It's a Hard Rock life.
Feel the beat as wannabe rockstar Chai and his ragtag team of allies rebel against an evil robotics enhancement megacorp with raucous rhythm combat!
Story
Who has an arm in a sling but wants to be a Rockstar? This dude! And by 'this dude' I mean Chai. Our 25-year old main character shows up at Vandelay Technologies to take part in 'Project Armstrong' - a test program for cybernetic limb replacements. As he is getting his right arm swapped for a robotic one, a freak accident during surgery fuses Chai's iPod into his chest, and now everything has rhythm! As a result he is considered a 'defect' and must riff his way out. Throughout the game you will meet new friends; Peppermint, her robotic cat 808, Macaron, and CNMN, as you discover a plot by Vandelay Technologies to use their robotic implants as a way to mind-control the masses. In a twist you will also make an ally of one of your enemies as she joins you on your anti-capitalist mission to take down Vandelay Technologies. So what starts out as a solo act quickly becomes a band concert as your new companions join in with their own skills, all to the rhythm of the beat.
From the beginning you can tell that Chai is a loveable but sometimes annoying character who gets himself into more trouble than he can get out of. I loved the bond that forms between the characters, even when the 'bad' guy joins the group; the dynamics and banter between the character remains the same. Chai's sense of humour and witty responses can honestly sometimes be his saving grace in an otherwise stressful situation.
The Art design is absolutely gorgeous! Think Persona mixed with comic book illustrations. With music as the core element of the game, the environment is so vivid and lively, and thumping to the beat; you can see the motion lines zig zagging out of the pistons on the wall, the generators on the ground, the trees, and volcanoes. Even the platforms that slide in and out do so to the beat. Onomatopoeia plays a big part too, from showing Chai's 'SNAP!' to the beat to the big 'ZAWOOSH' when Korsica temporarily shuts down a generator.
Combat
The combat is what really gets your heart pumping. It's smooth and dynamic, moving from light to heavy attacks while parrying and dodging incoming projectiles. No two boss fights are the same, with new mini-game mechanics thrown into the mix. Once you get a hold of your light and heavy attacks, you combo those to get different variations.The more of those combos you string together, the higher your Rhythm Rank. Since team work makes the dream work, you can trigger a Special Attack with your equipped partner once you've collected enough red batteries to fill up your Reverb Gauge - think Spartan Rage from GOW except now there's two of you. Despite the emphasis of 'hitting to the beat', the game will not punish you if you miss one; you will however earn extra damage points if you do. Even dodging will help build a rhythm, but leave the fight for too long and your Rhythm meter will start tanking.
Instead of upgrading your musical abilities or your 'guitar', you can buy different Light and Special Attacks. Depending on your playstyle you can either focus on stun damage, frontal or air attacks or a mix of any of these if you can remember them all. What's great is you can also sell those attacks back if you decide to change it up, or if you have no Gears to buy a new attack. I found myself focusing on attacks that push back a group of the smaller robots to give me a chance to focus on the bigger enemies. You can also buy and equip different light attacks for your companions to complement your playstyle when you have them equipped, and trigger their attack when you successfully carry out a parry. In addition to attacks, you can also equip mod chips that add different perks like stronger partner attacks or more health drops.
If you're not a fan of button combos, don't worry this game can still be for you. The game presents multiple options that aids players with the more complex button pushing. One is turning 808 into a Rhythm Assist UI that gives you a visual representation of the beats; an accessbility feature called 'Auto-Action' mode where one button push sets Chai into auto - tune (pun intended); finally a 'Single Key Rhythm Game Mode' that maps some game elements to one button.
Gameplay Mechanics
The game gives us a nice mix of platforming, side scrolling and third-person rock 'n' rolling. The side-scrolling definitely breaks up the game sequence and renders in beautiful and colorful 2D. Sometimes while side scrolling and platforming the camera angle makes it hard to see where you're jumping, and you miscalculate your jump.
With the corporate drones chasing you, you fight your way through waves of enemies to the music of 8 licensed songs, and each Chorus ( or battle) is a stage on you which you fight to the beat. Your final ranking is based on 3 things: your overall Score, Just Timing and Time. To get that extra musical flair with your light and heavy combo attacks, you need to time your final strike to get a Beat Hit -the result being an explosion of color and a cheering crowd.
Sometimes its not just about offense, but also defense. When enemies get enraged they pull you into a Rhythm Parry attack where you need match the timing of your parry with their attack and in doing so successfully, allows you to take them out with one blow - which - you guessed it - has to also be done in rhythm. This was easily one of the trickier but possibly one of the most satisfying parts of combat, especially when it gets longer and combined with a dodge.
Verdict
From the developer that had us questioning our own sanity in The Evil Within 1 & 2, Hi-Fi RUSH is an absolute blast to play and a visual treat. Even for the musically impaired or those with bad eye-hand coordination, and despite the few awkward camera positions, the game just wants you to have fun.
Game Details
Platform: PC (Available on Xbox Game Pass and Fanatical )
Genre: Action Adventure, Rhythm, Platformer
Mode: Single Player
Release Date: January 25, 2023
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