In recent years, shooter games are all about trends. Maybe the most popular yet polarizing one is the battle royale genre, but we can't ignore how many asymmetric multiplayer games there are nowadays. Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST is yet another asymmetric multiplayer shooter from the creators of Dead by Daylight, one that can easily earn a spot amongst the best, even if it doesn't try that hard to innovate. If you like hunting people or running from a killer using your stealth, then you definitely need to try this one out. Then again, the only difference between Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST and other similar games is probably the lore and the scavengers gameplay, but we'll get to that later in the gameplay section.

In a world in ruins, your only chance at surviving is to get inside the Enclave, the only safe havens when society has no respect for what we now know as rules. Ironically, surviving is hard when there's no respect for life, and the only way to get into the Enclave is to participate in a deadly game called "BLOODHARVEST". In the fearsome Deathgarden, a group of 5 scavengers tries their luck against one of the Enclave hunters; if they complete a successful blood harvest and live to tell the tale, they might earn the right to be allowed into the Enclave... but if not, they become just another source of blood for the next group.

This is by no means a realistic game, but Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST's graphics are good enough for an indie game that's all about the gameplay. Maybe some models and textures could be more polished, and obviously, we all love graphically exuberant games, but there is nothing in the visual department of Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST that takes away the fun or desire to play. The game aesthetics are a mix between a horror game and a retro-futuristic dystopian shooter, and some of the characters you can play as have really cool designs (there's a reason for The Stalker being the game's mascot!). The menus are good, the maps are pretty interesting in terms of the color palette, and the indicators are not that intrusive as in other shooter games. All in all, there's nothing good or bad to highlight here, and that’s not as bad as it sounds...

Speaking about sounds! Let us tell you this: we love the main tune, but we also feel that the absence of background music is a great decision for when you're playing. While hunting/scavenging, you can just focus on the ambiance, any sound cues that help you understand what's happening around you, and the tension building up as you roam the area. However, the moment you find an enemy the music starts playing, and your heart starts pumping faster. That's when you know someone's about to get blasted!
Maybe having more voice lines and a more extensive soundtrack could help, but for now, there's nothing wrong with Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST in this department.

In Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST, you can either be the Enclave's hunter or one of the 5 scavengers fighting for their lives. If you play as a scavenger, your team's objective is to gather 140 blood points from specific totems and bring it to one of the 3 towers you can find in every map. Once you get enough blood, the exit doors are visible on the map, and all you have to do is run towards them without dying while trying. As a hunter, your goal is to kill the scavengers (sometimes more than once) before they accomplish their mission, using not only your weapons and skills but also a set of surveillance drones.

Every match lasts 8 minutes, so it's safe to assume this is a fast-paced shooter, especially if you play as the hunter. As you can imagine, camping is not your best choice, and so you need to activate your Supercharge ability, jumping around the map as fast as your stamina lets you, gathering Power Cores to activate drones, and looting crates if you run out of bullets. With your drones, localizing the enemies is not that hard, and then you only need to pursue and kill them, either recycling them (they respawn) or executing them once it becomes available.

While the hunter plays from a first-person perspective, the scavengers take advantage of the third-person view, with the ability to climb almost every tree, wall, or object you come across. If you're not good at aiming, playing as a scavenger is probably the best, just hiding from the hunter, taking down drones, and helping your team with collecting blood. In fact, one of the problems with Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST is the lack of variety in terms of weapons and skills, so you definitely need to learn how to play as a scavenger... else, you'll get bored pretty soon of always doing the same, with the same 3 hunters and their same weapons. Yes, there are 3 available hunters and 6 available scavengers. Unlocking them is not that hard and you can but the one you like the most just by playing a couple of hours, but that's when then again, the lack of skins and other cosmetics make you feel like Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST is way behind its competition.

If you ask us, this is a really fun game that has the potential to become one of the best of its genre, but only if it gets the attention it deserves... in the form of constant updates full of new content, that is. Maybe that could help the one big problem Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST has, which is the lack of players. There were times that it was impossible for us to play because we couldn't get to 6 players to have a match, and that's as sad as it sounds. Let's hope this game has better reception from the public once it leaves Early Access!

Even with all its flaws, Deathgarden: BLOODHARVEST is very addictive and has everything you need when searching for a frantic shooter. On the other hand, playing as a scavenger is really fun too, it doesn't matter if you like going all out or just hiding and taking drones down while your teammates do all the dirty work.

If you have a few spare bucks, don't hesitate. You won't regret buying this one! But maybe you already have it and want to share your thoughts with us? Leave us a comment down below!