully, a quicksave mechanic mitigates the frustration of these instant deaths.
Before starting, you can tweak a granular difficulty slider and choose your starting weapon. Gunplay is tight and highly responsive, though the demo features a few balancing quirks; the fully automatic Glock feels fantastic, but the MP5 is frustratingly locked into a burst-fire mode that quickly leaves you outmatched against enemies with automatic rifles on the upper floors. We particularly enjoyed the suppressed PPK pistol, which let us lean heavily into stealth play. Regardless of which weapon fits your preferred playstyle, Washington Prime’s random enemy spawns and a maze-like level structure combine to make a brutal loop that will test your patience but also reward smart play.
Two levels may not seem like a whole lot, but don’t be fooled into thinking that you’ll be done with Washington Prime’s demo in 30 minutes. As we mentioned, the game is surprisingly difficult in terms of dealing with enemies. It also took us a good while before we were able to navigate the maps without getting lost. In classic boomer shooter fashion, your objective is to simply get from point A to point B, but this involves tracking down colour-coded keycards. The issue is that the game’s environments look very, very similar, and it’s easy to take a wrong turn because of this. Granted, the lack of detail and low-poly visuals are part of the charm, and we wouldn’t want the game to change anything about how it looks, but this does mean that you’ll need to play the levels over and over again until muscle memory kicks in and you know which corridor leads where.
Because this is a demo and not an Early Access build, we’re not entirely sure what the future holds for Washington Prime just yet. There is no road map or even a release date, and we’re not sure if the developers are actively looking for feedback from the player base. Apart from the obvious addition of more content, including those FMV cutscenes, we’d like to see some balance tweaks to Kincaid’s arsenal and perhaps a way to make navigation clearer. The amount of backtracking we had to do, mostly owing to the fact that we couldn’t find the right path or turned a wrong corner, did slow down Washington Prime’s momentum considerably. Most of our issues with Washington Prime could be attributed to the underlying inherent retro ‘90s design philosophy, but that shouldn’t be an excuse not to improve the overall gameplay experience.
Conclusion
Yippee-ki-yay, motherfucker. Washington Prime unapologetically positions itself as both a love letter to ‘90s action movies and old-school boomer shooters. If the demo is an indication of what to expect from the full game (and it should be), then we’re in for a treat. And the best part? You can head over to Steam right now and give Washington Prime a go… provided you’re a bad enough dude.
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