Net.Attack() by developer ByteRocker’s Games and published by ByteRocker’s Games and Gamersky Games - PC (Steam) review written by Hayden with a copy provided by the publisher.
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Net.Attack() is dangerously fun. From thinking that I could dip my toe into the tutorial during a lunch break to having put more hours into the game on my first day with it than I did my full-time job, Net.Attack() smoothly pulled me into a ‘just one more level’ mindset. This top-down programmable shooter is definitely not my usual cup of tea - you’ll find me building things more often than destroying them - but the way that the game steadily ramps up the difficulty while letting you tinker is a gold mine. At its core, Net.Attack() is about figuring out how to chain together nodes in its simple-looking programming interface to create new and more powerful attacks while you dodge enemies and run out a timer on each level. The way that ByteRocker’s has woven that into fields of gratifying explosions and endless waves of enemies, however, has really elevated this from ‘neat’ to ‘WOW’.
Net.Attack() centers progression around three collectible currencies: ByteCoins (experience used to level up your character), Data (used to purchase nodes to program with), and DarkBits (used to purchase upgrades between sessions). In true roguelite fashion, each session you play will try to conquer a single region with multiple layers (levels) to progress through. Win or lose, the DarkBits you collect can be used to purchase incremental upgrades that apply for all future attempts. ByteCoins and Data, however, are used only within a single run, and do not carry over. That said, without ByteCoins to level up and Data to buy programming nodes with, you’re not going to get very far!
The playing field within Net.Attack() is a relatively simple top-down field, with floating icons to represent your character and enemies within the area. Since you’re playing as a hacker here, this makes sense - you’re looking at a visualization of what you are doing, you’re not physically present yourself. By default, every hacker character (and there are many to choose from) starts with at least one program node that provides an attack. Early on, enemies are sparse and weak, allowing you to carefully pick off enough to get an initial level or two and afford a couple of programming nodes. This is where the game starts to take off, and where my inner nerd rejoices.
Programming in Net.Attack() is done in a dedicated coding screen that pauses the run-and-gun action. Every character starts with a selection of Root nodes, which automatically trigger anything attached to them on a cycle based on their speed in milliseconds (ms). Every node you earn or purchase chains off one of these recurring triggers, and has its own speed value that slows down the whole chain. Sure, you might find a node that drops a veritable nuke on a section of the screen, but anything you have in the same action chain will be crippled by the extra time it takes to run! On the other hand, highly upgraded characters might be able to get some nodes to a point that they actually speed up the chains they’re in, so maybe you can figure out a way to pull it off?
Net.Attack() also makes players think when putting chains of nodes together in the way that those effects are centered. Root nodes always originate from the character, but many attack nodes change the origin of the next node in the chain to be the object it just hit. If that sentence makes you perk up and think ‘chained attacks?’ you’re absolutely correct, and you’ve just hit on a core concept of the game. By using sequences of nodes, you can turn a single initial ping of damage into a screen-clearing cascade of attacks and an explosion, each attack turning its hapless target into the engine of its comrade’s destruction. With single- and multi-target attacks, area of effect actions, FOR-loops, IF nodes and even placable mines that can merge for greater effects, Net.Attack() has a huge degree of replayability within a deceptively simple appearance.
For all the complexity I just raved about, Net.Attack()’s interface is clean and easy to understand, and the in-game documentation walks players through all the concepts on how things interact. The programming itself is easy to manipulate, as players just have to drag a node onto the programming field and then mouse-drag connections for inputs and output to chain them together. No missing semi-colons or frustrating typos here, this is visual programming at its most accessible.
Sound and story here are basic, but that suits the genre well. One does not (normally) endlessly replay the same level in a roguelite hoping to sit through the same cutscene or lore dump for the umpteenth time, so the lack of a deep story isn’t missed. We’re here for action, explosions and creative node programming after all, not dialogue and narration worthy of Shakespeare.
If challenging the normal sets of levels is wearing thin, Net.Attack() also offers daily challenge levels and a sandbox mode to satisfy your explosion-based cravings. To level the playing field though, the daily community-wide challenges strip you of all your between-run purchases, letting every player tackle the challenge from an equal baseline. It's a pleasant change, and can even let you try playing additional characters that you may not yet have unlocked with your post-run rewards. [Side note: these are all earned and purchased using in-game currency from what I saw. No predatory pay-to-win real-money microtransactions here.]
Overall, Net.Attack() is a simple-looking game that will invite you to test the waters, and then let you fight your way back to the desktop hours later wondering where your day went. The node-based programming is absolutely genius, and really takes the game from feeling like a powerup-driven top down shooter into something really unique and engaging. There is tons of replayability here, with the special attributes of each character changing your best options for programs, and the layers themselves are big enough to feel expansive while playing. There is very little that you could ask for that Net.Attack() doesn’t already deliver, and I strongly recommend picking it up. Even better, this isn’t going to set you back AAA pricing - the price point on Steam is roughly $11 Cdn at time of writing, and the game is even on further discount as part of the 2026 Steam Bullet Fest until June 15, 2026.
Score: 9.5 / 10
