Written by: Pat Klein

When I found out that one of my new friends was working on an indie game that had a demo available, I immediately had to try it out.  The Researcher’s Guide to Kaiju is a strategy simulation where you control a cast of scientists and engineers whose job is to research giant monsters so that their civilization can better protect themselves against them. The game is still in development, but you can play the free demo on itch.io.

The demo consists of one level.  Your job is to scout the land, create a research base, gather resources to build up the base as well as fund your research, research local Kaiju, and then get the heck out of there before the Kaiju destroys your base.  The game plays like a real time strategy game.  You command members of your colorful crew to gather resources or build workstations. 

The demo only has three stations to choose from: a kitchen, a power plant, and a research station.  The kitchen helps your workers work faster and can, and should, be the priority to upgrade first.  The power plant can only be built and manned by a person that comes into play after you expand your base and will offer power to your research station.  And your research station, which can also be upgraded, is used to research the Kaiju research spots that you want to place your station next to.  You win the mission by gathering enough intel and resources to 100% your research on the local Kaiju, and then leaving before time is up.

That’s right, there is a timer to your mission.  As time progresses, the Kaiju will occasionally disrupt your research, such as an EMP blast that halts all buildings for 30 seconds. After enough time passes, the Kaiju will destroy your base.  I like the idea of the time limit; however, I hope that in the full game, they extend the time limit just a little more as I found myself struggling to get all the research done in time unless I placed a research base next to two Kaiju research locations.

Overall, I had fun figuring out the game and the best strategy to build my base and research the most efficient way I could.  The demo showcased a cast of cutely drawn characters, each with their own quirky personalities. The game promises that they won’t be just for show either.  Each one will come with specialized skills to help you along your researching journey.  There is no release window for this game yet, but when it does come out, I hope that this small indie title will be able to stand tall against the giants.

Will you be trying The Researcher’s Guide to Kaiju? Please share your thoughts with us on our Boss Rush Facebook Group or our Boss Rush Discord.

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