SAYONARA WILD HEARTS
Hello crazy diamonds
Given that each stage is a music track, you’d expect this to be a rhythm game. And indeed it is… to a certain extent. At other moments, it’s a shoot-`emup, a runner, even a driving game. The top line is that the visuals and animation are beautiful, and the music tracks are bangers. But this game is mostly for those who will find those two things enough.
You play as a woman with a broken heart who, Sailor-Moon-style, awakens as The Fool, and is tasked with defeating ‘Wild Hearts’. 1 Each stage plays out to a different pulse-pounding track, and you mostly zip along collecting hearts and diamonds for points. Just as you’re beginning to settle into the style of a stage, it usually ends (only a few of the levels are of any real length), often leaving you reaching to connect to its constantly changing styles and perspectives.
While the stages do follow the beat of each track to an extent, Sayonara Wild Hearts doesn’t impart the tactile feeling of connecting to the music you might have become used to from other rhythm games. 2 There are so many collectables littering the track you’re clearly not meant to pick them all up – you’re mostly just moving forwards – so you don’t get that sensation of hitting things to a beat, rare occasions aside. Despite the frantic nature of the game suggesting pushing you forward is its main motivation, some sections do have a death mechanic that sets you back to a checkpoint. It’s a fun ride full of spectacle, but messy to the point where you can struggle to connect, never really committing to pursuing either experience or gameplay.