Heaven’s Machine sees you shooting your way through a train headed for the afterlife, hoping to reach the conductor in time to save your loved one.
Jack’s woken up on this strange randomly-generated train, finding himself at the far end away from the person driving it. And their beloved, who’s on a fast track to Heaven. It’s a bit too early for them to be heading to the great beyond, though, so you’re going to need to grab a gun and start shooting your way to the front of the train. There’s many agents aboard this train who want to keep you from stopping this natural movement to the afterlife, though, and they’re just as armed as you are. You’ll need to move fast throughout the top-down action and mow down foes fast if you want to make it.
If you die, though, should you end up on another train yourself? Best not to think about it too much.
There’s a large array of tools you can grab or buy throughout your rapid journey through the rail cars, each giving you some new way to cut through the forces in your path. It’ll be good to get some fast or strong weapons, as the game’s soundtrack is filled with a pulsing energy that will make you want to keep pressing forward. Plus, if you don’t cut down your enemies as fast as possible, you’re going to get overwhelmed. Lots of your foes fire lots of shots, so it’s easy to get yourself in a bad spot unless you become a precise, remorseless, well-armed killer.
Heaven’s Machine is grim and dark, filled with all sorts of horrifying bosses looking to stop your trek to the front car. It’s hard to deny that desire to push forward, though, driven emotionally by the story and the moment-to-moment chaos of the impressive combat.
Heaven’s Machine is available now on itch.io.
