Ratatan is a side-scrolling rhythm roguelike where you drum out musical commands to march an army of one-eyed creatures across a bright, cartoon world. It comes from Ratata Arts, a studio built by people behind Patapon, and it reached its full 1.0 version on October 15, 2026 after roughly a year in Early Access. The launch closes out the story with its final chapters, a last area, and an ultimate boss.
Quick answer: Ratatan is available now for $34.99 on PC via Steam, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S, with online co-op for up to four players.
What Ratatan is and how it plays
You control a single animal commander called a Ratatan, and that commander leads a squad of small troops known as Cobun. You do not move the Cobun by hand. Instead you enter rhythm sequences in time to the music, and each clean chain tells the army what to do: move forward, attack, raise a barrier, jump, or regroup. Getting the timing right matters more than button speed, and missing the beat leaves your army exposed.
That setup is the clearest link to Patapon, but Ratatan changes the camera and the control. Rather than directing units from above like a god, you stand on the battlefield as the commander, which lets you move freely in two dimensions and position the army yourself. If your Ratatan goes down, the run ends, so dodging enemy attacks is as important as keeping the beat.
The soundtrack is central to the whole thing. Each stage has its own catchy track, and the game is designed so the music guides your inputs rather than fighting against them.
You can watch the full launch trailer below.
Fever and Super Fever skills
Chaining commands fills a Tension meter at the top of the screen. When it maxes out, the fight enters Fever, a state where the music swells into a duet between your commander and the Cobun and your squad hits noticeably harder. Push further and you can trigger a Super attack for a large burst of damage.
Each commander also earns Super Fever skills, unique rhythm abilities that can turn a tight fight. These range from shielding your troops to dealing heavy damage, and they are the tool you reach for when a boss is about to wind up a big move. A red WARNING banner across the screen is your cue that one of those attacks is coming.
Ratakavuta cards and run upgrades
During a run you strengthen your squad by picking up Ratakavuta, which come with an element such as Fire or Wind, and by drafting ability cards. Cards range from Common to Rare, and you can reroll the options if the draft is not what you want. A few examples shown off at launch:
| Card | Rarity | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Burning Blast+ | Common | Normal attacks explode for +24% damage and inflict Burn |
| Spicy Guts | Common | Attack power rises up to 120% based on HP lost |
| Big Boom | Rare | Explosions around you once per second for 20% of max HP |
Each world is a series of rooms. Most are combat challenges, some are shops or rest stops, and clearing enough of them leads to a stage boss. Beat the boss and you move on; lose and the run resets. What you keep are the permanent upgrades, which is why no run is wasted time.
Rataport, the hub between runs
Your base is the island town of Rataport, a lively hub where characters like Clerkwell and Fortrun hang around and shops and merchants sit a short walk apart. At the Support Desk you spend materials on base upgrades that stick with you across runs.
Upgrades available at the desk include:
- Trading Post Unlock, which opens the Exchanger
- Lonely Island Spring, a guaranteed Healing Spring in a specific area
- Melodium Mod: Basic, which lets you command up to 12 Cobun
- Island Blueprints for further base expansion
Beyond the desk, you can spend coins and materials on permanent boosts to health, power, and inspiration, and bosses drop special materials used to craft stronger weapons.
Cobun squads, weapons, and gear
In the Formation menu you build your squad and swap weapons, with a stat preview before you commit. Each Cobun can carry a weapon and an accessory, and gear does more than raise damage; it can add health, change attack power, or grant special traits like the various decurse effects.
Some of the units and weapons on show at launch:
| Unit | Weapon |
|---|---|
| Musashi | Yeehawler Sword |
| Guardy | Stormy Harpoon |
| Dokan | Noxious Bomb |
| Tamayan | Squid Pot Bomb |
You can also upgrade weapons by sacrificing spare ones for weapon XP, so the pile of gear you pick up in a run never fully goes to waste.
Biomes and bosses
Runs carry you through a range of settings: snowy tundras, dense jungles, coastal ruins, and the celestial ruins called The Everafter, the heaven where the Goddess is said to live. Reaching her is the Ratatans’ whole reason for setting out.
Major bosses include Chilligarden in the frozen stage, the pirate ship The Scurvy Siren, Panda Monium, Shellshock, The Bamboozler, and Fungi Gang. The 1.0 update introduces the final area and an ultimate boss alongside Chapters 3 and 4, and brings the Dark Ratatans together as the story wraps up. The celestial Seed: Unera waits deeper in, inside the glowing gateway to The Everafter.
Co-op and the playable commanders
Ratatan supports online co-op for up to four players, with battles that can put more than 100 characters on the field at once. You pick from eight Ratatan commanders, each with a nature-themed look and its own type of troops. One leads archers and warhammer soldiers, another fields swordsmen and bombers, so the commander you choose changes how your army fights.
The team has said the multiplayer is built to avoid heavy server costs, a design that earned the game a Play Together award.
Online co-op needs a broadband connection with a non-symmetric NAT type, such as open or moderate.
Platforms, price, and editions
Ratatan is out across consoles and PC, with a Standard Edition at $34.99 and a Deluxe Edition that normally runs $39.99 and bundles the base game with a Weapon & Accessory Set, a Cobun Set, and an Upgrade Material Set. Both editions include the legendary Spirit Sword Banbansord as an early-purchase bonus, and Steam Early Access owners receive that weapon automatically with the 1.0 update.
Early Access began on September 18, 2025, and a year of feedback went into balance changes, roguelike structure, event design, and multiplayer stability before the full release. If you want a rhythm game with real depth under its cute surface, this is a loop that keeps giving you something to carry into the next run.
