"Its physics comedy lands. The 1.0 launch does not."
About
Stick It to the Stickman is a physics-based brawler where you fight your way up a corporate hierarchy. Each run is a rogue-lite ascent through office floors, battling other stick-figure employees. You collect new attacks and unlock different character classes to assemble a moveset powerful enough to take on management. The goal is to displace your colleagues, literally, to reach the top.
Verdict
There is a brilliantly chaotic brawler inside Stick It to the Stickman. Kicking an intern into a crowd of security guards and watching the physics engine take over is genuinely funny. But that core of fun is trapped in a disappointingly rough package. For a 1.0 release, it's rife with performance hitches and run-ending bugs. Worse, it arrives missing content promised during its Early Access run, leaving a sense of unfulfilled potential that sours the whole enterprise.
You'll like it if …
- +You enjoy chaotic, physics-based beat-'em-ups where madness is the point.
- +Satirical office humor and beating up corporate drones sounds like a good time.
- +You can look past technical jank for a loop that is simple, dumb fun.
You'll dislike it if …
- −You expect a 1.0 release to be polished and feature-complete.
- −Poor performance and frequent bugs quickly ruin a game for you.
- −You followed the game in Early Access and expected the promised features.
Breakdown
- +The physics-based combat is chaotic and consistently funny.
- +A good variety of unlockable characters and abilities keeps the action fresh.
- −The core combat loop can feel overly simple and repetitive.
- −Getting stunlocked by mobs can end runs out of nowhere.
- +Emergent gameplay from the physics engine and ability combos adds some replay value.
- +The range of different employee classes offers distinct playstyles.
- −The 1.0 release is missing features promised during Early Access, such as the science center game mode.
- −The game feels shallow once the initial chaos wears off.
- −Some high-level builds can feel unbalanced, trivializing combat.
- +The satirical take on corporate culture is a constant source of humor.
- +The simple premise of fighting your way up the ladder is effective and funny.
- +The minimalist stick-figure art style fits the game's chaotic, comedic tone.
- −Severe performance issues, including lag and stuttering, are common even on high-end hardware.
- −Frame rates drop significantly when many enemies are on screen.
- +The core gameplay loop remains playable for many, despite its technical flaws.
- −Riddled with bugs, including visual glitches and run-ending soft-locks.
- −Feels unfinished and unpolished for a full release.
- −Key ability descriptions are missing, forcing guesswork.
- −The user interface for tasks like rebinding keys is clumsy.
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