LOUD on Planet X is a new arcade/rhythm game in which you must defend your stage by playing music. This game is a mix of other genres, of tower defense games like Plants vs. Zombies and classic rhythm games like Guitar Hero. How does this game hold up on his own? Read below to find out!
LOUD on Planet X is an arcade-style indie music game featuring Tegan and Sara, CHVRCHES, Lights, Metric, METZ, F*cked Up, HEALTH, Purity Ring, Little Dragon, Austra, Shad, Cadence Weapon, July Talk, Monomyth and more. Choose from a cross-section of top current indie music artists, then defend your stage from hordes of quirky aliens by tapping to the music and using a fun assortment of makeshift weapons like speakers, strobe lights, fog machines, amplifiers, bouncers and custom special attacks! LOUD on Planet X is an exciting indie alternative to Rock Band or Guitar Hero with a splash of Plants vs. Zombies – a new hybrid of rhythm game and classic shooter with tower defense elements.
LOUD on Planet X – Trailer
My first impressions as I started playing LOUD on Planet X is that it definitively felt like a new sub-type of games. As I mentioned in the intro, you are presenting an epic concert on a foreign planet, and you must ward the aliens off your stage (it is indeed a very wacky premise!).
As far as the gameplay goes, the aliens are coming at you on four different lanes in front of your concert, and you must ward them off lane-by-lane by pressing the corresponding button (the L1 button is for the upper lane, the Triangle button is for the second lane, the Square and Circle buttons activate the third lane, and the X button represents the final lane). Hitting a button is not enough though as you must also be in sync with the rhythm of the music (the screen corners flashes to help you synchronize). For me, the normal difficulty for LOUD on Planet X felt hard at first, but it was easier to manage once I got the hang of it. There are also various power-ups that can be obtained, and if you manage to use one (by pressing the L2 and R2 buttons at the same time) when the “LOUD” logo is full, a super power is unleashed that destroys all the enemies on screen!
LOUD on Planet X requires you to be in the mood to play it. You have to synchronize with the rhythm, thus becoming one with the music. If you’re having a bad day and can’t focus on the flow of each song, then you’re going to have a bad gaming session. The game does, however, feature a pretty impressive music selection that will appeal to fans of a wide range of music genres. It’s also non-linear since the levels can be beaten in almost any order, meaning you can practice other songs if you don’t feel like playing a specific one. The easiest songs are colored in green, while the harder ones are colored in red – and for those of you aiming at a mid-range difficulty, you’ll need to play the blue songs. All in all, there are over 30 songs in the game!
Final Thoughts
LOUD on Planet X is a great rhythm game that features a solid song collection and a polished presentation. I liked playing through the different levels the game had to offer and managed to keep up with the beat as I enjoyed the music. If you like rhythm games and are ready to try something different, then I’m pretty sure you’re going to love this release.
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Cost: $7.99
PSN Game size: 630MB
You can purchase Loud on Planet X on the PSN right here.
Disclaimer
This review is based on a PS4 digital copy provided by Pop Sandbox.