Buckshot Roulette

Last updated
Buckshot Roulette
Buckshot Roulette Cover.jpg
The game's cover art, taken from the Steam page.
Developer(s) Mike Klubnika
Publisher(s) Mike Klubnika (itch.io)
Critical Reflex (Steam)
Engine Godot [1]
Platform(s)
ReleaseDecember 28, 2023 (itch.io)
April 4, 2024 (Steam)
Genre(s)
Mode(s)

Buckshot Roulette is a 2023 short indie tabletop horror video game developed and published by Mike Klubnika on itch.io. [2] It was released on Steam by Critical Reflex on April 4, 2024, to coincide with a new update. [3] The game has been likened to the 2021 roguelike game Inscryption , [4] featuring gritty and industrial visuals as opposed to Inscryption's more rustic and mythical style. [5] Klubnika developed the game in the Godot game engine, [1] and also composed the game's soundtrack. [6] [ non-primary source needed ]

Contents

Released on December 28, 2023, [2] Buckshot Roulette became popular online in early 2024 and was praised by critics and players for its strategic gameplay and replay value. [7]

The Steam release reportedly sold a million copies in two weeks. [8] [9] [10]

Gameplay

The game involves the player playing a modified game of Russian roulette in an underground nightclub with a mysterious entity known as "the Dealer", using a pump action shotgun instead of the revolver traditionally used in Russian roulette.

An ongoing game with multiple items on the table. Buckshot Roulette Gameplay.jpg
An ongoing game with multiple items on the table.

The game consists of three rounds. At the start of each round, the computer-controlled Dealer loads the shotgun with a certain number of red live shells and grey blanks in a random order. The player then chooses to either shoot the Dealer or themselves. Depending on whether the player chooses to shoot themselves or the opponent, if the shell is live, then either the player or the Dealer loses a life; but if the shell is blank, the player either continues their turn or forfeits the shotgun to the Dealer, who plays their turn. [7] [4] [11] [12] The player and the Dealer have a certain amount of lives, represented by defibrillator charges administered by a scorekeeping machine, starting with two charges on round 1, four on round 2, and five on round 3; a charge is depleted if the player or Dealer is shot by a live shell, and the first party to deplete all of their charges loses the round. [4] [12] The player and the Dealer can respawn indefinitely during rounds 1 and 2, but during round 3 the defibrillator's wires are cut if a party has two or fewer charges left, with the affected party entering a "sudden death" mode that forces the player to restart from the beginning if they lose. [4] If the magazine is emptied and neither party has lost all their charges, the Dealer loads the shotgun again with another load of shells. [4] [13] [11] [7]

Starting on round 2, a set of items is distributed to each party along with every load to give different advantages; two are given during round 2, and four are given during round 3. The items are: [4] [12] [14] [7]

The following items are exclusively in the Steam version: [7] [14] [15]

Update 1.1, which released on January 12, 2024, added a new endless game mode known as "Double or Nothing", accessed if the player takes optional pills at the beginning of the game, unlocked after the player beats the Dealer normally at least once. In Double or Nothing, a random number of items is given at the start of every round, along with a random number of charges, rather than the game's item and charge counts being determined. Upon beating the Dealer, the player is prompted to either leave normally or continue the game and double their earnings until they run out of charges, which will force the player to restart regardless of what round they were on. [7] [16] On April 4, 2024, along with the release of the Steam version, four new items exclusive to Double or Nothing were introduced. Namely, the burner phone, the inverter, the adrenaline, and the expired medicine. [7] [14] [15]

Reception

Buckshot Roulette quickly gained popularity on Twitch and TikTok, which subsequently led to increased popularity on YouTube. [2] [13] [20] It has been noted for its similarity to Inscryption , with multiple reviewers commending the strategic element introduced by the game's item system. [4] [5] [11] [13]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shotgun</span> Firearm loaded with a cartridge of pellets

A shotgun is a long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge known as a shotshell, which discharges numerous small spherical projectiles called shot, or a single solid projectile called a slug. Shotguns are most commonly used as smoothbore firearms, meaning that their gun barrels have no rifling on the inner wall, but rifled barrels for shooting sabot slugs are also available.

A combat shotgun is a shotgun issued by militaries for warfare. The earliest shotguns specifically designed for combat were the trench guns or trench shotguns issued in World War I. While limited in range, the multiple projectiles typically used in a shotgun shell provide increased hit probability unmatched by other small arms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shotgun cartridge</span> Self-contained cartridge loaded with either shot or a solid slug

A shotgun cartridge, shotshell, or shell is a type of rimmed, cylindrical (straight-walled) ammunition used specifically in shotguns. It is typically loaded with numerous small, spherical sub-projectiles called shot. Shotguns typically use a smoothbore barrel with a tapered constriction at the muzzle to regulate the extent of scattering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.410 bore</span> Shotgun bore designed by Charles Eley and William Eley

The .410 bore (10.4 mm) is one of the smallest caliber of shotgun shell commonly available. A .410 bore shotgun loaded with shot shells is well suited for small game hunting and pest control. The .410 started off in the United Kingdom as a garden gun along with the .360 and the No. 3 bore (9 mm) rimfire, No. 2 bore (7 mm) rimfire, and No. 1 bore (6 mm) rimfire. .410 shells have similar base dimensions to the .45 Colt cartridge, allowing many single-shot firearms, as well as derringers and revolvers chambered in that caliber, to fire .410 shot shells without any modifications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riot shotgun</span> Type of shotgun

A riot shotgun is a shotgun designed or modified for use as a primarily defensive weapon, by the use of a short barrel and sometimes a larger magazine capacity than shotguns marketed for hunting. The riot shotgun is used by military personnel for guard duty and was at one time used for riot control, and is commonly used as a door breaching and patrol weapon by law enforcement personnel, as well as a home defense weapon by civilians. Guns of this type are often labeled as breaching shotguns, tactical shotguns or special-purpose shotguns to denote the larger scope of their use; however, these are largely marketing terms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shotgun slug</span> Type of ammunition used mainly in hunting medium and large game

A shotgun slug is a heavy projectile made of lead, copper, or other material and fired from a shotgun. Slugs are designed for hunting large game, and other uses, particularly in areas near human population where their short range and slow speed helps increase safety margin. The first effective modern shotgun slug was introduced by Wilhelm Brenneke in 1898, and his design remains in use today. Most shotgun slugs are designed to be fired through a cylinder bore, improved cylinder choke, rifled choke tubes, or fully rifled bores. Slugs differ from round ball lead projectiles in that they are stabilized in some manner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">20-gauge shotgun</span> Smoothbore shotgun chambering

The 20 gauge shotgun, also known as 20 bore, is a type of smoothbore shotgun. 20 gauge shotguns have a bore diameter of .615 in (15.6 mm), while the 12 gauge has a bore diameter of .729 in (18.5 mm). 12 gauge and 20 gauge shotguns are the most popular gauges in the United States. The 20 gauge is popular among upland game hunters, target shooters, and skeet shooters.

itch.io Website for distributing games

itch.io is a website for users to host, sell and download indie video games, indie role-playing games, game assets, comics, zines and music. Launched in March 2013 by Leaf Corcoran, the service hosts over 700,000 products as of April 2023.

<i>Heroines Quest</i> 2013 adventure role-playing video game

Heroine's Quest: The Herald of Ragnarok is an adventure game/RPG hybrid developed by Dutch studio Crystal Shard, set in the world of the Poetic Edda and Norse Mythology.

<i>Hylics</i> 2015 role-playing video game

Hylics is a role-playing video game developed and published by Mason Lindroth. It was released for Windows on October 2, 2015, on Steam and Itch.io. The game uses claymation graphics to depict a surreal world. A sequel, Hylics 2, was released in 2020.

<i>Rise of Industry</i> 2019 video game

Rise of Industry is a business tycoon game developed by Spanish indie team Dapper Penguin Studios and published by Kasedo Games. The game sees players build and manage their industrial empires as they attempt to grow and expand in the early 20th century.

<i>Surviv.io</i> Browser-based battle royale video game

Surviv.io was a browser-based multiplayer online 2D battle royale game created by Justin Kim and Nick Clark. It was released in October 2017 on its website for desktop browsers, and in October and November 2018 respectively for iOS and Android devices. Similar to other titles in the battle royale genre, players battled against other players on a large map from a top-down perspective, scavenging for supplies and weapons. The game also supported two or four player team modes, and could be played on mobile browsers as well.

<i>Town of Salem</i> 2014 video game

Town of Salem is an online multiplayer game with social deduction and strategy elements. It was developed and published by indie game developer BlankMediaGames, and released on December 15, 2014. Early alpha and beta versions were browser-based and free-to-play. On October 14, 2018, the game was released for iOS and Android mobile devices after a successful and long-supported Kickstarter fundraiser.

A roguelike deck-building game is a hybrid genre of video games that combines the nature of deck-building card games with procedural-generated randomness from roguelike games.

<i>Dustnet</i> 2019 video game

Dustnet is a 2019 asymmetrical, action, sandbox video game developed by Canadian studio SCRNPRNT. The game explores the theme of "dying" or disappearing multiplayer video games and their player bases, with the gameplay being set around a copy of the Dust II multiplayer map, originally created for Counter-Strike in 2001.

<i>Among Us</i> 2018 social deduction video game

Among Us is a 2018 online multiplayer social deduction game developed and published by American game studio Innersloth. The game allows for cross-platform play; it was released on iOS and Android devices in June 2018 and on Windows later that year in November. It was ported to the Nintendo Switch in December 2020 and on the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S in December 2021. A virtual reality adaptation, Among Us VR, was released on November 10, 2022.

<i>Raft</i> (video game) 2018 survival video game

Raft is an open world survival-sandbox video game developed by Swedish developer Redbeet Interactive, and published by Axolot Games. The game was released as an early access title on 23 May 2018 on Steam, after initial release as a free download on indie platform Itch.io in 2016. On 20 June 2022 Raft was taken out of early access with the release of its final chapter. Taking place in a flooded apocalypse the player takes on the role of a forward scout, a survivor who ventures out into the open sea in search of habitable land and resources.

<i>Inscryption</i> 2021 video game

Inscryption is a 2021 roguelike deck-building game developed by Daniel Mullins Games and published by Devolver Digital. Directed by Daniel Mullins, it was originally released for Windows on October 19, 2021, and on Linux, macOS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S over the following two years. The game puts the player in a cabin where a mysterious gamemaster makes them play a tabletop game.

<i>Pseudoregalia</i> 2023 video game

Pseudoregalia is a 2023 platform game, by indie developer rittzler. The player controls Sybil, an anthropomorphic goat-like creature, who finds herself trapped in a castle in a dream realm. It is stylistically influenced by fifth generation era video games of the late 1990s, utilizing low-poly graphics.

Cobalt Core is a roguelike deck-building game released in November 2023 for Nintendo Switch and Windows, developed by Rocket Rat Games and published by Brace Yourself Games. It follows a group of characters who are stuck in a time loop. The game takes place in space.

References

  1. 1 2 Klubnika, Mike [@mikeklubnika] (December 28, 2023). "Sick, thanks a lot for playing man :). Yeah this is all Godot!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 2024-01-31 – via Twitter.
  2. 1 2 3 Painter, Rachel (2024-01-02). "Buckshot Roulette Garnering Attention". mxdwn Games. Archived from the original on 2024-01-09. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  3. ↑ "Buckshot Roulette - New Release Date Announcement". Steam News. 2024-03-08. Retrieved 2024-03-12.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 O'Connor, Alice (2024-01-04). "Inscryption meets Russian Roulette in this weird short horror game". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on 2024-01-09. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  5. 1 2 Marshall, Cass (2024-01-09). "This indie game has you square off against a shotgun-wielding car dealer". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2024-01-09. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  6. ↑ "BUCKSHOT ROULETTE soundtrack, by Mike Klubnika". Bandcamp. Retrieved 2024-04-10.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 LeClair, Kyle (2024-04-19). "Review: Buckshot Roulette". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  8. ↑ LeClair, Kyle (2024-04-19). "Viral Hit Buckshot Roulette Sells Over One Million Copies". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  9. ↑ Lopez, Azario (2024-04-17). "Buckshot Roulette Sold Over 1 Million Copies After Launching For $2.99". Noisy Pixel. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  10. ↑ Cryer, Hirun (2024-04-23). "Team behind Steam's latest mega-hit was just joking when it said it would "double our sales," but then its horror gambling game actually sold 1 million copies". GamesRadar+ . Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  11. 1 2 3 Brendan Lowry (2024-01-10). "Is Buckshot Roulette on Xbox?". Windows Central. Archived from the original on 2024-01-10. Retrieved 2024-01-10.
  12. 1 2 3 Kavanagh, Pyre (2024-04-04). "Buckshot Roulette Review - The Perfect Game For Streamers 2024". Noisy Pixel. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  13. 1 2 3 Cochrane, Noah (2024-01-02). "Buckshot Roulette Is Taking The Spotlight On All Media". GameTyrant. Archived from the original on 2024-01-09. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  14. 1 2 3 Raine, Natalie; Sanchez, Miranda (2024-04-09). "Items in Buckshot Roulette - Buckshot Roulette Guide". IGN. Retrieved 2024-04-10.
  15. 1 2 Fama, Daphne (2024-04-05). "All Items and Uses in Buckshot Roulette". Destructoid. Retrieved 2024-04-28.
  16. ↑ "v1.1 - Buckshot Roulette by Mike Klubnika". itch.io . 2024-01-12. Archived from the original on 2024-01-17. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
  17. ↑ "Buckshot Roulette". Metacritic . Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  18. ↑ "Buckshot Roulette Reviews". OpenCritic. Retrieved 2024-05-22.
  19. ↑ Madnani, Mikhail (April 5, 2024). "Steam Deck Weekly: Buckshot Roulette Review, Class of Heroes and SaGa Emerald Beyond Impressions, Front Mission 2 Remake and SMT5 News, and More". TouchArcade . Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  20. ↑ Carcasole, David (2024-01-04). "Is Buckshot Roulette On PS5?". PlayStation Universe. Archived from the original on 2024-01-09. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.