Shout out to Coconut Island Games for supplying a copy of Rhythm Fighter for our review. Now that I've gotten that out of the way... let's check out this award-winning indie game!
Rhythm Fighter is just that... a Roguelike game that challenges you to move to the rhythm while taking on baddies, obtain power-ups, etc. all while staying on the beat.
Gameplay: The gameplay in Rhythm Fighter is... interesting. Everything is according to the beat, from moving from section to section in an area... dashing, attacking, performing special attacks, taking on bosses, etc. It's all on beat, the only thing that has no need for rhythm is when you pick up items like health, weapons, and powerups. Before I go on... check out some gameplay:
One thing I appreciate about the game... is the simple controls, I can't stress the importance of having controls that you don't have to wrestle with so that you can focus on the gameplay. The on-screen buttons led me to believe that this game was initially for mobile... but they may work for tablets if they actually function (the game isn't on Google Play from what I see). The buttons don't get in the way and definitely work for the game on console... because you have that constant reminder of what your items are and you may need a reminder that you can't jump.
Fun Factor: The fun factor in this game is based on you... and how much you enjoy rhythm games. Moving to the rhythm can get a bit taxing for some gamers because some gamers just don't desire to move to a beat in order to perform basic skills like moving forward or fighting to move forward, fight, and to evade.
Replay Value: Believe it or not, this game is chock full of replay value. You know that you're going to set locations that deliver similar experiences, but you don't know what the layout of the map will be... and what items you will obtain from one playthrough to the next.
If I could give this game one con when it comes to the rhythm game genre, is that it lacks the music library that other titles have. Perhaps the price justifies that, but hopefully, there will be updates that deliver more. At the same time, I won't give it that con, because it's not really a standard rhythm game where you take on a track... it's a 2D beat 'em up to a beat... hybrid. Before you write the game off for the lack of a music library, I'm happy to say that you're able to kick butt to your own music library!
You have the basic game with the various locations mentioned above, as well as Daily Challenges that place a specific character into the rhythmic world.
You have 6 characters to choose from for now, but there are pods for 2 more characters. The characters I currently have access to are:
DJ Daxx... the number 1 DJ on Beatara for 8 years and counting. His active skill is Sonic Boom +, which deals' DMG to surrounding enemies and pushes them back. Your actions in the next 5 beats will be marked as perfect.
Spice Lee... a chef with an appetite for spice, who becomes stronger the more he eats. His active skill is Ghost Pepper, which increases ATK by 10% of Current HP for 10 beats.
Agent Jackal... a mysterious secret agent with powerful teleportation and explosive abilities. This character reminds me of Snake from Metal Gear Solid. His active skill allows him to rush forward and perform a strike and then dash back to the original spot with an attack.
Kid Cubbs... is a mischievous kid with incredible endurance and intelligence. I think this character was inspired by the Cub Scouts. His active skill is the slingshot, which allows you to fire an orb of energy that explodes and deals DMG.
Lookout Lynx... is a security guard with an incredible sense of duty, immense strength, a short temper, and poor hearing. He becomes enraged after taking DMG. His active skill is... a spin that rapidly attacks nearby enemies. The benefit of this skill is that it increases Res DMG for the first 2 beats. DMG taken will increase DMG dealt by this skill.
Courier Pengu... is a selfless full-dad and a part-time courier, he takes joy from high flying. His active skill is the flying dash, which allows him to fly forward to deal DMG to enemies and knock them into the air.
Now that you know the current roster of fighters... that leaves one question, where are... the ladies?! Hopefully the last 2 pods will have female protagonists to switch things up..
You also have other things like the Laboratory... which allows you to use tech to unlock various things like:
Coin Vaccum 1... which increases coin and beat energy by 10%. By the way, any skill that helps you gain more tech and coin to buy various things like more skills... those are the things I'd recommend unlocking ASAP. Granted you have to make your way down in order to unlock certain skills like that, obtain them before others in that section.
Automat Hacker II... is also a good one, which reduces the price of items at the automat by 20%.
There are a total of 22 to unlock, including the radiation pod... which I really want. It recovers 100% HP upon reviving and increases Res DMG by 90% for 20 beats... because revivals don't fill you up (they just prevent you from staying down for the count).
On top of that, you also have a slew of Achievements, which include unlockable characters. You have 26 unlockable rewards that require a certain amount of trophies, and... in the section next to it are the achievements that allow you to gain the trophies to unlock those rewards. Some of these keep a tally based on the number of times you do something (i.e. buy 100 items from the automat), others like the baby steps objective that requires you to collect 10,000 coins total).
On top of that... you have even more replay value via the special training. You can take on the different vegetables, beat commanders (mini-bosses), you can try out 25 different weapons, 31 tactical items... that give you a strong attack (like the Hadoken Bracers), and 99 beat cards that give you different abilities (i.e. Rhythm Shell that gives you invincibility when you land perfect... it lasts 1 beat so stay on perfect beat and you should be good).
Automat... gives you access to certain beat cards for tech points. I really didn't use this that often, but it gives me access to specific beat cards if I desire to have them before my fighter takes the flush.
Price: Pricewise, Rhythm Fighter flows nicely at $14.99. I can't argue with the price, it delivers a solid experience with plenty of replay value and leaves the door open for you to brawl to your own tunes.
