[3] The game features a cyberpunk plot within a dystopian world, and draws inspiration from the works of William Gibson, Neal Stephenson, and Philip K. Dick to create its story, setting and atmosphere.

Hard Reset is modeled on video games such as Quake and Unreal, which results in more straightforward gameplay than most contemporary first-person shooters.

The environments are designed similarly, as there are explosive barrels and various vending machines outfitted with electroshock anti-vandalism defenses, that can trigger splash damage by being shot at, scattered throughout the levels, which the player can use by luring enemies near them.

It further continues the story of James Fletcher, as he journeys into the outer city's robot-controlled territory and tracks down the Corporation's secret weapon that is self-aware and blocks the path toward the "Resistance" bases.

[7][8][9][10] Reviewers cited the visual quality and the intensity of the gameplay as strong points, evoking comparisons to other "old-school" shooters as Serious Sam or Painkiller.