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Ratropolis Review—It’s Time for Some G-rat-ifying Fun!

4K View2021-10-14

Aw, rats! Now that I’ve been living in student accommodations, I have had my fair share of encounters with housing problems—pesky rodents. More often than not, you’d find them scampering across the kitchen when they assume there’d be no one around.

Though my fellow housemates may have grown accustomed to seeing such pests, I’d love to not see any of them for the rest of my life. So, if you ever have the chance to ask any close friends of mine, they are bound to tell you that I abhor these critters.

Pushing my loathings for these skittish creatures aside, I dived right into the rodent-apocalyptic world of Ratropolis (Oh, boy. Here goes nothing...).

There, Cassel Games’ side-scrolling strategy game is all about using your wits to restore the glory of ratropolis (Yes, it’s like a city of rodents). What’s more, I find the game to be a mashup of various game elements—deck-building, tower defence, and city building.

So, the more you do to make the most of each run time—by expanding and defending the city from marauding hordes of malevolent (punctual) monsters, of course—the longer your city gets to remain on the map.

In each run of 30 waves (lasts for close to an hour), you’ll first be selecting your main commander mouse—from the money-laden merchant to the military-oriented general—before drawing 5 cards. With these cards on hand, you’ll be racing against the clock to amass sufficient resources and lay out the defences along two different lanes.

Want to visit the merchant? Sure, he’ll be there with a number above his head, counting down the seconds.

Want to participate in a random event as you fend off the monstrous mutants? Sure, the guy you should look for never fails to have a countdown timer above his head.

It’s all about time, innit?

Be that as it may, but I’ve discovered that your resources are equally as crucial. You’ll be likely to acquire the chance of building your deck by purchasing units or labour cards after surviving a certain number of waves (Well, assuming you can get that far, anyway).

However, you have to keep an eye on your gold reserves as not only does it cost money to purchase the cards, but it also costs you money to play them. Now, will someone tell me where my magic money tree has gone?

Even so, there are times when you have to make tough decisions when random events pop up. But be sure to make the right one; otherwise, it may just return to bite you. During one of my runs, I had encountered an event which had halved my gold reserves.

On a different note, there’s another aspect that you’ve gotta watch out for—Ratizens (population). Apart from gold, ratizens will also be accounted for when you use the cards in your deck. When the ratizen pool hits 0, you’ll have to build more houses and expand the city further.

As confusing as that sounds, just be prepared to grind... a lot.

Only after each run will you be awarded points that will earn you unlocked cards or commanders. When it comes to the cards and commanders, what stood out for me is the sheer amount available (Blimey, how is this a good idea for an indecisive person like me?).

Anyway, if you think you’re up for the challenge, be sure to strap up and join me here in saving Ratropolis.

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