Infernal Radiation first released on December 28, 2020 on Steam officially with an early release available on October 8, 2020. Infernal Radiation is side scroll 2-d action puzzle arcade game mixed with a dash of RPG elements. Currently the game is offered in several languages including English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Turkish. I was able to play the steam version of Infernal Radiation for this review.

It starts as you find yourself surrounded by real and unseen fires burning uncontrolled around you as exit a ship to set foot on the island called, Halloween. As the fire rages on you come to find out the true fire is the unseen and deeply rooted corruption of the town. In Infernal Radiation you find yourself in the shoes of an unlikely hero, simply referred to as the Exorcist. Within moments of disembarking your craft you are confronted by a Demon and so begins your introduction into exorcising demons from this world. Venturing further into the story and the town you unlock powerful abilities to aid in your exorcisms. As you progress you will find stronger and more powerful Demons waiting to grasp you in death’s final embrace.

Learning the controls are fairly straight forward, yet mastering the combination of blocking and attacking is a whole other story. While it is a 2-d game it has a 3d environment where you have different levels of terrain that you can move through. There are buildings to enter and exit. Doors that beckoning you to open them. Demonic bosses lurking in the shadows calling out for the unprepared exorcist to engage them in a deadly duel. I found myself outmatched fairly early in the game. Not in a frustrating way but in way that drove me to want to better myself. Increase my power level and gathering more powerful abilities. These is where the RPG elements come into play. It is addicting recipe trying to balance offensive abilities and defensive abilities. Infernal Radiation rewards patience and punishes an all out attack method.

Pros

Infernal Radiation offers fun quick gameplay that encourages the player to try different approaches during your Demon encounters. Demonic Bosses have different abilities and part of the fun is dying just so you can study the techniques of your opponents. More than once I found myself changing tactics only to discover I barely did any damage. The story is interesting offering a mix of political corruption and religious elements. Not in a way that I found off-putting but in a way that drew me into the story. Controls are tight and they honestly have to be for this game to be successful.

Cons

The religious elements are not going to appeal to everyone. I think that due to the current chaotic political environment that we find ourselves in, some folks might that this hits too close to home in the real world. The game is tough, and it states it right up front however some folks are not going to enjoy the amount of dying that they are likely to experience. I admit I more than once was a bit frustrated find that I attacked when I should have blocked. This should detour you though if you enjoy a challenging game.

The Verdict

Infernal Radiation is fun fast paced game that is quick to pick up but difficult to master. I found the story intriguing and I honestly found myself craving more. It overs 20 demonic bosses for you to engage and defeat. An added bonus for me will be when it comes out on Switch, I feel that Infernal Radiation was built to be on the Nintendo switch. It is fun on steam but I feel like it find it’s home on the switch.