How would you like to shoot yourself in the face with a 12-gauge shotgun at point-blank range? Probably not. But in Buckshot Roulette, you will make this decision on your own, and you will have to stick by it because in this intense but extremely fun game, Russian Roulette has brand-new rules. Developed by Mike Klubnika and published by CRITICAL REFLEX, Buckshot Roulette is a roguelite game in which you will either win big or go home in a body bag. This is our review of Buckshot Roulette on the Xbox Series S, in which we try not to blow off our face while doubling our wins in this unique Russian Roulette spin-off.
The game kicks off straight into action with you waking up in a dirty bathroom. The music is pumping in the background, and the word Afraid? is written on a filthy mirror up ahead. Your character does not have free movement, so you have to click on the door to exit, and this leads to the upper area of a thumping nightclub. People are dancing below; music is blasting from speakers, and neon spotlights are everywhere. But your destination is not here, as you click on the door up ahead and enter another room where a shady dealer is waiting for you to show up. Your destination is this secret room where you will play a game of Buckshot Roulette with this dealer.
As the game begins, you are quickly brought up to speed with all of the rules. Each round has a random number of shotgun shells, out of which some are fake and some are live. These are loaded by the dealer into the shotgun in a random order. Once done, the gun is placed in the middle, and then each player has to pick it up and fire at either the dealer or themselves to see if they get a live round or a fake one. A fake one leads to another free round as it skips the dealer’s round, but if you catch a live round, you blast your own face away but are quickly brought back to life with the help of a defibrillator and blood transfusion. Everything happens off the screen, so you do not have to worry about seeing the whole procedure on the screen.
Every game is played in the form of three rounds. The first round is fairly easy and serves as a starting point for players to get used to their footing. The second round introduces special items into the mix, which provide different bonuses. The third round increases the number of items you carry and is the final round where the loser is eliminated, and the winner takes the briefcase filled with cash. Each round has a different number of lives for each player as well, which are displayed on a small screen, next to the small revolving deck that shows what sort of ammo is being loaded for that particular round.
As simple as this sounds, Buckshot Roulette is an extremely addictive game because somehow shooting our own self into the face feels fun. It is a little tense and challenging at first, but once you get used to it, you are blasting your own face without even flinching. The real strategy in Buckshot Roulette begins once the items are thrown into the mix. The second level grants two random items, and the third level grants four random items to the player along with the dealer. These items range from different buffs and cheats like a magnifying glass that allows you to see what round is in the shotgun clip next or the blade, which allows you to cut the barrel of the shotgun and make it a sawed-off shotgun for double damage.
Similarly, other interesting items include cuffs that block one move of the other player, the soda, which chugs the next round from the barrel, or my favourite, the cigarettes that allow you to get one health point back in tough situations. Since the dealer gets these items as well, and the enemy AI is really good. What surprised me the most was just how competent the dealer’s AI feels. It never comes across as randomly using its items just because it has them. Instead, it waits for the right opportunity, chaining together multiple items to maximize its chances of survival or secure a kill. There were several moments where I thought I had complete control of the match, only for the dealer to completely turn the tables within a single turn. This unpredictability is what keeps every run exciting because you can never afford to become complacent.
The AI also deserves credit for making every victory feel earned. Defeating the dealer rarely feels like winning because of luck alone. Understanding probabilities, managing your items properly, and knowing when to take risks all become equally important if you want to survive until the final round. It took me around 10 minutes to understand the basics, and by the time I got a good grip on the game, I was addicted to it. The problem is that each Buckshot Roulette run lasts for around 15 to 20 minutes maximum, so it is the perfect game for jumping into during short breaks. This makes every run in Buckshot Roulette very enticing, and the strategic thinking of how to use items and the tension of aiming at your face and wishing for a fake round just makes for a really addictive playthrough. I won my first after losing two times, and I was through the roof because I was expecting a lot more runs before finally winning.
Once you have won all three rounds and defeated the dealer at least once, you unlock a TV in the bathroom where you can see the results of the previous game and also use the drugs, which enables the Double or Nothing mode. This special mode offers items right from the start of the game, and it also has some additional items that are only available in this mode. Apart from this, if you manage to defeat the dealer again, you can try your luck with doubling your prize at the end. This mode has its own challenges, but it allows for a much bigger reward at the end.
Apart from the single-player mode, the game also features a 4-player online mode where the dealer is replaced by other players if you have a full team. This mode runs in the same way as the single-player mode, but with real players shooting themselves and each other in the face. This is a more chaotic version of the game, but you will need to find a full team to fully experience this mode. On the XBOX Series X|S, the game also requires a Microsoft XBOX Game Pass subscription for online gameplay, something that PC players do not have to worry about.
Replacing the dealer with real players completely changes the flow of the game. Human opponents are far less predictable than the AI, often making irrational decisions or bluffing in situations where the dealer would normally play it safe. Every match becomes a psychological battle where reading your opponents is just as important as keeping track of the remaining shells in the shotgun. It also creates some genuinely hilarious moments. Watching another player confidently point the shotgun at themselves only to instantly regret that decision never gets old. Likewise, seeing someone gamble on a live round and somehow survive thanks to a well-timed item creates the kind of memorable moments that are difficult to replicate against AI opponents.
The sound design of Buckshot Roulette also plays an important role in its atmosphere because there is not much activity in the game, and you spend most of the time playing with items or shooting with the shotgun. The sounds are crisp and on-point with the music picking up pace according to tense situations. I love how the normal, thumping nightclub music is drowned by tense music when a player is about to be eliminated or when you enter the last stages of the final round. It really goes well with the overall vibe.
The game also shines when it comes to its visuals. Buckshot Roulette is not a very demanding game, but its combination of retro dichromatic visuals with details popping up everywhere really stands out from other similar games. It runs fairly well on the Xbox, with my only gripe being the controls. Since it was originally made for PC, the XBOX version does not use the left joystick for some reason and only moves the selection around with the D-Pad. This is inconvenient because our hands are now naturally comfortable with the joystick controlling movement and the menu screens, and every time my hand jumped to it as well. After trying to move it around, I then had to switch to the D-pad to interact with items or navigate the main menu.
What makes Buckshot Roulette so addictive is how much tension it creates with such a simple set of rules. Every decision feels meaningful because there is always enough information to make an educated guess, yet never enough to feel completely safe. You constantly find yourself counting shells, remembering previous shots, considering your items, and second-guessing every decision. It transforms what appears to be a simple game of chance into a surprisingly strategic battle of probability and nerves.
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Final Verdict:
Buckshot Roulette takes one absurd idea and turns it into one of the most addictive indie games in recent memory. Every match is a tense mix of strategy, probability, and sheer luck, made even better by clever item design, excellent pacing, and a wonderfully unsettling presentation. Whether you have fifteen minutes to spare or an entire evening to burn, it’s the kind of game that constantly tempts you into playing just one more round. If you’re looking for a unique roguelite that thrives on tension and unpredictability, Buckshot Roulette is an easy recommendation.
Final Score: 10/10
Disclaimer: An Xbox Series X|S review code for Buckshot Roulette was provided by Sandbox Strategies on behalf of CRITICAL REFLEX. For a detailed breakdown of our scoring and review process, please refer to our Review Policy.
