High on Life

The whole idea of High on Life spawned around talking guns. Would you believe that? We've got a full AAA title developed around weapons that converse with you as you traverse this sci-fi first-person shooter. Are there any mechanics after that? Is there a narrative that could tie in this bizarre concept? So, the result is an entire video game ripe and ready to be played.

High on Life is about an alien cartel landing on Earth to harvest the entire human race for drug production. These extraterrestrials get high from the chemical compounds of humans; go figure. So now we have an outlandish concept, a crazy narrative, and a cartoony world to run amok. What could go wrong in this intriguing production?

Guns Are A Girl's Best Friend

We start the game in the casual setting of the player (who is unnamed) and their sister Lizzie having the house to themselves for the weekend. Their parents are away, so they're going to get some supplies for a wild party they plan to throw. But lo and behold, an alien cartel has invaded Earth to get high, throwing their plans into jeopardy. Time to be the hero and fend off this intergalactic invasion!

It's no secret that the foundations of High on Life's gameplay come from its humor. Straightaway, the narrative twists and turns to the downright obscure, giving players a few laughs. Naturally, the player's job is to save humanity by running through various intergalactic biomes, blowing up every combatant in their path with a varied arsenal of talking weapons.

As you can imagine, the banter between the player and guns is massively entertaining. It proves to be the game's bedrock. But does that carry gameplay through into greatness? Not really. The focus has been clearly on the narrative and dialogue, and core shooter mechanics suffer from that channeling. Some bugs make progression difficult, combat clunky, and hitboxes erratic.

Not to mention, High on Life is a short game, where even though it's packed with humorous moments, it doesn't end up feeling satisfying. There are plenty of positives to take away from the game. Still, some of the negatives could polarize opinions in fan bases. Some people want to play a good FPS; others are there for the giggles. Whatever category you fit in could define how you experience the game.

Corrupted Cartel Clashes

High on Life mechanically doesn't hold a candle to humor-based first-person shooters like Bulletstorm. But it does very well: it provides a comedic narrative with plenty of fantastic dialogue. If that's what you're after from a video game, there's no better title to invest your big bucks into.

Round-Up - Pros & Cons

Pros:

• An obscure narrative that sets the tone for hilarity
• The banter and dialogue from the guns are superb
• Visually a beautiful sci-fi world

Cons:

• Various bugs that frustrate player progression
• Combat isn't particularly thrilling
• Some players will not enjoy the humor

Every video game event has some highlights, it could be some of the most expected games surprising everyone with a new trailer or something like that. But sometimes, these highlights come from the biggest surprise, some of the most unexpected things can be some of the coolest announcements. This is exactly the case of the latest Xbox and Bethesda event, where they announced High On Life, a videogame by the creators of Rick and Morty that absolutely nobody expected and that I think we all want to play now. Really, what nonsense, chaos, and random thing, and how wonderful that someone had the idea to shape it. But what is all this madness about? Well, let's talk about it.

About the game

High On Life is a crazy FPS created by Justin Roiland (the "father" of Rick and Morty). An adventure that takes place in space and in which our guns do not keep their mouths shut.

Fans of Rick and Morty can start rubbing their hands together, because the next creation of its creator, Justin Roiland, is a video game: a first-person shooter set in space and featuring the wacky sense of humor that characterizes all his creations.

High On Life, which has been presented in a gameplay trailer at Xbox & Bethesda Showcase, is being developed by the Squanch Games studio (responsible for Trover Saves The Universe) and stars a young girl who drops out of high school... to save the human race from aliens who want to turn us into psychotropic substances. To say that weapons will have a huge role in an FPS may seem obvious, but in this case, each of the guns and rifles have their own personality, eyes, and a mouth that apparently won’t shut up at any time.

What we know

• High On Life is a game, in fact, that counts with the creators of Rick and Morty, and whose development is in charge of Squanch Games (Justin Roiland's studio, co-creator of Rick and Morty). And it features very recognizable voice acting, including Zach Hadel, co-creator of the hit animated series Smiling Friends, Mike Stoklasa of Red Letter Media, among others.
• The game launches this year, and although there is no date, what has been said is that it will be available from October.
• Another big announcement is something we always like to read: High On Life will be available on Xbox Game Pass on its launch day.
• The game is full of the iconic Roiland humor
• Among the locations we will visit as a bounty hunter is a city built inside an asteroid, dense alien jungles, and exotic scenarios plagued by (dangerous) local fauna.

Review: 9/10

High On Life is a fantastic game that brings a lot of fun and adventure for those who love space and science fiction, and games of this type. It offers a large number of missions, which are well thought out, and a story with funny twists that will make you laugh.

Pros:

• It's a great game that you should try if you love space and science fiction! *The graphics are beautiful and the gameplay is very good too
• You'll get addicted to the characters, especially because there are many unique ones

Cons:

• There really isn't much to complain about the game, except that it ends too quickly