I Hate Running Backwards
I Hate Running Backwards is a fast paced infinite runner hybrid that puts the shoot 'em up genre on its head! Pick your character and blast away at enemies with a high powered weapons arsenal. Earn perks and get stronger as you defeat challenging bosses.
SCREENSHOTS
HISTORY
I Hate Running Backwards is a 2018 shoot 'em up game developed by Binx Interactive and published by Devolver Digital. One or two players traverse procedurally generated levels using several characters, including Sam "Serious" Stone, the protagonist of the Serious Sam series. The screen scrolls vertically as the player character runs backwards through a partially destructible environment and battles enemies approaching from the bottom of the screen. The player can use two weapons, a melee attack, and an "ultimate" ability that requires the prior defeat of several enemies.
I Hate Running Backwards was born out of a mobile driving game presented to and reworked in cooperation with Croteam. As part of the Croteam Incubator programme, it was moved to the Serious Sam franchise and renamed Serious Sam: I Hate Running Backwards, later I Hate Running Backwards. A publishing deal with Devolver Digital was reached in 2017, and the game was released for the PlayStation 4, Windows, and the Xbox One in May 2018 as the first Croteam Incubator game. The release was followed by a Linux version in June 2018 and a Nintendo Switch port that October.
I Hate Running Backwards was met with a mixed reception. The game's control interface and arsenal were well received, while the visual style and character unlock system raised conflicting opinions. The game's slow pace, repetitiveness, and inconsistencies in difficulty between runs were criticised, although some of these issues were resolved through later patches.
Gameplay
I Hate Running Backwards is a shoot 'em up game and a spinoff in the Serious Sam series. The screen continuously scrolls vertically, as the player character runs backwards towards the top of the screen. They traverse procedurally generated levels across five thematic environments, occasionally using vehicles. The player can freely move the character on the screen and shoot downwards with a fixed aim.
The character wields two ranged weapons that are fired individually. Running out of ammunition for the primary weapon reverts it to a pistol with unlimited ammunition. Further weapons and special abilities can be obtained through collectables. Using a melee attack, the character can deflect enemy projectiles and kill nearby enemies. This attack can be used again after a cooldown. A special attack, the "ultimate" ability, requires filling a meter by killing enemies. Enemies approach from the bottom of the screen. A boss appears at the end of each environment, of which the final one, Ugh-Zan, has two phases. Defeating a boss unlocks a shortcut to the next level that can be accessed at the start of a run. After each boss and before the start of a run, the initial weapon loadout can be chosen, with later selection stages providing stronger weapons. Parts of the environment are destructible.
The player chooses from one of several characters, some of whom are taken from the Serious Sam, Broforce, Hotline Miami, Enter the Gungeon, Nuclear Throne, and Shadow Warrior franchises, including Serious Sam's protagonist, Sam "Serious" Stone. The initial roster consists of three characters, while further characters are unlocked through in-game progress. All characters have varying weapon loadouts, health, and speed. I Hate Running Backwards can be played cooperatively with a second local player. In this mode, more enemies spawn and bosses have more health. If either player character dies, they respawn after 30 seconds if the other stays alive.
Development and release
I Hate Running Backwards was developed by Binx Interactive, a Zagreb-based indie game studio founded in 2014 by Bernard Bachrach, Nikola Đurinec, Filip Kovač, Adam Mehtić, Denis Mraović, and Matko Šimecki. At the company's inception, its employees had little knowledge of game development and no funding, and many worked second jobs at other local developers and provided quality assurance to other studios, which often led to 15-hour workdays. Binx Interactive initially created mobile games, some of which were cancelled due to a lack of resources. The studio's debut game was Monster Loops, which it co-developed with the Serbian studio Mad Head Games for iOS.
In 2016, Binx Interactive travelled to the Reboot Develop conference in Split to exhibit Monster Loops. Some members of the studio approached Damjan Mravunac, the composer from Croteam, with a prototype of a mobile driving game. This prototype, created by two Binx Interactive employees in their free time, involved tapping the touchscreen to make a car turn, drift, and spin. Mravunac suggested several changes, which the team delivered three days later. Stemming from this encounter, Binx Interactive and Croteam communicated weekly and, after approximately a month, Croteam suggested that Binx Interactive build a game in the Serious Sam universe. Within a month, the team reworked the game with elements from the Serious Sam franchise and presented a prototype to Croteam, which greenlit the project. By November 2017, Binx Interactive consisted of six full-time employees and one part-time worker. Of the founders, Bachrach acted as the chief executive officer (CEO), Kovač as a visual effects artist and designer, Šimecki as a 2D/3D artist and designer, Đurinec as a programmer, and Mraović as a programmer and the co-CEO. Luka Mihaldinec, who joined the studio after its formation, created promotional videos and maintained the game's forums and social media channels. The team used the Unity game engine for I Hate Running Backwards.
In 2017, Croteam arranged a publishing deal for the game with Devolver Digital, which had published several of Croteam's previous games, including Serious Sam titles. This partnership was announced with a trailer in August that year. Around this time, the project was named Serious Sam: I Hate Running Backwards, later shortened to I Hate Running Backwards. The name was taken from a quote issued by Sam "Serious" Stone after travelling long distances in reverse. Croteam and Devolver Digital allowed Binx Interactive creative control in the development, only occasionally providing advice. In March 2018, Croteam announced that its business incubator programme would be known as Croteam Incubator, with I Hate Running Backwards as the first release under that banner. A trailer announcing the release date was published in May 2018.
The game was released for Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One on 22 May 2018. A Linux version was postponed for additional testing before being released on 28 June 2018. A port for Nintendo Switch was initially scheduled for "late summer" 2018 and was released on 19 October. The developers also considered bringing the game to iOS. Following the initial release, Binx Interactive released multiple patches for I Hate Running Backwards. In February 2019, the team stated that development had concluded so Binx Interactive could focus on future projects.
Reception
I Hate Running Backwards was named among the best games exhibited at the PAX East trade show by GamesRadar+ in April 2018, a month before the game's release. Upon release, the game received "mixed or average reviews", according to the review aggregator website Metacritic, which calculated weighted average ratings of 71/100 for personal computers, 63/100 for the PlayStation 4, and 65/100 for the Xbox One.
Robert Purchese of Eurogamer described the game as a "fun and fast" arcade game, akin to his experience with Broforce. Peter Glagowski of Destructoid commended the simple control interface and fixed line of fire, which he found made the game more navigable. However, he and Julia Gomez of Nintendo World Report faulted the procedural generation, including inconsistent placements of collectables and enemies, for causing difficulty imbalances between runs. Furthermore, Glagowski lamented that the progress required to unlock characters was unclear. In contrast, Gomez considered them a good reward system. Discussing the weaponry, Ángel Llamas of IGN's Spanish outlet highlighted the expansiveness of the available arsenal, while Purchese labelled the individual weapons as "imaginative".
Purchese enjoyed the game's bright visual style. David Hollingworth of PC PowerPlay echoed this sentiment, calling it chaotic in "all the best ways". Llamas similarly perceived the visuals as chaotic when there were many enemies on-screen. Critics raised mixed opinions regarding the game's pacing. While Hollingworth and Gomez lauded the ease of repeatedly commencing a run in the game, Llamas considered the game repetitive in longer sessions and regarded it better suited for mobile platforms. Glagowski deemed the game's slow pace its biggest problem and criticised that the shortcuts were not saved between restarts of the game. He later said that several of his complaints, in particular those regarding the pace and shortcuts, were resolved by a patch.
TRAILERS
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PRICE HISTORY
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Humble Store low: $2.99 (14 Sep 2026) , PlayStation Store low: $2.99 (24 Sep 2026) , Steam low: $2.99 (27 Jul 2026) , Xbox low: $14.99 (26 Aug 2026)
REVIEWS
Published elsewhere, collected here. Every score is the outlet's own, on the outlet's own scale. Follow the link for the full review.
“Though I initially struggled with it, wanting it to be a twin-stick shooter, once I got into the unique rhythm of I Hate Running Backwards I became a big fan...”
“I Hate Running Backwards is a fun action-packed release on PlayStation 4 with several cameo characters that is a blast to play. Running backwards as you try to stay alive and in one piece feels great, and the challenging enemies and bosses will keep you coming back for more. And don't feel bad if you end up playing in Baby Mode since it's there for a reason.”
“I Hate Running Backwards is a fine example of a developer taking on board criticism and using that to make a better game. Day one, the game was really hard, very inconsistent, a bit too brutal, and very unforgiving. A few patches later and we have a great take on the shoot ’em up genre with roguelike elements thrown into the mix. Personally, I would say single player is a better experience than the co-op mode due to the way it works, but both modes are a lot of fun to play and very entertaining. The sheer amount of destruction, pickups, enemies and character unlocks are very welcome and really”
“I Hate Running Backwards is a fairly good game, but I can also understand people's mixed feelings about it. The game is basically a thirty minute top-down shooter (if you can survive that long), but the further you progress, the more difficult you can make it if you wish. Add in a dozen characters to choose from across Digital Devolver's games and there are plenty of ways to have fun taking down Mental's minions.”
“Despite its issues, it's easy to love I Hate Running Backwards.”
“I Hate Running Backwards is a much needed and refreshing tribute to the classic arcade shoot 'em up, that, in spite of a few odd difficulty spikes, is highly addictive and absolutely worth the time spent—and at times lost—to it.”
“I Hate Running Backwards is a correct proposition that stays true to the sources of video games : everything is based on gameplay with simple but proven principles. The result is a game without pretension, but that will occupy you for hours with friends or solo. Too bad it has not been polished a little more with other game modes, including classics online modes (in coop for instance).”
“Ultimately, I Hate Running Backwards is a fun, worthwhile experience. At the same time, though, it is largely a fleeting sort of fun. For some reason, it feels eerily reminiscent of those mobile games that people play in brief spurts while waiting for something better to do. It is that same kind of hectic, fast-paced fun that sadly doesn't really last and is forgotten about almost as soon as it gets turned off. It is sort of the videogame equivalent of being chased by a bear. Heart pounding, thrilling, but once you get away, you are just sort of glad it is over. This is just a couple steps shy”
“I was sad that my time spent with I Hate Running Backwards wasn't as fun as what I expected it to be. I really love the Serious Sam franchise, but this time, taking things into a shoot 'em up gameplay, and cranking up the difficulty to eleven… well, this game is definitely not for everyone. I Hate Running Backwards looks great and there's a ton of content to play… if you manage to survive that long!”
“Its rogue-lite style and punishing toughness will also be an acquired taste – if adrenaline is your drug of choice and your frustration tolerance is high, pick up a weapon and give your leg muscles a workout with I Hate Running Backwards.”
“I Hate Running Backwards features fun core gameplay but its high degree of difficulty and roguelike structure make it far less accessible than it should be.”
“I Hate Running Backwards is hideous endless runner with great gameplay. The difficulty level is high enough to take several hours to master the game.”
“Intended to be a fast and frisky, the game falls in almost all its goals. With a protagonist who is supposed to be charismatic, its Minecraft style graphics makes you feel that every character is the same. Luck has more incidence in the game than your skill, and that makes you feel that doesnt matter what you do, will always depend on the world you are in.”
“There is a good time to be had here, just don't expect to be going back to it again after you're done”
“The design of I Hate Running Backwards is funny and it definitely has a lot of potential, but it didn't really hit home for me. Co-op mode makes it an easier sell, because it is definitely fun to face challenges with friends, but it is still pretty difficult. Die-hard fans of the genre might enjoy the challenge of making it through this game, but for the casual player there are probably more casual options.”
“I Hate Running Backwards is an interesting take on endless runners. You need to fun away from hordes of enemies, but also survive. You run backwards while annihilating enemies trying to chase you. The gameplay is interrupted by various minigames, graphics are simplistic but nicely implemented, and you can even bring a friend to help you out.”
“This game is the definition of okay. It's not boring, there's definitely enjoyment to be had, but what enjoyment there is is hindered by poor decisions.”
“I Hate Running Backwards is a challenging shoot 'em up with roguelike elements that will keep you up late into the night with it's "one more round" gameplay. Although the game is fun, there could be several changes to the special weapons and perk system to make each round feel more unique and enhance the replayability.”
“I Hate Running Backwards had some great potential, it's fun to play yet it feels basic and tiring.”
“The game has potential and is loaded with a bunch of memorable characters, but it has general design flaws that are tough to overlook.”
Reviews are the work of the outlets named. Titles, scores and quoted excerpts are reproduced for identification and criticism; each links to the original.