PAX East 2010: Raskulls Hands On

Being a big fan of Halfbrick's indie games for Xbox Live and PS3/PSP Minis, one of the first stops I had in mind for PAX East was to check out Halfbrick's upcoming Xbox Live Arcade game Raskulls. The game features the most adorable skeletons you've ever seen wearing costumes ranging from the standard pirate and ninja outfits to my personal favorites like the koala bear and purple duck. After spending a few rounds with Raskulls I commented to Halfbrick's Marketing Manager, Phil Larsen, that it reminded me of Mr. Driller. "Mr. Driller on crack," he corrected me. And assuming by "crack" he meant Mario Kart, (which I myself often have difficulty distinguishing the difference between the two) then he is most definitely right.

I first took a tour through some of the multiplayer levels. The game supports up to four players in either split screen or over Xbox Live, though the system on display only had two controllers connected at the time. The multiplayer plays out much like Mr. Driller, with players racing through colored blocks, with the breaking of one block also breaking all adjacent blocks of the same color. The catch is that in multiplayer both me and my opponent were racing through the same blocks at the same time. This allows for several new opportunities to mess with the other player's progress, whether it be stunning them with a quick smack or simply standing atop their head as they clear a path for you. But it isn't all a downward race, as there are times when the course twists and turns and you need to advance through some light platforming (which inevitably also includes breaking more blocks) to try and stay ahead in the race.

Every block destroyed releases tiny glowing particles that you can collect to fill your frenzy meter. When your frenzy meter is full you can press the left trigger to get a huge boost of speed. Though in my play time I most often wasted my frenzy meter by accidentally boosting straight into a pit of lava, if used properly the frenzy power can be the deciding factor in a race. To keep things as crazy as possible in a race though, Halfbrick has added presents to the course, which act as the weapons do in Mario Kart. Some weapons seemed more useful than others, like the lightning bolt that lets you break through three blocks instead of one, but there was nothing as overpowered as Mario Kart's blue shell to break the balance of the game. I can very easily see this becoming an instant favorite on Xbox Live.

I also got the chance to try some of the story mode, which in the final game will feature over 60 puzzle levels. It's in this story mode that you'll be unlocking the game's diverse cast of characters and experiencing some unique takes on the Raskull's puzzle racing gameplay. One level was a frenzy race in which I had to dig to the bottom of the level while keeping my frenzy meter filled. Frenzy drains pretty quickly, so this is no easy task. Another level had me racing two pirate rats (or Pirats as the game calls them) and played similarly to the mutliplayer levels. Although there was that tiny difference of a giant evil robot chasing me with missiles, so it seems that Raskull's single player does a good job of keeping the gameplay diverse. There are also many single player levels that I didn't get to try including modes with names like Bomb Disposal, Thief Hunt, Evil Curse, and Skullptor, all of which offer their own unique spin on the game's core puzzle races.

Larsen refused to commit to a date or price for Raskulls other than "this year," but the game is already looking polished enough that a summer release wouldn't surprise me in the least. From my play time at PAX East, short as it was, I'm already addicted to Raskull's unique blend of puzzle racing. The single player quest is diverse and hilariously animated, and the multiplayer is frantic and addicting. You really can't ask for more in a downloadable game.