Today we’re looking at Rebel Transmute, a small indie Metroidvania that manages to buck the trend of derivative titles and end up being more than a bit of a surprise. This is a solo dev game made by Evan Tor Games and published by Jandusoft. Games made by a single person are much like Metroidvanias; there are plenty of them out there but they’re very focused on their goals and you never know what you’ll get until you dive in. In this case, we’re starting off with a sci-fi Metroidvania and going from there, so come see what you think!
Rebel Transmute starts out by introducing Moon Mikodo, a young spacer whose mother has disappeared. Unfortunately, she was working on a planet that’s been blockaded and is off limits to the public. Moon goes there anyway and ends up (gasp) crashed on the planet. It’s an age-old story that works because it’s both believable and a solid trope. But Rebel Transmute isn’t your average game. Moon wakes up in a cryotube and the direction of the story shifts in some interesting ways. While the plot isn’t wildly complex, there is one and it’s quite interesting. The bits of dialogue interspersed throughout your explorations are purposeful, directed, and feel like they add to the experience of the game. There’s more than just a bunch of shooting and jumping going on around here and you’re going to want know what it all means.
The vast majority of the game is exploration, as you would expect. Moon is wandering about the tunnels and corridors of a research center on an alien planet, looking for her mom and trying to figure out what happened. As is typical with this genre, you can’t go everywhere or unlock certain types of doors yet so you’re forced along a somewhat linear path in order to get things moving. There are distinctive hints of Axiom Verge and the original Metroid games here too, with similar approaches to music and level design. There’s a fair bit of weird organic life kicking about on the planet too, and learning which enemies attack in what way will keep you alive.
While the gameplay is similar to both of the other games mentioned, Rebel Transmute diverges in a couple of key ways. First is collecting the red energy dropped by enemies, which is used as a sort of on-planet currency for upgrades. You’ll need a lot of it to kit Moon out properly and some upgrades are only purchased, not found. The other way that things are different is that Rebel Transmute is hard. Not just kind of hard, but really, spectacularly challenging. The initial game looks simple enough, slowly ramping up difficulty as you learn the ropes but as you explore further into the facility’s depths, things get nasty fast. Dying means that you’re returned to the nearest cryotube you’ve accessed too, no matter how far away it is, leaving behind some energy and depleting your cash reserves. You can only take a few hits at first too, making it particularly hard to survive.
At the beginning of the game, Moon can only jump, slide, and fire her rather short range weapon. That really limits how you can fight enemies and makes bosses particularly challenging. As you gain upgrades, you’ll end up with better range, alternative jump and dash options, and a host of other options that will give you at least half a chance. Be prepared to grit your teeth a lot however! This is one unforgiving planet and even though you can fire in any direction, you’re going to take a lot of hits.
The map is incredibly vast in Rebel Transmute as well. There’s really no way to judge the size of Metroidvania games until you start playing them and when you realize the scope of what you’ve started to get into, you’ll be all the more impressed that the game is developed by a single person. This is a ridiculously large game with tons of areas that are complex and well-designed, deceptively convincing players that they can almost reach areas that will eventually require alternative routes or abilities to reach. There’s a lot of taunting going on in Rebel Transmute, with useful upgrades and items delectably close yet perennially out of reach until you figure out how to survive and proceed. It’s a great motivator and the time just melts away during gameplay as you explore more and more areas.
Of course, to get to those areas, you’re going to need to fight some bosses as well and Rebel Transmute has those in spades. Bosses are pattern-based (thankfully) but incredibly difficult. The first couple aren’t too bad but then there’s a tonal shift in the gameplay forcing you to struggle through absolutely vicious fights in order to survive and obtain useful upgrades. However, the patterns are fast and unforgiving and chances are as the game progresses, you’ll end up stuck at several for a while before managing to progress. It’s not you. This is one tough game and the bosses just highlight that more than almost any other aspect of gameplay. It doesn’t matter how many other neat mods you install at save points either (and there are plenty of those). You’re still going to struggle.
That brings us to one of the other particularly unique aspects of Rebel Transmute, its accessibility options. While this is becoming more commonplace in gaming, accessibility is a big deal. Some games are just plain too challenging or hard to see or simply not designed for every player. Taking that into consideration makes games more fun for a larger audience, increases sales, and provides a positive experience for every type of gamer. Rebel Transmute has some of the best accessibility options that we’ve seen in an indie title and one of those is difficulty modification.
While the game doesn’t actually get easier, you can add life points to your character, significantly boosting the number of hits you can take. You can also enable a fast recharge system that lets you hold down a button to recover hit points. This system exists in the standard game, but you charge the bar for it by killing enemies. In the modified version, the bar recharges automatically every few seconds, allowing you to quickly replenish energy after challenging areas or even during boss fights (if you’re clever with it). The life options can be enabled or disabled to scale to your preferences too, so if you only need a little boost, that’s an option as well. There are also additional modifications which provide modern fonts rather than 8-bit ones, allowing players with visual issues (or *cough* older eyes) to be able to read the text more easily.
These types of modifications allow players with disabilities, limited time, or those that want a more relaxed approach to gameplay to enjoy Rebel Transmute just as much as hardcore players and it’s a fantastic way to approach design. Now, even with all the accessibility features maxed out, the game is still quite challenging! Don’t expect to be in for a breeze of a game no matter what. There are still hordes of aggressive enemies, tons of precision jumping, and an absolute warren of hidden items, pathways, and difficult path finding to wind your way through. But just having some options really opens up the feel of the game and it’s a great decision to include it all.
As you’ve probably figured out by now, this is an 8-bit style game and it looks a lot like an old NES release. Those with a bit more experience are probably keenly aware that the actual specs of the game are well above those old systems, but the retro look is done extremely well here and really complements the experience. It’s hard to get a unique retro look that doesn’t come off as silly and the epic bosses, interesting robots, and strange organics that populate Rebel Transmute are both creative and interesting, never feeling derivative or boring. Each new area looks suitably unique and features new enemies and attacks you’re not expecting as well, ensuring that the sense of discovery never fades as you play.
You’d expect the music in this style of game to be chiptunes but that’s not entirely the case. Rather than classic chiptunes, you’re instead treated to what seem to be chiptune-inspired tracks that fit well with the style of the game but manage to create a deeper connection with gameplay and events. Tracks are rich and well-executed and the variety of music makes this a particularly solid soundtrack, one that would probably be worth having digitally or even on CD. Perhaps if we cross our fingers, one will be available! The sound effects are solid as well and the creature and attack sounds are differentiated well. Everything sounds like you’re on an alien planet and each area sounds distinct too, making for an excellent experience with both music and effects.
You’re definitely not getting a walk in the park with Rebel Transmute. This is a very challenging Metroidvania-style experience that will push players to their limits to progress. There are plenty of alternatives for different types of players here but this is the epitome of the modern retro experience – a well-crafted game with high-quality level design, interesting story elements and top-notch responsive gameplay. Rebel Transmute is what indie gaming is all about and it’s an absolute delight to play for the over 20 hours it’s definitely going to take you unless you’re some kind of video game savant. It’s a title you’re not going to want to miss and one that probably deserves a physical release as well! At only $20 this is a no-brainer purchase and while it wears its influences on its sleeve, there’s no question that this is one creative and original release. If you’re on the fence here, don’t be. You’re going to want to play Rebel Transmute!
This review is based on a digital copy of Rebel Transmute provided by the publisher. It was played on Nintendo Switch in both docked and undocked modes and played equally well on both. Rebel Transmute is also available on PS4/PS5, Xbox, and PC on Steam.
Nate Van Lindt has been a gamer since the days of yore (aka Commodore 64), and has played a bit of virtually everything out there. He's also an avid comic book collector, both vintage and current, and reads a fair amount of sci-fi and fantasy. On top of that, he watches a fair number of movies and TV shows as well. Oh, and he has a family, a full-time job, and lives somewhere in the urban wilds of Southwestern Ontario, Canada, foraging for old video cables and forgotten game soundtracks.