Hi-Fi Rush review - an unrepentant riot of rhythm-action

1 year 1 month ago

I've been listening to a lot of The Joy Formidable recently, namely the Welsh band's 2008 hit Whirring. "Turn the dial on my words, I can feel they fall short," sings frontwoman Rhiannon Bryan before the band takes over and the guitars escalate to a rapturous peak. The song is, perhaps, about not being able to express emotions in words, the music taking over all feeling for an almost seven minute long crescendo. And that's how I feel about Hi-Fi Rush as I struggle to put my enjoyment into words.

Whirring is one of a handful of licensed tracks used in the game, accompanying a late-game climactic level. Without spoiling too much, it's the kind of level where you're approaching the big bad boss and all your friends are with you and the music hits this euphoric high at just the right moment. It proves the power of licensed music, whether that's a mournful Linda Ronstadt song in the midst of a post-apocalypse, or a young hero with a metal guitar smacking some robots.

Hi-Fi Rush thrives on these sorts of moments. Everything fizzes and bops in time, enemies pop in a whiz and a bang, and the beat pulses through your fingertips.

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Author
Ed Nightingale

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