Ratalaika Games S.L. are seen by many as the perfect company for trophy hunters worldwide. With most of their games sold as a double feature (PS4 & PS Vita), they have two trophy lists per title. Most casual gamers will not even give these games a glance. I’ve seen them referred to on forums as “trash” and only used by “trophy cheaters”. Both terms are inaccurate and unjust.
Every Ratalaika game I’ve played has been enjoyable, most also go way beyond the scope of the platinum trophy. Daggerhood for instance you can pick up the Platinum in 12 levels, which takes between 15 and 30 minutes depending on your skill set. But if platform gaming is your thing it’s stretches way beyond that.
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| My shiny Daggerhood pop moment. |
As part of Plat Runners I am going to feature their games along with others that are enjoyable and worth a play, perhaps not just to snag that easy platinum trophy.
The first is Devious Dungeon, a light fantasy set platform romp. So far out of all the easy plat games I have played it has been my favourite. Through 68 levels of hack and slash platforming you take your burly adventurer across randomised levels to cull as many of the dungeons inhabitants as possible.
Rogue Legacy is my favourite rogue-like platformer of its genre and Devious Dungeon is a very paired down version of this. Rogue Legacy I spent 68 hours playing and still was nowhere near getting the hundred percent mark, whereas Devious Dungeon is a 2-4 hour jog.
Charming to look at, the levels as well as the sprites are delightful. The monsters you meet at the start of the game also still crop up on occasion in the later levels, which is a touch I’ve never seen in this genre before. There are no pallet swaps for stronger versions of the dungeons denizens, but stronger, larger enemies that often display a slightly different attack pattern to their smaller counterpart.
Despite being more simplistic than other titles, for a light arcade game it is perfect. I bought the game on sale for £2 and played it over the course of a week on and off. It made for the perfect light filler between pressing on with Uncharted 2.
The bosses are challenging enough that you often won’t defeat them on first try and may require some light grinding if you’re not a seasoned platformer, but never fear, as due to the random level design it’s painless. For one trophy you also have to find 100 keys, which is essentially 100 levels. I snagged this right at the end of the game, just before the final few levels.
Tips and Tricks:
- If you get stuck go back to the start of the most recent area and farm kills.
- Only buy one ring and one necklace, the stat increments are not worth the money. Focus your money on weapons, armour and the odd potion.
- If this breed of gaming is something you enjoy and you like to gain some easy trophies it is a more respectable choice than a lot of others out there. It’s a good game, it takes a few hours to finish and you have to get to the end to obtain every trophy.
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| The Plat Pop! |
Woblyware aren’t known for much in terms of game development but I am glad they designed this little gem. I’ve already started on the sequel and Random Heroes is on my list to get soon after.
Happy hunting Plat Runners!
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