Devastated landscapes, fractured families, fear, hatred, and suffering: this is the war-torn setting of Hell is Us. As the name suggests, Rogue Factor’s third-person adventure game is not lighthearted, and its focus is not a fictional villain. Though set in Hadea, Hell is Us could be about any country on Earth, where the real monsters are often its human inhabitants.
Players take on the role of Remi, an outsider who sneaks into this isolated region beset by civil war. Unfortunately, he arrives during the latter part of the conflict, after the warring factions have committed atrocities so horrific that they’ve triggered a mysterious event called the Calamity. The manifestation of four of humankind’s most intense emotions—grief, terror, ecstasy, and rage—now walk the land.
These Hollow Walkers have an unsettling design that immediately drew attention when Hell is Us was first revealed. Vaguely humanoid, with a dark void for a face, they seem tortured by emotion. When provoked, they release a hostile representation of their overwhelming feelings called a Haze, connected to them by an umbilical cord. Howls of pain and grunts of fury accompany their attempts to pound Remi into nonexistence.
The War-Torn Landscape of Hell is Us: A Troubling Story
The world created by Rogue Factor begs exploration, though much of it is blocked by rubble or shrubbery. Still, accessible areas are rich in detail and tell a sorrowful story: makeshift camps abandoned, civilians slumped dead behind useless defenses, the body of a loyal dog lying outside a boy’s hiding place. Though the game confronts mature themes, it never feels gratuitous. The developer aims to show the realities of civil war and the possibilities of human cruelty, but also the strength of love and family.
At the same time, said Rogue Factor, “it was crucial that players did not contribute to the cycle of human brutality.” For this reason, Hollow Walkers and their umbilical Haze are the only enemies Remi fights. The people he meets throughout Hell is Us are pitiful figures in need of rescue, whether from their circumstances or themselves.
Hell is Us Gives Nothing on a Silver Platter
Despite expectations, Hell is Us is not a Soulslike. It has an almost Metroidvania structure, with keys, codes, and emblems unlocking previously inaccessible areas. As such, there is a lot of revisiting locations and trying to remember just where that hidden passage was. And there is no mini-map, HUD, or quest log to guide the way. Rather than handing answers to the player on a silver platter, the game dishes up what Rogue Factor calls “player-plattering.” Only intuition, memory, curiosity, and lots of note taking point the way forward.
This bold, potentially divisive, decision brings a few glaring weaknesses. While the missing HUD quickly feels second nature, the sheer number of things to remember becomes daunting with equal swiftness. This means a Word doc and screenshots will likely be required, which underscores missing quality-of-life features that would actually make sense in the story: the ability to map, track progress, and mark key locations and items.
In fact, these missing elements seem almost nonsensical. Remi has an armored vehicle, high-tech drone, and data pad to store everything he finds, yet he has no inclination to note the location of a locked door or the item an NPC has asked for. And the “quest log” only highlights this gap, as it fails to provide any useful information, not even the names or locations of quest-givers. Some areas unlock only by talking to people, but without task tracking, it’s unclear if or when to revisit them. For hours, I missed two entire zones required for progression simply because I didn’t know to return to Random Guy in Random Location. These design choices add needless tedium and frustration.
Hell is Us: Too Little and Too Much
The game offers three difficulty levels, with the easiest focused on exploration. Normal difficulty preserves loot after death, markers save physical progress through an area, and enemies only respawn when returning to a zone. Those who want more of a challenge can toggle the Death Penalty option that revives enemies and wipes XP and items gained since the last save.
Gameplay in Hell is Us is split almost equally between whacking enemies and running around, and this pacing generally works. Exploration rarely feels dull, but combat falters in a few key areas. Mostly, it feels very shallow. On normal difficulty, with weapons leveling organically and the healing mechanic mastered, only rudimentary strategy and occasional blocking are required. There’s little reason to dodge or parry; button mashing, using weapon abilities, and knowing when to deploy the drone usually suffice. There are sliders to adjust enemy health, damage, and aggression, but that only partially addresses the issue, and it's odd that by default the game feels like it's on easy mode.
Additionally, besides the absent map and journal, the Hollow Walkers themselves are the most glaring weakness in the game. There are only about five enemy types, with slight “evolutions” to make them tougher, and even the few bosses are variations of the same predictable formula.
Weapon variety is likewise limited to a sword, dual axes, a polearm, and a greatsword. They can be attuned to emotions (ecstasy, grief, terror, rage) and tailored with modules, and initially this seems like a promising customization scheme. But the difference between wielding, for example, a grief axe and a rage axe of the same level is negligible. These three components — mindless battles and lack of enemy and weapon variety — combine to create a combat experience that rapidly feels stagnant and unchallenging.
On the other end of the spectrum, the game constantly doles out weapon modules, first aid kits, resist items, and other consumables to fill the inventory, yet most are unnecessary. On default difficulty, it’s possible to run through nearly the entire game without using any of it. Again, most players will need to tweak enemy stats to make finding loot feel meaningful.
Hell is Us Also Offers Just Enough
The exploration side is where Hell is Us really shines. The atmosphere, setting, and level of detail are impressive, with some moments of environmental storytelling that truly deserve a moment of reflection. Most areas are distinct and memorable, from a smoldering town to a once-lively abbey that now stands eerily quiet. Uncovering lore, meeting survivors in varying states of distress or anger, tracking down key items, and poking into every nook and cranny is engrossing. And the dungeons should satisfy most adventurer’s desire to delve into mysterious ruins and uncover hidden treasures.
The story and haunting world of Hell is Us overshadow most shortcomings, and Rogue Factor’s message is a powerful one. The team’s refusal to hold the player’s hand may frustrate, but it also creates a unique sense of immersion and discovery. Hell is Us is meant to unsettle and provoke thought, not just entertain, and where it stumbles in one area, it succeeds in another. For players willing to overlook missing variety and conveniences, and who value atmosphere over a perfect presentation, Hell is Us offers a journey well worth taking.
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 78 /100 Critics Rec: 79%
- Released
- September 4, 2025
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ // Blood, Intense Violence, Partial Nudity, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, Use of Drugs
- Developer(s)
- Rogue Factor
- Publisher(s)
- Nacon
WHERE TO PLAY
- Engine
- Unreal Engine 5
- Genre(s)
- Action, Adventure, Open-World
- Strong atmosphere
- Rewarding exploration
- Well-designed dungeons
- Engaging gameplay
- Repetitive combat
- Limited enemy variety
- Missing quality-of-life features
- Hollow loot system
Hell is Us releases on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on September 4, 2025. The Best War Games was provided a Steam code for this review.