Like any sane, rational human being, I did not watch Gamescom Opening Night Live, uh, live. I have no interest in Geoff’s frivolous, overly long showcases at the best of times. Doubly so now that I’m not paid to liveblog them in real-time for an audience of – at best – four people. Instead, I caught up this morning via one of the many helpful articles that organise all of the trailers into a long list. Nature is healing.
As expected, the contents of the show were merely fine. Even Resident Evil: Requiem, a game I’m very excited about, failed to impress with its ho-hum trailer that was clearly pulling its punches to save its inevitable thrills for when it launches next February.
Still, all is not lost! Minutes before the showcase began, I received an email about a game that is easily more exciting than anything ol’ Geoff “Dorito Pope” Keighley placed on his stage last night.
Denshattack! puts you in control of a train as it hurtles its way through a series of increasingly bonkers situations. Balancing on top of a rolling Ferris wheel. Escaping the destructive path of a giant baseball. Parrying the flying fist of a cutesy bear-themed mech. You overcome these challenges by kickflipping and grinding your train like it’s a big metal skateboard full of (presumably) hundreds of screaming commuters.
Paired with a beautiful cel-shaded art style and a wonderful sense of chaotic momentum, watching the trailer for Denshattack! is like being beaten up with a Sega Dreamcast. After the sea of grey soulslikes that defined last night’s ONL, Denshattack! is a genuine breath of fresh air.
As someone who thinks about OlliOlli (Roll7’s incredible skateboarding series) pretty much every day, I’m very much on board for something that has not only been inspired by that game’s sensibilities, but has clearly exaggerated them in wild and wonderful ways. Also, it’s kinda refreshing to see a game touting levels as a feature? More games should have distinct levels. Cheers.
It’s due out next Spring for Xbox, PlayStation and PC. It’ll be available day one on Game Pass, too, if you’re into that sort of thing.
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