Evil Factory review - A pixel-perfect boss battler let down by its controls

In general, if someone asks you if you want to descend into an "evil factory", the correct response is to laugh, say no, and run the heck away.

In the case of Evil Factory, a fast-paced, pixel-art action title, you might actually be tempted to grab your weapons and plunge into the factory with little hesitation.

It's a gorgeous game with plenty of huge, exciting boss battles to take on, but its let down by floaty virtual controls and lacklustre writing that punctuates the entire experience.

Evil Factory sees you running around small, square stages dodging hits and planting explosives to deal damage to enemies.

Enemies come in all shapes and sizes, and with a variety of weapons and patterns to face up against, so every encounter feels new and interesting.

You also have a sub-weapon that can be used once a battle when things get a little hairy, and you can upgrade these and unlock new ones through beating levels.

And things get hairy fast. Enemies will hit with screen-filling attacks, and with death dealt to you in just one hit, you really need to stay on your toes to survive.

There's a time-slowing mechanic at play if you need to survey the situation, used by simply standing still, but it has a limited effect and isn't as helpful as just running around like a madman.

But what's most exciting about Evil Factory is just how stunning it looks. The level of detail in every single character model and attack is staggering, and you'll probably die from taking your eye off the ball to watch animations play out.

The enormous bosses are genuinely awe-inspiring, and while the environments are largely just similar-looking metal rooms, there's enough going on in them to keep your eyes easily entertained.

The problem, however, is the awful controls. In a game that at times requires pixel perfect reactions, having a floaty virtual thumbstick just doesn't cut it.

The thumbstick follows your thumb around the screen so you'll never lose track of it, but it always feels just a little too slow, and you'll spend more time fighting with it than you will the enemies.

And while it's only a minor point, there's a lot of bad dialogue crammed into the game. The action may be the main focus, but poor jokes and boring characters are thrown at you between every level, and it slows the game down considerably.

Overall, Evil Factory is very nice to look at, but not a lot of fun to play. The huge enemies and impressive attention to detail give it an edge, but floaty controls hold it back from being a truly great experience.

If you're into your fast-paced action titles, it's definitely worth a download. Just don't expect to be sticking with it for too long.