There's no thread about Mad Rat Dead, let's fix that, shall we? Yes, the trailer for this game is a straight up RAP.
Now, what exactly is MAD RAT DEAD? Well, it's a rhythm platformer where you play as a zombie rat named Mad Rat (hah) with the ability to reverse time with the help of his talking heart. And what does this rat want since he's brought back from the dead? Well-
He's the giant rat that makes all of the rules, and it's your job as the player to help him face his demons and get revenge on the scientist that killed him in the first place! There is a little more to the story, but then I would just be spoiling the experience! The soundtrack is the shining jewel of the game, the whole package being a love letter from a whole collection of musical artists, including FAKE TYPE, Dyes Iwasaki, Camellia and more!
And how can I talk about such a genuinely fantastic rhythm game without bringing up one of my favorite albums that was inspired by it?
MAD RAT MONDAY is an album that, for lack of better words, basically riffs every song in the soundtrack (barring like two) into a heartfelt jamfest with a strangely enjoyable leitmotif of.. Panasonic Blu-ray. It's Christmas in July!
Well, what are you waiting for? Play the game if you love rhythm games, and if you don't? Well, watch a playthrough or something, I'm not gonna force you.
As a rhythm game enthusiast, it really bugs me when games like this are being passed around as a "rhythm game" when the game itself isn't really focused on the music. It's just another Crypt of the Necrodancer clone, but with rats.
And while I absolutely adore rats, this game didn't make them cute enough for me to give money to it. I'll be sticking to Project Diva.
It's a decent game albeit quite hard at times because of platform traps that can suddenly appear without warning and bad press inputs make Mad Rat drop like a rock (or move slower) meaning a quick death on tight situations with fast rhythm beats. While you can rewind time, each death will noticeably decrease your remaining time count, making stages or boss fights impossible to complete if you screw up too much. Took me somewhere around 5 hours to complete the main story, there is also the possibility to play stages with music from different levels in free play afterwards.
I've bought the japanese version on Switch because there was an update released earlier this year that added a bunch of songs for the Free Play mode that NISA had issues to include in the NA/EU regions. No idea if that was ever resolved.
I was going to get this game but I wanted the physical and it was one of the countless modern games where the physical was a "limited release" that was bought up and scalped on ebay immediately after release date. I am mad. Mad about rats.
