Hamsterdam

Release Date: August 1, 2019

Action, rhythm, humorous, beat 'em up, crowdfunding, indie games, animals, 2.5D, singleplayer

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A colourful combination of rhythmic production and classic beat 'em up. Players take on the role of a brave hamster named Pimm, fighting against a gang who kidnapped his grandfather and took control of the previously peaceful and friendly city of Hamsterdam.

Plot
Mechanics
Technical aspects

Hamsterdam is a combination of classical beat 'em up and rhythmic game. The action is set in the colorful, comic world of martial arts. The producer of the title is an independent studio Muse Games from New York, well known for its steampunk multiplayer series Guns of Icarus. Developers raised funds to complete the game thanks to successful fundraising on Kickstarter, which ended in August 2018.

Plot

The main character of the game is a small but brave hamster named Pimm, an adept of hamster-fu, a powerful fighting school, whose master is his grandfather. Pimm is forced to take advantage of what he learned during his long training as his hometown is taken over by a cunning chinchilla named Marlo and his dangerous gang. Criminals have demoralized the metropolis, making peaceful and friendly inhabitants dependent on the dangerous tonic, and have introduced their order based on exploitation and violence. What's more, Marlo kidnapped Pimm's grandfather to lure the hero out of hiding and get rid of the only animal that can oppose the gang. Pimm decides to liberate his hometown and save the master.

Mechanics

Hamsterdam draws inspiration from the beat 'em up genre, enriching classic solutions with original ideas. The game is divided into a number of levels designed in the 2.5D formula (three-dimensional locations with a static camera showing the action from a side perspective). The combat system is based on simple attacks, which are assigned to several dedicated buttons. When we combine them into combos, we have to pay attention to the rhythm. On selected platforms, the title also uses gestures (using a finger on a touch screen or using a controller equipped with a gyroscope).

Our opponents are members of the Marlo gang. Among them, there were bosses, who introduce additional and unique gameplay mechanics. We select the levels on the world map. The transitions between locations have been realized in the form of a platform mini-game, in which we control Pimm riding on a scooter.