Classical fantasy doesn’t stray far from a certain set of tropes — you have your heroes fighting an evil force, and after several trials and tribulations they succeed. Or perhaps you see it from the villain’s perspective, painting them in a more human light. The Wratch’s Den takes the latter and runs with it, to great success.
The Wratch’s Den, one of PUNKCAKE Délicieux’s offerings puts you in the position of the bad guys. You are due to build an underground den, train your minions, and ensure those pesky heroes leave your ancient gods alone.
Pentradrangle’s amazing score beats against the walls of your ever-expanding den as you slowly begin your quest to collect the three Orbs of Infinite Power. This will restore the ancient Wratch to full glory, and heroes will soon cower beneath its might!
In a way, The Wratch’s Den made me care for the little orcs — though they were soon to become disposable mooks in service of the Wratch. What time I had with them made me smile. There was even an Orc school! I was, soon after starting, able to upgrade my lair to be the best one in the kingdom, and soon the Orbs of Infinite Power were in my hands. The Wratch has awakened and decimated humanity. At least my orcs got to enjoy a brief respite underground.
What’s more is the various difficulty levels that offer a challenge for experienced players, or people who enjoy suffering (looking at you, me). The key art of the characters comes across as whimsical, and reminiscent of the point and click adventure games of the 80s. It all comes together really well.
I do wish that there was a save and load function in The Wratch’s Den, as I rarely finish games in one sitting (no, not even Pokémon Sword, which I beat in 3 days) and closing this game meant resetting all my hard work.
However, my inability to save scum did not detract from the experience of playing this cutely villainous game. PUNKCAKE Délicieux’s SUGAR engine drives this game, as it does with Metavaxx and Damocles Gaze.
What treat will we receive next? Only time will tell.
Grab The Wratch’s Den on itch.io! Support the devs on Patreon too!
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