One of the more niche genres of video games tends to be rhythm. Rhythm games often have players hit buttons to a beat, such as in the “Guitar Hero” series. One of the most popular rhythm games on the market was Nintendo’s “Rhythm Heaven” series, in which players play a set of mini rhythm games in order to achieve a high score.
In recent news, Nintendo announced “Rhythm Heaven Groove,” a continuation in the series, slated for release in 2026. Tempo Labs, an indie video game company, seeks to capitalize on this trend in the market by developing their own game.
The “Bits & Bops” demo seeks to differentiate itself by improving graphics, button latency, modification support and smooth framerate. The demo offers three minigames, but the game will offer a full twenty upon its 2025 release. Each minigame is beautifully illustrated, which is especially clear in the game, “Meet and Tweet,” which has charming animations.
Those who are interested should not come into this expecting a handcrafted story, but should come with some rhythm experience. For new casual players, the game might be a bit overwhelming after completing the tutorial. However, after a couple minutes of practice players will be feeling the groove. Thankfully, the game strikes the balance of easing in both newer and veteran players.
The demo itself is very short, which only takes around 20 minutes to complete a full playthrough, leaving players with a sense of wanting more. Since Tempo Labs tends to emulate Nintendo’s “Rhythm Heaven” style, the comparison falls short when seeing that there are only 20 mini games offered, unlike Nintendo, which offers a hundred.
Although some innovations have been made graphically, the mini games play relatively the same. There is no gimmick, which means it will be easily consumed by casual gamers. Avid gamers might feel somewhat disappointed, as the game seems to lack any distinct spark aside from the graphics, which stand out the most.
Verdict: For a free game, “Bits & Bops” is definitely worth checking out. It’s a fun, quirky little game, showing how much passion the developers put in.
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