Bartlow’s Dread Machine is an old school arcade type shooter game. The game consists of both single and co-op play, and features new and old video technology, mixing them together to create a whole new genre of video games. The game takes place in the United States of America, around the early 1900s. Teddy Roosevelt has been kidnapped, and you must rescue him. The game uses a dual-stick arcade way to play and really feels like an old arcade game.

I played through the first couple of missions, and the game was really fun. You move your character along a track that stretches throughout the whole level. On this track, are enemies that will try to attack and stop you. To counter these enemies, the player must fight them using weapons they will acquire along the way, such as a rifle. I do not know if the player can receive more weapons than just the rifle, but I think adding that concept would be a really cool idea.

Bartlow’s Dread Machine was a very challenging game for me. With the use of dual-stick gameplay, movement and aim became difficult. I had to coordinate both my right and left joystick, to move or shoot in a certain direction. I think these difficulties were made on purpose, because if the game had easier movement such as WASD, then the game would become too easy. I had to redo certain missions, due to my getting overwhelmed by enemies, or not being able to move in the right direction and getting stuck.

The overall look and aesthetic of Bartlow’s Dread Machine was amazing. The game totally captured the feeling of the early 1900s and older gaming arcade games. The game used a lot of turning gears and older game animations to make the player feel like they had been transported back in time. This game reminded me of the game Cuphead due to both games capturing the older arcade-style of video games.

Overall, I really enjoyed Bartlow’s Dread Machine. I think this game was really entertaining and gave me the feeling of older games. Not only that, the game itself was fun. Running through missions and gunning down enemies while still having the feeling of freedom was something I really liked about this game. I think mixing those two-game styles was a brilliant idea, and I can not wait to see what they can add to this game. I would give Bartlow’s Dread Machine a solid eight out of ten rating.

-Daniel C.