Section 13: A Tense Twin Sticks Shooter | PAX East 2025

With my Steamdeck came a new appreciation for twin stick shooters. So when I got to sit down and play Ocean Drive Studio’s newest roguelite, Section 13, at PAX East I knew between the fast paced combat and interesting sci-fi narrative, this game belongs on my Steamdeck.

Section 13 which has been in early access on Steam since July 2023 is getting its full release on May 26th, 2025. With the release, players will be able to fully explore and discover the mysteries of S2P Corporation’s most top secret facility “Section 13.” Offering four playable characters each with their own personal mysteries to solve along with the overarching story, this roguelite seems like it will have plenty of replayability. Taking inspiration from the original Hell Divers, a game which the lead dev still plays to this day. I felt Section 13’s action was just as fast paced with how enemies reacted to me. Shooting just one or two visible enemies may alert a much larger and tougher crowd just off camera I can’t see. So approaching each situation tactically can save me plenty of panic later.

I got  a sneak peak at some of the future unlockables in the game that are either available now or on the full release. From a variety of guns and melee weapons, along with all the upgrades I found my playstyle having to evolve to succeed. Probably the thing I am looking forward to the most is unlocking the rubber chicken. That’s right, they added a rubber chicken and the way the developer’s face lit up in pure glee when I would hit a wall or enemy and hear that “honk” showed me they really love their game. It was even better when he told me how happy he was to see the players in the forums' reactions to the rubber chicken, also showing me they listen to their players, a quality that’s always appreciated.

I’m looking forward to the game’s full release to dive deeper into Section 13 and discover more of the narrative and get to know the playable agents better. As well as the game’s future as the devs teased future updates with more agents and further secrets to discover.