Steam Drops Gorgeous Free Game With 98% Positive Reviews

If a fast-paced melee action game sounds like your kind of thing, Steam has just the one you’ll want to add to your library.

Released on June 11, HYPERFIST is one of those games that lets you punch your stress out—literally. You can play it for free on Steam. Interestingly, the game is a student project developed at the DigiPen Institute of Technology in Washington over two academic years for educational purposes only. Despite its limited resources and investment, HYPERFIST has managed to impress many Steam players with its chaotic yet surprisingly stress-busting experience, earning a “Very Positive” overall rating so far. More surprisingly, the game apparently had over 7,000 wishlists before launch—an applaudable feat, to say the least.

For those wondering, HYPERFIST focuses on punching, grabbing, and other hand-to-hand combat in first-person, proving that you don't need a massive budget to deliver good ol’ satisfying combat. Developed by a student team named CHIRALITY, the game puts players in the shoes of Heath, a rebellious punk wielding powerful mecha-fists on a mission to take down the robotic forces of the oppressive Khi Corporation. If you’re expecting guns and other weapons, you might as well leave because there aren’t any. Instead, players can chain together stylish punches, grabs, combos, and special attacks while keeping a combo meter that makes their fists even stronger.

In HYPERFIST, every encounter feels fast and impactful, thanks to the comic book-style graphics, a punk-rock soundtrack, and a fluid movement system. Players race through three action-packed levels, full of robotic enemies, before facing an enormous final boss. The campaign isn’t too long, but the refined mechanics and arcade-style score-chasing gameplay make for a fun ride from start to finish.

The game has attracted several reviews from players since its release and currently boasts a 98% positive rating on Steam. Gamers are majorly impressed by its combat system and art style and the fact that it’s a short and sweet experience. As a free game, it has everything one could wish for. That said, some players expressed willingness to pay if the developers worked on adding more content to it in the future.

“Awesome game for a higher education project, clearly very talented people made this. The art direction is great, very distinct comic style and well-drawn animations,” one player wrote in their Steam review for HYPERFIST. “Combat was just enough for the scope of this project; if there’s a paid game in the future, I’d want some more combat and movement depth, some abilities, better feedback on attacks, more limitations on self, like stamina, higher difficulty, different equipable hands, a more diverse enemy set, etc.”

A lot of players wrote about the game’s visuals being too “flashy,” but it definitely doesn’t stop the fun—unless you are sensitive to speedy movement on screen. “First off- epilepsy warning! This game has some crazy flashing colors,” a player wrote. “Movement is very satisfying. Fighting is alright, there is a good variety of enemies and moves, and thankfully the game didn't drag on for too long, so I didn’t get bored of punching robots. Music is totally radical! Visual style will not be for everyone; it was fine for me. Sometimes, your fists take half the screen, and the other half is filled with flashing colors from your hits, which makes it hard to see what’s what.

Needless to say, HYPERFIST is a surprisingly polished and satisfying first-person melee experience for a free student-developed project. If you’re looking for a quick dose of frantic fun, where you can punch your way through hordes of robots, this Steam freebie is definitely worth a look.