I like to drag out the Steam Nextfest demos because I don’t want people to forget about them a week after the event ends. People will make a five-minute video on their favorite demos, and then the video gets lost in the void. This week is a Devolver game and it is truly special, even though it is a weird one. Take down a cult without one bullet backed by a lot of rage. This week is Children of The Sun.

Children of The Sun is a puzzle shooter from René Rother and Devolver Digital. The game is slated to be released for the PC and is TBA.

You play as “The Girl” who is waging absolute war on “The Cult.” Yada, yada, The Cult killed someone she loved and she is now out to make The Cult extinct with her rifle and her uncanny ability to telekinetically direct bullets wherever she wants. The cutscenes are edgy, bloody, and horrific and give a good explanation of why we should really hate this band of shitheads.

Children of The Sun‘s gameplay is something I don’t think that I have encountered before. The Girl sits on the outskirts of multiple locations, running around without infiltrating, attempting to find the perfect spot to take a shot. Enemy placement is like a puzzle, there will be a set number of enemies that need to be taken out and a number of redirects the player can use. These will be taken in effect for scoring when the level is completed and scoring is conducted. Things like distance, headshots, if the challenge is completed, and if targets are moving all account in scoring. There is a leaderboard for competitive sake.

Once you are comfortable with your placement, take aim and fire. Once the bullet takes flight the gameplay begins. As the bullet pierces its first victim the player is given the chance to move the bullet in the direction of another enemy, in a “bullet time-like” fashion. Enemies react according to their friends dying and disperse as you hunt them down with a single magical bullet, making connecting the bullet with the baddies difficult.

Children of The Sun‘s demo gives the player full reign as they enter levels, position themselves accordingly, and attempt to get the best score. Toward the end of the demo, players are introduced to a deeper mechanic of hitting certain parts of enemies to fill a gauge that allows the player to manipulate the bullet trajectory, moving around structures to get to those pesky, hiding enemies.

It works and the whole gameplay feels so good when you get it right.

Children of The Sun is certainly unique. I think the best way to describe the artistic design is that it looks and feels like Hotline Miami with its creepy, neon-filled cutscenes. The gameplay is filled with reds, pinks, purples, and blues that make the ritual murder so much more beautiful.

It is truly amazing.

Children of The Sun is a great demo that I am sure of this look that you can still download. I would 100 percent recommend it because it is amazing. Children of The Sun takes something so simple and turns it upside down. Murdering cult members is always fun, but what if there was a puzzle aspect to it? The demo lasts roughly thirty minutes and the last level is an absolute delight. Having to murder a bunch of people doing donuts in a Ford Bronco is so fun.