Hi-Fi Rush is Being Reverse-Review Bombed

gamerant.com:

Hi-Fi Rush fans are currently leaving tons of positive reviews on the game's Steam page, marking another community-driven instance of reverse-review bombing. The occurrence follows parent company Xbox's decision to shutter Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks.

Recently, Xbox announced that it was closing down certain first-party studios, namely Tango Gameworks, Arkane Austin, Alpha Dog Games, and Roundhouse Studios. The aftermath of the news revolved around players and industry stakeholders slamming the green brand for axing the studios which created notable games such as Hi-Fi Rush, Prey, and Ghostwire: Tokyo. Interestingly, fans also resorted to another way of voicing their opinion by reverse-review bombing the game on Steam.

As evident from its Steam page, Hi-Fi Rush is currently having one of its best periods, in terms of reviews, on the digital storefront. Fans have been bombarding Tango Gameworks' rhythm-based action game with positive reviews over the past few days. The reverse-review bombing spree has ensured that 95% of its Steam reviews over the past 30 days are positive. At the time of writing, May 10, the day right after the Xbox President discussed the studio shutdowns, stands as the day the game received the most positive feedback (240 positive reviews) in recent months. According to the game's review graph on Steam, the last time Hi-Fi Rush experienced a surge in positive reviews was when it got a discount during the Steam Black Friday Sale on November 22, 2023.

Since the positive reviews started dropping in on May 7, the same day that Xbox announced shutting down Tango Gameworks, it is clear that players are reverse-review bombing Hi-Fi Rush to show their support for the game's creators, similar to what Helldivers 2 fans recently did. Among the latest reviews, many users praised the Japan-based developer, whereas several others expressed their disappointment with Xbox's decision. In their review, a user wrote, «Tango Gameworks was an awesome studio.