Just over a year ago, the Xbox community was surprised to receive HI-FI Rush, a rhythm game developed by Tango Gameworks. Surprise, because the game was released on the very same day it was announced, and not only that, it was a game that was very well received by specialized critics and the public.
HI-FI Rush, since its release, has become one of the most important games for the Xbox, as it's a very fun and visually beautiful game, making it a good exclusive for the platform, which has been lacking for many years. However, it doesn't seem to have met Bethesda's financial expectations, and consequently those of Xbox.
I can't confirm that the game was a failure, as Microsoft doesn't usually release figures, but a while ago, Insider Jez Corden passed on this information, and he's usually quite right about the Xbox. Further proof of this fact is that the game's achievements show a percentage of how many players have achieved them, and the percentage of those who have finished the first stage is very low.
Tomorrow (March 19), HI-FI Rush will arrive on the PlayStation platform, something that would have been unimaginable a short time ago, after all, it is the competing platform of the developer's parent company. I've given this brief summary of the game's situation, but it doesn't mean that not meeting expectations is the reason for its arrival on PS, as three other games, previously exclusive to Xbox, are also coming to Sony's console.
That said, as mentioned above, the PlayStation community will receive a highly acclaimed game, with a few small improvements that make it even superior to the Xbox version. But I want to make it clear right away that, although there are improvements, both versions are of well above average quality. But before I talk about these small improvements, let's start with the basics.
What is the game about?
HI-FI Rush is a third-person action game, totally linear and with rhythmic elements. The game was sold as a rhythm game, and indeed it is, but that doesn't stop you from playing it without following the rhythm (except for a few specific moments), so I prefer to define it as an action game, but one that does have rhythmic elements.
The game's combat is very focused on hand-to-hand combat, where you face various enemies, almost always robotic. The game can also be included in the rack'n'slash genre because, especially in combat, you can unleash a huge number of combos.
And the rhythmic part comes into play mainly in these combos, because in order to perform them, we need to strike the blows in the correct rhythm. Regardless of when we start the blows, we will always get into the rhythm, but the following blows need to follow the beats so that the combos are performed correctly. And the last blow has a timing indicator, where, by delivering the last blow at the right time, additional damage is inflicted on the enemy.
But the game isn't just a fighting game; until we get to the fights, we have to go through various platforming sections, using jumps, spikes and other things. And it's nice that at various times the game takes a different turn, for example by switching to a 2D perspective, or a strictly horizontal movement mode. Oh, and I can't forget to mention the boss battles, which are all very good.
Visuals and soundtrack on point
For me, the highlight of this game is its audiovisual aspect. The gameplay is very good, make no mistake, but its visuals and soundtrack are well above average. The game has a totally cartoonish look, so don't expect anything too realistic, but the game doesn't have to be realistic to be beautiful.
The look of the game is very cool, with a very stylized graphic that almost looks like a 2D drawing, but in a fully 3D game. And the game has some very beautiful cutscenes, to the point where it feels like you're watching an actual drawing, and a very well-produced one at that.
The visuals are very nice, but the animations that bring them to life are also very good. It's a look that's simple in theory, but so well done that it makes it a beautiful game. And the combat takes great advantage of this look, always filling the screen with effects, making it a lot of fun to watch.
And if the visuals are beautiful, the soundtrack, which is the main point of a rhythm game, is simply sensational. The game's music is very cool, but it also has some licensed music from well-known bands such as Nine Inch Nails, The Prodigy, among others, which makes the experience even cooler. But if you want to produce content with the game, no problem, as you can play it without the licensed soundtrack.
After all, is it worth investing in the game?
Well, right from the start I made it clear that the game has always been very good, I played the Xbox version at launch and requested this new PlayStation version because I knew the quality of the game. And this version has brought some new features, such as the presence of the new arcade mode, which will also be available on Xbox.
There are a few other new features, such as new skins that accompany the launch on the new platform. But if there's one thing that differentiates a PlayStation from an Xbox, it's the Dualsense controller. It has significantly more possibilities than the Xbox controller, including haptic feedback, adaptive triggers and a small speaker.
The game takes advantage of some of these elements to make the gaming experience even more immersive, such as synchronizing the beats with the vibrations located on the controller. It also uses the sound box on the controller to further immerse you in the game, with sounds coming exclusively from it that synchronize with what you see on TV. But these are not differences that make the version so much better than the existing one.
All in all, the game is still very good in every way, with a very cool gameplay and visuals. It's possible to buy the game on the PlayStation store for less than the so-called "full price", as it's a game that actually costs less, after all it's a mid-budget game, but there's still a promotion for those who subscribe to PlayStation Plus (at least until launch).
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