The Fall of an Empire
If it meant bringing an end to a criminal empire that the law failed to cull, would you take matters into your own hands to rectify past wrongs? Follow a group of nefarious black hat hackers and decide for yourself if their methods of dispensing justice are truly the best in Hacker the Beginning.
Origin of a Rebel
Kurgu Studios, a development studio based out of Istanbul, Turkey, created Hacker the Beginning. First dreamt up in the back of a class in 2013, they released the full game in 2021. With over 1,000 downloads, this action game offers over two hours of gameplay.
Hacker the Beginning starts off with a cutscene of a lawyer’s untimely death. Authorities began searching for him after he failed to appear in court. The bodies of both the lawyer and his wife are found in their car on the side of a forest road. Naturally, all evidence meant for the court case vanished. Players then fast forward 21 years and spend the rest of the game following a group of hackers named ANKA, as they cause mayhem when and wherever they see fit.
The motives behind ANKA’s attacks remain a mystery until the very end, though players may pick up on hints as the game progresses. Players will find the ending does a good job of answering any questions they may still have.
What Makes a Villain?
Hacker the Beginning sports a comic book art style that emphasizes the action within the game. There’s no voice acting; the game instead opts to use dialogue bubbles to move the story forward. The game also uses music to help set the mood, changing between three different tracks. Players have the option to customize different aspects of the game, such as changing the color of the command panels and home screen background.
There are a total of 21 chapters in Hacker the Beginning, all varying in length. Gameplay is split between typing lines of code into a command panel and minigames. An in-game keyboard pops up when you have to input code. Thankfully, players won’t need any background knowledge of hacking to do this part. The last line of code the system gives you is what needs to be input, so all players have to do is a bit of copy and paste. The minigames have a bit more variety, but most feature a logic-based design. For example, players must release wild animals from their cages in the correct order or flip the correct breakers without overloading the mainframe.
However, not every chapter features these activities. Some consist of only dialogue and cutscenes, a few of which are un-skippable. A film reel icon with a play button in the center appears in the top left corner whenever this is the case.
English is not the original language of Hacker the Beginning, and it’s painfully obvious. Some of the game’s art, such as the names of businesses atop their buildings, were still written in the developer’s native language of Turkish. Additionally, translations are awkward and clunky, which can lead to confusion. Thankfully, the overall story was easy to grasp, and some comedic lines were preserved.
A Diamond in the Rough?
Overall, Hacker the Beginning was an interesting time-killer. The curious cast of characters and compelling narrative kept me interested long enough to finish the game. A free demo is available to those who aren’t quite sure if this game is right for them, but access to the full game costs $0.99.
