12 is Better Than 6

About

12 is Better Than 6 is a single player arcade shooter game. It was developed by Ink Stains Games and was released on November 19, 2015. It received mostly positive reviews from both critics and players.

It is 1873. An escaped slave is slowly walking through the desert, making his way from Mexico to Texas. He keeps a revolver close and is wearing the sombrero stolen from a dead man.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+18

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77%

Audience ScoreBased on 2,905 reviews

story268 positive mentions

stability65 negative mentions

The story feels raw and grounded, matching the brutal gameplay, making it surprisingly strong and memorable.
The minimalist approach strengthens the gameplay and keeps everything immersive, especially for fans of environmental storytelling.
The unique reloading mechanics and variety of weapons add depth to the gameplay, making it engaging and fun.

The game suffers from repetitive level design and can feel tedious, especially with some frustrating enemy placements.
The writing and dialogue are often poorly executed, with many grammatical errors and a lack of coherence in the story.
The controls can be clunky, particularly the reloading mechanics, which can detract from the overall experience.

story
1,025 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
62%
12%
The story of "12 is Better Than 6" is a mixed bag, with many players finding it either forgettable or poorly executed. While some appreciate its raw and minimalist approach, aligning with the game's brutal gameplay, others criticize it for being clichéd, confusing, and riddled with grammatical errors. Overall, the narrative serves primarily as a backdrop to the action, with many players opting to skip dialogue due to its lack of engagement and depth.
- “The story feels raw and grounded, matching the brutal gameplay.”
- “If you enjoy environmental storytelling and dark western themes, the story here is surprisingly strong and memorable.”
- “The story is engaging, with plenty of interesting characters and twists.”
- “The story is forgettable and poorly written, and many times the character portraits don’t even match who’s speaking.”
- “Don't expect any story from it (I mean the game has achievements for skipping dialogue).”
- “The story is mostly nonsensical and not that interesting to begin with.”
gameplay
997 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
58%
9%
The gameplay of "12 is Better Than 6" is characterized by its unique shooting mechanics, requiring players to cock their guns before firing, which adds a layer of realism but can also feel cumbersome. While the game offers a fast-paced, top-down shooter experience reminiscent of "Hotline Miami," many players find the gameplay repetitive and the level design lacking variety, leading to a sense of fatigue over time. Despite its engaging mechanics and stylish art, the overall execution suffers from clunky controls and a lack of depth, making it a mixed experience for players.
- “The gameplay is fast-paced and unforgiving, challenging your reflexes and strategic thinking at every turn.”
- “The reloading mechanics are a stroke of genius, requiring manual input for a realistic touch that keeps you immersed in the chaos.”
- “The gameplay flows much worse as a result.”
- “The gameplay quickly becomes repetitive, with the same level designs reused over and over.”
- “Many stages feel too similar to one another, which slowly drains the excitement out of the gameplay loop.”
- “The gameplay is mediocre at best, the soundtrack is lacking, and the dialogues are plain and silly.”
graphics
717 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
44%
53%
3%
The graphics of "12 is Better Than 6" are characterized by a unique hand-drawn, monochromatic art style that evokes a comic-book aesthetic, often enhanced by splashes of red for blood. While many players appreciate the artistic approach, some find it challenging to distinguish between enemies and the environment due to the lack of color and visual uniformity, which can lead to gameplay frustrations. Overall, the visuals are seen as a standout feature, though they may not appeal to everyone and can detract from the gameplay experience.
- “The hand-drawn black-and-white art style is something special.”
- “Visually, '12 is better than 6' immediately stands out with its hand-drawn, comic-book-inspired art style.”
- “The stark, hand-drawn black-and-white aesthetic—punctuated by splashes of vivid red whenever a bullet lands—sets a raw, homemade tone that reinforces the game’s harsh setting and its constant tension.”
- “However, the heavy reliance on black and white visuals becomes a problem over longer play sessions.”
- “This constant visual uniformity ends up being surprisingly tiring on the eyes, not because of poor visuals, but because of how much effort it takes to read the screen at all times.”
- “The art style makes it difficult to differentiate between friend and foe.”
music
486 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
41%
7%
The music in the game has received a mixed but generally positive reception, with many players praising its ability to enhance the atmosphere and complement the gameplay, particularly with its western-themed tracks. While some found the soundtrack catchy and immersive, others noted that it can become repetitive over time, with a limited number of songs looping frequently. Overall, the music is often highlighted as one of the game's standout features, contributing significantly to the overall experience despite some criticisms regarding its fit and variety.
- “The sound design and music do a great job of setting the mood, even without any voice acting.”
- “The soundtrack genuinely slaps, a solid arrangement of grunge-rock tracks mixed with familiar 'wild west' musical motifs.”
- “The music perfectly captures the atmosphere of the wild west, adding an extra layer of immersion to the gameplay experience.”
- “The music is awful, I really disliked it.”
- “The music gets boring, the story is boring, environments are repetitive and bland, and the gameplay....”
- “The soundtrack is completely underwhelming and doesn't even fit the game's style and pace.”
stability
67 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
3%
97%
The game's stability is frequently criticized, with users reporting numerous bugs, glitches, and unresponsive controls across various platforms. Common issues include problems with achievements, save data, and controller support, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences. While some players find the core mechanics enjoyable, the overall execution is marred by these technical shortcomings, making the game feel unpolished and amateurish.
- “Never experienced a crash or bug; no lag or glitches. Some skill and strategy can be used in parts of the game.”
- “Bug-free on the macOS version.”
- “The game is generally fun and at times even challenging, but it's frustratingly buggy.”
- “Game itself is fun but is somewhat buggy and feels amateurish at times; the hats achievement is buggy, the money mechanic is useless, and getting bullets for guns is a chore/badly designed.”
- “The game was quite buggy and unlike the videos, not fluid at all.”
humor
60 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
97%
3%
The humor in the game is a mix of dark, relatable, and absurd elements, often delivered through hilarious dialogues and quirky character interactions. Players appreciate the antihero's gallows humor and the comedic situations that arise, despite some criticism of the writing quality. Overall, the game is seen as entertaining and funny, making it a worthwhile experience for those who enjoy a lighthearted take on the western genre.
- “The antihero is gallows-humored and jaded; his one-liners are dark and funny.”
- “The story is beautiful, and the levels are both funny and a little bit hard.”
- “The dialog is hilarious, and I loved every minute of it!”
- “All of it delivered with terrible, unfunny dialogues and overall bad writing.”
- “It's not funny nor interesting, and it makes you care even less about the characters and story of the game... such as it is.”
atmosphere
55 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
39%
5%
The atmosphere in "12 is Better Than 6" is widely praised for its immersive and distinct wild west setting, enhanced by a unique hand-drawn art style and a fitting soundtrack that captures the essence of the genre. Reviewers highlight the game's ability to create tension and engagement through its detailed environments and cohesive narrative, making it a standout experience in the indie action genre. While some critiques mention minor gameplay issues, the overall consensus is that the atmospheric elements significantly elevate the game's appeal.
- “In the end, '12 is better than 6' thrives on its unique identity—a raw, sketch-styled shooter with demanding action, a distinctive atmosphere, and a commitment to making every encounter feel dangerous.”
- “The settings are varied, ranging from small towns, arid deserts, and dark interiors, all rich in detail and atmosphere.”
- “The music in the game wraps the entire wild west atmosphere around the experience.”
- “The game builds a tense atmosphere and has a strong soundtrack, but in the end it doesn’t live up to expectations, either in terms of story or gameplay.”
- “It fails in setting the atmosphere with the combination of the music and colors/style.”
- “There is no atmosphere and it reeks of low effort all over the place.”
grinding
49 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
6%
21%
73%
The grinding aspect of the game has been widely criticized for being excessively tedious and repetitive, often requiring players to invest significant time in monotonous tasks to progress. Many reviewers noted that the mechanics, such as reloading and ammo collection, contribute to a frustrating experience that detracts from the overall enjoyment of gameplay. While some achievements may require minimal grinding, the general consensus is that the game suffers from a lack of engaging content, leading to a sense of boredom and frustration.
- “I want my shots to be continuous, not tedious.”
- “It's a bit grindy sometimes.”
- “It's a bit grindy.”
- “The idea is good, but some levels, like the train, are too tedious.”
- “It feels tedious and at times unresponsive, and in a game like this, it quickly becomes incredibly frustrating.”
- “The shooting is tedious, and collecting ammo is even more tedious.”
replayability
35 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
37%
49%
14%
The reviews on replayability are mixed, with some games being described as "infinitely replayable" due to varied gameplay styles and achievement hunting, while others suffer from a lack of replay value, offering little incentive to replay beyond initial completion. Many players enjoyed their experience but noted that the short length and limited customization options hindered long-term engagement. Overall, while some titles provide enjoyable gameplay that encourages multiple playthroughs, others are deemed memorable yet lacking in replayability.
- “12 is Better Than 6 offers a good story, enjoyable gameplay, and replay value as you can try to complete levels in a different style.”
- “Tons of fun and a fair amount of replay value if you want to hunt the achievements.”
- “Highly recommended, with decent replayability.”
- “However, this game suffers from a lack of replayability.”
- “The price itself isn't bad for such a minuscule shot of adrenaline, but the replay value is non-existent with nothing to really make you want to replay it apart from maybe the achievements, which are just tedious to get, making them almost obsolete.”
- “Nevertheless, at ten dollars with little to no replay value, I can't recommend it without some serious caveats or discounts.”
optimization
20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
55%
25%
The game's optimization has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting poor performance, including low frame rates (25-45 fps) and high CPU usage even on decent hardware. While some users noted that the initial chapters run well, later sections exhibit significant optimization issues, leading to crashes and gameplay interruptions. Overall, the game requires further optimization and bug fixes to enhance performance across various systems.
- “It has some optimization issues in the latter chapters, but the first bit runs really well even on outdated equipment.”
- “We can enjoy the story and gameplay with the firm performance of the game along with its memorable characters.”
- “I encountered zero issues throughout; no clipping, no weird physics, no stuttering or freezes or crashes.”
- “Also, the performance is very bad: 25-45 fps and 90% CPU usage at low settings for a game made of drawing with an i7 and a GTX 1060 is really unpleasant.”
- “Enemies instantly killing you as soon as the level starts, some levels not getting completed after you kill everyone, poor optimization, low fps and so much more.”
- “It's poorly optimized.”
emotional
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The emotional aspect of the game elicits mixed reactions, with some players feeling a strong connection to the character and setting, while others find the story lacking and the gameplay frustrating. Many reviewers express disappointment in the narrative's execution, particularly regarding the abrupt ending and underdeveloped plot, which detracts from the overall emotional experience. Despite this, the game's music and graphics contribute positively to the emotional roller-coaster, leaving players with a blend of admiration and frustration.
- “Once I pulled myself together and wiped the emotional tumbleweed dust off my face, I rode back in.”
- “A top emotional roller-coaster here, while playing my emotions alternated between admiration and hate, also joy and anger.”
- “The music, the graphics, and the game feel combine in a wholesome experience.”
- “The story is boring and fails to engage emotionally.”
- “The narrative lacks depth, making it difficult to connect with the characters.”
- “The overall experience is hindered by a dull storyline and awkward gameplay.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
Reviews indicate a lack of character development, with players noting that while the mechanics and design are strong, the absence of a compelling narrative leads to repetitive gameplay.
- “The mechanics are well done, and the level and character design are great.”
- “There's no character development.”
- “Without a compelling narrative or character development, the gameplay becomes repetitive.”

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67%Critics’ scoreBased on 11 critic reviews

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6h Median play time

6h Average play time

5-8h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 15 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

12 is Better Than 6 is a arcade shooter game.

12 is Better Than 6 is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, Mac OS, Windows and others.

On average players spend around 6 hours playing 12 is Better Than 6.

12 is Better Than 6 was released on November 19, 2015.

12 is Better Than 6 was developed by Ink Stains Games.

12 is Better Than 6 has received mostly positive reviews from both players and critics. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its stability.

12 is Better Than 6 is a single player game.

Similar games include Mr. Shifty, Colt Canyon, Weird West, Aragami, Splatter: Zombiecalypse Now and others.

12 is Better Than 6

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