Soundfall review – the rhythm of the fight

metro.co.uk:

A blend of music game, twin stick shooter, and four-player dungeon crawler proves to be quite the mixture in this inventive new indie game.

Rhythm action and dungeon crawlers are two worlds which don’t collide nearly enough. Crypt Of The Necrodancer and Cadence Of Hyrule both demonstrated how this unlikely marriage can soar, where the repetitive nature of exploring dungeons for loot is matched to the pressure of maintaining a repetitive rhythm against the shuffle of your enemies.

On paper, Soundfall, from developer Drastic Games, is another irresistible variation on the concept. This time though, instead of being locked to a grid, you’re moving through procedurally generated levels like a twin-stick shooter – timing your gun blasts to music (with help from a metronome visual aid) to kill waves of enemies and collect loot from treasure chests. If you stay in time with the music, attacks will do double damage, dash manoeuvres will extend further, and you’ll orchestrate an elegant ballet of alien genocide while trapped inside a Clubland compilation.

Soundfall has a vibrant, upbeat setup to match its pulsating soundtrack, that’s crowbarred with musical puns. You play as one of five unlockable Guardians of Harmony, who have been sent to Symphonia to eradicate an alien race called the Discordians. Each Guardian’s story is stylised like a modern anime, with brief, impressive cut scenes whenever you unlock each of their unique weapons – from bows to guitars – across the various biomes.

You start with only one character, with others unlocked as you progress through the linear sequence of levels. Along with different aesthetics, each world is tied to a different musical style, with a beach filled with funk and jazz, a sky garden