Man... this game is great. Love the pure 2000s soundtrack this game throws at you, and it fits so well with the gameplay. It always feels like such a trip going from Blink-182 to P.O.D. to Freezepop to Komputer Kontroller. It's a strong variety between music as well as difficulty, because it does get a little difficult. Robot Rockers to me is probably the most difficult track in the whole series for me. This game is a lot of fun and feels like a trip, really my only complaint is that I hate the lane switching specifically in this game, but everything is else is so great.

Amplitude may be the sequel to Frequency, but it can be argued they go for very different aesthetics and game designs despite the core of its gameplay being the same. You still have to fly along a musical track, with each one denoting the different instruments that all play together if you keep a consistent combo. It becomes different now that the tracks are laid flat instead of a circle, so you have to zip left and right instead of turning a 180. I personally don't like that you can't loop from one end to the other, but if you're good at doing combos it shouldn't be too different. Aside from that, I find the aesthetic of Amplitude to be more pleasing. It has grungy and futuristic metropolises that you traverse, you get goofy 3D avatars as your icons, and it's overall a more defined world than Frequency. Of course this is a rhythm game, so how's the music itself? Honestly, it's a hit-or-miss collection of 90s and 00s punk/grunge/pop remixes that really show their age. If you're into reliving the days of P!nk, Slipknot, and Blink-182, by all means you'll love diving into this. One other point I'll give Amplitude over its predecessor is that the time input is not as harsh or as unresponsive, so I was able to finish the game. It's just as difficult though, so don't think of it as an easy ride either. Taking it holistically, Amplitude is a fine rhythm game that I wish was explored a lot more because it has so much potential. If you're not a rhythm game fan however, you're not missing out on too much as it isn't very beginner friendly.

I know what you are probably thinking. "Huh? 5/5? S-Tier? This cheap-looking PS2 game?" People say that rez is the ultimate "synesthesia game", but this does it way harder and better to me. Easily one of the most unique and addictive rhythm games ive played. Hard to explain, but ill try; you go down this path with columns on it, and play a rhythm game on each column. the columns correspond to each instrument in the song, and if you play a column perfectly the game will auto play that instrument for a few measures, and during that time you can go to the other instruments and eventually get the whole song in its entirety to play. Not only does it mean that you always have an exact understanding of how well you are doing by hearing how much of the song is being played, but it also means that as a rhythm game you get to do all sorts of different rhythmic patterns from each of the instruments in each song, making the game constantly stimulating in that aspect. It also gives this feeling of running a one-man band as you juggle between each instrument to keep the whole song playing. It leads to this fantastic rhythmic experience I haven't experienced before or since, and is definitely a highlight of the genre. Absolutely a must-play.

The successor to Frequency, which saw many improvements. Including a visual style that isn't senseless, more popular songs (likely from Sony's publishing power), and a more refined design that more heavily promoted perfect runs and chains. Granted, the latter was still exceedingly tough on higher difficulties.

There isn't much to speak of outside of this, as there's no real narrative. My one complaint is that the lanes get a little too "hill-y" and make it more difficult to see the oncoming notes. Regardless, this was still a solid rhythm game with a unique design, and something that would creep up in Harmonix's career from time-to-time while in the midst of their Rock Band craze.