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Drum up an army in the demo for Ratatan, a roguelike rhythm game with huge Patapon vibes heading to Early Access

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Catch rhythm fever and take down giant bosses to the music.

Picking up a new roguelike isn't that different from learning a new song on an old instrument. Find the tune, hit a sour note, try again, this time get a little bit better and a little bit farther—until you're bowling over giant monsters with an orchestra all your own.

Touching on both those delights simultaneously, Ratatan is equal parts sick beats and sick beatdowns. Crank up the volume and jam out to the trailer that debuted at today's PC Gaming Show 2025.

If you're one of those weirdos who remembers the PSP like I do, you might notice a striking resemblance to Patapon, the system-exclusive rhythm RPG. Same beady eyeballs everywhere, a similarly jubilant soundtrack with lots of cheering and chanting, and that unmistakable cutesy warfare with a hand-animated look. If you're unfamiliar, Ratatan will see you order a squad of soldiers around with different musical commands, trying to keep them out of danger while working in offensive pushes for maximum damage.

Ratatan aims to be less revival and more evolution, though, taking that musical army-building action and throwing it into a roguelike context with online multiplayer. If you've ever wanted to start a marching band with your pals, now's your chance, assuming that dream involves bringing giant lobsters and lizards to their knees with your tunes.

The Steam page notes players will retreat to the Rataport in-between games, a hub where items and upgrades can be purchased before you're back in the action. The ultimate goal is to meet God in a heavenly realm called "The Everafter," so I'm curious to see if there's a definitive ending in store or if the adorable little Ratatans are doomed to unfulfilled, existential ennui. Either way, I'm here for any rhythm game-action RPG hybrid that crosses my path, so I'm excited to dig in.

If you're also excited to dig in, you can check out the demo that dropped today on Steam. It's where you can wishlist the game, ahead of its July 25 Early Access entry.

Check out every game, trailer, and announcement in the PC Gaming Show 2025

Justin Wagner
Justin Wagner

Justin first became enamored with PC gaming when World of Warcraft and Neverwinter Nights 2 rewired his brain as a wide-eyed kid. As time has passed, he's amassed a hefty backlog of retro shooters, CRPGs, and janky '90s esoterica. Whether he's extolling the virtues of Shenmue or troubleshooting some fiddly old MMO, it's hard to get his mind off games with more ambition than scruples. When he's not at his keyboard, he's probably birdwatching or daydreaming about a glorious comeback for real-time with pause combat. Any day now...

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