MISERY's Demo Is STALKER Meets Lethal Company, and It's Gloriously Broken
I survived a nuclear apocalypse and all I got was this lousy radiation sickness and a desperate need for the full game to release.
I just dragged a friend through the first ten days of MISERY, and what a glorious, chaotic disaster it was. The game bills itself as a co-op rogue-lite for fans of Lethal Company and Stalker, and it absolutely nails that description, for better and for worse.
The demo kicks off with an air raid siren and the news that a nuke is about to turn you into a shadow on the wall. I had a frantic 60 seconds to sprint through a building, grabbing whatever wasn't nailed down before diving into a bunker. It’s a brilliant opening that immediately sets a tone of desperation.
A Beautifully Bleak Apocalypse
Once you’re in the bunker, the loop begins. You venture out into the procedurally generated Exclusion Zone by day to scavenge, and retreat to your shelter before nightfall. The atmosphere is incredible, a perfect blend of post-apocalyptic dread and eerie, unsettling quiet.
Exploring the ruined bases and radioactive wastelands with a friend is an absolute blast. You’re constantly on edge, watching out for mutated creatures, deadly anomalies, and other survivors who want your can of beans. Luring a bandit into an anomaly to watch them get torn apart is a special kind of joy I didn't know I needed.
The Glorious Jank
Let's be clear: this demo is janky as hell. The UI is what you’d expect from an early title, and inventory management can be a real chore. The melee combat is a bit clunky, and the AI bandits have the self-preservation instincts of a lemming at a cliff diving competition.
But honestly? With friends, the bugs become features. My buddy got stuck in an A-pose animation while we were being hunted, and I nearly died from laughing so hard. I clipped through the world once and got a surreal view of the skybox that felt like a bizarre vision. It’s the kind of beautiful chaos that makes for great stories.
Your Own Personal Hell Bunker
When you’re not fighting for your life, you’re back at the bunker, which serves as your upgradable home base. You can expand it with new rooms, build crafting stations, and even grow your own food. There's something deeply satisfying about making your little corner of hell just a bit more livable.
The demo only gives you ten days, which is barely enough time to scratch the surface of the crafting and base-building systems. Still, it’s a great taste of the loop, and the developer seems incredibly active, already addressing player feedback from earlier playtests.
MISERY has a ton of potential. It’s rough, it’s buggy, but it has a solid foundation and an atmosphere that’s second to none. This is one of the most promising titles I've played during Next Fest, and I can't wait to see what it becomes. Go grab a friend and dive in.