Shotgun Cop Man Review: A Shot-Blasted Descent

After finishing Shotgun Cop Man, I can confidently say that this game isn’t just a stylish gimmick; it’s one of the most original and skill-demanding platformers I’ve played in years. Developed by DeadToast Entertainment, the creators of My Friend Pedro, it offers a wild ride fueled by recoil-powered movement, tight level design, and a delightfully absurd sense of humor.

A Fresh Take on Movement Mechanics

Forget the jump button Shotgun Cop Man ditches traditional movement in favor of pure weapon-based propulsion. You control a cop who uses his shotgun and pistols not just to fight but to fly. Fire your shotgun downward, and you rocket skyward. Blast sideways to cross gaps. Even hovering is a result of well-timed handgun shots. At first, it feels chaotic, like trying to juggle on a trampoline. But soon enough, it clicks. The weapons are mapped cleanly, and the physics are intuitive once you get used to them. You don’t just move in this game, you improvise, bounce, ricochet, and ricochet again. It’s a constant dance of momentum and madness, and it never gets old.

Level Design That Rewards Mastery

Shotgun Cop Man features over 150 handcrafted levels, and nearly every one demands precision. There’s no padding or filler here. Each stage is designed around a tight idea: a specific rhythm, challenge, or obstacle arrangement. Some emphasize vertical ascension through buzzsaw corridors, others pit you against arenas full of demons. All of them push your timing, aim, and situational awareness. The best levels are puzzles in disguise, there’s a correct flow, and executing it feels almost musical once you find it. When you’re bouncing shotgun blasts off the floor and chaining airborne kills mid-hover, you feel unstoppable. But that only comes after lots of deaths. Yes, you’ll die a lot. But death is never punishing. Checkpoints are generous, restarts are instant, and you learn something every time. The game respects your time while also respecting your ability to get better.

Boss Fights: Controlled Chaos

The boss fights are rare but memorable. Unlike traditional platformer bosses that follow simple patterns, these feel like full-blown gauntlets. They’re intense, chaotic, and require you to use every movement skill you’ve learned. One of the standout fights involves dodging fireballs while ricocheting between walls in a lava-filled chamber. Another has you chasing Satan himself in a high-speed descent through collapsing floors. Each boss escalates the action without becoming frustrating. They feel like skill checks prove that you’ve internalized the game’s weird but wonderful rules.

Slick Visuals, Smart Minimalism

Graphically, Shotgun Cop Man leans into minimalism. Characters are silhouette-style cutouts, backgrounds are bold and clean, and the UI stays out of your way. It’s not flashy, but it’s efficient and stylish. You can always tell what’s dangerous, what’s interactable, and where you need to go. The sparse aesthetic also boosts performance; this thing runs silky smooth even when the screen’s filled with explosions and enemies. That’s crucial in a game where split-second precision matters. The audio work deserves prais,e too. Gunshots punch with weight, enemies scream as they pop, and the music hits just the right mix of industrial and action-movie grit. It’s atmospheric without overwhelming the experience.

A Ridiculous Premise That Works

The story is bonkers: you’re a cop on a mission to arrest Satan in hell. That’s it. But it works. The absurdity is played straight, which makes it funnier. Your character barely blinks at the idea of arresting the literal Prince of Darkness, and Satan’s responses range from amused to baffled. The game throws in just enough cutscenes and dialogue to keep the tone light without slowing down the action. It’s not a narrative-heavy game, but the premise adds flavor. It gives context to the chaos, and the dry humor gives your run-and-gun antics a bit more personality.

Replay Value and Community Tools

Once you finish the campaign and trust me, it’s meaty, you’ll want to dive into the extras. Each level includes optional challenges: speedruns, no-hit runs, and full enemy clear runs. Completing these unlocks cosmetics and leaderboard positions. There’s also an impressively powerful level editor. I spent a good few hours building and sharing stages via Steam Workshop. The community is already producing some wild custom levels, many of which rival the main campaign in complexity. Between the official content and what the community’s making, Shotgun Cop Man has serious replay longevity. And the leaderboard system encourages a “just one more run” mindset that’s tough to shake.

Accessibility and Difficulty Curve

Make no mistake, this is a hard game. But it’s a fair one. The physics are consistent, the hitboxes are clean, and the difficulty ramps gradually. Early levels gently teach the mechanics. By the time things get brutal, you’ve built the muscle memory to handle it. A standout accessibility feature is the “heart” mechanic. When you take damage, your heart flies out of your body. You have a short window to retrieve it before dying. It’s a clever system that gives you a second chance without dulling the stakes. There are no adjustable difficulty settings, but the optional challenges provide layers for different player types. If you just want to beat the levels, you can. If you want to master them, there’s plenty to sink your teeth into.

Bugs and Polish

In my full playthrough, around 12 hours including bonus levels, I encountered only one bug: a visual glitch that caused an enemy to get stuck off-screen. It didn’t affect gameplay. Load times are minimal, controls are tight, and the UI is clean and fast. DeadToast put a lot of time into making this game feel right. From the recoil tuning to the checkpoint logic, everything supports the core loop of die-learn-repeat-win.

Real Talk

Shotgun Cop Man is a tightly designed, endlessly replayable platformer that stands out in a crowded genre. Its weapon-based movement system is more than a gimmick, it’s the foundation for one of the most engaging and rewarding platforming experiences in years.

FINAL SCORE: 85/100