Hi-Fi Rush Test | GamersGlobal.de

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The studio behind The Evil Within is surprisingly back with a stylish and hilarious action-adventure. In it, her robot beats the screws out of her body to the beat of the music.

All screenshots and video scenes are from GamersGlobal

In the wake of Xbox’s recent Developer Direct event, the previously unannounced Hi-Fi Rush surprisingly launched. The development of the action-adventure already began in 2017. The idea of ​​combining crisp action with rhythm elements was probably in the air, because since then a number of titles have implemented the concept: No Straight Roads (in the test) also relied on third-person action, while BPM – Bullets Per Minute (in check) and Metal – Hellsinger (in the quarter hour) put the horse before the horse from the ego perspective.

In Hi-Fi Rush you play Chai, a young man who is a test subject in Vandeley’s Armstrong program. However, there’s a bug and instead of just getting a robo-arm, it gets his body connected to his music player. Now it is considered a defect and should be eliminated. So, together with the hacker Peppermint, you set out to convey the opinion of the management of the company. Chai banging around with a guitar-like block would be in Scott Pilgrim vs the World not seem out of place and indeed the films were from Edgar Wright an inspiration for game directors John Johanas. The director not only adapted said comic for the screen, his work also includes baby driver, but long before that, the Brit built scenes into his films in which the action was heavily choreographed to the music.

In the 4K test video included above, you can see that certain stylistic devices for visual gags from the Wright films can also be found in Hi-Fi Rush. But the title also hits many other charming strings in the PC test.

The graphic style of the environments reminded me of Jet Set Radio. But after this view of the metropolis, you’ll be out and about in factory corridors for a longer time. However, Hi-Fi Rush still has completely different scenes in store.

Detailed introduction to rhythmic beating

In Hi-Fi Rush, the game is played to the beat of the music. You can also see that in the surroundings, in which all sorts of things move to match the beat. On the one hand, this serves as a visual aid, but the effect is also directly relevant to the game in the jumping passages, which are good for loosening up, but come across as a bit sluggish. It’s not just from Chai’s mid-air behavior. Since everything is coordinated with the music, it is necessary to wait more often. Especially if you don’t manage to seize the right opportunity on the first try. I liked it better to turn the environments upside down without the challenge factor and that is also rewarded with hidden power-ups and more. For example, you invest chips and gears in passive bonuses, new combos or supermoves.

However, the rhythmic fights form the core of the game. In it you should beat up robots to match the music. Hi-Fi Rush puts a lot of effort into explaining this in a clear and entertaining way at the beginning and gives you multiple opportunities to practice each of the basic elements. This makes Tango Gameworks exemplary. There is also an optional beat display and in general many, many visual aids to get into the groove and to avoid the attacks of the enemies, which also start to match the rhythm. The sound design also gives great feedback. Among other things, evasive steps in the beat are rewarded with light cymbal hits, jumps with guitar squeals and hits with a euphoric “Hey” from the invisible audience.

When defeating the bosses at the end of a chapter, there are often special scoring scenes.

beat it

Basically, you use light and heavy attacks, which you chain into a whole series of combos, each resulting in its own finisher attack. If you don’t build the combos to match the rocking game soundtrack, the chai won’t stop you from rampaging. But for the final attack, you have to press at the right time, otherwise it won’t trigger. The same applies to the super maneuvers that you burn off when the special bar is full. But there’s a separate overlay, so it’s ultimately a quick-time event. The frequent finishers and final rating provide a nice sense of reward when in tune with the beat.

But it doesn’t stop with these basics. You pull yourself onto enemies with magnets to crack certain shields and deal extra damage, you summon allies and some enemy types want to be countered with parries – so the brawl in Hi-Fi Rush offers some depth. But most aspects of the fight run very smoothly. The camera let me down at times (you can’t lock enemies) and when using assists, they actually attack the currently raked target, but in practice this sometimes proved unreliable.

Especially with a whole bunch of enemies or in the fun boss fights, I often caught my cheeks when I wanted to dodge the beat. That’s why I concentrated on the animations and ignored the rhythm aspect. I also found Hi-Fi Rush to be playable very well with a mouse and keyboard. By default, I don’t find the summoning of allies with the left Alt key too conveniently placed. It is very nice that I can easily switch through the partners using the mouse wheel.

With the push of a button, I teleport Peppermint to my side so that she automatically shoots at Boss Lady Rekka and destroys her blue shield. Later I need other helpers against other shield types. The automatic aim

Staging with massive style

Personally, I wasn’t that happy with Chai as a hero. He always has a big mouth and unfortunately often enough nothing behind it. If, after an explanation, he starts with “Er, what’s this about? I wasn’t paying attention”, I don’t think that’s funny. I can make friends with his spinning mills. And he’s the typical kind of hero who often falls and gets thrown around, he plays that part very well. There are also a number of charming supporting characters, a cute robot cat and the quirky cast of the boardroom. But their robo henchmen also give Tango Gameworks some charm in the cutscenes. By the way, the entire game was set to German and the synchro version is quite good.

The staging is a big advantage of Hi-Fi Rush. The cutscenes are also timed to the music, creating epic moments and cool choreographies. What I particularly liked was the goofy humor with nicely timed visual gags. Interspersed satire about everyday work in the mega company and other funny details also make for laughs when exploring. Tango Gameworks not only proves itself in the cutscenes, but also in script events in the gameplay The Evil Within (in the test) and Ghostwire-Tokyo (in the test) once again his confidence in style. The studio knows how to kick ass with visual effects.

The comic-like graphic style is also beautifully implemented, as you can see in the test video. Even if the chapters as a whole ensure a sufficient change of scenery, you are often on the road in factory scenarios, which can look quite similar in appearance.

Author: Hagen Gehritz (GamersGlobal)

Opinion: Hagen Gehritz

Music is the be-all and end-all in Hi-Fi Rush. Not only because the specially composed soundtrack rocks and occasionally licensed music is interspersed, for example when Chai falls into a cafetaria full of enemies and then Invaders Must Die booms out of the speakers. The basic idea of ​​the rhythmic brawl is not just a gimmick, the action bobs to the beat at every turn, from the level design to the fantastic cutscenes, which exude an energy similar to Edgar Wright’s films. At the same time, the standard battles are merciful. Where Metal – Hellsinger cuts off the vocals when I make a mistake, Hi-Fi Rush only deducts points from me – but when it comes to the parade timing, Chai’s adventure gets nasty at times.

After a bit of getting used to it, I had fun hitting the keys in a timely manner and regularly canning the robo enemies with finishers. However, despite everything that interacts with the music, I didn’t experience any extraordinary flow in the fights. Rather, the rhythm was something I had to pay extra attention to, and with all the visual cues and warnings and mechanics, that became overkill at times. But the fun prevailed. It also feeds on the contagious energy generated by art design, stylish direction and loving details. And of course the well-timed gags that spark me, even though I often find Chai’s brazen arrogance exhausting.

Would you like a single-player adventure like it used to be with 12 hours of playtime without the nasty monetization stuff, but with a lot of heart? Then you should take a look at Hi-Fi Rush, even if – like me – you have a sense of rhythm on the level of a comatose sloth.

HI FI RUSH personal computer