Ratcheteer DX Review

Are you a big fan of retro action-adventure games like the Legend of Zelda titles? I have a game that feels like you are playing it on the Game Boy Color: Ratcheteer DX. Developed by Shaun Inman and published by Panic, this experience looks to be full of puzzles and exploration, and I couldn’t wait to try it out and see if it feels like the handheld titles I played in the past.

When the game begins, we learn that a comet was on a collision course with the planet, and when it struck, the surface of the Earth was overtaken by a frozen extinction. Scholars decided that the only way people could survive this terrible freeze was by hibernating in cryosleep deep within the Earth. Using the power of steam and harvesting geothermal energy, most of mankind would sleep through the ensuing Impact Winter.

To keep everything running while everyone sleeps, maintenance staff are scheduled to wake from hibernation every 10 years for one week to complete regular maintenance and keep all the support systems operational. Our protagonist is a young apprentice mechanic who awakens in the dark. Apparently, the power plant is offline, and you are part of the crew tasked with fixing it.

Since you are underground and the power is out, you will need to carry a lantern with you to see your surroundings. This lantern isn’t only used to light up rooms; it can also be used to scare away or attract threats. When an area is in darkness, you will see only a faint pixelated outline of a foe or item in the room, such as a chest. Fortunately, the lantern never runs out of power, so you can leave it on the entire time you are exploring, as you are always in the dark.

Our mechanic has a unique way of protecting himself from incoming threats: he wields a Wrench Sword that can be used not only to turn bolts but also to strike enemies and destroy rocks. Its special Spin Slash works brilliantly on stubborn bolts and foes alike. Besides attacking, you will also learn other moves, such as jumping, drilling, and dashing, to help you explore the various caverns as you restore power to the different systems and save the Cryo Colony.

Each cavern you explore is full of puzzles to solve as you search for the boss of that area. This is not always a simple task; there are foes to fight and keys to find in order to gain access to all the rooms in the dungeon. You will have to do quite a bit of backtracking as you discover new items that allow you to progress. Some rooms require you to defeat all the enemies present; others require you to shine your lantern on an orb to make a once-invisible bridge appear; and some require you to collect keys hidden in chests. If you happen to find the Boss Room, you won’t be able to walk in and do battle whenever you like. You must first locate the special Boss Key, which reminded me of the classic Legend of Zelda games.

Ratcheteer DX looks just like games released on the Game Boy Color. All the sprites are pixelated and there is a limited colour palette. In the pause menu, the game allows you to select whether the display is black and white, pea-soup green (like the original Game Boy), or the limited colour mode. Here you will also find your inventory and a handy map showing all the rooms in the area, along with the locations of chests, the boss room and a yellow flag indicating where you need to go.

The music in Ratcheteer DX sounds just like a handheld title, but better, with an almost surround-sound quality. It is very catchy, but if you spend too long exploring the same area, it can begin to feel a bit repetitive. The sound effects are solid, and it feels very satisfying when you hit a bat diving at you with your wrench.

One thing I really appreciated is that once you clear all the enemies in a room, you can leave and return without them respawning, unless you die, which I did a lot. Boxes do reappear, however, so you can break them to obtain more hearts repeatedly until your health is replenished. You can also collect ores, which can be exchanged for items such as rations that allow you to revive once when you run out of hearts.

Ratcheteer DX feels like a loyal interpretation of classic action-adventure titles. The difficulty is what you would expect from a retro game, as the controls don’t feel quite as precise as they do in many modern titles. You will need patience when jumping across platforms, as your movement is not always as exact as you might like, and this can certainly lead to some frustration as you frequently fall off platforms where your character should have stuck the landing. When this happens, you start back at the entrance of that room.

The game does not give you all the answers or hold your hand. Yes, a flag marks where you need to go, but it is up to you to work out how to get there. There is plenty of exploration and backtracking as you determine exactly what is required to reach the next area. 

This is the same for the boss battles: the game never explicitly tells you the strategy you need, so you will likely have to try, and fail, multiple times before figuring out how to defeat each foe. Fortunately, when you die, you respawn at the entrance, which is usually not too far from the boss’s chamber, allowing you to jump straight back into the fight.

If you grew up playing games on the Game Boy like I did, you are sure to feel a strong sense of nostalgia for this title. It does an excellent job of capturing the look and feel of games from that era. Don’t expect hand-holding, though; Ratcheteer DX requires experimentation and exploration to make progress. If you are ready for a retro-style challenge, with some frustration, this is absolutely one to try.