You know what would be absurd and fun? Watching a train suddenly jump in the air and do a perfect 540. Just like how you can find an app for any weird fascinations, there's a game for this ridiculous fantasy: Denshattack!
Japan has become an apocalyptic dystopia due to climate change. But the country can still create world-changing technologies. A company called Miraido built city-sized air purifying domes across the country, and each dome is connected by a supersonic railway system.
Not everyone lives in the domes, though, choosing a more traditional way of living despite the difficulties. Others, like Denshattackers, just want to have fun, and they enjoy themselves by using high-speed trains to race and perform tricks on obsolete tracks all over Japan.
Emi, the protagonist, is a delivery driver who has a natural talent for Denshattacking. She meets Fernando, a freelance photographer who follows Denshattackers, after delivering ramen to him. Fernando sees her talent and and excitedly suggests Emi tries Denshattacking, and it doesn't take much for her to accept the challenge.
This should be a dark and worrisome premise. It's an imaginative distant future that's more probable than uprooting all of humanity and putting us on Mars, but the developers (Undercorders), decided to contrast the grim scenario with excitement and fun, and based on the preview demo, it's working. Despite the dilapidated villages and ravaged cities, the artstyle resembles Hi-Fi Rush and seems to fit nicely with the other fun elements of the plot.
The lighthearted themes are fortified by the delightfully absurd gameplay: tricking trains. Performing stunts resembles Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, except you're always on a train track drifting through turns, hopping to different tracks, sailing off of ramps, and avoiding obstacles in style. Denshattack even goes as far as creating half pipes and a version of rail grinding with a balance meter.
There are a slew of trick combos—more than I could imagine any train could pull off. The more varied tricks you do, and the faster you finish a track, the higher your score can be.
Different trains have strengths and weaknesses, too. One train called Tokyo Core can charge its jump faster, but has decreased manual duration. It looks like a good addition to be able to find a train that fits your playstyle. I don't know if Undercoders would do this, but I can imagine some silly unlockable trains: western trains, the Polar Express, Thomas the Train; I'm sure you can think of others.
There are also boss fights, which won't be featured in the demo, but I can imagine how wild these will be on top of performing daring stunts.
The games industry is going through its own dystopia, and there is a lot of potential for Denshattackers to inject some much needed variety and fun. After all, it would be funny if some of the more poignant commentary on climate change came from a game about kickflipping trains.
Denshattack launches on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox this year, and a demo will be available during February’s Steam Next Fest.
