HROT

Game image - HROT
Development Studio:
SPYTIHNĚV
2011 / Prague
Genre:
Action
Release date:
2023-05-16
Development time (years):
5
Sold copies (2023):
Hundreds of thousands
Number of developers:
1
Languages:
2

A first-person retro shooter set in socialist Czechoslovakia after a fictional disaster in 1986. The game begins in a civil defence shelter in Prague’s Kosmonautů metro station. The player defends their country against intruders, tames a pack of Prague Ratters, tries their hand at an astronomical clock simulator and gets rid of litter using a mechanical mop. Hrot differs from other retro games by its period humour and dark, depressing atmosphere enhanced by the graphic style.

  • Classic
  • Alternative history
  • Retro
  • Action

Trivia

The game includes about 200 Czech signs, propaganda slogans and bulletin boards. The English translation can be displayed by pointing at the Czech sign and pressing the E button.

The levels are inspired by real locations in former Czechoslovakia with a special focus on period details. The player finds themselves in the Vítkov Mausoleum where the body of the communist President Klement Gottwald was once displayed, the Old Town Square, the Sokol Gym as well as the Strahov Stadium. You can also visit Czech castles such as Vyšehrad, Točník, Kašperk and the protected area of Babbiččino údolí in Ratibořice, Eastern Bohemia.

The custom engine written in Pascal is a successful replica of the 90s games with its pixelated textures in a brown palette and polygon jitter.


The developer said of the game’s content: Not suitable for youth under the age of 30 by decision of the committee.


Development challenges

Finding the right music composer. There were nine of them during the process.


Awards (selection)

Not yet


Publisher

Spytihněv

Image gallery
About studio

SPYTIHNĚV

Spytihněv (the developer’s nickname, their real name is unknown) launched Legie in 2009 under the then-team name Sudokop. Later he launched The Tragedy of Prince Rupert based on the work of Karel Zeman, the Czech film icon.

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