High On Life

High On Life is a science fiction shooter in which an alien cartel wants to exploit humans as drugs. You become an intergalactic bounty hunter and team up with talking weapons. Squanch Games combines action-packed shootouts with quirky characters, exploration and deliberately crude humor.

High On Life came out on Dec 13, 2022 for PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. The PS4 and PS5 versions followed on Jul 22, 2023, Nintendo Switch on May 6, 2025, and the European Switch 2 edition on Sep 3, 2025.

The first-person shooter was released natively for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, Switch and Switch 2. The Switch 2 edition is a separate enhanced version with Joy-Con 2 mouse controls and higher graphics settings. Running an older console version on newer hardware is a different matter.

You take on contracts for especially dangerous members of the G3 cartel. Between shootouts, you explore new areas, collect useful items and meet characters who open up further tasks. The abilities of your weapons also decide how you deal with enemies and obstacles.

High On Knife is a standalone story expansion for the main game. Two years after the events of High On Life, Knifey searches for a mysterious package from his home world. The DLC adds new characters, enemies and weapons and came out in Oct 2023.

On Windows PC, High On Life needs at least 8 GB RAM, a GeForce GTX 1060 with 3 GB or a Radeon R9 290X with 4 GB, and 59 GB of free storage. Squanch Games lists an RTX 2060 or RX 5600 XT as recommended graphics cards. An SSD is recommended.

The living weapons comment on encounters, argue with other characters and do more than just shoot. Each one has its own combat traits and special abilities. Switching them to suit the situation lets you attack enemies differently or open up new routes.

Knifey is a talking knife and adds to your arsenal for melee combat. The character is also at the center of the later expansion High On Knife, in which a search for a mysterious package sets off its own storyline.

The hunt leads to several high-ranking members of the G3 cartel. Their encounters require careful use of the available weapons and evasion options. Behind the bounty list is Garmantuous, whose organization triggered the threat to humanity.

You travel through colorful alien landscapes, dangerous jungles and inhabited areas. This includes a busy city inside an asteroid. Beyond the main objectives, there are extra characters, challenges, loot and places to discover.

High On Life relies on weapons that constantly comment, absurd situations and dialogue that often works against the expectations of classic action games. The humor is clearly aimed at adults and carries through longer exploration sections.

On bounty missions, you collect resources and alien technology that expand your options. New tools and abilities also help with challenges you could not solve on your first visit to an area.

The Switch 2 edition came out in Europe on Sep 3, 2025. It supports mouse controls with Joy-Con 2, improved textures and effects, and a higher frame rate. In TV mode, Nintendo lists a resolution of up to 1080p at 30 frames per second.

High On Life is designed for one player only. Neither online co-op nor a competitive multiplayer mode is part of the main game. The bounty missions and the story are played alone.

The PC version offers German menu text and subtitles. The full voice acting is available in English. Steam also lists text translations for French, Italian and Spanish (Latin America).

High On Life was developed and published by Squanch Games. In its shooter, the studio combines science fiction action with comedy and uses the talking weapons as its core game mechanic.

The PlayStation versions offer adjustable audio volumes, subtitles, adjustable stick sensitivity and invertible control axes. Vibration and adaptive triggers can be turned off. Several difficulty levels and a controls overview help you get started.