ArenaNet’s retro 2D platformer Rytlock’s Critter Rampage becomes a reality

Rytlock's Critter Rampage, a retro 2D platformer that was part of ArenaNet's April Fools' joke, is now a fully playable game. The game was briefly shown at the beginning of the company's '80s style commercial made for the Super Adventure Box, a fake gaming console that actually tied into Guild Wars 2. In recognition of April Fools' Day, players could (and still can for the rest of April) acquire this box in Guild Wars 2 and travel to the platforming-inspired area that played home to the King Toad boss. If you look closely in the mock commercial, you can see the kid playing Rytlock's Critter Rampage right before Rytlock Brimstone busts in with the Super Adventure Box.

"Originally, we just wanted to build out a couple sprites to fake the game in After Effects, but one of the cinematic artists on my team (Delly Sartika) has long harbored an interest in building his own retro platformer," ArenaNet's Cinematics team lead Matthew Oswald explained, "so he volunteered to build out a playable version of our totally fake game.

"The version that you see in the commercial was just the first draft. It took Delly about three weeks of work to flesh out the final version. Without further ado, I present the fully realized vision of Rytlock’s Critter Rampage, which I invite you all to play. Good luck, and try not to smash your keyboard in a fit of rage."

Rytlock's Critter Rampage is available to play for free in your browser. Oswald isn't joking when he warns you not to rage too hard. True to its roots, the game is extremely difficult — but would you have a 16-bit platformer play any other way? The game is terribly unforgiving, so to help you out, ArenaNet has provided a few tips:

• Play on “Easy Mode” unless you are a wizard
• There are 10 secret treasures
• There are 4 Special endings:  3 for “Rytlock Mode” and 1 for “Easy Mode”
• Save often!