Title Publisher	Rats! / Take 2
Genre	Platform
Features	GameBoy, Color GameBoy, Password Save
Reviewer	Eric
Summary Gameplay	Take 2 and Tarantula Studios have created a new kind of hero in this action-platform game. A hero that in reality crawls on all fours, mucks in dirt, romps in sewers, and spreads the plague. But hey, who cares, especially if the rodent in question is Mr. Rez, a radical yo-yo playing rat-for-hire assassin with an attitude and cool, black shades. Your mission in this gangster inspired game is to help Mr. Rez get his sweet-heart Loretta back from the evil clutches of her father. Unfortunately, Loretta's father is none other than the Godfather. As such, you will have to contend with all the powerful denizens of his Mob. That in itself is unsettling, but considering the fact that your enemies also posses strange mutating powers, makes it even more dangerous. Game play is simple, and the objective is to eat all the food in a level to progress to the next. As in most platforms games, Mr. Rez basically jumps from one platform to another while trying to avoid the enemies. He also tots a cool pop-gun, that never runs out of cork, and this he can use on most but not all the beasties that come his way. There are 75 hell-raising levels in Rats!, spread over 5 theme environments called 'The Farm', 'The Sewer', 'The Fast Food Joint', 'The Suburbs' and 'The Scrap Yard'. Each environment has it's own enemies and end level boss, and each gets progressively harder. If you do really well, and clean out each level of all its food and enemies, you will be rewarded with a bonus game. This, however, isn't easy cause' there's a time limit for each level. If you can't finish in time, a mean-flying-henchman will be released and Gawd help you cause' he'll bump you off in no time. There are of course power items littered along the way for our hero, and especially useful are those that extend the time limit or freezes the enemies. Sadly, these are few and far-in-between, so you'll have to rely on lightning reflexes and a fast trigger finger.
Verdict	Rats! is good, and although it won't set records for innovation, it gets high marks for gameplay, color, character animation, challenge and variety. It is also kewl, with a rock-'n'-roll soundtrack that has some of the best synthesized guitar licks I have ever heard in a game. I was also constantly amazed at not only the color, but at the variety of levels, back-drops and enemies. The programmers didn't skimp on anything (except maybe a battery back-up) and Rats! shines through in every aspect of gameplay and challenge. Challenge is the biggest plus point in Rats! The mutating abilities of the enemies is a great idea, since they get smarter and harder to kill with each mutation. The level of control and pin-point accuracy of the jumps and platforms is also fantastic. I really couldn't find anything to gripe about in Rats!, and this is rather rare. Truly, it is a must buy game. It'll appeal to everyone, from the novice to the veteran, and could in the long run encourage rodent rearing as the number one hobby in the world.