We should have known that a surprise or two would drop out of the Xbox and Bethesda Developer Direct showing. We could have guessed it would involve a new drop into Game Pass too. We didn’t expect it to be Hi-Fi RUSH though.
Available to purchase and download, or utilise Game Pass and download should you not wish to splash cash, Hi-Fi RUSH is an over-the-top single player rhythm action game from the team previously behind Ghostwire: Tokyo and The Evil Within.
Present on Xbox Series X|S and PC, through Game Pass, Steam and Epic, Hi-Fi RUSH thrusts you into a super-colourful world in which everything – and we mean EVERYTHING – is driven by the beat of the music. Getting at one with those sounds is key to success.
Your task is to keep your combat sequences in line with those tunes, aligned to the beat as your attacks are amplified. In that regard it feels very much like Soundfall, just different.
If you do drop it, players take on the role of Chai, a free-spirited slacker with rockstar ambitions. During a technological procedure to receive a robotic arm, he finds an unexpected “bonus” when his music player is fused within his power unit. If that wasn’t enough, the company behind the experiment labels him a “defect,” making him a target for deactivation. With a squad of corporate overlords and an army of robots after him, Chai must defend himself through rhythmic combat and the help of a motley crew of allies to take down the company’s ruthless business leaders and escape.
The best, most exciting part of Hi-Fi RUSH though is in the music. This features licensed tracks from iconic rock bands including Nine Inch Nails and The Black Keys, and that should ensure that Hi-Fi RUSH is sure to bring the beat, over and over again.
Key game features include:
- CHAI VERSUS THE WORLD – Labeled ‘defective’ after a shady corporate experiment mistakenly fuses a music player to his heart, Chai must now fight for his freedom in a slick animated world where everything – platforming puzzles, enemy attacks and even the colorful gags & banter – are synced to the beat.
- OPEN UP THE MOSH PIT! – Take on armies of corporate drones (read: actual robots) in satisfying, rhythm-amplified combat. Time your moves to pull off flashy Beat Hits, hard-hitting special abilities and even combination attacks with your allies! Want to show off? Go further and tap into the beat to amp up your skills and earn those covetous S-rank scores.
- ROWDY REBELS VS. BADASS BOSSES – Lead a squad of colorful teammates and take the fight to the heart of an, er, heartless corporation. Square off with each department’s boss, from Production to Marketing to Finance, each more ready to protect the company’s bottom line than the last in over-the-top battle sequences accompanied by their own music tracks!
- GRAB YOUR HEADPHONES – Tap your toes to a killer mixtape of original music, as well as songs by Nine Inch Nails, The Prodigy, The Joy Formidable and more! Want to show off your skills to a live streaming audience? Fret not: Hi-Fi RUSH includes a streamer-friendly alternate audio mode which replaces those licensed songs with original tracks made especially for streaming Hi-Fi RUSH.
Priced at £29.99 if you don’t utilise Game Pass, or with a Deluxe Edition kicking around for £39.99 (additional outfits, skins and the like), Hi-Fi RUSH should be one to check out right now. Just pop over to the Xbox Store. It is however only playable on Xbox Series X|S and PC – no Xbox One love.
We’ll be following with full review.
Game Description:
Feel the beat as wannabe rockstar Chai and his ragtag team of allies rebel against an evil robotics enhancement megacorp with raucous rhythm combat! From Tango Gameworks, the studio that brought you The Evil Within® and Ghostwire®: Tokyo (no, really) comes Hi-Fi RUSH, an all-new action game where the characters, world and combat stylishly sync to the music!
