The Switch is home to some fairly unique games, but A Duel Hand Disaster: Trackher is undoubtedly one of the most bizarre titles to hit the console since its launch. It’s also one of the most stubbornly difficult games to wrap your head around, and without thoroughly studying the optional tutorial, newcomers will find it equally infuriating and off-putting.
The game is a twin-stick arcade shooter, but with a genuinely intriguing twist. The screen is split in two, with the left side focused on shooting incoming enemy ships, and the right focused on recovering parts and materials. The ship on the left is invulnerable to attacks but very limited on fuel, whilst the ship on the right has an unlimited supply of fuel but is vulnerable to damage.
Your actions on either side will directly influence one another – so, for example, as you gather more parts on the right side, your score from destroying enemies on the left will multiply. Conversely, if you allow an enemy ship to pass you on the left, it will appear on the right and stalk you as you gather supplies.
The basic premise of the game is simple enough, but there are various factors at play that – unless you view the tutorial beforehand – aren’t immediately apparent, making the game seem far more complex than it really is.
We played a good few rounds before realising that the ship on the left was invulnerable, so multiple enemies were inadvertently moving over to the right side within the first couple of minutes. Additionally, every four minutes of gameplay triggers what’s known as the 'Rushin’ Firewall', a deadly square of fire that closes in on the ship on the right side. Surviving this requires you to move to the safe zone in the centre of the screen and activate a defensive strike, sacrificing one of your hard-earned parts.
Considering its reasonable price, A Duel Hand Disaster: Trackher is a decent arcade title that introduces a unique spin on the genre. It’s got a good amount of depth, looks the part, and has a pretty funky soundtrack to boot. We can’t stress this enough, though – if you’re thinking of picking it up, do yourself a favour and watch the tutorial first.
Comments 15
Looks like an interesting challenge might pick it up at some point
Yeah I am going to pass
The convoluted title is probably so its initials could be ADHD
@smithpa01 It's def a challenge. Intentionally so. I personally got tired of the usual bullet hells that, to me personally, became a bit mind numbing so I made something I felt had a bit more depth as opposed to just "powerups" for lack of a better description. Hope you enjoy it if or when you do pick it up. Never hesitate to ask a question
@JayJ No prob. Let me know if you have any questions or if there's something in particular that makes you "take a pass"
@Bondi_Surfer The acronym came after the fact honestly. It just happened to fit, but glad you caught it! I could have called this game Shatted and the gameplay would not have changed one bit.
Also just FYI, the ProTip videos can be accessed from the TitleScreen, the Pause Menu, or after you die. This game doesn't hold your hand in the traditional sense, but once you see the devil in the details you can tear sh*t up pretty easily. Take your time with it.
@AskAnEnemy This is not my game genre at all, but since you’ve engaged the community, and are obviously passionate about your game, I’ll grab a copy. I’ve gotta support people living their dream!
@AskAnEnemy Are you the dev? If so thanks for chiming in, it's nothing personal, just that the "very difficult to get into" comment in the review makes me think this is probably a very hardcore game that I will have a very hard time succeeding at. I am just not a big fan of games that are out to punish me for playing.
I picked this up when it was shadow-dropped in the Switch some months ago, I believe around the start of E3.
The text of the review accurately captures the difficulty and (initial) inscrutability of the game. Took me a good while to wrap my head around the mechanics. Eventually I was visibly improving, and even put some scores on the first page of the leaderboards (top 6 for each difficulty level, or “Tear”).
Also, as you can see, Jaycee (the developer) is super friendly, and has a welcoming Discord channel. Nice little community there. Some occasional tournaments, though I haven’t participated in those.
@Bondi_Surfer Wow! Thank you! It means a ton. I engage with peeps because I've noticed even when showing the game at events like PAX, TwitchCon, etc there's always a bit of a..hesitation..to give the game a shot. Completely understandable, and I never want to force any one to play it, however just about everyone that gives the game a shot after doubting what they are capable of will post a very decent score the first time. Once they wrap their heads around it, as @sfb has mentioned, well it's nothing but uphill at that point.
@JayJ No offence taken I just like to follow up on comments. So the "punishing" is true to a certain extent. I don't challenge without reward. I want to get people out of their comfort zone that's for damn sure, but I want you to feel great for doing so. Believe me controlling two things at once is definitely a bit of a shock at first. For example when I designed this game I had a game called Brothers, and Ibb and Obb in mind. You control two things in those games however you control them on the same screen. So when things cross the center of the screen you tend to lose focus on what you are controlling and to me that was frustrating. I was even introduced to a game called Schizoid which was and XBLA indie game back in the day. Controlling two things at once for the sake of it can be interesting, but I'm hoping my "balance" of how I handle it will strike the perfect chord. Maybe. Hahaha!
@sfb thanks man #arcadeIsNotDead
@AskAnEnemy Wow well this actually sounds kinda interesting to me, I I'll have to check this out and watch someone play it. It would help if you had a demo, but I am liking the passion you seem to have for this.
A demo is definitely in the works for this exact reason. With no leaderboards of course Here’s a basic rundown. It’s in the game, but I’ve also posted them on YouTube. It should give you a good idea of what you’d be getting into.
https://youtu.be/hHjDWIEwg7U
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