Have you ever dreamed of being a hacker? Does the concept of stealing important packets of data excite you? Hacknet is a simulation where gamers can experience the life of an illegal hacker without the legal consequences.
You would be forgiven if you thought Hacknet was nothing more than a handful of mini games crammed into a small package. The game comes with a fully enriched story that is so deep, it’s perplexing. Just like other simulators, Hacknet starts the player off with a simple tutorial. The tutorial explains the basic Unix (DOS) commands that will be used to operate the shells and navigate the terminals.
The game offers mouse support for those not familiar with Unix commands. But to truly experience everything Hacknet has to offer, it’s important to play the game using the Unix commands via the terminals. It just feels more natural sifting through file systems this way. Besides, you will not have access to the GUI interface(s) if you use the mouse option.
The game starts you off as a lowlife, script kiddie hacker with no internet reputation. But this all changes when a user by the name of Bit contacts you via email. You learn rather quickly that Bit is legit; he teaches you the ‘ropes’ (so to speak) of the hacker world. Bit knows you have the potential to be something great; all you need to do is hone your skills.
Once you gain access to one of the most notorious hacking groups on the Internet, things really start to pick up. As you progress through each mission, the level of difficulty increases and gets harder. At this point in the game, you are no longer playing around with petty hacking that involves stealing or removing data from file systems via FTPs ( i.e. File Transfer Protocols). You will eventually graduate to defacing websites, editing scripts, and other, more advanced tasks that take more concentration and have a stricter timetable.
For people that do not have an understanding of Advanced File Systems or Unix commands — or don’t know what a basic proxy is — will struggle to understand the terms early on. To Hacknet’s credit, it comes with a built in Wikipedia that explains (and breaks down) all the advanced terms for the user.
The Wiki is actually disguised in-game as a hacker’s dictionary of sorts that can be referred to whenever you feel confused or stumped. This feature is rather ingenious; it prevents the gamer from feeling inadequate because they’re dealing with fundamentals and techniques they are not really familiar with. Hacknet can easily feel overwhelming to gamers that are not familiar with early computer file systems such as DOS, Linux or Unix.
Hacknet has a very dramatic, techno-like soundtrack that simply cannot be matched. It really does add that suspenseful, movie quality you get from a Hollywood blockbuster. There are almost no graphics to speak of except for the GUI (Graphic User Interface), which is seen for the duration of the game. Gamers looking for flashy 3D graphics will be disappointed.
Hacknet is a unique simulation that is simply unrivaled; there are no other hacking simulators currently available that come close to providing the same experience. With that being said, Hacknet is in a league all its own; it provides an experience that mirrors the real deal without all the real-life consequences looming overheard.
James ‘Daripp3r’ Pittaro
Platform: PC
System Requirements
Minimum:
OS: Windows XP
Processor: 2.0 GHz
Memory: 512 MB RAM
Graphics: GeForce 8800 or Radeon HD4800 series, 512 MB of memory
Hard Drive: 100 MB available space
Developer: Team Fractal Alligator
Publisher: Surprise Attack
ESRB: N/A
Price: $9.99
Hacknet Official Website: http://www.hacknet-os.com/
| Review Score | |
|---|---|
| Graphics |  |
| Fans of simulations will love the authentic look and feel of the Graphics User Interface. | |
| Sound | |
| An absolutely brilliant soundtrack. | |
| Gameplay | |
| The best hacking simulator available on Steam. | |
| Overall | |
|---|---|
| Hacknet is the most authentic hacking simulator available today. When can we have a sequel? | |
