I love stealth drops. There’s a certain rare joy to be had from watching a AAA gaming presentation, being shown something brand new and then immediately being able to play it. On January 25th, Hi-Fi Rush was revealed and released at the Xbox and Bethesda Developer Direct – coming from the minds behind The Evil Within and Ghostwire: Tokyo. Immediately rhythm-action fans were impressed by the visual flair, fluid gameplay and banging soundtrack, but does the full game live up to the reveal’s promise?
You play as Chai, a music aficionado and wannabe rockstar with a disabled arm. Seeking to improve his situation, he goes to Vandelay Technologies to take part in Project Armstrong and receive a cutting-edge cybernetic replacement. During the process his MP3 player gets inadvertently fused to his implants, giving him the ability to see the rhythm of the world around him, but causing him to be labelled a “defect” and sentenced to be “decommissioned.” After being aided in his escape by the enigmatic Peppermint, Chai agrees to help her investigate Project Armstrong and discover Vandelay’s true intentions.
The plot develops quickly and becomes quite compelling, even though Chai is a bit of a lovable jerk. There’s a clear Saturday-morning cartoon vibe throughout but the mystery itself remains interesting from start to end and the characters you meet along the way make it all the more special. Humour is also central to Hi-Fi, with Wheton-esques quips, slapstick comedy, cutting satire and pastiches of capitalistic excess and terrible employment conditions aplenty. It’s done surprisingly well and fits the overall vibe perfectly.
The gameplay is a cross between a spectacle fighter and Crypt of the Necromancer. Every action is intrinsically linked to the music underpinning – and reflected in – the world. Combat takes the form of combining light and heavy attacks into combos by attacking, dodging and moving to the beat. Your attacks happen on the beat, as do those of enemies, making accurate timing essential to success – especially once more resistant enemies begin to pop up. Additional combos can be acquired throughout the game as can a variety of special attacks and team-up abilities, and what results is a fluid and weighty system. Because it’s so thoroughly linked to the music – with light attacks occurring on a single beat and heavy attacks taking two – it’s really easy to fall into your own rhythmic flow and more often than not combat was over far quicker than I wanted it to be. It reminded me of the same joy and flow I used to get from Guitar Hero and Rock Band – just jamming out to some great music and feeling the infectious drive. I’m not ashamed to say I was just sitting there bopping away for hours at a time in the colourful, futuristic works and loving every moment.
Boss fights amp things up even further, with some brilliantly chosen licensed tracks and gratuitously over-the-top bad guys. It’s a shame that the majority of enemies started to feel a little repetitive towards the end, but even so, I enjoyed the feel of battle throughout. Regardless, fights are mechanically deep and thoroughly satisfying from start to finish.
My biggest gripes come from the time in-between battles, where you’re left to explore the Vandelay campus in search of upgrade materials, powerups and secrets. I love the exploration, but unfortunately the actual movement mechanics don’t work as well for platforming as they do for combat and feel more slippery than I’d like. There are plenty of unforgiving jumps that require precise timing and unfortunately, the options presented just don’t cut it. It’s doable, but it can be frustrating to have to backtrack after a fall in certain areas just to get a health upgrade.
The visuals on the other hand are astounding – as is the performance. The aesthetic is cel-shaded with vibrant colours, truly bringing a 2D cartoon to life in a 3D space. The characters are uniquely flamboyant with a clear personality and visual flare that represents them, and the world itself feels endlessly fun to explore. The environments aren’t the most varied, but they’re still filled with character and charm – from lights and obstacles which follow the beat to spectacular views across the city. Hi-Fi has such an obvious appeal in its visual design and carries it flawlessly. Regarding performance, I was shocked at how well it played. For full disclosure, I was worried when I realised my now-ageing PC (with most parts released before 2015) was below the recommended requirements – but it still ran like a dream. I was hitting a solid 30fps in all areas on the highest graphics settings, so I doubt anyone with a more modern setup will have any issues in that area.
As I’ve already mentioned, the audio is similarly impressive with a bevvy of brilliant original rock tracks and licenced music from the Black Keys and NIN. It’s an easy pick for the best game soundtrack of 2023, and if you don’t believe me just listen for yourself; the entire original soundtrack is available on Bethesda’s YouTube.
Hi-Fi Rush is one of my favourite games so far this year and is already a contender for my GOTY. From its slick combat to its brilliantly polished aesthetic and soundtrack, it’s an absolute joy for lovers of spectacle fighters and interactive music. Whilst it has its flaws during exploration sections, these don’t detract from the sheer joy of the combat system and how playing makes you feel. If you want a good time and fancy a jam, pick this up immediately.
Enjoy the review? want to read more of our reviews? then click right here to be whisked away to the realm of our opinions.
You must be logged in to post a comment.