It’s all the time nice to be shocked by a sport, and considered one of 2025’s most nice surprises is Recent Tracks. The primary sport from Vancouver sport studio Buffalo Buffalo, this rhythm roguelite places the gamers on skis and challenges them with a ton of enemies and obstacles to assault and dodge. A profitable mix of genres, it winds up supplying you with each the identical really feel of triumph on the finish of a run as Hades, whereas additionally the enjoyment of nailing a guitar solo in Rock Band.
Like lots of VR rhythm video games, you might be always transferring ahead in Recent Tracks. Taking up a collection of gods alongside the best way, together with one performed by the always-great Peter Stormare, you’ll end up selecting which paths to go on earlier than you attain boss battles. That is the primary layer of technique within the sport, as you’ll need to discover a stability between occurring harder ranges to be able to unlock higher abilities through the run or simply doing a straightforward stage to get your well being up earlier than a pivotal second.
Every music may have you hopping between totally different lanes whereas concurrently tilting your physique, leaping, and crouching to keep away from obstacles. Alongside the best way, you’ll be tempted to gather well being and foreign money to be able to assist your runs. Whereas that’s already sufficient to maintain you loads busy, you additionally use the best analog stick to be able to swing a sword at foes and projectiles, with perfectly-timed swipes permitting you to finally heal your self. It’s lots of mechanics, however all of them complement one another nicely and are launched throughout a pleasant tutorial, so that you’ll by no means really feel completely overwhelmed.
The spotlight of every run is certainly attending to a boss struggle. These get significantly intense as loads of enemies are thrown your means, and the sport additionally does a terrific job of build up these encounters by way of back-and-forth narration. Listening to the gods taunt you as you make your means by way of an encounter makes it all of the extra satisfying when you lastly get by way of it.
The roguelite nature of the sport comes out in a couple of methods. You may spend foreign money on charms that offer you advantages for every run, however you might be additionally in a position to purchase everlasting upgrades over time, resembling higher pairs of skis. There’s a pleasant mixture of unlocks, together with the power to observe songs, so that you by no means really feel like development is hopeless.
Recent Tracks (PS5) Assessment: Last Verdict
With a variety of problem settings and over 25 catchy songs, Recent Tracks is the most recent must-own PS5 rhythm sport. Whether or not you’re a relative beginner to music-based video games or look ahead to mastering troublesome runs, Buffalo Buffalo’s debut sport is a triumphant success. Fashionable and enjoyable to replay, gamers will look ahead to each restart quite than bemoaning a run coming to an finish.
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Nice songs and presentation
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Wide selection of problem choices
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Pleasant development system and unlocks
Disclosure: The writer supplied a digital copy for our Recent Tracks PS5 assessment. Reviewed on model 1.000.000.