Anime Hi-Fi RUSH > Tango Gameworks surprise rhythm beat 'em up

[Hobo Elf]

Finished the game. Was a neat release that came out of nowhere. I didn't count the hours but I'd say it took me around 8-10h, which is pretty standard for this type of game as they're more about replay value than being lengthy. You also unlock special challenge rooms after the final boss which act like secret missions from other similar games, i.e some kind of gimmick encounter (like don't touch the ground), so there's something new to look forward to along with the harder difficulty mode. The music tracks they licensed were all great and fit the encounters they were used for. The original music they had made for the game was nothing to sneeze at either. Gameplay wise it starts off pretty basic but toward the end there really is a lot going on with combat. The pacing at which you learn new things felt just right to me as you have the extra layer of keeping things in rhythm to contend with at all times. I was also surprised at how many different enemy types there were. You never fought against anything so much that it started to feel stale. And they were still introducing all new enemies even close to the end of the game, one of them you only fight once. From top to bottom it's clear that this game was a passion project which is why it's so full of heart.

 

[Cyberarmy]

Ah, fighting enemies while synced with "Invaders Must Die" was such an awesome experience that I haven't felt for a long time! It was good also because game threw everything to me at that point.

 

[DJOGamer PT]

"Invaders Must Die"

The Prodigy is one of the bands included? Cool
Is "Voodoo People" also in?

 

[The Decline]

Looks and sounds incredibly obnoxious, like Jet Set Radio.

 

[Dadd]

I would've thought this was cool if I were 12.

 

[Modron]

You're not twelve?

 

[Wunderbar]

Looks and sounds like Jet Set Radio.

I would've thought this was cool if I were 12.

you say that as if it's a bad thing.

 

[Melcar]

"Invaders Must Die"

The Prodigy is one of the bands included? Cool
Is "Voodoo People" also in?

It probably only has the more popular mainstream tracks of select bands, just to seem "cool". It's a gimmicky game and I don't think it has much going for it.

 

[Cyberarmy]

"Invaders Must Die"

The Prodigy is one of the bands included? Cool
Is "Voodoo People" also in?

Only one of their song sadly. But we also got Nine Inch Nails for first boss and some other song fom them. Also 5th Symphony from Wolfgang.

 

[Ivan]

-character reminds me of Rufus from Deponia
-exploration reminds me of PS2 Jack and Dexter/Ratchet and Clank
-the combat isn't as fast as Platinum's games, but it does feel more like DMC with the enemies feeling like flood you play with. it even has a bit of the NinjaTheory DMC in it wherein you have to use specific verbs to deactivate blue/red shields
-tone and story is fine, very Saturday morning cartoon

 

[Ivan]

Happy to report that the game takes the kiddie gloves off. I've just come up against my first major difficulty spike and it's triggering my Sekiro PTSD. Loving it!

Quite enjoying this "showdown parry" mechanic. When you overcome a tough one

 

[Wunderbar]

Ivan be sure to use sidekick abilities (not team parries, just the ones you can trigger when pressing 'sidekick' button during the beat hit at the end of a combo). They are highly effective both at dishing out damage and at reaching higher scores.

 

[Wunderbar]

 

[Ivan]

 

[Wunderbar]

 

[Ivan]

I knew I had heard this before...

 

[d1r]

Incredible game, and very challenging on hard. It's refreshing to actually see such a passionate work to be released in current times. Now go back to work on God Hand 2, Shinji!

 

[Cyberarmy]

I knew I had heard this before...

Boss battles are the peak for me, each one different and fun.

 

[Ivan]

Excellent finale. I actually enjoyed some of the enemy types more than some of the boss encounters. Great length, challenge, tone, and music. I probably had more pound for pound "fun" with this than I did with my virgin DMC5 playthrough. In terms of raw fun factor, this is up there with Wonderful 101, Bayonetta, God Hand, and Revengeance. It took it some time to grow on me. I do think it's on the easier side, especially once I bought the tag team finishers, which you can spam quite liberally.

Playing on Very Hard now to clear the post-campaign stuff. Gonna turn on streamer mode to listen to the original tunes as well.

 

[Cyberarmy]

I actually enjoyed some of the enemy types more than some of the boss encounters

Sushi chef was great for me :D

 

[jimster]

"Invaders Must Die"

The Prodigy is one of the bands included? Cool
Is "Voodoo People" also in?

Only one of their song sadly. But we also got Nine Inch Nails for first boss and some other song fom them. Also 5th Symphony from Wolfgang.

Wow they're really cashing in on 90s + 00s nostalgia.

 

[Ivan]

Getting my ass kicked on Door 12. Any tips aside from GIT GUD? I'm noticing that dodging is affecting the score. hm!

 

[Ivan]

 

[Wunderbar]

Getting my ass kicked on Door 12. Any tips aside from GIT GUD? I'm noticing that dodging is affecting the score. hm!

spam companion abilities, they don't require you to attack on the beat.

 

[Ivan]

that's how I got through it. A bit lame, I didn't "beat it" by gittin gud, just got lucky and played well enough to net a 92.

Final thoughts: I'll focus on the negatives, as it's quite clear what the positives are (the tone, the charisma, the combat, the music)

weakness:
-the non-combat portions, particularly the traversal feels like it's lacking a speedier option. Given how zippy and stylish the combat is, I think the general movement needs some twist, something like the Bayo-cat form to speed things up. Triple dashing to the beat is only fun for so long
-some quality of life stuff: you can't "skip" dialogue sequences in the game, which makes replaying some levels a little more tedious than needed
-it's too easy to maintain an S rank score by spamming team abilities, this made the combat feel a bit samey for me on 2nd playthrough (IMO Very Hard and Master didn't feel particularly different from Hard b/c of these OP abilities/moves). That said, I do like the idea of requiring specific use of team abilities to make specific enemies vulnerable

All that aside, this is a fantastic breath of fresh air and very likely be in my top 3 games of the year.