Nintendo’s Weird Rhythm Heaven is my song of the summer

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Comment: The music rhythm game is back and I’m in love again

Scott Stein Editor-in-chief

I started with CNET reviewing laptops in 2009. I now explore wearable technology, VR/AR, tablets, gaming, and future/emerging trends in our changing world. Other obsessions include magic, immersive theater, puzzles, board games, cooking, improv, and the New York Jets. My background includes an MFA in theater which I apply to thinking about immersive experiences of the future.

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I’ll make this easy: just get Rhythm Heaven Groove. You will be happy. I think.

Every few years, Nintendo returns to its weird franchises. WarioWare, a bizarre set of arcade minigames, has appeared in the form of a switch already twice. But Rhythm Heaven, a series that was never available on Nintendo Switch, is now back. Its price of $40 below average for Nintendo makes it an even better value.

If you like games where you tap to the beat of a song, that’s exactly what Rhythm Heaven Groove is. The joy comes from the novelty, the quirky and adorable animations, and the infectious Japanese pop soundtrack. It’s perfect for quick gaming sessions, practically requires you to turn up the volume, and is best played without wireless headphones. Keep the ping low.

Now, to be clear, I have always loved music rhythm games such as PaRappa the Rapper, Frequency, Elite Beat Agents and Patapon. And I love weird mini-games. Rhythm Heaven speaks directly to me.

But it also speaks to the portable/dockable benefits of the Nintendo Switch. I love a game like this that I can play on the go and with friends, which you can do in a handful of multiplayer mini-games or just passing it around the room to attempt different challenges.

Rhythm Heaven as a series has emerged with new entries every few years, all based around song-length mini-games. The latest, Rhythm Heaven Megamix on Nintendo 3DS, was a compilation of the previous Rhythm Heavens. But Rhythm Heaven never surfaced on the Switch, not even in any of Nintendo’s Switch Online classic console compilations. This is your chance to come back.

The structure hasn’t changed much, which in some ways is a bit disappointing. The song-length mini-games with scripted beats all feature different syncopated challenges and involve simple button-press combinations as well as animation that often attempts to sabotage your attention. There are dozens of song-length games, as well as additional challenge modes, more multiplayer mini-games, and a few weirder surprise modes. It’s a good handbag, and unlike the old Megamixes, these are all new.

Some examples: one has you bursting umbrellas with adorable little blob creatures. Another features an assembly line of finger-popping bullets. In another, a couple communicates rhythmically with an alien. In yet another, crabs throw objects into a hole. The songs are all infectious and work their way into my head. They became the soundtrack to my early summer.

My kids grew up loving Rhythm Heaven on Wii and are thrilled that the series is back. Me too, and I have to admit I tried not to rush, even with a review embargo.

I would have liked to see some new ideas introduced here, expanding the definition of the whole experience. An additional mode, called BeatSpell, does some of this. It’s a series of RPG-style battles using rhythm-triggered spell moves, but in the era of indie games that pushed into rhythm zones (like Crypt of the Necrodancer), I expected more innovation. Nintendo makes some safe moves with this one.

And yet, I am grateful. Hell, I’d also like to see the Elite Beat Agents return one day. I take this on vacation with me, I find it addictive, meditative and just my comfort speed. It is playable on both Switch and Switch 2, which is becoming increasingly rare for first-party Nintendo games. And it’s just family-friendly enough — and ridiculous enough — to bring us together for a while, too.

I started with CNET reviewing laptops in 2009. I now explore wearable technology, VR/AR, tablets, gaming, and future/emerging trends in our changing world. Other obsessions include magic, immersive theater, puzzles, board games, cooking, improv, and the New York Jets. My background includes an MFA in theater which I apply to thinking about immersive experiences of the future. See full bio