It may not look like much, but Rabisco is a game that just pushes all the right buttons for me. Originally released on Steam in 2019, Rabisco is the product of two-person Brazilian developer Viridino Studios, formerly known as Greed Dinosaur Games. They had previously established themselves with the rather hardcore action platformers Pinkman and Duck Souls, the latter of which was also released on mobile.

So when you took a look at Rabisco and its ultra-cutesy visuals, you’d be forgiven for thinking they were taking a break from their masochistic ways. You’d be wrong. Rabisco is cut from a similar difficulty cloth, and after earning a dedicated fanbase on PC it also made quite a splash when it arrived on consoles a few months back. Now in partnership with Crescent Moon Games, who also helped Viridino bring Duck Souls to mobile just a few weeks ago, Rabisco is punishing players on mobile devices as well.

There’s not a lot to say about Rabisco, actually. It’s exactly what it looks like in the trailer. You’re guiding a cute little… rabbit… thing? through maze-like top-down levels that are filled with all manner of deadly traps and hazards. Collect all the stars in each level, make your way to the moon which acts as the level’s exit, and bada-bing-bada-boom it’s on to the next level.

You can choose to add a timer to the mix for an extra speed running challenge, or you can simply make your way through the game’s 100 levels at your own leisure. There’s also a number of hidden gems you can seek out where finding them all will earn you a special surprise, and there’s also a Hardcore mode you can enable which removes all the mid-level checkpoints from the game for some added difficulty.

Rabisco reminds me of the types of games that would release early in the App Store’s lifetime. Throw down a few bucks, get a healthy dose of entertainment and challenge for your money. No more, no less. It’s refreshing in today’s App Store climate. The virtual controls work well enough, though controller support would have been nice. The game also occasionally runs quite hot and I’ve experienced some strange audio crackling here and there.

I think these are just minor issues that will be ironed out though, and by and large Rabisco has given me a ton of entertainment so far. Much more than I was expecting, actually. If you’re looking for a straightforward challenge in a premium package, Rabisco fits the bill nicely and feels almost like a throwback to a simpler time in the world of mobile gaming.