Romeo Is a Dead Man review: terrifying, strange sci‑fi action

Romeo Is a Dead Man is an action-adventure from Grasshopper Manufacture that blends ultra-violent third-person gunplay with frequent stylistic and narrative twists. You play Romeo, a semi-living FBI Space Agent who literally wears his grandpa on the back of his jacket, fighting mutants and "rotters" through shopping malls and city halls to find his possibly supernatural girlfriend, Juliet.

Chapters alternate between 3D action and 2D shipboard scenes, and the game tells much of its story through cartoon panels rendered in wildly different art styles. One of the game's boldest turns is an asylum sequence that strips Romeo of his weapons and traps him in a time loop.

Sneaking through peeling rooms, solving unsettling puzzles like reshaping puppet faces, and enduring frequent jumpscares makes this section genuinely terrifying, while the scratchy black, white and blue cutscene art perfectly matches the setting.

romeo game, grasshopper manufacture, action game, third-person, gunplay, mutants, rotters, asylum sequence, time loop, jumpscares