Dog Duty

About

Dog Duty is a single player arcade shooter game. It was developed by Zanardi and Liza and was released on September 16, 2020. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

"Dog Duty is a Real Time Tactics game where you control a squad of misfits fighting to save world-peace from an evil Octopus Commander and his army. Liberate outposts, defeat bosses, and wreck octo-machines while driving an armored, octo-frying vehicle. Assemble your anti-squid squad and eliminate all octo-scum in this fun, fast-paced action-packed adventure."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

79%

Audience ScoreBased on 48 reviews

story5 positive mentions

stability4 negative mentions

The game features a charming retro art style and enjoyable pixel graphics that evoke nostalgia.
The gameplay offers a unique blend of top-down shooting and real-time tactics, making it fun for casual players and newcomers to the genre.
The developers show genuine passion for the project, and the game has potential for future improvements and updates.

The gameplay loop can feel repetitive and lacks depth, leading to a boring experience over time.
There are numerous bugs and control issues that hinder the overall experience, making it frustrating at times.
The game is considered overpriced for its short length and limited content, with many players feeling it doesn't provide enough value.

story
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
71%
11%
The game's story is largely considered minimal and lacks depth, with only brief, humorous segments that parody action movie tropes, primarily surfacing during boss fights. While some players appreciate the retro charm and comedic elements, many find the narrative underwhelming and overshadowed by gameplay mechanics. Overall, the story serves more as a backdrop to the action rather than a driving force, appealing mainly to those seeking straightforward, tactical gameplay.
- “The story is fun, the little bit of it that there is.”
- “Brilliant and funny writing and story and evil octopus characters.”
- “There is a bit initially which is fun and parodies the story of a lot of action movies.”
- “This game is basically 'oops, all squad missions'.”
- “There is then a huge story drought with minor story events only occurring whenever there is a boss fight.”
- “The story is so bad it would be at home in any arcade cabinet of the 80s.”
gameplay
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
65%
12%
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players enjoying the fun, arcade-style mechanics and the straightforward objectives, while others criticize it for being repetitive and lacking depth. Many noted that the combat can feel clunky and unbalanced, particularly with stealth mechanics that don't function well in practice. Overall, while the game offers a visually appealing experience and some enjoyable moments, its limited gameplay elements and shallow mechanics may not justify its price for all players.
- “Not much in the way of story, but the gameplay loop, while simple, is quite fun.”
- “The game doesn't overstay its welcome (at least it didn't for me, and I am by no means a fan of the strategy genre) and as such the limited gameplay elements don't feel like some chore you can't wait to be done with.”
- “Beautiful characters, precise and responsive gameplay, and fantastic game structure all around.”
- “The gameplay is sadly not good enough to make a game this short worth the $15 price tag.”
- “Yeah, I don't have much to say about it. When you play the game, you can feel that some love went into it, but not much work nor even post-delivery care. Some mechanics feel very clunky and the combat is... lackluster, to say the least. I mean, it's literally just selecting a character (or every character at once), clicking on an armored enemy, and just hoping he doesn't one-shot you. Don't even get me started on the mounted guns; if an enemy gets on one of those, you have to pray to whatever's up there that your characters won't get turned into Swiss cheese before you have a chance to shoot him.”
- “Shallow gameplay.”
graphics
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
45%
14%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the cute and fitting art style, while others criticize the overall quality as poor or lazy. While there are moments of charm in the pixel art and traditional aesthetics, issues like graphical glitches and recycled environments detract from the experience. Overall, the visuals are seen as a blend of appealing design and noticeable shortcomings, reflecting the game's early development stage.
- “The progress of the game is cute and the dot graphics are lovely.”
- “I really loved the art style, and I can easily imagine DLC for the game with new characters and modes.”
- “The graphics are awesome, some kind of 2D/3D pixel art.”
- “This very poor quality visual style is a method that lazy devs often use to disguise their lack of talent or interest in doing the graphics properly, trying to disguise it under the name of 'art' or 'we made it look bad on purpose', which really isn't something gamers should have to put up with.”
- “As fun as the game may be, it is still very early access and this is very obvious from the choppy animations, glitchy graphics, and markers (white boxes) that the devs left inside the game as they worked on their project.”
- “Game has mediocre graphics, horrible controls, and there are no clear mission objectives.”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The music in the game is generally well-received, enhancing the overall experience with a fun soundtrack and effective voice acting. However, some players find it a bit too loud and occasionally inconsistent, with instances of it cutting out during gameplay. Overall, while it contributes positively to the atmosphere, it may not always capture players' full attention.
- “From the voice acting, which is so hard to get right nowadays, to the music that adds so much to the experience.”
- “Nice graphics, fun soundtrack, and I find the controls responsive (mouse and keyboard).”
- “+ cool art style, graphics, and music (though the music's a bit too loud for my taste - thank goodness for volume controls!)”
- “Nothing too exciting, often cuts out by itself in the middle of missions, though usually I was not paying too much attention to the music.”
- “I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
- “Anyway, to the sound of heavy rock music playing in the background, you'll need to not only tackle what seems to be never-ending waves of reinforcements; you'll also need to push your team forward and complete whatever objectives that are required of you in order to capture various outposts around the map.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game exhibits several stability issues, including graphical glitches and character control problems, such as erratic camera behavior and unexpected animations. While these issues can be frustrating, they do not significantly detract from the overall enjoyment of the game, which is recommended for purchase at a discounted price.
- “Has some glitches, like the driver cam showing the driver either getting smaller or the insides of the vehicle getting larger, and the cat person is posed like they hold a minigun no matter what they're equipped with. The boat can be one-hit KO'd by electricity, but it's overall a great short game. I recommend getting it on sale, because it's worth around 5 bucks, not the regular asking price of 15.”
- “The gameplay is fun, very simple, and sometimes it glitches a little bit; it's easy to click in one specific direction and get frustrated when the character doesn't really go there.”
- “There are a few graphical glitches, such as logs in the swamp suddenly changing lighting.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Overall, the game offers limited replayability, with some users noting it is fun but easy to complete. While there is a modest amount of content and potential for replay, bugs and a lack of incentives to replay detract from the experience.
- “Fun to play, but easy to beat and not much replayability.”
- “The game doesn't seem to encourage replayability.”
- “There's about 5-6 hours of content and some decent replayability, but be aware: there are still quite a few bugs present.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is well-optimized for keyboard and mouse controls, providing a smooth user experience. However, there are some performance issues and bugs that players have noted.
- “It's optimized for keyboard and mouse manipulation.”
- “[h3]⚙ Performance & Bugs ⚙[/h3]”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features brilliant and humorous writing, highlighted by its quirky evil octopus characters and a fun, irreverent sense of humor. Players appreciate the engaging story and the unique overworld system, all presented in a visually appealing pixel art style with easy controls. The developers are noted for their responsiveness, enhancing the overall comedic experience.
- “Brilliant and funny writing, a captivating story, and delightfully evil octopus characters.”
- “The game features a fun and cheeky sense of humor, complemented by its pixel art style and easy controls.”