Few games are as bizarre on paper as Bite the Bullet, the latest game from Mega Cat Studios. Combining classic run n’ gun side-scrolling action with competitive eating, Bite the Bullet is as dubious a concept as peanut butter on burgers. It’s a seemingly unpalatable dish, but one you’d probably not be unwilling to try. Once you’ve taken a bite, you’ll be glad you did.
Developer: Mega Cat Studios
Price: $15
Platform: Steam (reviewed), Nintendo Switch, Xbox
MonsterVine was supplied with a Steam code for review
For what it is, Bite the Bullet’s story is overstated. In a dystopian, but reminiscent, future, economic collapse has led to worldwide famine. To combat the food shortage, scientists created an implant that allowed users to eat any material, organic or otherwise. However, the implant caused a genetic mutation that turned its wearers into zombies, so humanity left the Earth to thrive elsewhere. Years later, the corporate boogeyman DarwinCorp hires mercenaries to return to Earth to extract genetic material from the zombies.
These mercenaries also happen to be competitive eaters. Each level becomes their personal buffet as they shoot, maim, and devour everything in their path. Eating in Bite the Bullet is not only a mechanic: it’s also a system that requires some management if you’re trying to make the most of the game. Enemies have nutritional value measured in calories, fat, and proteins – each of which has its own impact on gameplay. A protein-heavy diet will make you lean and agile. A fattier diet, however, will leave you bulky and more durable. Anything you eat will also grant you a modest sum of health.
Shortly after the game’s introduction, players will choose a particular diet, each with its own effect on how you’ll play. Carnivores take advantage of total intake. You’ll have plenty of calories, protein, and fat, letting you feel the weight of each body shape. But consuming plants will cause you to purge, and you won’t be able to take full advantage of the effects they pass on to the player. Omnivores are a jack of all trades. Just about everything in Bite the Bullet is committed to its theme, which is arguably its best trait. It sticks steadfastly to its ideas and principles and refuses to relent to anything remotely discordant with them. It’s from a fear of deviating from its theme that Bite the Bullet’s plot seems so overplayed. It’s a worthwhile sacrifice that created something truly unique and hilariously over-the-top.
The gameplay, too, was just as appetizing. It’s standard side-scrolling shoot-em-up fare, but each level introduces another teaspoon of chaos. Diverse enemies encouraged different approaches to combat, and different firearms presented their own advantages and disadvantages. The flamethrower, for example, was great for culling enemies in proximity, but it doesn’t leave much in the aftermath to eat. The A-Salt Rifle, on the other hand, is comparably weak but great at getting enemies’ health low enough to consume.
Some aspects of Bite the Bullet suffer from gluttony. The game’s upgrade tree has countless paths you can follow though many will be inaccessible after you choose your diet. Many of these upgrades will offer a mite change for a paltry sum, such as one additional hit point for a single experience point. Lumping these small upgrades together for a greater price would have made the upgrade tree less intimidating and more navigable.
The game warns that eating too much can be detrimental to your body. It’s good life advice, but I never felt hindered by overconsumption. In fact, I ate everything I could. There were changes to how the character moved, but this never discouraged me from eating anything. This held true amongst dietary limits. When playing as a carnivore, I often ate plants to gain myriad effects. The purging they’d induce hardly if ever, outweighed the benefits I’d already received from binging on zombies. The game makes an appreciable attempt at informing players that there are risks associated with how they play. But in practice, those risks either weren’t apparent or didn’t exist.
Despite these bitter morsels, Bite the Bullet is a deliciously original take on a classic recipe. Its commitment to its theme through narrative and gameplay is a rare treat that outweighs the few objections I had.
The Final Word
Appetizing gameplay and hilarious themes make for a tasty meal.
– MonsterVine Rating: 4.5 out of 5 – Great
