Sumerian Six is Shadow Tactics but you’re hitting Nazis in the back of the skull with a hammer

Image credit: Devolver Digital

I would not be at all surprised to learn that the voice actors in stealthy Mimimi-style cone’em up Sumerian Six are Americans doing impressions of British accents. The opening radio chat between starting squad member Sid and a pal has that telltale charming tinge of overeager cockney. It also contains the words “bloody” and “arse” in quick succession, though thankfully not next to each other. The only piles are the logs Sid’s crouched behind as he prepares to sneak up to a cable car guarded by Nazis. That is the only haemorrhoids allusion I will ever make on this website. Until the next time I have to write about Andrew Wilson.

“Oil just use my trusty knoife” mutters Sid as I take down my first guard. Straight away, the animation and noise indicators evoke the same Shadow Tactics or Desperados III goodness you’re probably expecting. Fine with me – that’s exactly what I’m here for. Mimimi’s closing was a real gutpunch, and while I don’t expect anyone to match their exceptional work any time soon, it’s at least reassuring to see Warsaw studio Artificer picking up the torch.

Sumerian Six | Extended Gameplay | Release Date Trailer | Coming September 2

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That’s not to say Sumerian Six doesn’t quickly introduce some new tricks. Sid packs a tiny robot spider he can use to ‘hitchhike’ on guards, letting him pass unseen along their patrol routes. I’m also a fan of the option to speed up time, saving you having to wait around for a guard to get into spider range.

A scientist named Isabella soon joins the squad. She’s got a cloaking device, which is possibly the single most uninteresting gadget you can give a stealth character, although it does run out of juice rapidly when she moves. She also has an utterly brutal takedown with a regular hammer that simply cannot help getting jammed in the back of every Nazi skull she swings it at. Very satisfying.

I am currently far too embroiled in the spacefaring demands of long-distant haulage with a different game to spend quite as much time with Sumerian Six as I’d like to right now, but here’s some details from the Steam page.

Inspired by real places and events, Sumerian Six takes you on a journey through an alternate history where folk stories and conspiracy theories are as real as the Nazi threat.

Led by Hans Kammler, a former member of your Squad, the Nazis tap into the occult to create the ultimate Wunderwaffe. Face off against heavily armed, mutated, and supernaturally charged forces, and put your strategic abilities and dexterity to the ultimate test.

As you delve deeper into the Nazi plot, you’ll encounter occult-scientific weapons and ancient Sumerian artefacts linked to Kammler’s machinations. A grim future awaits you should the Nazis be victorious, so do your best to prevent that dark timeline from coming true in this real-time tactical stealth adventure.

It’s out in a couple of days, at it happens – September 2. There’s a demo on Steam at the time of writing. Also, looks like one of the six is a bear.