You NEED to play Rhythm Doctor if you're a fan of rhythm games--especially Rhythm Heaven. The game does so, so much with just one button; it introduces various different cues, combining and expanding upon them in really cool ways from one level to the next. On top of that, there's a genuinely great story that works hand-in-hand with the gameplay; nothing super complex or groundbreaking, but the patients and staff of Middlesea Hospital are quite a compelling cast of characters. The game's still in Early Access as of now, but for my money, it's already one of the all-time greats of the rhythm game genre--and I'm certain it'll be even better once it's complete.

also i absolutely LOVE IT whenever the game does that. no spoilers, iykyk

A soulful little indie rhythm game made in Hong Kong where you play as a remote-cardiologist who needs to tap the spacebar on the 7th beat* (usually, there are some other types of patterns that you press after one beat, or need to hold the spacebar down for) in order to solve the heart issues of the patients of an underfunded hospital. The game plays around with it's visuals in cool/novel ways and has a multitude of banger tunes (Intimate and Lounge are my favs); Rhythm Doctor gets my full recommendation for rhythm game fans, and its simple premise make it a great time for novice rhythm gamers, too.
(Also, this game has an active custom level scene, and some of their creations are just plain awesome - https://youtu.be/VhC_8I3vWV8)

I think a one button rhythm game might be all that I can handle, but that's okay because this game stretches the mechanic to wildly fun and unique proportions. I love the way that most of the levels in this game bring something new to the table, and I like the soundtrack quite a bit. It feels very connected to the story which links the song to the experience in a neat way. Also, the game looks great and has a fun story. There's a lot to love here even for those who aren't interested in rhythm games.

Starting this by saying I've been following this game through development since 2017; the concept is really cool! It mashes an EKG style heart monitor into a rhythm game. Rhythm Doctor also tests your internal clock by smearing distractions all over the screen. and I mean a LOT of distractions. Gotta rely on audio cues for this one, which can be a fun challenge!

RD would be a 4 star for me if the single beat cues were consistent. I've played a good amount of rhythm games, and while the patterns in RD are really fun, the single beats in between just kill me. I'm either trying my hardest to ignore the cues or just guessing where the single beat goes. It's crazy to me that I can get a better rank by not paying attention and autopiloting vs. trying my best to match the cues, but I digress. The single cues may be frustrating, but the rest of the cues are really cool! My favorite are the SVT beats and the swing beats, they feel so natural to do.

Most of the song selection is Lo-fi. It creates a super vibin atmosphere that counter-acts the distractions for a unique experience. I love the simple story too, I'm glad there is one at all. The pixel art is lovely too. There's no doubt that the devs put tons of love and care into this game over its extremely long development.

I'm almost through world 5 but I'm unsure if I'll finish RD. Blast beats and freeze beats are easy, don't get me wrong, it's the funky single beats in the middle that screw me over. Despite my personal struggles, If you really love rhythm games (especially indie ones) I highly recommend Rhythm Doctor! It's got a chill vibe that can't be beat.

Technically this is still in early access so can’t say it’s finished just yet, but with Act 5 out it seems mostly content complete as is. And what’s here is really good, very creative rhythm game that makes just tapping one button much more difficult than it would seem

The goal is to tap on the seventh beat of the song, but it tries its best to distract you from that with the visuals for each stage. Trying to pay attention to the beat while also looking at the level’s really cool, especially for certain ones throughout that caught me off guard. And as it goes it’ll start adding new beats to listen to that can quickly ramp up what you’ll need to keep track of. Hopefully there’s a bit more levels to look forward to before it’s officially released

i can't quite pinpoint what exactly rhythm doctor's charm is. maybe it's the pixelart, maybe it's the heartfelt dialogue, maybe it's the absolute bop of an ost, but i think it's a mix of that and its creative level design. and the fact that im talking about LEVEL DESIGN for a rhythm game really should say enough, the way it manages to tell stories through each level truly something amazing. act 2 is where the game peaks, but the new act 5 boss might just be one of the best things i've had the pleasure of witnessing.

It's obvious when games bear the heart & soul of their developers. It's immediately apparent that Rhythm Doctor is one of those games. It's an early access game so there isn't a ton of content, but for what is here, it's thoughtful and heartfelt enough for a game 3x its length. The rhythm sections are fun and nowhere near mindless. But what's going to keep you coming back is the stunning 8-bit art and the clever ways the game changes the level design, especially in the boss battles. It's a little treasure and I'm excited to play the full version one day!

I feel like nothing I say about this game will do justice to how much I love it, but I'll damn well try.

I've kept up with this game's development for over 6 years now, since it was still available as a flash demo on Itch, and I've been amazed by it's mindblowingly creative uses of a simple mechanic. This game has absolutely resonated with me, and I recommend it to every one I know every chance I get.

So about the game. First of all, if you like rhythm games where you get absolutely immersed in the music, visuals and just go into flow mode, I highly recommend you to stop wasting time and play this game ASAP. Seriously, it's THAT good.

The only thing the game asks of you at the start is to press the spacebar at the 7th beat. Seems simple right? Well, it is. For a while. Every new level introduces new and creative uses for the main mechanic, sometimes making slight variations to it, but always sticking true to the "easy to learn, hard to master" golden rule of excellent game design.

Every new song is an absolute blast, a spectacle of great pixel art that truly makes the levels shine, combined with the highest quality catchy music I've heard in a game, that will make you hum to yourself later on while thinking "I want to play that song again" over and over.

For a closing thought, the first time I played the second boss level, during the first steam demo (when it wasn't even a boss level yet), I was absolutely blown away by something I've never seen done in rhythm games before, that was executed to perfection.

It's still in early access, but it's already well worth the pricetag in my opinion. Every level is better than the last. Seriously a masterpiece of a rhythm game.

This game has the perfect name. Very Rhythm and very Doctor.

With the Rhythm it's nice that it keeps throwing gimmicks at you instead of raising the difficulty on the individual gimmicks too high. When the gimmicks get overlapped it can be hit or miss but it's mostly hits. Playing a level well is satisfying and it doesn't require too much to get past a level which is good because...

The little narratives explored in the Doctor side of this game are all so charming. All the stories feel so small but also cover such grand emotions under the surface. Things like love, and anxiety, and regret. The songs bring out these big explosions internally but externally the narratives are so insignificant. There is also a lot of melancholy here that you could only get in a hospital setting.

The game also has a lot of grand boss fights which is fun for a rhythm game. They bring out all the tricks and gimmicks for those and they are pretty delightful to experience.

Just a solid little guy. The Baseball guys plotline, in particular, got me so emotional for how ridiculously cornballs it was.

This is a pretty great rhythm game, and is doubly impressive for being this content-packed and challenging while still being in early access. I was initially worried that the game only using a single button could grow stale as it went along, but the introduction of countless new beat types and balancing multiple beats made for some ridiculously challenging and rewarding stages, especially later on.

The visual style is nice and simple, with a lot of great visual tricks the game pulls to make it a bit more challenging. The theming and story was unexpectedly enjoyable, with good writing that justifies the rhythm games quite well. The music was a bit hit-or-miss for me, although I mostly enjoyed what was here. At worst, there were a few songs I didn't care for, but nothing I found annoying. At the very least, the stages are all mechanically different and fun, so even those are fun to go through.

There's a lot of stuff to do, and I'm glad there's a lot for those who want to seek a greater challenge. Locking harder remixed versions of stages behind getting a good rank was a smart move, and makes accessing these stages more rewarding. Speaking of challenge, the game's hard. It's not too ridiculous to just complete it, since you can miss quite a lot and still pass. However, going for better ranks and trying to get perfect ranks is insanely difficult. I like that, gives me something to keep coming back for every so often.

All in all, a very solid package that will only get better and better as time goes on. While not all the music landed for me, it's a well made, varied, fun, and engaging rhythm game.