Hi-Fi Rush was a shot out of left field for me in an already stacked year of excellent games, and it was not only my favourite game of that year but my favourite game of the last several, probably since 'Disco Elysium'. It almost feels redundant to try and explain why it works because the game justifies itself infinitely better than I ever could. The core gameplay loop is an absolute joy, with the perfect balance of simple enough to get into a groove while being flashy enough to always look cool doing so; its cast of characters and villains are perfectly sketched, always informing and driving the conflict but never drawing excessive focus; and the writing and comedy (especially the physical comedy) is certainly standard deviations above the mean for video games. It also has some of the best needle drops in any game, TV show, or movie I've ever encountered.

It has so much pizazz and energy and vibrance and the perfect level of cheeky punk rage with actual commentary on the games and gamers and the game industry without ever tipping its hat entirely and I love it all dearly, and the death of Tango Gameworks has marked the point at which I have officially given the fuck up trying to understand what it is that these monkey-suited fucks want.

I don't think a sequel would have necessarily been a good idea, but the idea that we were prevented from ever seeing Chai rip shit up to the beat of 'Kickstart My Heart' is a thought that causes me physical pain.

I adore this game, and I will never pass up an opportunity to glaze it at least a little. I have played it on both PC and PS5, and both are excellent. What a game!