Hell Is Us Review: An Amazing Concept Let Down by Lack of Direction

My drone companion unlatches from my shoulder and shoots off into the depths of yet another tomb I have stumbled upon. Its green light blinks and shudders as we crawl deeper into the darkness as the scraping of my sword being unsheathed breaks through the unsettling silence.

Ahead of us stands a lone figure sporting an alabaster glow and limbs bent unnaturally, its featureless face turned in the direction of my approaching footsteps. Its back bends and a screech emanates from its body as it approaches.

These are the supernatural entities known as Hollow Walkers that now plague the land of Hadea, and it is up to you to get to the bottom of their existence and most importantly, find a way to put an end to it.

Hell Is Us is a brand-new third-person action adventure game by Rogue Factor which follows the story of Rémi, a soldier who ventures into the now war-torn country of Hadea to find his parents. However, he soon discovers that the land he once called home has now been infested with a supernatural plague following a mysterious event known as the Calamity.

Since it was first announced, Hell Is Us has been likened to many games in the horror genre (although I would be hesitant to call it a horror at all) such as Silent Hill 2 and Death Stranding, for example. Its combat has been likened to a soulslike purely because you can roll and dodge and its lack of handholding when it comes to exploring could be seen as reminiscent of The Last of Us.

However, I wouldn’t compare Hell Is Us to any of the aforementioned titles and I can only hope that my reasons will become clear throughout the rest of this review.

Put simply, Hell Is Us is the hardest game I’ve had to review this year purely because I often went from absolutely hating my experience to loving it in short alternating bursts.

Rogue Factor

First and foremost, Hell Is Us rewards the player for exploration and, as a result, the game does not include a map or even quest icons. The world of Hadea can be travelled across via vehicle but once you get to each location, you are left to your own devices. Each location is its own mini open-world area and it is up to you where you decide to head first, but you had better hope you have a good memory once you have stumbled across certain areas, as you will have to make your way back at a later date with no help from the game.

Of course, encouraging exploration in an open-world game is never a bad thing but with even towns not having quest markers, it is very easy to get lost and I spent a lot of my time running around in circles trying to remember where I saw a certain NPC.

As there are no quest markers, it is up to you to decide which order you take on the game’s main objectives. The main objectives can be found in the iPad-like device you carry around but you merely receive hints and clues on where to go next and have to work it out yourself.

I think this method of exploration can be very hit or miss depending on the player. For players who explored games such as Elden Ring without a guide and were happy to go where the wind took them, they would love that aspect in Hell Is Us. However, if you are like me and easily get overwhelmed, it can be a bit frustrating to not have a clear-set goal.

However, it is through this exploration of each zone that you are able to complete the main story as well as stumble across the many side quests and mysteries.

There will be an influx of NPCs who you are able to help courtesy of the Good Dead side quests. These can include searching and fetching an item, passing along a message or locating a whole other person. However, many of these Good Deed quests are timed and as you complete each act, many of these will be timed out which can lead to some disastrous circumstances.

Additionally, you can stumble across mysterious sewers, tunnels and temples which act as challenge dungeons and don’t worry, Hell Is Us is absolutely full to the brim with puzzles to solve.

Almost every door you find will originally be locked, so items will need to be found to insert into empty slots and you will have to backtrack on more than one occasion, so don’t expect your experience with Hell Is Us to be smooth sailing.

Whilst taking on these missions, you will have to deal with the many supernatural enemies that will do what it takes to stop you. Well, I say “many” but in reality, there are only a handful of enemies that you will run into and before long, the lack of enemy variety soon starts to wear thin. “Harder” enemies are simply bigger versions of the standard enemies with a slight variation in design and you are more likely to run into hordes which offer the difficulty rather than big and dynamic bosses.

Rogue Factor

To fight them, you will be armed with melee weapons (as we soon discover that standard guns are not effective against them) such as swords and dual axes. You will also have access to a drone which you can upgrade to offer a variety of abilities such as rushing the enemy and stunning them or even distracting them so you can deal the killing blow.

You will also be able to equip defensive items that also have their own unique abilities attached - and as for your weapon, you can upgrade that too. As well as standard blocking and attacking, you will be able to unleash charged attacks and even undertake finishers when you have stunned the enemy.

Unfortunately, I found the combat to be quite clunky and this is just one of the many reasons why I could never compare it to a soulslike. Locking onto an enemy can be hit or miss and stamina can run out very quickly. Luckily, a well timed button press can see you restore your health during combat and so a well-skilled player may not have any difficulty here.

For me, the combat could have been both a lot smoother and more dynamic.

That being said, an area which makes up for any shortcomings in Hell Is Us is its environmental storytelling.

When the game begins, Hadea is in the middle of a civil war and brutal infighting is prevalent across the land. It is hard not to draw parallels between real-life issues such as the ongoing genocide in Palestine and as a result, players will stumble across some hard-hitting sights.

From people strung up on trees to heaps of bodies thrown into ditches and left to rot, it is clear that the main horrors that take place in Hell is Us do not come from the supernatural entities that plague the land. Humanity is an equal plague and as Rémi, we are able to do our small part to instil hope into the hearts of Hadea’s residents, whether that is by returning a teddy bear as a reminder of what we have lost or handing out flares to inspire survivors to come together and keep fighting.

The art direction and environmental storytelling in Hell Is Us is definitely worthy of praise and the NPCs which you meet along the way, even those who merely offer a word or two, help make the world both shocking and hopeful despite it all.

Rogue Factor

Shakespeare once said that “Hell is empty and all the devils are here” in his play The Tempest, and nothing proves that more than the events of Hell Is Us.

Overall, Hell Is Us has all the makings of an incredible game but is let down by clunky combat, a meandering main quest and lack of direction. However, it must be praised for its environmental storytelling and attention to detail when it comes to art direction and world building. If you don’t need direction and objectives to enjoy a game, this could still be the one for you as curiosity will always be rewarded in Hell is Us.

Pros: Incredible world building and art direction

Cons: No enemy variety, clunky combat and a story with lack of direction

For fans of: Death Stranding, Elden Ring, Control

6/10 - Good

Hell Is Us is available from 4 September on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and Windows (Steam version tested). A review code was provided by the publisher. Read a guide to our review scores here.