Time is ever-flowing, however it’s additionally undoubtedly a flat circle. Tendencies come and go, and loop again round, and right here we’re – it’s the yr of our lord 2023, and a time portal has simply opened above our heads and dropped a Dreamcast traditional into our laps. Or a GameCube traditional, to be truthful – it feels prefer it’d be most at house on both of these. The purpose is, the newest first-party addition to Xbox Recreation Move feels prefer it’s time traveled from circa 1998-2003. And I imply that in the absolute best manner.
A brand new off-beat motion sport from Tango Gameworks, the Bethesda studio that up till this level has been all about survival horror. The studio was based by Shinji Mikami, the person most frequently credited as probably the most influential particular person within the creation of the Resident Evil collection – and up to now, the studio’s works have matched as much as that. However this sport, on which Mikami is the producer behind director John Johanas of The Evil Inside 2 fame, demonstrates that he – and Tango – can accomplish that way more.
Colourful, slick, and with a stunning aesthetic and bright-eyed perspective, Hello-Fi Rush recollects a number of my favourite video games of that period, the place the spirit of approachable and accessible arcade video games merged with the primary console {hardware} that was really on par or extra highly effective than what was out there in arcades. After I speak about this period, I’m speaking about stuff like Loopy Taxi, and Jet Set Radio, and Viewtiful Joe – the latter of which was really produced by Mikami. That’s the power on show right here.
In actual phrases, Hello-Fi Rush is an attention-grabbing type of combine between a personality motion sport like a Satan Could Cry (one other Mikami-produced joint) and a rhythm sport. Your entire world pulsates with the BPM of no matter music is at the moment enjoying, and though you possibly can simply button mash your manner by means of issues, the way in which to deal extra injury and deal with enemies effectively is to take action with timing, permitting your hits and combos to immediately line as much as the pulsing music.
It’s simply good-ass online game motion. You’re slapping individuals about with a guitar that’s manufactured from scrap steel. You’ve got a robotic arm. And since all the things is tied to the music, there’s a toe-tapping poison that slowly seeps into your very pores.
By the point you attain the sport’s first correct boss encounter, which takes place to a licensed 9 Inch Nails observe, you’ll really feel your self slowly slipping right into a goblin mode stance most acquainted to drummers and DJs – I can converse from expertise on the previous – right into a slight slouch, Gollum hunched, however shoulders rocking and popping because the rhythm takes you. The world round you melts away.
The very best character motion video games and intense arcadey video video games at all times have this type of high quality, to be truthful. I can slip into an identical trance enjoying Loopy Taxi, or Ikaruga. You don’t want the music to line up on this manner – however god, it helps. I believe Hello-Fi Rush is sweet sufficient to get there by itself – however the music lets it take your soul in document time. It’s a genius little bit of design that elevates what’s principally a enjoyable and fairly accessible motion brawler into one thing else solely.
What additionally elevates the expertise is the way it appears to be like. Lovely animation, popping colours, and cutscenes that actually gave me a quick pause for considered ‘is that this real-time, or pre-recorded’? There’s fashion right here. It is a new-generation solely sport, out there on Xbox Sequence X/S and PC, however it justifies that not with lashings of superfluous element however simply with a way of uncooked, crisp fashion – and in operating silky clean.
If you happen to’re not too comfy with rhythm video games, there’s loads of serving to palms, from completely pulsating UI and in-universe components that will help you preserve to the beat to extra non-obligatory interface items that make all the things much more express. If you happen to actually battle, nevertheless, the sport is playable sufficient hammering by means of it – however it feels at its greatest if you embrace and match the music.
I simply love what that is. It is a online game with a fucking capital V. It has zero pretentions, and no actual aspirations to be thought of excessive artwork. It’s only a wholesome-ass online game that sucks you in and makes time soften away. Nostalgia is a hell of a drug, however this isn’t nearly being old-school and tickling this thirty-something’s reminiscences. What makes this work is that it’s new, recent, and thrilling, too, whereas undoubtedly referential and reverential to some traditional video games from the period I’ve evoked all through this text.
It’s the type of sport that sometimes may battle to search out an viewers – not a practical visible showcase, not critical sufficient, not sufficient unhappy dads frowning and sighing, not sufficient multiplayer hooks to maintain you trapped perpetually. Launched on Xbox One, I may see the place this may’ve gone: a cult hit, appreciated, however a gross sales bomb. There was an identical type of power to Insomniac’s Sundown Overdrive, in reality. Although that wasn’t almost pretty much as good a sport as this, it deserved an even bigger viewers, however by no means discovered it.
However hopefully, on Xbox Recreation Move, this generally is a big hit – as I actually assume if you happen to play the primary degree of this and don’t need to proceed, it’s a must to be an absolute incorrect’un. And simply assume; we didn’t even (formally) know this existed yesterday. That is the magic of digital distribution and subscription companies, much more so than enjoying Starfield ‘totally free’ on day one.
I’ve not completed Hello-Fi Rush but. In actual fact, I think about I’ve obtained a methods to go. However already, early on, I do know that it is without doubt one of the greatest video games of 2023. I really feel massively refreshed and invigorated by it – which is strictly the type of escapism video games ought to try to be.
