It’s been a little over a year since Xbox Games Studios shadow-dropped Hi-Fi Rush, one of the most well-received games of 2023. Since the release of the rhythm-based action game, it has won various awards, such as Best Audio Design at The 2023 Game Awards, Animation, Artistic at the NAVGTR awards, and many more. But the party hasn’t stopped there because Chai and his buddies have now made their way over to the PlayStation for a new crowd of players to enjoy their adventures.
Hi-Fi RUSH
Developer: Tango Gameworks
Price: $30 USD
Platform: PlayStation 5 (reviewed)
MonsterVine was supplied with PS5 code for review
The PlayStation 5 port to the critically acclaimed game does it justice. The game’s tone is set right off the bat when players are introduced to Chai, a person who dreams of living the rock star life. You’re given glimpses of how a promising tech company can appear friendly but, behind closed doors, are nothing but greedy individuals.
Despite its stances, the game still manages to be carefree and lax moments that ride with you until the very end. A constant theme that’s always being said throughout the game is how much work sucks and how great it’ll be to step away and take some time off. Although the story doesn’t get too complex, it didn’t stop me from enjoying it any less. Much of the writing feels like the game is self-aware of its cartoonish tone, which makes it more enjoyable because it leans heavily into that. With various characters you meet along the way, there’s bound to be at least one or two that you can connect with.
The gameplay felt like a character action game but went a little beyond that due to its rhythm aspect. This is what truly distinguishes it from other games in the genre. What makes this unique is that there’s always a song in the background, and everything around you will move to the beat, from the smallest thing, such as a piece of trash, to the largest robot trying to decommission you. The game does a great job of letting you know the beat via visual cues. If you stop and look around, you’ll often see steam pipes appearing whenever the beat hits.
Because of this, many of the fights often feel like one long dance. The more you sync combos to the beat, the higher the score you’ll get, which will affect your overall rank at the end of every mission. Each fight often feels very important due to that, and more times than not, you’ll often find yourself swarmed by various robots that range from melee to ranged attacks, and figuring out which ones you want to knock out first turns into a game of its own.
Even though Hi-Fi Rush is a rhythm game at its core, you’ll never be punished for missing a beat. The game goes above and beyond to ensure you hit on beat by enabling a menu that lets you know when you should attack. On the flip side, when you do hit on a beat, you can’t help but feel good about it because the game will often play a sound cue that’ll let you know you did well, and on top of that, you’ll be able to stack up specific combos that you couldn’t land otherwise. With the music going, you can’t help but feel like you’re in control.
A good portion of what makes character action games memorable is their bosses. Hi-Fi Rush very much understood that because each boss fight stands out on its own. Because on top of the usually beat-em-up method, a lot of the bosses have a unique mini-game on top of it that’ll be thrown at you mid-fight. This forces you to change your whole strategy suddenly until you complete that specific part.
If you’re a PlayStation player and have been eyeballing this game since its release last year, now’s your chance to join in on the fun. Tango Gameworks took a gamble and stepped out of their comfort zone, which paid off. Plus, the game isn’t all that long, so if you’re looking for a quick, fun game, Hi-Fi Rush is perfect for you.
The Final Word
Hi-Fi Rush is a blast from beginning to end. The writing may be cheesy, but the game leans into it, making it enjoyable. When you get the rhythm flowing, it makes you feel like nothing can stop you.
– MonsterVine Rating: 4 out of 5 – Good
