Rift of the Necrodancer
Summer of Demos : Day Three
I’m going to be honest with you : I’ve never played Guitar Hero or any of the “hit the notes as they come down the screen” music games of the 2000/10s. When I tried Rhythm Paradise Megamix, I failed a minigame at a gate so many times that the guards let me go on anyway. I can’t even spell rhythm. Despite all of that, I had a great time trying to master the three tracks in this demo. The tutorials for each difficulty teach you the mechanics of each enemy type pretty well, although I did struggle with the way the Blademasters eye the next lane before attacking as the Bats swap to the lane they’re looking at when hit.
Comparisons between this spinoff and 2015’s Crypt of the Necrodancer are inevitable : instead of digging, slicing and even shopping to the beat, here you tackle enemies coming down three lanes through the titular Rift. It’s more focused, but that just gives the team licence to wear your arrows keys down. The art is also a far cry from the original’s retro sprites, with wonderful HD character portraits reacting to your playing in real time. Vitally, the music from returning composer Danny Baranowsky and other artists is as excellent as ever. If you miss a beat, it won’t be their fault.
With Rift promising a campaign about rift of monsters encroaching on Cadence’s modern life and a handful of minigames taking inspiration from the Rhythm Heaven/Paradise series, I’m looking forward to finding my feet in the full game.
In a word : upbeat.
Rift of the Necrodancer is an upcoming rhythm game developed by Brace Yourself Games and Tic Toc Games, and published by Klei Publishing for the Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam later this year.
This article is part of the Summer of Demos series, where I’ll be releasing a Demo Diving preview article each day in July. If you liked this article, be sure to share it with a friend or enemy. If you back me on Patreon, you get access to articles one day before they release anywhere else. If we reach £25/month before the end of July, I’ll extend the Summer of Demos into August.