The scoring system for each battle and stage also boosts replayability, challenging players to dive back in for a higher score or to try and make it through a stage without taking any damage. These special attacks deal massive damage, boost your rhythm meter, and keep the combo going, adding an intrinsic incentive beyond just looking extremely cool. This goes even further once you’ve unlocked a few extra attacks, as each ally can also be called in during combos or after a perfectly timed dodge or parry. Chai can latch on to enemies with his magnetic arm and pull himself to them, making it easy to close with distant foes and keep combo chains going.Ĭhai can also call allies into battle with him, taking advantage of their unique abilities to stun enemies and rob them of defensive abilities. Stringing attacks together and pulling off combos feels like a dream, and Tango has added several brilliant touches here that turn Hi-Fi Rush into one of the best-feeling action games of the last decade. You can even have the beats on the screen visually, a wonderful accessibility option that’s only a single button press away. The beat is consistent, making it easy to stay on the beat with each swing, dodge, parry, or combo. It doesn’t feel like it should be possible to make a game this way, and yet Hi-Fi Rush pulls it off with near-perfect execution.Ĭombat in this game utterly sings, regardless of your experience with rhythm games. The environment itself moves on his beat, including traps and obstacles he needs to navigate around. That constant beat thrumming throughout the game doesn’t just impact combat, but everything around Chai. Hi-Fi Rush’s big draw is the rhythm action of its entire world. The game is chock full of meta references, puns, and slapstick humor, but it balances all of that with genuine tension and real stakes. Every joke lands with careful precision and none of it feels forced or overdone. The one thing tying it all together is some of the most hilarious, well-timed writing a video game has ever produced. And each of Vandelay’s department heads is a riot and masterclass in character design, from Mimosa’s operatic persona to Zanzo’s on-the-nose anime aesthetic. Macaron is a burly pacifist who grounds Vandelay in its more benevolent past, showing that there are still good people within this seedy corporation. Peppermint is the emotional core of the game, providing Chai with purpose while also driving the central plot points. The supporting cast is no less wonderful. In spite of this, Chai still manages to have a powerful, transformative arc that reveals the kind and caring hero underneath that childlike exterior. He’s that lovable idiot who always teeters on the edge of being truly profound before revealing himself to still be a naïve kid. Chai himself is a comedic juggernaut, brought to glorious life by the inimitable Robbie Daymond. While this type of story has been done before, Hi-Fi Rush stands out by virtue of its stellar cast and polished dialogue. To do so, they’ll need to take down each of the six department heads and recover their access codes. Chai is aided in his escape by Peppermint, a rebel who’s trying to expose Vandelay’s corruption and stop the nefarious plans behind the experiment that gave Chai his powers. It’s a wacky story that could have easily slipped into utter ridiculousness if not for the incredible writing, pitch-perfect pacing, and wonderful cast of characters that both oppose and support Chai on his journey.īefore long, Chai is being hunted by the directors of Vandelay as they seek to destroy what they see as a defect in their production line. Now the entire world bops along to the musical beating of Chai’s heart, offering a narrative explanation for both the rhythm action gameplay and Chai’s sudden increase in combat ability. He goes to their massive island compound, straps in for his new robotic enhancements, and ends up with an MP3 player where his heart should be. Chai, a wannabe rockstar who doesn’t quite know how to play the guitar, signs up to be experimented on by a dubious company known as Vandelay Technologies. Hi-Fi Rush doesn’t waste any time dropping you into its story.
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