Survival horror games are pretty cool these days. But there’s nothing like the good ol’ days when the genre found its footing. Silent Hill. Resident Evil. Dino Crisis. All these greats immediately come to mind when it comes to high-grade tension and storytelling. And we’re happy to say that the devs at Krufs Productions are taking this route with its forthcoming Heavy Metal Death Can.
Set to arrive in 2026 for Steam, the game whisks you away to 1970s Sweden. You’re aboard a military submarine that’s plagued by deadly creatures, forcing you to act against them. And by act, that means shooting them with whatever ammo you can find.
Krufs did their homework with this title. Not only is it emulating the classic appearance of a Resident Evil style game, but also its controls. It has classic “tank controls,” meaning you turn your character manually instead of moving them in real time. What’s more, the choices you make lead your character’s fate, indicating that we could be seeing multiple endings.
Based on our preview time with this game, Heavy Metal Death Can looks to be something special. Especially if you grew up with Capcom’s PS1 horror classics. You’ll be right at home here.
Heavy Metal Death Can Brings the Chaos
In this forthcoming release, you take on the Sludge. Now before you go, “Wait, isn’t that mud?” Nah, it’s something worse. The Sludge manages to convert living people into terrifying, oil-spewing zombies. And what’s more, they’re hungry for human flesh. Because what zombie isn’t?
As one of the few remaining survivors not infected by this Sludge, it’s up to you to get to the bottom of things. How can you stop the Sludge? What can you do about the survivors? As you dig up clues, you’ll also seek out ammunition to stay alive. But use each shot carefully – because once you run out, your luck might just go with it!
We only played a small taste of what the full game will provide. But its Resident Evil essence truly shines through. The classic third-person stilted perspectives really sell the idea of “hey, what’s that around the corner…?”. What’s more, the tank controls actually feel pretty good, in spite of the aged approach. And, yeah, the monster encounters are as cool as they come. At least, what we experienced so far.
There’s Also Metal Music, Because Of Course
Heavy Metal Death Can also benefits from, surprise, heavy metal music. What did you expect, an accordion?
The band Argos Eye provides the tunes here, and how. The tracks we heard thus far are really good, and show an example of what this infused set of tunes can do. The finished game should have plenty of these, and give the band a boost forward. Rightfully so.
Along with the music, the visuals look really nice thus far. As I stated, the game uses fixed camera perspectives (ala Resident Evil). That allows the devs at Krufs to focus more on the animations, which are very cool. But they don’t overstay their welcome, keeping that 90s influence completely intact. Plus there’s something about being trapped in a submarine with monstrous zombies that gives you that claustrophobic feeling. Yes, those are shivers going down your spine.
Sub-Terror Awaits
There’s still a bit of time before Heavy Metal Death Can makes its debut, as it’s slated to arrive next year. Right now, it’s only going to be on Steam. But I hope the devs consider other platforms as well. It’d be great to see this on Xbox and the Nintendo Switch platforms.
Thus far, it’s got a great deal of promise, especially to fans of the genre. And the bits and pieces of the soundtrack show exactly what Argos Eye can do. Here’s hoping we hear even more killer tracks as development goes on.
Get ready, horror lovers. Because Heavy Metal Death Can will let you take out the garbage in style.
You can add the game to your Steam wishlist here.
Need more scary gaming goodness? Check out our review of the classic Outlast!
