Game Review #061: Rock Boshers DX: Director's Cut (Nintendo Switch)
Reviewer: Frank W.
Developer: TIKIPOD Ltd.
Publisher: TIKIPOD
Category: Arcade, Action, Adventure
Release Date: 12.01.2018
Download Rock Boshers DX: Director’s Cut from the Nintendo eShop here.
Steampunk Space Travel With The Queen
Rock Boshers DX: Directors Cut is an old-school twin-stick shooter set in a Victorian 1880s steampunk Mars. You play as a young Queen Victoria, who has grown bored with the royal life; but just in time for that, a call for adventure to Mars appears! Riches and adventures are promised to the most daring of people, “Just come to Mars,” it says! The young Queen-to-be puts on a disguise and catches the next ship to Mars, but things are not as they seem! Someone evil has put this all on, and as people arrive to Mars, they are thrown deep into the mines to act as slaves for this mysterious overlord! Can Queen Victoria escape, figure out just what is going on under the surface of Mars, and find out who is the dastardly mastermind behind this slavery? Well, let's find out what we have going on to do that!
Choose Your Retro
As I said, from a gameplay perspective, Rock Boshers DX: Directors Cut plays like a twin-stick shooter: left stick moves you, right stick is what you will use to blast enemies and work your way through environmental hazards. The most defining aspect of this game is certainly its aesthetics, and it allows you to pick from either the graphical stylings of an 8-bit console game, or an 8-bit computer game—complete with a long, loud intro sequence where you must wait a couple of minutes as the game loads and makes horrifying noise. Talk about dedication to emulation of the old ways! Neither of these visual styles will affect gameplay, but I can’t tell you which one I like more, since they both look so great! I tend to just go back and forth each time I boot the game up personally, because I like both styles.
Choose Your Weapon
Your main weapon is an infinite-ammo pistol, which you will use to defeat enemies, worms from inside the planet, zombies, and more! You can also use it to destroy computers, blow up barrels, and clear away blocks. I don’t know what kind of crazy steampunk gun it is, but sign me up for it, because that is some clear high-level performance for a handgun! You can also get a rapid-fire machine gun, a high-powered coal rocket launcher, or a devastating steam laser, all of which fulfill various additional roles in your arsenal. Your machine gun is great for hordes of zombies, the coal rocket can destroy special parts of the area as well as inflict massive damage, and the laser—well you can imagine what kind of damage you can do with that!
Keep Moving Up
The game features a Story mode that is divided into 3 main areas of Mars through which you progress, and it feels like a lot of the levels within are almost structured like a puzzle game. Each stage is one screen that you navigate around until you can open up the path to the elevator, which brings you up to the next level. There are events and dialogue as you move about the stage, so it doesn't feel like nothing is going on. It's actually a pretty cool little experience to go through, considering how they keep it all on one screen. You also have a couple collectibles on each stage, and the more you unlock, the more additional games you can unlock to play in the arcade mode, so it adds a little bit of a completionist spin to it, as well as giving you some fun mini-games to play too, if you get a little burnt out with the main game. Each stage also features a “time to complete” goal that you can aim for, which essentially functions as a “par” for the stage.
Wrapping Up
Rock Boshers DX: Directors Cut is a fun little package with a lot of heart. Embrace the neon-lit blocky graphics and the funny dialogue this game offers, and come out of it with a smile on your face. I give Rock Boshers DX: Directors Cut a heart filled 7/10. A great bit of bang for the buck at $6.99, Rock Boshers can easily find its home on anyone's Switch, from the enthusiast for old games, to the average fan of indie games!
Final Score: 7/10
Download Rock Boshers DX: Director’s Cut from the Nintendo eShop here.
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*Review Code Provided by TIKIPOD