You know that feeling you had as a kid, staging full-scale plastic warfare across your bedroom with action figures, Lego forts, and imaginary explosions? HYPERCHARGE: Unboxed, developed by Digital Cybercherries, doesn’t just replicate that—it upgrades it, slaps a flamethrower on it, and drops you into a wave-based shooter where toys go to war.
This is what happens when a love letter to ‘90s toy culture meets a fully co-op, first/third-person shooter with tower defense roots. You defend the Hypercore—an ancient, memory-holding power source—from wave after wave of weaponized toys, from RC helicopters to plastic dinosaurs, all while collecting gear, building defenses, and unlocking new action figure skins the old-school way: by actually playing.
No pay-to-win. No microtransactions. Just plastic, bullets, and childhood dreams in co-op chaos.
🪖 Shooter, Tower Defense, Toybox Mayhem
At its core, HYPERCHARGE is a hybrid. You build defenses between waves, hunt for supplies scattered across oversized maps, and blast away hordes of enemies—all while navigating furniture-sized obstacles in bedroom battlefields or garage battlegrounds.
It supports both first- and third-person views, with fluid camera switching that gives you the best angle depending on whether you’re sniping from atop a toy shelf or sprinting down a duct-taped Hot Wheels track. The maps are built with love and verticality, rewarding exploration with power-ups, collectibles, and hidden secrets.
What really sells it, though, is scale. You’re not just in a toy world—you are a toy. Everything from the map design to movement physics reinforces that. Jump height feels floaty. Cover is made of cereal boxes and video game cases. You’ll be defending a Hypercore next to a toilet one mission, then inside a toy store the next. It’s ridiculously fun, even solo.
🎮 Single Player That Works, Bots That Help
Yes, this game shines in co-op. But unlike a lot of indie shooters, HYPERCHARGE doesn’t punish you for playing alone. Bots are smart, responsive, and useful. They’ll build defenses, revive you, and shoot back effectively.
The solo experience also allows full progression—you don’t need to grind online to unlock new characters or cosmetics. It’s genuinely one of the best examples of a game respecting solo players while still offering full-featured multiplayer.
🛠️ Customization and Combat
There’s no loadout meta here. No grinding for attachments. No weapon blueprints with ten sliders. HYPERCHARGE takes it back to basics: you find weapons during missions—shotguns, flamethrowers, sniper rifles, grenade launchers—and swap them out based on what you need. You can change attachments mid-mission too, adding sights, stocks, or suppressors depending on your style.
The result is fast, satisfying combat that doesn’t get bogged down in menu micromanagement. Just find, shoot, defend.
On top of that, the game lets you unlock different action figures with unique styles, skins, and visual flair. It’s very Halo 3 in its approach: do cool stuff, earn cool rewards. No battle pass. No shop. Just play the game.
✅ What Works
🔹 Childhood Fantasy, Fully Realized
You’re a toy. In a toy war. Fighting in bedrooms, toy stores, and garages. The theme isn’t a gimmick—it’s the heart of the game.
🔹 Co-op & Solo Support
Play online, split-screen, or solo with bots. Full progression in any mode. Few games do this right—HYPERCHARGE nails it.
🔹 Balanced Loadouts & Combat Variety
Weapons are fun to use, and combat never feels bloated. Attachments mid-mission keep the action fluid without becoming a grind-fest.
🔹 No Microtransactions
Everything is earned through gameplay. Skins, unlocks, figures—nothing is hidden behind a paywall. A rare and refreshing choice.
🔹 Creative Map Design
Maps are vertical, interactive, and packed with personality. Each environment feels like a playground built from memories.
❌ What Doesn’t
🔻 Clunky Movement at Times
Jumping, climbing, and traversal aren’t always smooth. You’ll get stuck in places or miss jumps you should make.
🔻 PvP Feels Abandoned
Multiplayer lobbies are mostly dead. Bots fill in, but PvP feels like an afterthought. Matchmaking is clunky, and there’s no modern lobby system.
🔻 UI and Controls Need Polish
Basic features like friend invites and lobby persistence feel dated. You often need to resend join codes manually between matches.
🔻 Lacks Progression Depth
While unlocks exist, the progression system lacks meaningful long-term goals. Once you’ve maxed your skins, there’s not much else to chase.
🔻 No Melee Weapons or Combat Depth
Combat is fun, but a melee option would help diversify fights. Right now, it’s all guns, all the time.
🧪 Should You Play It?
Absolutely—especially if you ever turned your bedroom into a warzone of G.I. Joe chaos as a kid. If you’re into casual shooters, couch co-op, or wave-defense games, HYPERCHARGE will scratch an itch you forgot you had.
💸 Should You Buy It?
At $25, it’s a strong offering if you’re primarily interested in co-op or solo PvE. If you’re buying for PvP, it’s probably best to wait until (or if) the community grows. But with the lack of microtransactions and full offline support, it’s more than worth it on sale—even full price feels fair given what’s here.
HYPERCHARGE: Unboxed: A nostalgic toybox shooter with heart, polish, and some rough edges, HYPERCHARGE is what happens when devs say “what if we built a game around the coolest part of your childhood?” and actually follow through. It’s not perfect—but it’s pure fun. – Obsidian
