Edit: Yeah its 5 stars
What a game, a totally refreshing romp that delivers on all fronts. New games have felt like a bit of a desert for a while but every now and then an oasis springs up (in this case, out of nowhere) and i’m fully satisfied, this is mainly because Hi-Fi Rush is so colourful, focused and unique with one of the coolest art styles i’ve seen in years.
I love the games’ central mechanic revolving around all of your actions matching up to the beat of the music, it is a flawlessly executed concept that takes some getting used to but once I got it down i’ve never felt this intensely pushed and rewarded by a rhythm game. Usually DMC / Bayonetta style combat doesn’t do much for me but this is some next level shit and an absolute blast to play from start to finish. The skill ceiling to master this game is so high yet it is also an accessible experience that always delivers on its power fantasy, even when I felt like I was underperforming - which is the way to do it. Creative / stylish yet laser focused, a perfect length and something highly original, I honestly felt like this was a privilege to get to play. I could go on and on about how cool the style of Hi-Fi Rush is as well as the top tier quality of the animation, character designs, player feedback, all that good shit, suffice it to say it gave me chills. The cel shaded, bold, vibrant and exaggerated personality seeps its way into every fiber of the game, so combined with its fast, fluid, excellently paced gameplay, it never stops the fun.
With this said, the game knows when to slow things down a bit and tell a very competent story about corporate greed and exploitation, complete with an appropriately colourful cast of characters and personalities that feel straight out of early 2000s animated tv series like teen titans. It wears its inspirations on its sleeve but doesn’t feel too derivative in any sense, with its art direction and sense of humour feeling like a wonderfully constructed amalgamation of stuff like scott pilgrim, ratchet and clank, jet set radio & borderlands. The characters and voice acting is generally very solid, robbie daymond and erica lindbeck (goats) are on point as always, there’s a few minor misses but nothing overly terrible in my opinion. I really liked Chai & Peppermint by the end and their back and forth patter had just the right level of dorkiness & sass to keep things light and entertaining, but to also help them develop and bond.
By the end of the game I was in such a fucking groove that I lost myself in the gameplay, feeling absolutely driven forward by the combination of constant feedback & an outstanding soundtrack. I was nailing S ranks regularly and landing some absolutely nasty attack / parry combos. The penultimate level is the games’ peak and I didn’t stop smiling for the whole thing, the levels are long and can be quite challenging but it just works on all fronts, the explosive boss fights deserve a particular shout out for being so much fun and a real test of everything you’ve learned, truly peak gaming.
I have only a couple of minor issues, the upgrades shop system is relatively weak because the game can be quite stingy with currency and the chips don’t add a whole lot. The combos and special attacks are a blast to use but I do find them to be quite expensive, would have been cool to try out more stuff before finishing the game. I also find that it is entirely optimal in combat to spam the ever loving fuck out of support attacks from the three supporting characters, making combat sometimes feel like a mash party, but generally because everything moves to the beat, it doesn’t get in the way too much its just when there’s a LOT to pay attention to onscreen already it only adds to the craziness of it all, but I do also love how ridiculous it can be sometimes, I just think making support cooldowns longer would improve the tightness of the gameplay a bit - feels odd actually saying it though, make cooldowns longer lol?
Phenomenal game, play this fucking shit !!!
What a game, a totally refreshing romp that delivers on all fronts. New games have felt like a bit of a desert for a while but every now and then an oasis springs up (in this case, out of nowhere) and i’m fully satisfied, this is mainly because Hi-Fi Rush is so colourful, focused and unique with one of the coolest art styles i’ve seen in years.
I love the games’ central mechanic revolving around all of your actions matching up to the beat of the music, it is a flawlessly executed concept that takes some getting used to but once I got it down i’ve never felt this intensely pushed and rewarded by a rhythm game. Usually DMC / Bayonetta style combat doesn’t do much for me but this is some next level shit and an absolute blast to play from start to finish. The skill ceiling to master this game is so high yet it is also an accessible experience that always delivers on its power fantasy, even when I felt like I was underperforming - which is the way to do it. Creative / stylish yet laser focused, a perfect length and something highly original, I honestly felt like this was a privilege to get to play. I could go on and on about how cool the style of Hi-Fi Rush is as well as the top tier quality of the animation, character designs, player feedback, all that good shit, suffice it to say it gave me chills. The cel shaded, bold, vibrant and exaggerated personality seeps its way into every fiber of the game, so combined with its fast, fluid, excellently paced gameplay, it never stops the fun.
With this said, the game knows when to slow things down a bit and tell a very competent story about corporate greed and exploitation, complete with an appropriately colourful cast of characters and personalities that feel straight out of early 2000s animated tv series like teen titans. It wears its inspirations on its sleeve but doesn’t feel too derivative in any sense, with its art direction and sense of humour feeling like a wonderfully constructed amalgamation of stuff like scott pilgrim, ratchet and clank, jet set radio & borderlands. The characters and voice acting is generally very solid, robbie daymond and erica lindbeck (goats) are on point as always, there’s a few minor misses but nothing overly terrible in my opinion. I really liked Chai & Peppermint by the end and their back and forth patter had just the right level of dorkiness & sass to keep things light and entertaining, but to also help them develop and bond.
By the end of the game I was in such a fucking groove that I lost myself in the gameplay, feeling absolutely driven forward by the combination of constant feedback & an outstanding soundtrack. I was nailing S ranks regularly and landing some absolutely nasty attack / parry combos. The penultimate level is the games’ peak and I didn’t stop smiling for the whole thing, the levels are long and can be quite challenging but it just works on all fronts, the explosive boss fights deserve a particular shout out for being so much fun and a real test of everything you’ve learned, truly peak gaming.
I have only a couple of minor issues, the upgrades shop system is relatively weak because the game can be quite stingy with currency and the chips don’t add a whole lot. The combos and special attacks are a blast to use but I do find them to be quite expensive, would have been cool to try out more stuff before finishing the game. I also find that it is entirely optimal in combat to spam the ever loving fuck out of support attacks from the three supporting characters, making combat sometimes feel like a mash party, but generally because everything moves to the beat, it doesn’t get in the way too much its just when there’s a LOT to pay attention to onscreen already it only adds to the craziness of it all, but I do also love how ridiculous it can be sometimes, I just think making support cooldowns longer would improve the tightness of the gameplay a bit - feels odd actually saying it though, make cooldowns longer lol?
Phenomenal game, play this fucking shit !!!