RIPOUT Review — Cooperative Body Horror

Back in October of 2023, I got the chance before everyone else to review the Early Access release of RIPOUT, a cooperative roguelike horror game/extraction shooter set in a unique sci-fi universe. Despite what I consider to be a mostly negative review (or perhaps because of it?), the developers of RIPOUT gave me the chance to experience the game again in its brand-new, ready-to-release form. While there are still some areas I feel the need to pick and prod at, overall, I can say that RIPOUT has come a long way since my first time playing it and has managed to exceed my expectations.

If you missed my early access preview, you probably don’t know that one of the strongest things RIPOUT has going for it is its setting and core concept: Body horror.

RIPOUT takes place in the not-so-distant future, where a bio-engineered weapon called the Cell, designed to create a self-regenerating super soldier, has grown out of the control of its creators and turned into a fleshy plague that forcibly knits biomatter into terrifying hive-minded creatures that would be at home on the set of John Carpenter’s The Thing.

As the last of the bioengineered soldiers actually designed to wield this terrifying weapon, you awake in deep space and slowly become cognisant of humanity’s fate. It doesn’t take long to learn that the entirety of the human race has been forced into deep space and that somewhere out there is a sanctuary sheltering the last of making from the Cell; a sanctuary that is in danger of being discovered, and one you must race to find and save before its too late.

Something I was very vocal about in my Early Access preview of RIPOUT was that, as interesting as the setting was, the game did not look enough like what it was trying to present. That is certainly no longer the case.

The game feels so much more like a sci-fi horror title now than it did the last time I played it. The lighting feels a little heavier, casting darker shadows on terrain that is a little more muted and realistic. Gone is the use of many of the game’s harsher neon colors, and enemies feel more grotesque than they were before, with what appear to be higher-res textures and more gruesome, fleshy, awful designs that I simply adore.

The atmosphere that I found lacking in the first is definitely there now. The enemies feel more varied, dangerous, and interesting to look at, and if not for the heavy weaponry in your hands, you might be genuinely terrified to take a step forward in any of the hulking, abandoned ships that now serve as mass graves lost in space.

RIPOUT plays very similarly to its Early Access beta. You enter each level with a living gun, affectionately called your pet, which functions as a shotgun or rocket launcher and everything in between, depending on how you choose to load it out. You can sacrifice momentary use of your gun to have it latch on and stun or outright kill enemies with a gruesome bite attack or grab and equip critters to your shoulder socket.

Critters are sentient flesh tools that offer a variety of effects, be it missile launchers, shields, a gruesome claw that tears faces apart, or a healing organism for you and your teammates. You find them scattered around levels and must attach them to your body using your pet gun in order to make use of their functions. Enemies can also use them, which makes each encounter with a critter a decision between using their powers for yourself or gunning them down before they can turn a flesh hulk into a far more dangerous beast.

RIPOUT follows a basic extraction shooter-level design philosophy. You load onto an abandoned ship with an objective, and objective you find, complete, and then leave, sometimes with a timer, often picking up crafting materials and recipes as you go. Each level is procedurally generated and features a host of powerups to pick up to make the run a little easier.

My biggest complaint about the gameplay is that you can’t take these perks with you out of a level. They expire when you return to the hub ship, which often is within 10 to 15 minutes, as most levels in RIPOUT do not last very long. You should be able to keep them until death, which wouldn’t be very broken because it will catch you plenty of times in your playthrough.

Death and damage can feel a little cheap in RIPOUT. Mind you, I don’t mind the enemies hitting hard; you have plenty of tools to keep them back, and they’re exciting combat encounters, knowing how quickly they can take you down. What bothers me is the plentiful traps in the game that can totally catch you unawares. I often found myself losing half my bar or even going down to a trap that wasn’t even on my screen.

Something RIPOUT didn’t improve on that I really hoped it would was the movement mechanics. You’re still limited to basic sprinting with a stamina bar, albeit said bar feels a little more generous now. Fall damage is present and feels really bad in a game with so many easily jumpable ledges and enemies that can literally spawn just behind you. If I had my way, I’d remove it all together.

The game is fairly solid and free of glitches, but not devoid of them. I saw several spelling errors here and there, and my co-op partner fell through the map once during an early mission.

Friendly fire is also pretty aggressive and should, in my opinion, be nerfed or removed outright, especially given how soon the game starts handing out rocket launchers.

Try Hard Guides received a PC review code for this game. Find more detailed looks at popular and upcoming titles on our Game Reviews page! RIPOUT is available on Steam.