My ‘new’ game for June is the indie smash hit Hi-Fi Rush. It’s been a rocky few years for the studio, but I’d heard nothing but good things about the game itself. So, does it live up to the hype?
Reminder: For the Year of Gaming Challenge, I have to play one of the many games I’ve bought in Steam sales and never got around to playing. I give it a fair chance and write up my thoughts by the end of each month. (That may not sound like much of a challenge, but as a father with a lot going on right now, it will be hard to fit it in!)
This game had been on my wishlist for a while. I remember its popularity and glowing reception when it was released, but then the controversy started. The studio was shut down, despite the game’s success, in another terrible decision by the souless, asinine corporate morons that run the games industry. I wasn’t sure whether to buy it, if not even a penny would go to the actual people who made it.
My conscience was eased when the studio was saved from closure, and ultimately, the conundrum was solved when someone bought it for me from my Steam wishlist! So, it was finally time to find out what all the fuss was about.
Hi-Fi Rush
Hi-Fi Rush is a rhythm action game, developed by Tango Gameworks and published by Bethesda (who made the mistake of getting into bed with Microsoft, who, as usual, ruined everything!). It was released in January 2023 to overwhelmingly positive reviews on Steam and won numerous awards for its sound design and animation. It was also nominated for various game of the year awards and by August 2023, it had reached 3 million players [according to Wikipedia]. Which is, of course, why the gibbering goons at Microsoft thought it was a good idea to shut the studio down! (OK, I’ll shut up now!)
Story & Writing
You play as Chai, a hapless young man with ambitions of becoming a rock star. He arrives at Vandelay Technologies with his arm in a sling, volunteering for a program that will give him a new arm. Through a contrived and ridiculous series of events, he ends up with a robot arm and his MP3 player embedded in his chest. The arm is equipped with a magnetic litter picker, which becomes a guitar-shaped axe/hammer that he uses to beat up robots. Oh, and the whole world is moving to the beat of the music for… some reason!
It’s wacky and nonsensical, with strong Saturday morning cartoon vibes. There’s a villain who wants to take over the world and a little Scooby gang of misfits trying to stop him. Not particularly original, and I suspect you’ll see the ‘twists’ coming from as far off as I did! Chai is also a bit of an unlikable asshole (at least, in the part of the game that I played), with no discernible skills or talent other than an entire Uncharted trilogy’s worth of sheer dumb luck. But the writing and voice acting are all really good, and all the insane parts somehow seem to fit together. At one point, fairly early on, you end up beating up a giant robot to a song by Nine Inch Nails. Does it make sense? No! Was it fun? Absolutely! (Remember when games used to be fun and didn’t just feel like a second job?!)
Gameplay
The game is mostly a mix of platforming and combat. You navigate huge, detailed environments, full of secrets and platforming challenges. Then, occasionally, you’ll get locked into an arena full of enemies that you have to defeat to move on.
The platforming is mostly pretty basic, but there are lots of hidden resources and collectables to find. Everything has a gameplay use as well, like items that increase your health or unlock extra upgrade slots. Some sections involve a series of obstacles that you have to pass within a time limit, full of platforms that move in time with the beat, so some skill and rhythm are required. However, I rarely had to repeat a section more than a couple of times once I’d worked out the timing.
Combat is basic too, but still fun. Chai always attacks on the beat, and you can just mash buttons a lot of the time. Particularly in the early levels, it doesn’t matter if you miss the beat too often, but you’ll do more damage, get more flashy moves and a higher score if you can do the actions on the beat. There are some sections where a mini-boss will attack you and you have to perfectly parry to a rhythm to defeat them, but I didn’t find any of it too tricky. Because of the rhythm-based nature, I guess it is a bit repetitive, but in a zen-like way, rather than an annoying one.
Craft
The quality extends beyond the writing and voice acting into pretty much every aspect of the game. There’s definitely a reason they were nominated for so many sound and animation awards! There are a few licensed tracks mixed in, but the original music that plays through most of the levels is great. The characters are expressive and well-animated… the whole game just oozes personality. Sure, at times, we’re reduced to crudely animated 2D faces talking by opening and closing their mouths. But for a lot of it, particularly during cutscenes and the occasional taunts from the bosses on big screens, the animation is wonderful.
It’s just such a rarity these days to play a game that is fun, so full of personality and is incredibly well-designed and well-made.
Stats
- I received the game as a gift on Steam. It’s currently £26.99 full price.
- I have played it for around 8.5 hours and have beaten level 9.
- I intend to keep playing it through to the end of the story at least.
Final Thoughts
I’ve really enjoyed playing this game, and wish I’d been able to find more time to play it this month. I will definitely continue at least until the end of the story. I might even be tempted to go back and look for the collectables locked behind inaccessible paths.
This game deserves every ounce of praise it received. This is the sort of thing the industry needs: more original ideas and creative creations from little studios, rather than the bland, bloated slop that the AAA studios are churning out. I’m so glad the studio was saved from the whole Microsoft debacle, and I’m excited to see what they come up with next!
For more, check out my other Year of Gaming 2025 reviews,
as well as my other Game-related posts.