Hyperwired: Meaningful Connections

Today we have a wonderful arcade game that will challenge you in the best way possible. We hope you’re in the mood for explosive space action and hugging sockets in a far, far away, procedurally generated galaxy. All that is wrapped in anxious roguelite mechanics that will test both your reflexes and your nerves. You know the drill, soldier—trailer first!

Like all truly unique games, Hyperwired is a bit difficult to explain, but when has that ever stopped us from trying, eh? At its core, Sidral Games tried to shake up the well-known classic top-down action shooter formula by adding bullet hell and roguelite mechanics in brave new ways. And oh, what cool ways they’ve chosen.

You’re controlling a spaceship. One of many, actually. The more you play, the more spaceships you’ll unlock. Each vessel has unique statistical features and different modes that make it good for certain things but bad for others. Usually, the ship behaves differently depending on how many points are invested in energy, speed, health, ammo, lasers, or the cable.

Plugging In and Blasting Off

Speaking of the cable, each ship drags a plug behind it, just like an outlet plug. Like a tail, it wiggles with you, hoping it can fulfill its purpose with its better half—a socket. When you run out of ammo or your hull gets damaged, you can simply plug the tail into a specific socket or base to recharge and heal. However, you won’t be able to move far away from the station while plugged in.

The coolest part is the speed mechanics, since you are constantly running out of fuel. You can easily recharge your speed from any station, but if you become negligent and your speed runs out completely, you become a drifting object in space. This leads to another great mechanic: if there’s no station close by to plug into, you have to shoot in the opposite direction so that the blast propels you toward the closest station.

Tools for the Trade

Then there’s an overcharging mechanic that stops you from simply standing in place and piggybacking on a station—like an ammo reserve station, for example. Oh, did we mention that you can also throw grenades and blast everything in your way with lasers? It’s all very well thought out, and it’s an immense joy to play. The movements feel incredibly fluid. Dealing with enemies while keeping track of your ammo, energy, health, and speed is highly satisfying. The boss encounters are also very memorable. They require unique positioning and strategy, featuring some cool uses of the socket mechanic along the way.

You must be thinking that all of this makes for a highly challenging game. It does. The game never becomes easy and keeps testing you with new waves. When things start feeling impossible, there’s a very convenient, rechargeable slow-motion system that helps you properly deal with the chaos. There are also useful upgrades for the ship, as well as many possibilities to combine all kinds of modifiers. There are so many things that you can do, and you don’t have to do them alone. Here, you are legion.

Avatar Connection in Space

There are many uses for the sockets. If you see a ship in distress, you can connect to it and drag it to a healing station. After a short while, the ship will join you, follow you around, and attack your enemies. It was exciting trying to save as many spaceships as possible and then watching them center around you, helping you along the way.

We love the retro aesthetics. It genuinely feels like we’re back in the nineties playing an arcade game. The maps are well-designed, offering many cool ways to maneuver. The camera stays right above you, giving you a great view of the battlefield and every single danger coming your way. The music is absolutely amazing. The fast, sci-fi tones really pull you into the action and encourage you to do better. Regardless of what ship you use, you can upgrade specific skills, such as slow motion and health, energy capacity, and even the length of your trusty cable.

A Blast from the Arcade Past

We spent a lot of time just experimenting with different ships and seeing what kind of ridiculous builds we could come up with. It’s the type of game that easily eats up an afternoon without you even noticing. Sure, getting stranded in the void without a socket nearby can be a bit frustrating, but scraping through a boss fight with a sliver of health and a rescued ship by your side feels incredibly rewarding. If you grew up playing classic arcade shooters and don’t mind the steep challenge of a modern roguelite, we think you’ll have a genuinely great time with this one. If we had to pick three final trademarks for the game, they’d be that it’s tough, fair, and an absolute blast to play. Well recomended!

• Developer: SIDRALGAMES
• Publisher: SelectaPlay, Beep Japan Inc.
• Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4|5, Xbox One and Series S/X
• Release Date(s): July 12, 2026
• Genre: Action Roguelite/ Bullet Hell/ Shoot ’em Up