Pest control with machine guns in space
The Bug Butcher is a 2D side-scrolling shooter where the danger comes from above. You play as Harry, a brash exterminator hired by the surviving scientists at an infested research facility on planet Zoit. Your job is to survive until the building's decontamination is complete, collect coins, and keep the scientists alive. The core mechanic comes from the arcade classic Super Pang: you shoot vertically, blasting the bugs that drop in from the ceiling. The levels get harder as you go, with ravenous swarms and waves of bugs of every size trying to kill you. Spiders are worth watching out for, since they have a particular fondness for rubber-encased scientists.
Playing together
The game supports Remote Play Together, so you can bring friends into the session over Steam's feature. The Steam tags also list Co-op and Local Co-Op, so there are ways to play alongside others rather than going it alone. Either way, the screen fills with bullets and bugs fast, so expect a hectic shared experience.
Before you start
Bring quick reflexes. The game is tagged as fast-paced, arcade, bullet hell, and difficult, so survival depends on reacting to what drops from above. You move room to room through the facility, using rockets, lasers, and lightning alongside weapon and health pick-ups scattered through the levels. Harry's power-ups can turn the tide when the swarms pile up. The art style is grotesquely cute with a cartoony, retro feel, and the bosses are nightmarish. The Steam listing marks the game as Early Access, so content may still be in progress.