Pigface Preview - Cleaning Out the House

You've just woken up in a grimy, dark warehouse. There's a throbbing in your head. The voice on the radio says he just implanted a bomb in your brain. Do what you're asked, or it's lights out. Forever. 

Pigface makes a strong first impression. I came in expecting more of a horror slant, as it publisher DreadXP's specialty, but was met with something more akin to an immersive sim combined with retro shooter elements. This Early Access build of Pigface offers a brief, but thrilling look at what we can expect in its full release, and now I'm chomping at the bit to see what's next.

Contract Killing in Pigface

In Pigface, you're tasked with taking on various hits. You're essentially a cleaner, a professional at killing. Boot up your old, early 2000s laptop in the rundown apartment you live in and get to work. The first job is a farmhouse; apparently, some folks called "The Smilers" need killing. While you're at it, you'll need to grab a sample of their drugs and folders with info on their other hideouts.

With the money that you earn on jobs, you're able to purchase new equipment. This mostly comes in the form of guns, and as you progress, players can buy even better firearms and attachments for them. There are also melee weapons, body armor, morphine, and tools like landmines. Whatever you need to get the job done.

So for this first job, you're short on cash and it's actually pretty tricky with few tools at your disposal. The farm is inhabited by over 20 armed thugs, and you're given, essentially, nothing but the most basic items. The good news is, you can approach Pigface's levels in many different ways, which makes it feel quite a bit like an immersive sim.

Since I was surrounded by all sides by goons armed to the teeth, sneaking around was key. I didn't hit the farmhouse first since it was chock full of The Smilers, so I went to the barn and took out some thugs in a frantic firefight. 

Eventually, I make my way to the house on the property. It's a mini fortress, with sentries up high and patrols all around. Thankfully, I've got more ammo for a TEC-9 I scavenged. 

Pigface's Tools of the Trade

Scavenging seems like a key component to Pigface, too, since ammo is a finite resource. You're not running around, picking up floating ammo refills. You'll have to make do with the guns of your enemies once you run out of your main weapon's ammo. If all else fails, use a melee weapon like a hammer, but that makes you extremely vulnerable. Use of cover and not rushing in head-on seems crucial. 

You're pretty susceptible to gunfire in Pigface, but enemies are equally so. Unlike, say, a boomer shooter, enemies drop down a bit quicker. A headshot is immediately lethal, but depending on the weapon, even a shot to the body may drop them for good. 

While at first you feel at a disadvantage with the number of enemies, later missions start to feel easier. Levels grow in both size and complexity, but the weapons and tools available to you level the playing field. I appreciate the flexibility players are given with their build, especially with weapon variety.

There are pistols, rifles, and machine guns, all of which behave different. Some of them have optional scope or silencer attachments, while others don't. Gunplay feels more realistic than your usual shooter. There isn't a reticle, so you're reliant on iron sights, though some guns don't even have that. 

Death From Afar

Some weapons could use some balancing, though, as they make Pigface's missions far too trivial. I equipped myself with a scoped .357 magnum and sniped enemies from afar. They weren't able to tell where my bullets came from, so it was just a matter of picking everyone off one by one.

This was without a silencer attached to the magnum, by the way. Using a silencer would have made things even easier since enemies can detect noise, so my choice in not using one was to add just a little bit of a challenge. Hopefully, in later builds, highly accurate, long-range weapons have a trade-off, so it's not so easy to abuse this. 

Nevertheless, I hope the core gameplay loop of Pigface stays true to how it is currently. Completing objectives like eliminating certain targets or destroying drug-making materials in any manner I see fit is simple but enjoyable. The gunplay ticks all the right boxes, even if it doesn't feel like a traditional shooter, and if I can get even more fun guns to play with, all the better. 

Pigface Preview | Final Thoughts

The aesthetic for Pigface is not necessarily completely original, but I enjoy look it's going for. The low-poly graphics and the piss-colored filter gives off a certain dark, brooding, edgy feel. It's an uncompromising, dirty, and extremely violent shooter involving some dirty work, so it all fits thematically. 

Whether you're trudging through the sewers of a dilapidated suburb or shooting your way through a rinky-dink motel full of drugs and thugs, the Early Access for Pigface is a promising first look. Who knows, there might even be a few surprises waiting for players in the future. I can't wait to see for myself!

Pigface was previewed on PC using a copy provided by the publisher over the course of 3 hours of gameplay - all screenshots were taken during the process of preview.

Disclaimer: Our reviews editor, Sam Guglielmo, works at publisher Dread XP but did not edit or view this piece prior to publication.