Scram Kitty and his Buddy on Rails

[Cube]

 

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-02-13-meet-scram-kitty-the-game-that-proves-the-wii-us-got-a-bright-future

 

Scram Kitty lives in the TV, and you play the buddy on rails in what's essentially a 2D shooter, although it's one that seeks to pursue all the eccentricities of the Wii U. Right now, that means that you whiz about the interior of spaceships disposing of enemies with colourful little jets of gunfire as you bounce and grind off networks of rails. It is, if you're after a lazy comparison, a little like Smash TV getting together for a playful tea party with Jet Set Radio.

 

There's some second screen magic that has the TV broadcasting the buddy on rail's actions, overlaying it with splashes of action and commentary that turn the 2D action into something that's as energetic and engaging as a Japanese game show. "I like it when you have experiences with family," Broadbent says of his inspiration. "They hate touchscreen because the stress, but they enjoy the passive thing of watching you play the game. My brother used to enjoy watching me play Speedball 2."

 

A link exists between the two screens that has the buddy on rails sending items across to scram kitty in order to progress - and it's a link that's to be explored further through some smart Miiverse implementation. "We want to make it so that it can translate messages that you send into an assist mode," Broadbent excitedly explains. "You know in Street Fighter 4 and you get a super finish and everything goes crazy and it feels awesome? We want to make it so you can send those abilities to other players. So if you beat a boss or do something in a certain time, that can be translated into an assist item for a friend."

 

 

Even in its rudimentary form it's clear that Scram Kitty has got potential, and its enthusiasm for the oddities of the Wii U makes it one of the more exciting prospects for Nintendo's console. In fact, right now, it's one of very few prospects for the Wii U, slotting into a 2013 release schedule that's currently so barren you have to ask why Dakko Dakko chose to ally with the machine?

 

"I think there's potential to have a hit on Wii U in its first 18 months. To get a game out and have it when the system's starting to ramp up with the Miiverse, to be involved in that will be good for us from a business point of view," answers Broadbent. "As for XBLA, I don't think we'd have the budget for it these days. PSN was an option but with the hardware I wanted to try something different. And as for Steam, it's part of my slightly primitive perhaps thing about liking to know the experience that the user's going to have. I was even uneasy about the PSP games being emulated on the PS3. I want to know exactly what people are going to play."

 

Not much to go on yet, but it's from the creator of The 2D Adventures of Rotating Octopus Character and Floating Cloud God Saves the Pilgrims.

[-Dem0-]

First two screenshots:

 

TV

 

GamePad

[-Dem0-]

[Dcubed]

I absolutely loved this when I played it at Eurogamer Expo!

 

It's a great blend of action and light puzzle solving - erring more towards the action side (but even during those pure action moments, you have to really think about how to position yourself in order to destroy or get past enemies - it's a thinking man/woman's shooter!)

 

Physics feel just right and the gravity gameplay feels a bit like in Mario Galaxy with how you can orbit around stuff when you jump (though it's stickier than the plumber's outings).

 

Really looking forward to this one. I'm jostling for a good run (well, slide) and gun action game and this fits the bill very nicely!

[david.dakota]

@Dcubed,glad to hear your impressions. I've been looking forward to this for a while - any news on a release date?

[Dcubed]

@Dcubed,glad to hear your impressions. I've been looking forward to this for a while - any news on a release date?

 

The developer there said that it was still planned for release before the end of the year.

[-Dem0-]

[Dcubed]

Still looks great! I wonder if they took my feedback into account and implemented some sort of notification on the TV whenever something special is being shown on the Gamepad (all the devs at Eurogamer Expo were taking user feedback on board - so if you see some kind of "look at the Gamepad" notification icon or message, when using both screens, you know who to thank... )

Edited February 6, 2014 by Dcubed

[Hero-of-Time]

Still looks great! I wonder if they took my feedback into account and implemented some sort of notification on the TV whenever something special is being shown on the Gamepad (all the devs at Eurogamer Expo were taking user feedback on board - so if you see some kind of notification icon or message , you know who to thank... )

 

Somebody else who may have suggested it?

[Dcubed]

Somebody else who may have suggested it?

 

Ha ha yeah right. As if they'd listen to anyone but me...

 

You can't let me have just one victory, can you? :p

[Dcubed]

So this is the week for Scram Kitty and NOE did an interview with Dakko Dakko about the game

 

http://www.nintendo.co.uk/News/2014/May/Nintendo-eShop-developer-discussion-Scram-Kitty-and-his-Buddy-on-Rails-881883.html

[dazzybee]

That's great to see. I've played the first batch of levels and it is really good, the two screen set up is a bit.... Pointless but okay I guess. And it is HARD!! It's more of a platform puzzler than a shooter though. People should look forward to it though, plays and controls great, not entirely convinced about not being able to direct your fire though, leads to some frustrating deaths!

[peterl0]

@dazzybee will you post a link to your review when it is up?

Given that it is out in 3 days, has the crevice embargo been lifted?

Or is there bit one for an indie game?

 

Edit: review, not crevice, damn autocorrect.

[Hero-of-Time]

That's great to see. I've played the first batch of levels and it is really good, the two screen set up is a bit.... Pointless but okay I guess. And it is HARD!! It's more of a platform puzzler than a shooter though. People should look forward to it though, plays and controls great, not entirely convinced about not being able to direct your fire though, leads to some frustrating deaths!

 

Thanks for the impressions, Dazzy. I've read elsewhere that it's challenging as well. Is it a fair challenge or can it be cheap at times ?

 

I'm looking forward to this one. The official Nintendo mag gave it 90% in their latest mag.

[Dcubed]

That's great to see. I've played the first batch of levels and it is really good, the two screen set up is a bit.... Pointless but okay I guess. And it is HARD!! It's more of a platform puzzler than a shooter though. People should look forward to it though, plays and controls great, not entirely convinced about not being able to direct your fire though, leads to some frustrating deaths!

 

Yeah that sounds pretty similar to what I thought when I played it. It's definately a thinking man/woman's shooter It's fast paced, but not too fast paced (similar to the Mario games in that respect, if that makes sense), there seemed to be some nice variety in the level designs/enemies/objectives etc and they really make some clever use of the fact that you are restricted in what direction you can fire at any given time

 

That interview did mention that it's designed with the idea that you play primarily on the Gamepad, while occasionally glancing up at the TV screen to see ahead of you (TV view is zoomed out more) or getting a friend who's watching you to warn you of what's ahead in a sort of semi co-op fashion. Does the game really make much use of two screen trickery in that sort of way you reckon?

[dazzybee]

Yeah that sounds pretty similar to what I thought when I played it. It's definately a thinking man/woman's shooter It's fast paced, but not too fast paced (similar to the Mario games in that respect, if that makes sense), there seemed to be some nice variety in the level designs/enemies/objectives etc and they really make some clever use of the fact that you are restricted in what direction you can fire at any given time

 

That interview did mention that it's designed with the idea that you play primarily on the Gamepad, while occasionally glancing up at the TV screen to see ahead of you (TV view is zoomed out more) or getting a friend who's watching you to warn you of what's ahead in a sort of semi co-op fashion. Does the game really make much use of two screen trickery in that sort of way you reckon?

 

Erm. It does do that (you can also swap it around so the wider view is on the pad), but it hasn't seemed that useful to be honest, so I think I'll prefer playing just on the gamepad (though it does look nice on the tele).

[RedShell]

Downloaded this today. Only played the first few stages but I'm liking it so far. :awesome:

 

The gameplay is kind of weird at first. I reckon the character movement is definitely going to take me a while to master, but already noticed an improvement from when I started playing. Making effective use of the double jump/gravity mechanic can be really satisfying!

 

Already found the game to be quite challenging too, even on the early stages!

So yeah, glad I got this in the end. Anyone that's interested in it but yet to download should do so now while it's half price!

: peace:

[Hero-of-Time]

An update is on the way.

 

Scram Kitty and his Buddy on Rails is a colourful and rather challenging Wii U exclusive from Dakko Dakko, and has already gathered a band of devoted fans. The literal approach to on-rails shooting is certainly fun, albeit a number of gamers may find the level of challenge a bit too much to handle.

 

As a positive for those unsure of whether to jump in, however, it goes on sales in today's European Nintendo Download Update, down to €4.99 / £4.49 for one week. Dakko Dakko's Rhodri Broadbent has taken to Miiverse to not only remind gamers of the discount, but to confirm that an update is in the works for the title; details are below.

 

Along with the sale, the other big news for Scram Kitty fans is that we're working on releasing an update for the game. As well as fixing a couple of stage progression issues that have been pointed out to us on Miiverse (thanks, Miiverse!) - the update will also improve the balance of a number of stages, and make the double-jump easier to pull off for new players and veterans alike.

 

With the update, you'll find all the mutant mice to be more entertaining and more rewarding to battle, while encounters with Mouse Commanders will be a bit more strategic and less frantic. We're just putting the finishing touches to the update, and we'll let you know as soon as it's ready (it hopefully won't be long, but there's a lot of testing to do!).

 

It'll be interesting to see how these tweaks adjust the experience, and it seems we don't have long to wait. Are you a fan of Scram Kitty and his Buddy on Rails, or perhaps just holding off to see what improvements the update brings? Let us know.

[RedShell]

The sound design in Scram Kitty is amazing! Loving the laser/enemy SFX "pew pew mew mew" the lo-fi digitized voice when taking damage, and the music... The music is just superb.

 

 

An update is on the way.

Perhaps I should've waited until the update arrived to start playing this.

Nah, I'm actually enjoying the difficulty level that the current version has to offer. I imagine quite a few GamePads have been destroyed while playing this game though... those scaredy cats.

 

Hero-of-Time, I know you weren't planning to play it right away, but did you still download this?

[Hero-of-Time]

Hero-of-Time, I know you weren't planning to play it right away, but did you still download this?

 

Nah, I can't be bothered to unpack the Wii U. At least I have until mid week to get my finger out.

[Dcubed]

I never had any problems with the controls or the difficulty in general

 

I do have to say that I think that a good few of the stages are a bit too long and convoluted for their own good though. I prefer the shorter and more straight forward levels myself - in general, I wish that the game focused more on the shooting action and less on the exploration elements.

 

It's still a great little game, just wish it was more of a straight forward shooter really, but I still appreciate it for what it is

[RedShell]

Nah, I can't be bothered to unpack the Wii U. At least I have until mid week to get my finger out.

Do it!

 

Even your favourite reviewers recommend it.

 

I never had any problems with the controls or the difficulty in general

 

I do have to say that I think that a good few of the stages are a bit too long and convoluted for their own good though. I prefer the shorter and more straight forward levels myself - in general, I wish that the game focused more on the shooting action and less on the exploration elements.

 

It's still a great little game, just wish it was more of a straight forward shooter really, but I still appreciate it for what it is

Did you 100% it?

I'm already having nightmares about trying to collect all of the scaredy cats.

[Dcubed]

Do it!

 

Even your favourite reviewers recommend it.

 

Did you 100% it?

I'm already having nightmares about trying to collect all of the scaredy cats.

 

I haven't even 50%ed it yet, let alone 100%!

 

I'm slowly chipping away at it though. Done about 40% odd of the levels so far with every cat rescued so far (think I'm up to about 50 or so cats IIRC).

 

I hate the scaredy cats. I hate them with a passion (oh! You don't want to be rescued? Fine! Go fuck yourself then!)

 

I thought that I'd hate the lucky cats the most, but no. Ugh!

[Rummy]

whats the general lifespan of this title? 4.50 is almost steamlike tempting(im a sucker for a 'bargain')...

[Hero-of-Time]

@RedShell it is done.