Angel's Gear

About

Angel's Gear is a single player survival platformer game with a horror theme. It was developed by scumhead and was released on February 14, 2023. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

In "Angel's Gear," players navigate an apocalyptic wasteland and wield a powerful, new weapon called The Gear. The game features a unique combat system with unconventional movement and a variety of bullet types. Experience monstrous boss battles, explore an interconnected world, and switch between Demon and Angel mode for added depth in this horror adventure. The Gear, a self-replicating machine that consumes all matter, has already destroyed a universe in its quest for fuel.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

73%

Audience ScoreBased on 270 reviews

gameplay20 positive mentions

stability24 negative mentions

The art style and atmosphere are fantastic, creating a unique and immersive experience.
The game offers a short but engaging gameplay experience, with likable characters and an interesting story.
The combat mechanics, while initially janky, provide a fun challenge and allow for strategic play.

Controls are awkward and non-standard for the genre, making gameplay frustrating at times.
The game is plagued by bugs, including issues with saving and controller support.
The overall length of the game is short, and it lacks depth in exploration and upgrades, making it feel incomplete.

gameplay
92 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
75%
3%
The gameplay of the game is characterized by a mix of enjoyable mechanics and significant jankiness, with many players noting rough controls and inconsistent hitboxes that detract from the overall experience. While the aesthetic and art style are praised, the gameplay often feels unpolished and lacks depth, leading to a frustrating experience for some. Despite these issues, the game offers a unique take on the metroidvania genre with a satisfying loop, albeit with a short playtime of around 3-4 hours.
- “The gameplay is fun, reminds me of briefly getting to play an indie metroid-like at my cousins when I was a kid, complete with the same sharp requirements for movement and exploration.”
- “On the other hand, I like the different take on the metroidvania genre; you can either shoot to kill enemies or choose to melee them to save ammo, and you can only get ammo by killing enemies via melee, which is great since it's rewarding the player for the riskier and more fun gameplay.”
- “The movement mechanics, leaping in particular, feel really fun and make for some neat jumping puzzles where you have to gauge how far you're going to go, lacking air control.”
- “The mechanics of the game just don't want to play nice with one another; it's very clunky.”
- “This game is artistically very strong but gameplay-wise very weak.”
- “Gameplay-wise, the game lacks quite a bit of polish; the map is confusing and it would be better if it didn't exist at all.”
story
80 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
53%
4%
The game's story has received mixed reviews, with some praising its intriguing concepts and character development, while others find it confusing and underdeveloped. Many players appreciate the art style and atmosphere that complement the narrative, but some feel that the story is secondary to gameplay and lacks depth. Overall, it offers a unique setting and engaging themes, though it may leave some players wanting more clarity and substance.
- “The story has some nods to things that really resonated with me, learning to love the self and struggling with our equal capacities for evil and good.”
- “I was really impressed by how solid and concise the story was.”
- “It's a fascinating setting offering sufficient story to ground the player in its bizarre reality and motivation enough to explore the world.”
- “Lastly, the story is just a complete afterthought; I would have preferred fewer characters and more upgrades.”
- “The story is rather confusing, especially at the beginning.”
- “It does a decent job at getting your attention with its plot regarding the parasitic mechanical entity, but it falls flat eventually with pretentious and cliché topics taken straight out of pop media, inside jokes, and not having much substance due to how rushed and unpolished the whole game feels.”
graphics
74 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
52%
5%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their unique and striking pixel art style, which effectively creates a memorable and immersive atmosphere. Many reviewers appreciate the grotesque and steampunk aesthetic, though some note that certain environments can feel repetitive. While the visuals are generally considered a highlight, issues with gameplay mechanics and controls detract from the overall experience for some players.
- “The art style is fantastic and I was super immersed in the characters and world.”
- “Phenomenal aesthetic, amazing atmosphere, wonderful world-building, and a splendid cast of characters, including a genuinely intriguing villain motivation.”
- “Angel's Gear has a really fantastic aesthetic with decent visual variety and grotesque monstrosities; its lore is interesting enough to keep your attention and not be too messy, but doesn't get in the way of the gameplay.”
- “Though this game has a kick-ass aesthetic, I could never recommend it to anyone.”
- “You can tell very early on that aside from the graphics, you're playing something basic.”
- “As I said before, the aesthetic and atmosphere are usually the main attraction for Scumhead's games, but they both feel noticeably weaker in this one than in the shrine games and Vomitoreum.”
atmosphere
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
63%
29%
8%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its engaging and unique qualities, featuring gorgeous spritework, intriguing character designs, and a chilling, desolate vibe that enhances the horror experience. While some reviewers note that the atmosphere can feel dull at times or weaker compared to previous titles by the developer, it remains a central attraction, contributing significantly to the overall immersion and world-building. The minimal sound design and distinct environmental elements further complement the game's atmospheric depth, making it a standout feature despite some gameplay criticisms.
- “The atmosphere is deeply engrossing and unique.”
- “Phenomenal aesthetic, amazing atmosphere, wonderful world-building, and a splendid cast of characters, including a genuinely intriguing villain motivation.”
- “The atmosphere really shines, the different parts of the world each having their own unique feel while overall maintaining a chilling desolate vibe punctuated by minimal sound design that works when it all gels together.”
- “The atmosphere is debilitating in a way I haven't experienced in a long time.”
- “As I said before, the aesthetic and atmosphere are usually the main attraction for Scumhead's games, but they both feel noticeably weaker in this one than in the shrine games and Vomitoreum.”
- “This links into the atmosphere well, and the world itself feels barren, as it kind of should given the story.”
music
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
58%
29%
13%
The music in the game is noted for its quality, particularly during boss encounters, but is largely absent throughout most of the gameplay, contributing to a melancholic atmosphere. While some players appreciate the groovy retrowave and eerie ambient soundtracks, others feel the lack of consistent music detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the art and music are praised, but the sparse use of music leaves a mixed impression on players.
- “The art is beautiful and the soundtrack is great.”
- “Overall, short experience, I'd say around 4-2 hours depending on the player, combat feels good, exploration could have involved a bit more of item utility, and the setting and music is great!”
- “Some of the boss soundtracks are seriously good.”
- “No music except during boss fights.”
- “You watch all the cool stuff happening on the screen accompanied by groovy retrowave music, then you go into the game expecting an epic and glorious adventure, and instead you get a small and melancholic world with many empty rooms, several quirky characters, and an eerie ambient soundtrack.”
- “The world of Angel's Gear is the surreal apocalypse you come to expect from Carnivore song lyrics, war-torn and blasted into a sick, twisted parody of what once was.”
stability
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is widely reported to be plagued by numerous bugs and glitches, significantly impacting gameplay and player experience. Many users encountered issues that hindered progress, such as unresponsive mechanics and confusing level designs. While some players managed to enjoy the aesthetic and core gameplay, the overall consensus is that stability remains a major concern.
- “It was buggy enough that I couldn't finish it—the final boss wouldn't respawn ammo, so I was trapped trying vainly to stab it for what felt like forever.”
- “I'm not even addressing the huge amount of bugs and glitches I've encountered, but most of the levels are made of repetitive empty layouts, where nothing unique ever happens.”
- “11-11-2023 the game is still buggy.”
humor
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the humor in the game to be quite enjoyable, highlighting elements like dedicated jumping, amusing animations, and unexpected moments such as face-planting after falling. The juxtaposition of serious moments with comedic visuals, like a cape floating dramatically, adds to the overall lightheartedness and charm of the experience.
- “The dedicated jumping is very funny and I love it.”
- “While I understand they need to give you ammo so you can shoot and kill them, I found it funny that they just give it to you so you can kill them.”
- “Kinda funny really, serious moment as I teleport to the other side, and a cape is left just... floating and waving in the wind like some sort of superhero dual personality skit is being played out in front of two people.”
optimization
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
37%
38%
While players generally enjoy "Angel's Gear," they note several optimization issues, including noticeable bugs and areas for improvement, particularly in the user interface and overall operation. Despite these flaws, the game's performance is not fundamentally problematic, and players are hopeful for enhancements in future updates.
- “There are aspects that can be optimized.”
- “Even with some optimization issues, I really enjoyed my time playing Angel's Gear.”
- “But there are things that can be optimized.”
- “But I hope the UI and the operation could be optimized in the coming updates.”
- “There are bugs that are present that are noticeable.”
replayability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game is criticized for its lack of replayability, with players noting its short completion time of around 2.7 to 3 hours and a lack of engaging content that fails to encourage exploration or 100% completion. Many reviewers feel that the game offers little incentive to revisit, suggesting that any potential replay might only come years later when players might want a quick playthrough again.
- “I finished the game in 2.7 hours; I see zero room for replayability. I don't feel driven to 100% since the world is boring to walk around in, and I just hope this is a stepping stone to making games that are decent.”
- “As far as metroidvanias go, it's incredibly short (I made this review at 3 hours, and that's all it took to complete the entire game), and it contains little to no replay value.”
- “The replay value will be in a few months or years when you can play the whole game again in one night.”
character development
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
50%
Character development in the game features intriguing designs and compelling characters, particularly Milly, who stands out with her likability and clear motivations. However, the overall story suffers from awkward writing, making it difficult to follow, and the game's short length limits deeper character exploration. Despite these issues, the atmosphere and character aesthetics are praised.
- “The atmosphere is great, character designs are interesting, and I am very intrigued by the player's power scaling.”
- “It's interesting, and some of the characters are compelling (Milly is especially well done—she's likable, has clear character motivations, and has a neat character design).”
- “The atmosphere is great, character designs are interesting, and I am very intrigued by the player's power scaling.”
- “The character development feels rushed and underexplored, leaving many characters feeling one-dimensional.”
- “While some characters have potential, the lack of depth and growth makes it hard to connect with them.”
- “The game introduces interesting characters but fails to provide meaningful development throughout the story.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its wholesome narrative that evokes a sense of warmth and emotional connection, blending elements of metroidvania gameplay with a more accessible difficulty level. Players appreciate the unique twist on familiar themes, creating an engaging and heartfelt experience.