Recently, I had the opportunity to try out the upcoming project Bandit Trap from the developer PICOMY, in which the player will take control of either a bandit or a trapper in a 1-trapper vs 3-bandit game, in which players attempt to defend or steal from various locations that span from apartments and cabins to much more
While playing as the different characters, players will also have the opportunity to use all kinds of wacky tools and traps that all have their own unique gameplay mechanics, while also being able to combine some of the items to even improve them and make them more effective than they were alone.
During my time with Bandit Trap, I was able to play with some friends to see how the game played as a group without the use of bots, while also being able to explore as many of the maps as I could, and I even tried playing as both the trapper and the bandit so that I could see how both sides of the game felt.
Playing as the Trapper and Bandit in Bandit Trap is a Fun Experience Full of Manic Moments
As stated above, during my time with Bandit Trap, I was able to play with both types of playable characters, which were the trapper and bandit, as my friends and I duked it out against each other to either steal as much as we could or prevent said theft from being achieved.
While playing as the trapper, players do have a challenge ahead of them, as the trapper is tasked with defending all the valuables that have been left in their dutiful care. To do this, players are required to use various traps in an attempt to thwart the evil plans of their enemies, even if it means absolutely destroying the location they are meant to be defending.
Whether it be using flamethrower traps, ice traps, bombs, seeking rockets attached to fridges, or a cable wrapped around items in the house that can then be used to launch furniture at unsuspecting trespassers, the trapper has dozens of traps at their disposal.
During my time with the game, I constantly found myself in hysterics as I could hear the cries for help from my friends as they would come across the traps I had left in their path, while I was also using the trapper’s ability to control traps to hunt them down myself in a rather hilarious game of cat and mouse.
Along with the basic traps, as I played the game, I was able to even earn upgrades in a sense for the different traps that the trapper could use, as certain traps could even be combined to improve how they functioned, which meant that I could be even deadlier as a trapper both against the bandits and the home I was supposedly protecting.
In terms of the bandit gameplay, the best way to describe how I felt during my hands-on preview was a sense of confidence being destroyed by the horrifying trapper lying in wait for my unsuspecting burglary attempt, as each item was a threat waiting to be perceived.
While playing as the trapper, there is relatively nothing to fear except your opponents attacking you, which is relatively easy to avoid, but while playing as the bandit, every piece of furniture felt like a mimic from fantasy stories waiting to gobble you whole.
As the player is required to scan items to find if they have valuables, the bandits are encouraged to check as many objects as they can to find the valuables hidden within, which doesn’t always go to plan as a large majority of the objects could simply be empty, but there are some that hold traps, which can be quite shocking (both figuratively and literally), causing you to flee or risk providing points towards the trapper.
Throughout my time with Bandit Trap, I constantly found myself thinking that each game was going to be a calm experience in which bandits would steal valuables and the trapper would be sneaking around, but I often found that by the middle half of a game, everything would turn to absolute chaos with traps going off every second, players screaming in both terror and laughter, and a constant power struggle leaving players on the edge of their seat waiting to find out who will win.
The Various Locations in Bandit Trap are Full of Incredible Details and are Each Unique in Their Own Way
Even though I was only able to play Bandit Trap for a short amount of time, I was able to see a lot if not all, of the different locations that the player will be able to explore and break into, with each location being entirely different from the last.
In games like Bandit Trap, a majority of maps tend to become relatively similar and feel easy to explore and get the hang of, allowing the player to easily maneuver around, ensuring an easier win, both for the trapper and for the bandit.
However, the maps in Bandit Trap didn’t feel like this was the case during my time with the game, as even though each map had the same layout, the various layers, sneaky shortcuts, and even the opportunity to break down walls provided plenty of options for the player to take advantage of.
For me, this ensured that each game felt as unique as the last, as you are able to enter from different entry points and find different ways into the building, and with the trapper being able to place traps in different locations each game and the valuables being hidden in random locations as well, there is no telling what death trap the player could be walking into.
In terms of the maps themselves, they are very fun to explore, right down to the intro of the locations. This is down to the bandits’ entry to the location; depending on the location, the bandits will arrive in a realistic transport vehicle, such as if the player were arriving at the house map, they would arrive in a van, but if they chose the skyscraper map, they would arrive by helicopter.
For a game like Bandit Trap, in which players are breaking into increasingly bizarre locations, this sort of detail was very pleasant to see, as it showed the developers were ensuring a level of detail that not many developers would go to.
There Were Plenty of Tools and Traps to Use in Bandit Trap
When it comes to playing as the trapper or the bandit in Bandit Trap, you would expect these characters to have different tools and traps to get the job done, and that is exactly what is provided to you. Throughout the game, there are dozens of tools for the bandits to use, whereas the trapper is limited to a select number of traps until they are able to upgrade them further down the line.
Let’s start off by talking about the various tools that the bandits are able to use as they attempt to steal the valuables that are being protected by the trapper. Sadly, we cannot talk about each and every tool within the game as there are too many to count, but we can talk about the various jobs that the tools can be used for within Bandit Trap.
For instance, one of the tools that players will become familiar with quickly is the scanner tool. Now this is more of a generalisation, as at the time of writing, there are a few different scanner tools for the player to use so that they can scan for valuables, each with their own activation gameplay mechanic, whether it be narrowing down the valuable search, outright scanning items, and more.
Other than the scanner tools, there are two main tool categories that the trapper can use during the escapade. One category of tools is mainly used to unlock doors, such as the screwdriver, and another category of tools is used to destroy the different items of furniture hiding your prize, such as the jackhammer.
What makes these tool categories unique is that they are specifically used for certain jobs and are more effective at the jobs they are intended for. This means that yes, you can use the jackhammer to open a door, but it will take considerably longer and will likely be a waste of time.
The most interesting thing about these different tools is that each of them has a unique activation method that is accurate to how the tool is used. For instance, when using the screwdriver, players will have to complete a unique QTE (quick time event) in which they turn their joystick in time with a rotating bar, and the more accurate they are, the quicker the door opens.
During my time with the game, I found this to be a very fun way of demonstrating how each of these different items is actually used, while also ensuring that the player doesn’t get bored doing the same QTE over and over again. To add to this, a lot of these QTEs weren’t easy either, with some of them being quite challenging and stressful, especially with the looming threat of a boxing glove flying at your face.
Although the bandit has dozens of tools at their disposal, the trapper, on the other hand, isn’t as lucky as the trapper is limited to only a select few traps at the start of their Bandit Trap journey, but these traps are incredibly dangerous and fun to use.
As stated earlier in the hands-on preview, players do have access to a lot of different traps, such as a flamethrower, ice gun, rocket-propelled furniture, and even a massive boxing glove, but there are even more traps available to the player that can create even more chaos for those willing to risk breaking into the home of the trapper.
Once the player progresses with the trapper and plays as that character more and more, they will obtain the ability to combine traps together to make them even more deadly and fun. One example that comes to mind is the ability to combine the homing missile, which attaches to furniture, and the boxing glove, which allows the glove to seek out its targets rather than just going in a straight line.
This alone is something that provides the trapper with an edge against their opponent, as there is no telling what you could be wandering up to, and how deadly the trap will be once it is triggered.
Along with traps, the trapper also has access to the ability to lock doors within the early minutes of the game in an attempt to delay the bandits and set up even deadlier traps by potentially combining standard traps and the ability to launch furniture with the chord ability.
Overall, both the bandit and trapper are full of fun gameplay mechanics that make them unique in their own way, while also having the opportunity to create sneakier or deadlier situations that could change the tide of the game.
These are only a few of the different features that are present within Bandit Trap, as there are plenty of other features that I am unable to go into within this hands-on preview, with plenty more features to come as the game progresses into the future.
If you would like to give Bandit Trap a try, during the weekend of December 6th-7th, an open beta will be available for players to jump into, with the game officially scheduled to be released on February 6th, 2026!
For more Thumb Wars Gaming coverage, check out our interview with Daughter of Voodoo developer, or check out our article talking about the new mission in Hitman, in which Agent 47 takes on Slim Shady.
Liam is a Senior Editor, Writer, and Critic for Thumb Wars and has been working with the team since day one. Liam is a big fan of all things gaming, as you will catch him playing all of the new releases from every genre you can imagine. Whether you find Liam gaming just for fun or spending his free time streaming, you will always find a smile on his face when it comes to all things gaming.
