Underplayed Gems

HardAF (2025)

HardAF cover
Developer
Hardbox Games
Publisher
IndieArk
Platforms
Windows
Genres
Action, Indie
Rating
4.7 of 5, 38 player ratings
Typical playtime
about 1.5 hours
Where to get it
Steam
The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

You die over and over, each splatter revealing one more sliver of the hidden room, making failure the only way to move forward.

punishingprecisedifficultdie-and-retrydarkatmosphericminimalistinventive

What players say

Players call this an honest precision platformer that lives up to its name. The darkness shroud that lifts as you paint it with your character's blood is a fresh twist on exploration, and the fast respawns keep frustration from overwhelming the fun. Some mention uneven difficulty spikes and occasional freezes in multiplayer, while longer reviews note the included level editor adds replay value.

Screenshots

HardAF screenshot 1HardAF screenshot 2HardAF screenshot 3HardAF screenshot 4HardAF screenshot 5HardAF screenshot 6

More games like this

This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.