Necromunda: Hired Gun

 Xbox Series X
Metascore
56

Mixed or average reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 11
  3. Negative: 2 out of 11
  1. Jeuxvideo.com
    Sep 29, 2021
    50
    Despite his promising beginnings, impressive artistic direction and sincere good ideas, Necromunda Hired Gun proves to be an experience far too fragile on the rest to bring true playing pleasure.
  2. GamingTrend
    Aug 5, 2021
    60
    Some good warhammer 40k vibes can be found here but there’s just a bit too much going on in Necromunda: Hired Gun. The fast-paced FPS gameplay needs refining and is constantly slowed down by the RPG elements which in turn are not allowed to shine through the FPS aspect. I actually think this setting would lend itself more to a Skyrim style RPG more so than a first person shooter but this is what we got and I am actually a bit gutted that I can’t like it more than I do.
  3. ZTGD
    Jul 15, 2021
    65
    Necromunda: Hired Gun is a perfect example of a game that does the Warhammer 40k license justice. If it had the time to hammer out the bugs and issues it could have easily been a sleeper hit of 2021. As it stands it remains a forgettable release that launched with too many issues to keep players’ attention. Even well after launch the game remains in a bad state that makes it hard for me to recommend checking it out. I hope the game gets ironed out at some point, but by then it may be far too late to return to.
  5. Generación Xbox
    Jul 5, 2021
    60
    Beneath the technical problems of Necromunda Hired Gun on consoles lies a highly recommendable shooter.
  6. Xbox Tavern
    Jun 28, 2021
    74
    Hired Gun is a game that punches above its weight in that it tries to take on too many things at once and struggles under the sheer weight of the number of ideas it introduces. In many ways it is better than its AAA peers because of its audacity, in other ways it is an example of a game that needed a few features cut.
  7. SomosXbox
    Jun 18, 2021
    60
    Necromunda: Hired Gun is a game for those who enjoy action, with brutal and bloody combat, as well as confrontations that always make you feel satisfied. The mix between sets, with amazing art and design, verticality and gunplay can work really well and be really fun. Unfortunately, his mistakes take their toll and ruin a game that in design and proposal had a lot of potential.
  8. MondoXbox
    Jun 10, 2021
    45
    Necromunda: Hired Gun gets some good ideas and a great potential and throws them away in a bad production, anonymous plot and embarrassing direction.
  9. Screen Rant
    Jun 7, 2021
    60
    In spite of these flaws, the chaotic level of excess is also why it's still worth giving Necromunda: Hired Gun a chance at some point if the bugs and crashing end up fixed. Firing off giant green energy spheres and grenades before teleporting into a huge enemy and making them explode is fun even if it's not challenging. This is the type of design that's overflowing with ideas, mixing and matching concepts from other titles just to see what sticks. Even if the game doesn't come together as a cohesive whole, there's enough fun here to keep fans of FPS and 40K happy. Combine all that with the beautifully realized environments of Warhammer's darkest underground city and Necromunda: Hired Gun gives off a great vibe and ends up enjoyable despite itself.
  10. WellPlayed
    Jun 7, 2021
    45
    Necromunda: Hired Gun features a stunning art direction, but with a garbled story and more technical and design blemishes than you can poke a space stick at, this one's bound to be buried in the under-hive.
  11. GAMES.CH
    Jun 7, 2021
    65
    It saddens us to see a game with such potential, fall so far from grace. The gunplay and weapon variety kept us coming back for more, but every time we played one of the mind-numbingly boring side missions to grind for the expensive upgrades, we regretted our decision to turn on the console. Some aspects are fixable, no doubt and eventually Necromunda: Hired Gun might be worth your time. Reviewing the product at hand though,we cannot recommend Necromunda: Hired Gun above pretty much any other shooter that came out in recent memory. It sadly seems the Warhammer curse has claimed another victim.
  12. IGN
    Jun 2, 2021
    50
    Necromunda: Hired Gun has an iconic setting, lots of gore, and great mobility and gunplay, but it keeps giving you reasons to not play it. Whether it's the technical issues, the hopelessly dim AI, or a story that’s as bland as a barn door and comically short, you have to be willing to overlook a towering pile of aggravating problems in order to appreciate what this RPG shooter does well.
This publication does not provide a score for their reviews.
This publication has not posted a final review score yet.
These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation.

In Progress & Unscored

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  1. Polygon
    Jun 8, 2021
    If you enjoy Warhammer 40,000 and Necromunda specifically, then you’re likely to put up with everything this game throws at you to make you not enjoy it. There is a time and place for genuinely average games. In a world where it seems like every triple-A game has to either be “amazing” or “terrible,” it feels kind of nice to spend a weekend with a double-A game that is fun enough, interesting enough, and (again, thankfully) quite short. Necromunda: Hired Gun is a great average game.
  2. Xboxygen
    Jun 11, 2021
    Even though we had no knowledge about Necromunda’s universe, we had a good time playing it. It’s hard to say if the lore purists and aficionados will be convinced, but we truly enjoyed the game’s artistic direction and the environment depicted by the development team. Unfortunately, the plot (as well as the side missions) truly lacks some depth and nothing really helps us understand what is going on with Necromunda and the gangs inhabiting it. Nonetheless, the title offers a dynamic and pleasant gameplay sublimated by a decent soundtrack and level design. It’s a shame the game gets tarnished by small technical glitches and defects. As is, and as long as those issues haven’t been fixed, we’d say wait a bit before buying it.

Awards & Rankings

79
#79 Best Xbox Series X Game of 2021
59
#59 Most Discussed Xbox Series X Game of 2021

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
5.6

Mixed or average reviews- based on 12 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 12
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 12
  3. Negative: 4 out of 12
  1. OKdrummer87
    Jun 15, 2021
    5
    First a tip for players, set aiming assist to 50% and controller deadzone to 10% this cleans up aiming issues a lot. A disappointing FPSFirst a tip for players, set aiming assist to 50% and controller deadzone to 10% this cleans up aiming issues a lot. A disappointing FPS hampered by bugs. I really had high hopes for this game. Necromunda: HR is a fast paced frantic FPS in the style of Doom and that's what hooked me. A Doom style game set in 40K? Yes yes yes.There is wall running, double jumping, and even a grappling hook. The set pieces are intricately designed with the lore in mind and there is so much to look at the game nails almost all of it. The narrative is hardly original, you are a bounty hunter betrayed on the first mission and looking for revenge. But hardly anyone plays shooters for the story. When it comes to gameplay the game throws endless waves of enemies at you as you progress through levels. Levels can range from small sewer's to huge open spaces. There are tons of nooks and crannies to explore and the devs have hidden loot chests and pick ups all over the maps. Problem is, sometimes the HUD does not give good indication of where you need to go. There are four catagories of guns (pistol, special, heavy, and basic) all of which can be customized and two catagories of special trait items that effect stats. And that is where we come to some of the games glaring issues. For a supposed "looter" the loot menu and loadout screen is horrendously bad. There is little in the way of information on how special items work and most seem inconsequential. It feels like the loot system was thrown in with little planning or thought because it feels so shallow. There are some bugs as of right now (camera movement, clipping through walls during takedowns, the gun not shooting). Wall running is different in HR than in Titanfall. Instead of just automatically happening like in Titanfall you have to hold down A (which is also the jump button). You can see the issue when pressing A twice does a double jump. It makes wall running frustrating and honestly I use it very little unless forced to. I am sure they will be patched soon and when they do I will come back and update my review. At this point I cannot recommend this game on XBSX until it is patched. Once it has been there is great potential for it to be a fun mindless shooter.… Full Review »
  2. CraigEchols
    Jun 9, 2023
    7
    I am playing this game much later on after release (which is my preference because I distrust the industry and buy nothing day 1).

    The story    I am playing this game much later on after release (which is my preference because I distrust the industry and buy nothing day 1).

    The story and narrative: Very unoriginal and uninsprired. However, name me an FPS you play for the story? The characters are pretty meh too. Every person is a grizzled merc with deep, rough and tough voices and blah blah. Again, I can take or leave a story in an FPS that's not an RPG.

    Gameplay: The best and worst part of the game. Clearly inspired (and ripping off) from DOOM, the gameplay is fast paced and weirdly loose. You may wanna use some form of aim assist because this game has very wavey shooting mechanics (i.e. shaky aimming, constant movement). The game has looter elements, but they hardly make sense. While the classes are simple (pistol, rifle, shotgun, heavy) upgrading weapons can feel like a chore because it is confusing and really slows the game down. I understand what the developers were going for, it just wasn't done the best. The game features a "heal upon kill" mechanic which is neat and necessary more on that later. There is even a takedown (glory kill) that is pretty awesome looking.

    World: A big problem with the game is while it is fleshed out and pretty, it can be difficult to know where to go since maps tend to be very dark and unobious. Many times I thought I was going right way only to run into a dead end or die because I jumped into something or ran into something I wasn't supposed to. However, when stepping back, it does look well done.

    AI: Remember the "heal on kill" mechanic I mentioned? You'll need it. This game is tough and AI is accurate to a T. They will see you before you see them and their weapons may as well have lock on. You will take a lot of damage in this game. Luckily, most enemies can be taken down pretty easily as long as you maintain crowd control.

    Performance: I'm playing on the Series S and the game maintains a smooth 60 fps for me with no bugs thus far. Graphics are beautiful and gameplay is smooth.

    Overall, I'd say a 7 is fair. Does a few things wrong, does a lot of things well. Definitely copies from DOOM, but does just enough to stand on its own. I have enjoyed my time playing it.    … Full Review »
  3. Fragueiro
    May 4, 2023
    7
    Un juego con un arte y ambientación muy conseguidos. La jugabilidad evoca a juegos de otras generaciones en las que cada vez recuerdo con másUn juego con un arte y ambientación muy conseguidos. La jugabilidad evoca a juegos de otras generaciones en las que cada vez recuerdo con más nostalgia la manera en la que se disfrutaban los títulos sin exigir que fuesen obras de arte. Si te gustan los shooters y la ambientación warhammer 40000 creo que lo vas a disfrutar.… Full Review »
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