A Musical Story

Rhythm games have become a popular genre of late, especially with streamers who use them to show off their dazzling skills with a keyboard or mouse to an audience. A Musical Story is one of these rhythm games, but unlike so many that have seemingly random songs you have to click through, this game has a story behind it.

The story belongs to a man who appears to be on his death bed. The game opens with the man lying in a bed, a heart monitor beeping in the background. He’s struggling to remember who he is and what happens, until somehow a song struggles into his memory—one of his songs. To unlock his memories, you must play each rhythm game to help him remember.

Undemanding game play

The demo offers just a sample of the game itself, but it’s clear from this small piece that the game isn’t going to impress rhythm pros. It’s simple, easy to follow, and gives you a lot of slack for mistakes. The musical numbers are very short, and the hardest part is that the game insists you start off on the right beat…which can be hard to locate.

Luckily the game doesn’t really punish you for mistakes, instead letting you work to figure it out. If it’s clear you’re not going to figure it out, the game even provides a little guiding light for you to follow so you can get through that section more easily.

It has a lot in common with Unbeatable, a rhythm adventure that also heavily features story as part of game play, but with very different graphics and storyline.

Some lag issues

The demo also showed that some fine-tuning will be needed if the full version is to be a success. There were lag issues during demo play that directly affected gameplay. If the goal is to achieve a rhythm, it seems wise to make sure the game itself doesn’t stand in the way of achieving it.

Since the demo is currently the only part that is available, it’s unlikely that this will linger in the full version, but it is a noticeable part of the current section of the game.

Breathtaking art

A Musical Story is unique from other rhythm games in so many different ways. In actual storyline is one, but the artwork is also exceedingly important. The game has almost no vocal story to it, relying instead on the music and the graphics to tell the story.

The graphics are amazing, capturing the 70s time frame and the story of the best moments of the life of our character in brief, poignant scenes. The style was so beautiful that it was picked as a showcase for the London Games Festival—a big compliment for a new game.

Pros:

• Absorbing story line
• Unique approach to rhythm games
• Stunning artwork

Cons:

• Some lag issues