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I have finally gotten the chance to play the full version of Das Humankapital´s Post-apocalyptic retro 2D platformer “Atomic Butcher: Homo Metabolicus“, and I´ll have you know that the game is everything that I expected it to be. The Metal soundtrack is super heavy, and you get to slaughter everything that comes in your way. Furthermore, you´ll have a blast while you´re playing through each level of the game. So, what is it that makes Atomic Butcher so darn awesome then? Well, for starter, the game looks and feels like a mix of “Toxic Crusaders”,“Boogerman”, “Soldat”, “Life Force” and “Abuse“.

atomic butcher homo-metabolicus the vomit attack

You can vomit your enemies to death in “Atomic Butcher: Homo Metabolicus”.

In other words, Atomic Butcher offers one hell of an intense action fest. In the matter of fact, there are very few calm moments in the game where you´re not killing or blowing something up . So I wasn´t joking when I stated that Atomic Butcher is like the Brutal Doom of 2D platformers (I did that in my PC preview of Atomic Butcher), because the game is indeed really gory and ultra violent to the max. So much so that the game might not be everyone’s cup of tea. You see. This is the kind of game that let´s you to pee, shit and vomit on everything that comes in your path (no matter if it´s dead, alive or whatever).

atomic butcher homo metabolicus slaughter

This is what happens when “Brutal Doom” goes action/platformer.

So, yeah, Atomic Butcher is not the kind of game that I would recommend you to play if you have a weak stomach. Especially not since the gross level increases the further you get in the game, and how and why is that? It´s because most of the game´s special abilities (you get them by picking up some green glowing and hovering objects) allows you to do some even grosser attacks (like the ability to shit three times in a row while jumping). Hell, you can even jump and smash your enemies to death as well (that always makes blood and guts fly all over the screen).

atomic butcher homo metabolicus poop attack

Death from above? More like “shit from above”.

Nevertheless, you get a pretty good idea what you´re in for as soon as Atomic butcher kicks off though. As the game presents the following plot to you shortly after that you have booted up the game:

“…humanity finally managed to destroy itself: The world has ended. The details have long been forgotten … a great collapse, mass madness, cannibalism, no more free wi-fi. After the downfall, strange beings emerged from the radiated, poisoned remains… Beings such as you: Ages ago born as a human in the old world, then changed into something else, mutated by radiation and toxic waste. Your brain has been completely fused with your intestinal tract, and combined with your superhuman strength you have become the perfect weapon of mass digestion. Behold the next step in human evolution: “Homo Metabolicus”!”

Yes, you guessed it. The world as we know it has ended, and you play as a mutated monster called the Atomic Butcher (aka “the next step in human evolution: “Homo Metabolicus”!”). So you basically have to do whatever it takes to stay alive against all odds, and not only that, you also have to keep Atomic butcher well fed as well (when you eat your “meat” meter fills up, and once the meat meter is full, you can use the ultra deadly vomit attack!). As it allows you to use some really powerful special attacks (yay to rainbow pee and vomit attacks!). There is one more reason behind why you should feed the Atomic butcher, and that would be the fact that you regain health by eating whatever is up for offer (it can be everything from corpses, brains to corpses).

Yes, you can kill hipsters/SJWs in the world of Atomic Butcher.

And trust me when I say this, you´re going to need all the health and weapons that you could possibly carry, because everything and everyone is out to get you (mutants, soldiers, monsters and “things” which I can´t even describe with words). Sure, there are plenty of different weapons to be found in the game (like machine guns, flamethrowers and rocket launchers, for example). However, you need to learn how to use them properly to stand a chance in hell against your enemies, and every single weapon has a limited amount of ammo (you don´t reload the guns. You just toss useless weapons away and pick up a loaded one instead). Even so, you can still use unloaded weapons as a weapon, by tossing the weapon in question in the face of your enemy (s). You can also use dead enemies, rocks and broken gun turrets as projectile weapons (thanks to the 360° aiming feature, you can take out your enemies in all kinds of angels).

So you basically use whatever you got at your disposal in-order to kill whatever comes in your way. I for one killed some giant mutated boss with the help of a rocket launcher and a lot of pee (I honestly never thought that I would experience anything quite like that in my life time). So, all in all (despite the game´s bugs and glitches), Atomic Butcher: Homo Metabolicus is most definitely one of the best 2D post-apocalyptic action/platformer titles that I have ever played.

Pros:
+ Fun O´plenty and lots of eggs and hidden stuff
+ Epic metal soundtrack
+ Tons of weapons and things to kill
+ Super cool explosion effects
+ Impressive retro graphics
+ Massive boss fights
+ Neat special abilities and 360° aiming

Cons:
– The game might gross you out
– Bugs and glitches
– The difficulty level could be a turn off for some

Gameplay: 5/5
Graphics: 4/5
Sound: 4/5
Controls: 4/5
Replay Value: 4/5

tgg grade 4 out of 5

Verdict: 4/5
Atomic Butcher: Homo Metabolicus is with no doubt one of THE best retro-like 2D action platformers on the market right now, and Atomic Butcher´s epic Metal soundtrack alone makes the game worth picking up.

Title: Atomic Butcher: Homo Metabolicus
Developer: Das Humankapital
Format: PC
Genre: Action/platformer
Resolution: Higest possible on PC
Release date: 2016-10-21
Difficulty: Normal
Spent time: +3 hours
Average grade internationally: N/A Gamerankings.com
PEGI age rating: +16
Price: 11,69 Euros via Steam