Hovercrafts x Nihilism

Low-poly ruins stretch out under a hazy sky, and somewhere out there, something colossal is waiting to be hunted from the deck of a hovercraft. Hovercrafts x Nihilism is a $6.00 game from solo developer soomr, released 6 March 2026. This review draws on a small, entirely English-language sample of all 22 lifetime reviews, rated Positive, with every review read in full given the modest overall count.

A clear, well-executed homage, confirmed directly

This review checked the store's own detailed description and confirmed the game wears its influences openly: a 3D open-world vehicular boss-hunting game explicitly inspired by Shadow of the Colossus. This review's sample repeatedly and independently drew that same comparison without prompting, and several reviewers separately noted a strong visual debt to Evangelion's angelic monster designs and mechanical aesthetic. This review reads that consistency, real players arriving at the same reference points unprompted, as confirmation the homage lands as intended rather than reading as vague or unfocused.

Bosses this review's sample consistently called the highlight

Across nearly every review in this review's sample, the boss encounters themselves drew specific praise. One reviewer described a difficulty balance they found "nice," pointing to genuinely telegraphed attacks paired with real one-hit-kill stakes as a combination that created tension without feeling unfair. Another reviewer described later bosses picking up the pace dramatically after an intentionally easier opening, calling some encounters gripping enough to leave them "on the edge of their seat." This review treats that consistency of specific praise as strong evidence the core combat encounters, at least, are genuinely well-designed.

Controls this review's sample flagged as the clear weak point

Set against that praise, this review's sample was remarkably consistent about a specific, technical problem: the vehicle's steering. Multiple reviewers independently described the steering as effectively digital despite being mapped to an analog stick, with one detailing having to rapidly tap the stick to prevent oversteering into an uncontrollable spin rather than smoothly modulating turn speed. This review checked the store's own categories field directly and found "Partial Controller Support" rather than full support, concrete confirmation that the store's own technical listing lines up with this review's sample's repeated complaints rather than contradicting them.

A camera this review's sample specifically called out during combat

Beyond steering, this review's sample repeatedly singled out the camera as a related but distinct problem, specifically during boss fights. One reviewer described being unable to aim and steer at the same time because steering itself throws off aim, calling for a proper orbit camera rather than the current chase-camera setup. This review notes that the developer's own eleven-post partner-events feed includes a dedicated "Controls Update" during the pre-launch demo period, evidence the issue was identified and worked on before launch, even if this review's sample suggests it wasn't fully resolved by release.

A story with strong opening chapters that this review's sample says loses its way

This review's sample repeatedly praised the game's atmosphere and early narrative setup, but just as repeatedly noted the story ultimately doesn't follow through on its own ideas. One reviewer specifically noted a key companion character's death occurs too early, removing context and motivation the narrative never fully recovers afterward, despite strong opening chapters. This review reads that as a real, specific shortfall rather than a vague criticism, one distinct from the atmosphere and boss design that otherwise carried the experience for most reviewers.

A developer whose process reviewers describe following closely

One of this review's sample's most detailed reviews came from a player who described discovering the developer's own YouTube analysis of Shadow of the Colossus's map design, then joining the project's Discord server and following its development directly. That reviewer described the finished game as clearly reflecting "a lot of the developer's personality" in its direction, evidence of a small but genuinely engaged community forming around the project ahead of launch, distinct from a marketing-driven release.

Exceptional value at a genuinely low price

This review's sample was close to unanimous that the $6.00 asking price represents real value, with one reviewer calling it "absolutely worth it for the price" and several independently describing the game as a "hidden gem" discovered through Steam's own discovery page rather than any marketing push. This review checked the Steam global achievement API and found sixteen tracked achievements ranging from 97.1 percent down to 16.1 percent, consistent with a short but genuinely completable experience most players who start it see through.

An open world reviewers treated as a backdrop, not a destination

This review's sample rarely dwelt on the open-world structure itself as a highlight, treating the ruined landscape mostly as a means of reaching the next boss rather than a space worth exploring for its own sake, a contrast with the tags list's own "Exploration" and "Open World" billing. This review reads that gap as consistent with a solo-developed game's resources being concentrated where they matter most, the boss encounters and their surrounding staging, rather than in filling out a large world with incidental content. Reviewers who came in expecting a dense open world to comb through may find the map thinner than the tags suggest, while reviewers focused on the boss-rush structure the store description actually promises found little to complain about here.

A small but genuinely engaged early community

This review checked the developer's own partner-events feed again for a sense of how large or organized the pre-launch effort was, and found a modest eleven posts total, weighted toward practical patch notes rather than marketing pushes, consistent with a single developer working without a dedicated community or marketing team. This review reads that scale, small, technically focused, and directly responsive, as consistent with the review sample's own account of a passionate but modest following built through direct contact with the developer rather than broad advertising, the same dynamic that produced the architect reviewer's detailed account of following the project through Discord.

Verdict

Hovercrafts x Nihilism delivers a genuinely well-executed Shadow of the Colossus homage with memorable, well-balanced boss encounters and a distinctive atmosphere, but real, specific control and camera problems this review's sample documented in consistent detail keep it from a stronger recommendation. At $6.00, this is a strong pick for genre fans willing to fight the controls for the sake of the bosses, less so for players who need precise, comfortable input from the outset.