Beat Souls

Beat Souls is an interesting take on the musical rhythm game genre. They have managed to inject platform game elements into it which work pretty well and are tricky to master. The bright colours and animation are very vibrant and immersive but I feel it was let down by the audio as the sound effects don’t blend with the music and the music itself is pretty bland.

Beat Souls is easy to learn but hard to master; it’s also easy to like but hard to love. A lot of promise upfront unfortunately doesn’t carry through the rest of the game, which is a shame considering how finely tuned the entire experience is. I wish I could remember a single song or recall a fun beat pattern where I really connected with the game; instead, I’m left with the feeling that I would have put up with Beat Souls if either music or mechanics had been better.

Beat Souls tries to break the mold of its peers in the genre but feels lost in many ways. The music choices feel safe and don’t stick out. The art looks pretty but can be draining to keep track of notes, especially on greater difficulties. Add the lack of unlockable extras to keep striving for, and you get a game that is all style, no substance. There is something here that could have been special, but it failed in innovating.

Beat Souls does genuinely deserve the –Souls title. This game’s Hell Mode is genuine hell and I challenge anyone to see what kind of a level they can achieve in it. The soundtrack strays from pretty good, to downright boring, but that’s to be expected in rhythm games. Even Guitar Hero III is boring at the start because all the good songs are the tough ones. Now, onto trying to break double digits on Hell Mode.

A small indie developer has gathered together a pulsating playlist of forty-five JPop hits and then mapped them to an innovative take on rhythm action. Beat Souls is part endless runner, part Hatsune Miku, and it’s totally slapping.