Steam Next Fest – Hellbound Inc

From Hellbound Inc.’s Steam page: HELLBOUND INC is a rage-inducing platformer where you jump & carry packages to deliver against time, demons and HR. Play as an undead courier trapped in a fulfillment center recently purchased by Satan himself.

GENRE: Action, Adventure, Indie

DEVELOPER: Templo, Rewilder

PUBLISHER: Templo, Rewilder

RELEASE DATE: Coming soon

I’ll be honest, when I see a game described as a rage-inducing platformer, my immediate instinct is to give it a pass. But, when someone tells you it’s a must-play, the graphics grab your attention, and the devs are excited and super nice, I had to say ‘the hell with it’, and dive into Hellbound Inc.

Hellbound Inc. is a 2D platformer where you play as an undead courier, the newest hire, trapped in a fulfillment center run by Satan himself. Your job is to sort and deliver packages across zones, dodging traps and solving puzzles to get the parcel to their designated bins.

Some of the dangers you will have to navigate through the levels (named after the 7 deadly sins) are spikes, flames, machinery that will crush you, and collapsing platforms. How do you navigate these dangers? Push crates, flip switches and time your jumps perfectly. One mechanic in Hellbound Inc. that you don’t see very often is the charged jump. Hold to jump further or higher. Slightly tap the button for a smaller jump.

Now for the rage part, yes, you are un-dead, but you will die…a lot!! Respawns are quick, though, and generally you won’t lose a lot of progress as there are sufficient checkpoints in each level. There is also the option to choose to die/respawn, and I found myself using it more than expected. Packages must be sorted into their appropriate bins, and at times, they must be sorted in a particular order. Often, you must sort 1 package first, or you won’t be able to do it at all.

As you progress through the levels, it gets increasingly difficult. And yes, I completely understand the rage part even more so, but surprisingly, I didn’t get frustrated to the point of quitting. This is unusual for me for these types of games. I think it’s because each room had a solution; I could see it, I just needed to figure it out. I knew I could do it, and was it determination or willpower? Who knows. While I didn’t complete all 100 puzzles, this was a demo after all, I am looking forward to jumping back into hell with Hellbound Inc. soon.

Until next time…be good to yourself and be good to each other.