Spin Rhythm XD

This is a bit pricey.. I'm torn, but it really is the best rhythm game for mouse and keyboard. Feels great to play. Just handles really really good, and they picked good music too. Those two things are all you need for a solid recommend on a rhythm game. You get into a flow state pretty quick, and the good control scheme really works well to not disrupt you. The control and gameplay is good, but now the caution. Some people who played guitar hero or rock band may have some issues, and some won't - this game input asks for you to mentally sync with one instrument and then sync with a completely different instrument playing a different part. Sometimes you're doing input alongside the percussion and lead synths, and suddenly you have vocals. It can be jarring for someone who plays an instrument irl. but some people pick this up really quickly. Hard mode is fun for me, expert takes my full concentration, and I regularly miss the jumps to different instruments. But it feels great when you get it right. Solid recommend. plenty here

Some background: I'm a rhythm game veteran/snob with high standards. This game rules. I'm gonna list what this game does well that are normally problems other rhythm games suffer from. [h2]Level Design[/h2] This is the biggest most important factor for me. A lot of rhythm games don't have good levels. The levels don't really fit the music in terms of feel, have inconsistent difficulty spikes, or sometimes even giving players notes that don't line up with anything in the music. The levels here have a range of different styles, but they all feel cohesive and reflect the personality of each piece. It is quite rare for a rhythm game to meet my standards for level design, and this one does. [h2]Game Options[/h2] The game has accessibility options, and defaults to a very comfortable speed. A lot of rhythm games have the issue where the scroll speed is too low, which results in bad habits. Unintuitively, higher scroll speeds allow you to more easily parse harder patterns. They don't fall into the trap of even giving players a slow option. [h2]Song Selection[/h2] The songs in here really cater to a wide audience. You will find not only a bunch of inoffensive songs everyone will enjoy, but also songs that may challenge some listeners, as well as carrying a few songs from genres other than straight electronic, in addition to plenty of songs with genre fusions. A lot of rhythm games either have a lower song selection quality or will cater to a more mainstream audience, relying on song recognition rather than the merits of the game. [h2]Game Mechanic Design[/h2] Rhythm games like Osumania/Etterna have some downsides: they are not as accessible early on, and when you do get good, the levels begin to run the risk of injury if you don't maintain good habits, leading to many players developing carpel tunnel. This game tests you cognitively without demanding physical exertion. If you can read the notes well, even the hardest songs in the game are actually quite relaxing when it comes to executing the timing, making it rewarding without being risky. [h2]Visual Aesthetics[/h2] It just looks polished and gorgeous without being too noisy. Hitting notes feels good, and they take extra attention to detail by not only giving each song their unique visualizers, but also displaying lyrics. [h3]Last Notes[/h3] The level selection is modest, and the difficulty ceiling is fairly low, so I do want to eventually explore custom community level. I will say that I have not yet taken a look at any of them yet, and so far it is not obvious where to find them. Community level creation is a whole different can of worms with even more difficult management challenges. I'll update this review with details regarding that when I get around to playing some. Otherwise, this is an easy recommend for everyone. A traditional style rhythm game that ticks all of the boxes.

Great rhythm game. Very unique and interesting mechanics. A breath of fresh air from all the vertical scrolling rhythm games that are popular right now.