Echo Games found a niche audience with their rhythm-roguelike hybrid Rhythm Fighter when it was released on Steam last year. Soon, you're finally able to pummel enemies to the beat while on the go when it makes its debut on the Nintendo Switch. The musical brawler takes a bit of inspiration from megahit Crypt of the NecroDancer while paving its own path by taking more of a beat-em-up style. And, it does so to great success. This isn't one to be missed by fans of rhythm and action games. With a great art style, soundtrack, and challenge on offer, it's definitely a title that deserves some attention if you haven't gotten around to it on PC. Check it out below.
Rhythm Fighter takes multiple styles of gameplay and splices them together to an immensely successful degree. It is, of course, a rhythm game where your movement and attacks are more successful as long as you're keeping them in time with the beat. In this particular case though, the setup is more inspired by 2D beat-em-ups in the vein of Streets of Rage or Double Dragon. You'll have to time everything from your blows to your dodge rolls to get the most of one of your runs.
And this game is not for the faint of heart either. It actually proves to be quite challenging at times. Staying on the beat is going to be the difference between life and death. The enemies are often aggressive and come along in large quantities, making it easy to get overwhelmed. But with a mix of well-timed dodging and attacking in time with the music, you'll make short work of them.
Like any solid roguelike, you're going to get beat down often. Of course, that just means you'll come back a little stronger for your next attempt. Throughout each run, you'll be collecting power-up cards and currency that persist even after death. You can use these to upgrade yourself or unlock new characters with slightly different playstyles. There are a lot of options for variation and a colorful cast of characters to continuously keep things fresh. It may not be the deepest interpretation of the ever-popular roguelike genre. That said, it still is a hell of a lot of fun to play and will keep you glued to the screen because there is always something exciting happening on screen.
[pullquote]this game is not for the faint of heart[/pullquote]
A great rhythm game is also nothing without a sick soundtrack, and Rhythm Fighter delivers at every turn. Each area you come across has its own distinct sound to it and you'll be nodding your head to the beats the entire time. Sometimes you'll have to follow a higher tempo rhythm to stay ahead of your enemies. Other times, you'll have to be slower and more methodical with your actions if you want to succeed. The rocking soundtrack only adds to the tight and responsive gameplay. Once you get into a rhythm and start racking up a bunch of those much sought after perfect combo scores, you'll be flying through enemies and feeling like a musical murder machine.
Rhythm Fighter is a great addition to not just the growing selection of strong rhythm games but also to the world of roguelikes. You'll be able to head-nod and clobber enemies on January 14th, 2021 when it makes its way to the Nintendo Switch eShop.