Denshattack! Review

Get ready for the fast-paced, extreme train platformer Denshattack! Developed by Undercoders, this game has you taking control of Emi Araki, a ramen delivery driver, who naturally drives a train to do deliveries instead of a car. The game starts with you taking an order of ramen to Fernando. This chance meeting changes everything for Emi, as he introduces her to the world of Denshattack.

Denshattack! It isn't just about having a regular race with a train; here, you will have to learn how to grind on rails and do a variety of gravity-defying tricks to rack up points as you try to get the highest score possible. Just imagine playing a Tony Hawk title with a train instead of a skateboard; it sounds kind of ridiculous, but that’s what makes this game so unique.

Controlling the train is easier than I had expected. Denshattack! recommends that you play with a controller, which makes sense; I have no idea how you would be able to do it with a keyboard. One button starts your vehicle; this is essentially an endless runner, so you don't need to worry about holding down the gas. The only way the train is stopping is if you slam on the brakes. This isn’t the only time it is beneficial to slow the train down; the brake button is also used to drift around corners, decreasing your speed before you fly right off the track. You also have the ability to jump, which is useful to hop over obstacles in your way, and to honk your horn to destroy boulders and crossing gates blocking the path.

Use the right thumbstick to perform all the tricks your train can do. You can visit the Train Calibration Station to practise doing 180s, ollies, and kickflips, but if you try to spam the same trick multiple times in a row, it will go stale, so you won’t receive many points for your efforts. There is a handy Tricktionary that you can view at any time, organised based on how difficult they are to perform. There are basic, intermediate, advanced, and hardcore tricks to learn. There are so many different ones; it will take a long time to memorise them all!

You get to travel through a variety of regions in Japan: Hokkaido, Tokyo, Osaka and more, each with fresh challenges to deal with and rules to break. Each course has a list of dares for you to try to perform, like Smash Two Wooden Bridges, Trick Over the Moai Heads, and Perform Five Perfect Drills. You also need to get to the goal within the required amount of time, having earned a minimum number of points. Each track has items like spray paint and film reels placed to collect; they not only give you bonus points but can also be used to customise your ride.

If you hit blockades that you are supposed to jump over or mess up jumps, you can keep trying that section over again. For me, I suck at transfer jumps between rails, so I had to play those sections multiple times. It especially sucks since a lot of the time it takes you back further than you expect, which can be annoying. Just a warning, the timer keeps running; it doesn't stop. The longer you take, the lower your score will be.

When you complete the track, you get your score and medal, which are determined by your completion time, the tricks you performed while driving, and the number of dares you finished. You will rank up if you get the required number of points and finish in the posted amount of time. You are able to move on to the next area or, while the track layout is fresh in your mind, rechallenge it. Muscle memory is very important in Denshattack! Having an idea of what is coming up will get you prepared for the craziness that will happen.

Denshattack! screams fun; the vibrant colours, cel-shaded designs, and upbeat music make this a high-energy game. The music and feel of the game remind me of playing titles like Jet Set Radio or even Crazy Taxi on the Dreamcast years ago. All the characters you interact with have unique personalities and eccentric looks that make them memorable, ensuring they do not feel like clones of the same NPC.

You will take on moving castles, mecha magical girls, and even mechanical worms, and the bosses you battle against get even weirder as you progress in the game. Emi will need to use all the skills that she has learnt travelling around the country to take all these foes down and stop them in their tracks –- a bit of train humour for you.

Denshattack! is chaotic and can be rage-inducing at times, but it’s very rewarding to get past a course that you have had to restart multiple times. I have always been a fan of games where you are trying to rack up points by doing tricks. Ever since I played 1080 Snowboarding back on the Nintendo 64, I have found it very addictive to keep replaying stages, trying to beat my best score.

This game is so bizarre and over the top; you just have to try it out for yourself. Just be prepared to be frustrated at times; I swear one day I will get better at doing transfer jumps. I thought my reaction time was better than this. Fortunately, you get to try to complete this stage as many times as you need, though once you finish your time won’t be great. All the reason to jump back in and try again… I can’t stop; the gameplay loop is so addictive.