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Hand of Doom

Genre: Adventure

Original Release: May 16, 2023

Developer: Torple Dook

Publisher: Dread XP

Platform: PC (Steam)

The Hand of Doom UI is visible. The player is in the middle of a punch. The cursor is hovering over the "use" button in the bottom left.
Muscle Wizard casts “fist”

Do you remember the first Dread X Collection article I wrote during lockdown? It feels like a lifetime ago, I know. Well anyway, during that article I mentioned that one of my favorite games in the collection was a little wizard simulator called Hand of Doom. In it, you learned and cast spells to solve puzzles and explore more of the map. It was simple, but I loved it. This is a full version/sequel to that particular title. I’ve been following the development for a little while now and I was so excited to play it because I just wanted more of that world. Spooky wizards with imposing, compressed voices, eerie music (and a certified banger for the main theme), it’s all right up my alley. So let’s get right to the meat and potatoes: do I like it?

Yeah, actually, I do. Glad we got that sorted out.

Okay that’s a little reductive, isn’t it? Let me try to talk about the game a little bit and explain why I like it.

A skeleton is mid-dance in the middle of a screen, celebrating its return to life. Spillover from the green screen has partially obscured some of the ribs and pelvis.
To be perfectly honest, any game with a cutscene that features a dancing skeleton is great in my book.

I said that this release of Hand of Doom is a sequel to the Dread X Collection release (which, incidentally, you can grab on Torple Dook’s itch.io page if you’re up for it) while also being a full version. That might sound a little confusing, I can hear it now: “Jazzy, you can’t have something be a sequel while being a remake! It doesn’t work like that!”

Counterpoint: Evil Dead 2. It tells the same story of The Evil Dead while also serving as a sequel. Bruce Campbell even dubbed it a “requel.” In this case, the game takes place after the events of the original Hand of Doom (said events are referenced in the first level, but seeing them for myself gave me that sense of “ohhh right!”) while serving as an expanded remake. In a sense, this version of Hand of Doom is the Evil Dead 2 of Torple Dook’s wizard universe.

Bruce Campbell as Evil Dead 2's Ashley "Ash" Williams, mid-laugh from the infamous laughter scene. The film's title can be seen in the lower left.
I just wanted an excuse to reference this scene, really.

Our story proper begins with our player character making their way to the tower of the Wizard King and signing a contract to become his apprentice. From there, he’s directed to slay a number of doomlords in order to defeat the master of death. But you’ll need to learn that core component of wizardry in order to stand a chance. And how do you cast spells in this game? The same way you did it previously: you combine four syllables in a specific order to attempt an incantation. If it works, you’ll cast a spell. If not? Well, nothing happens. You’ll get the message “your incantation failed” and your hands will sink out of view until you cast again or use an item.

I like this system. You might not, and that’s okay. Four different syllables keeps it simple while also allowing for experimentation. I played around and discovered a spell I wouldn’t get for a while as a result. It wasn’t necessary for progress, I just thought it was neat that you can cast a spell and have it added to the grimoire without having to speak to a specific character or find a note to learn it in the first place. I don’t know that this was intended, but it’s kind of neat to have access to the spells immediately if you’ve played it before and remember the specific incantations.

A page of the game's lore explains that the knife used for incantations must follow a specific design and why. And that skulls are rad.
But why would you want to skip any of the lore? You get to learn why the knife used for some spells looks the way it does. And that skulls are rad.

I had another point I wanted to make, but I went to eat dinner and forgot what it was. Ah well. All I’m really trying to say here is that the game is pretty darn good. It plays like a love letter to 90s-era dungeon crawlers, and it does it well. Incorporating FMV for playfully cheesy cutscenes helped make it even better. In a way, I was reminded of Myst. Except Hand of Doom is far less obtuse and nowhere near as serious in tone. Yeah it’s dark fantasy, but…I mean there’s a dancing skeleton!

Three wizards prepare to attack druids off screen to the left. Their magic is producing a lens flare above or between their hands.
These guys are also pretty awesome.

One thing of note is that the game’s currently on version 1.0.0, so bugs are to be expected. I didn’t personally run into anything that caused the game to crash on me, but I did have a few objectives in the journal section fail to update properly, or show up after I talked to someone because I did things slightly out of order. Honestly though? That’s a pretty darn minor gripe. It’s not a perfect game, but it does what it sets out to do and I had fun with it. So for that, I’m more than willing to recommend Hand of Doom.

Before we leave though, I also want to give a shoutout to PhantomSloth for his 3D models. They’re pretty darn cool and some of the stuff later in the game is honestly goals for my own creative endeavors.

An ancient tree monster is slumped over in the middle of a green circle. There's a visible fog in the background.
This tree has a fabulous beard.

You know what? Good job to everyone who helped out on Hand of Doom. It’s darn good and really nice to see something like this come together. Check it out if you’re curious!

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