The Dilemma of Bodycam Shooters: An FPS Perspective

Welcome to another edition of FOV 90, where we dive into all things first-person shooter! This time, we’re exploring the intriguing yet controversial world of bodycam shooters, a trend that’s been gaining traction lately.

Remember the buzz surrounding Unrecord? It was a title that looked so lifelike that the developers had to prove it was running in real time! While it wasn’t the first in the bodycam genre, its viral success sparked interest in other similar games, including the newly launched Better Than Dead. This single-player FPS dropped on Steam in early access recently.

What’s refreshing about Better Than Dead is that you’re not stepping into the shoes of a police officer, which is often the case in these types of games. Instead, you play as a nameless escapee from a human trafficking scenario in Hong Kong. Armed only with a pistol and a bodycam, you embark on a bloody quest for revenge, driven by the mantra that “a blood debt must be paid.”

The game features 14 levels, and while I’ve only tackled half, it’s a straightforward romp through a world where you take down those who truly deserve it. Each level is a short, intense shooting gallery, taking you through various settings like restaurants and grimy gambling dens. Amidst the chaos, bystanders scramble for safety, adding an extra layer of pressure to your mission. Interestingly, like the popular shooter Ready Or Not, Better Than Dead doesn’t penalize players too harshly for collateral damage.

Visually, the game pulls off some impressive rendering tricks—think extreme head bobbing and hyper-realistic textures that can make you feel as though you’re watching a GoPro video. The outdoor scenes are particularly convincing, drawing you deeper into the experience.

However, as I played, a nagging question kept popping up: what does a bodycam shooter really offer beyond just shock value? Is pure realism the sole aim, and am I meant to find it disturbing? Because honestly, while the visuals are striking, they couldn’t carry the weight of an otherwise uncomfortable gameplay experience.

Killing off the faceless villains of humanity might be thrilling, but the design choices that aim to elevate realism often lead to frustration. Take, for instance, the protagonist’s exaggerated swaying when wielding her pistol. Aiming is almost a guessing game—you’re merely flailing the gun in the direction of enemies and hoping for the best. While the idea might be that your character isn’t a trained assassin, it becomes less believable and more grating as you progress.

Your only saving grace is a bullet-time feature that kicks in during sliding, but it’s often too brief and erratic to rely on consistently. The unpredictable accuracy of both your shots and those of enemies makes surviving feel more like luck than skill. I struggled to finish a level and feel accomplished; it was more about dodging bullets than tactical gameplay.

While it’s true that real-life gunfights can hinge on luck, and even trained individuals often use imprecise firing techniques, games like Better Than Dead take this idea to an extreme that can detract from fun. They present gunplay as a chaotic, terrifying experience, and the bodycam perspective adds an uncomfortable layer of reality. It’s hard not to recall the disturbing footage we’ve seen online from real-life situations that we never wanted to witness.

Ultimately, though I didn’t find much enjoyment in Better Than Dead, I can appreciate its straightforward moral stance, which diverges from typical law enforcement narratives. This genre forces me to confront my mixed feelings about gun culture: while I appreciate the mechanics and design behind firearms, their societal impact is troubling. I’ve enjoyed target shooting in a controlled setting, but the world around us often serves as a grim reminder of the darker side of guns.

Video games have always been my outlet to engage with firearms without the real-life implications, right? As an FPS enthusiast, it feels essential to clarify that I’m not endorsing this kind of violence. So, when games lean into “this is just like real life,” it raises uncomfortable questions I’d rather not confront. After giving Better Than Dead a fair shot, I’m left with a clearer understanding of my unease: experiencing horror through a game can feel unfulfilling when the real world offers enough of it already.