Hell Pie is an indie 3D platformer that’s not afraid to be different from the norm. Even to the point where it’s not afraid to shock or gross you out, which certainly isn’t something we see often within the genre. We played the PlayStation 5 version.
With a title like Hell Pie, we had little idea of what to expect when we first heard of this particular game. An Overcooked-like title set within the confines of Hell and emphasizes multiplayer fun? Not exactly, although there is a bit of a culinary twist to it all. You see, Satan has a birthday party coming up, and someone forgot to take care of his very special birthday pie. Your job as a lowly officer worker/demon working for Sin Incorporated? To acquire the necessary ingredients, any way you can.
Following a familiar 3D platformer structure, you approach the game’s challenges by traveling through a few different hubs, each of which has a few levels that look and feel unique to the other hubs. You’ll also encounter a wide range of outrageous enemy types on your travels, which even includes turds. Hell Pie doesn’t shy away from the gross, and does so with bad language, some gore and Satanic rituals. We haven’t seen a lot of “adult” platformers in a while, and although this one isn’t as mainstream as something like Conker’s Bad Fur Day the shock factor is definitely there.
For some, that’ll likely be a turn-off, but Hell Pie has a few gameplay mechanics in place that are a lot of fun – like the cherub that is chained to you. His ability for flight can be used for traversal as he suspends himself in the air and lets you swing from the chain that connects you, but you can also use that same chain to throw your cherub buddy at enemies during combat as a powerful weapon. Abilities like this can be upgraded as well, and add flavor to an otherwise fairly standard (but upgradeable) moveset.
But while for some gamers it will be the theme that’s hard to look past, Hell Pie also has a few rough edges that are hard to ignore for others. It’s visually rough for a title with a native PS5 version, and a few gameplay and visual bugs also popped up from time to time. Nothing game-breaking, but briefly getting stuck in the environment does break the immersion briefly – something that’s also not helped by characters that aren’t voiced, which seems like an oversight in a game that relies on personality. If the thematic approach here appeals to you then you’ll want to check out Hell Pie, as it’s a decent platformer – just not one that would have stood out without its unique premise.
Score: 6.5/10
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