Review: Rytmos (Nintendo Switch) – Pure Nintendo
Music makes the world go round, but what happens when the music stops? Rytmos is an interstellar puzzle game where the player creates music by completing puzzles using a series of noises and beats to create one cohesive track. It’s really satisfying if you like to mess around with beats, or would even like to become more knowledgeable about world music and historical instruments in general.
Rytmos is a puzzle game at its core, but the underlying music theme is what makes this game so interesting.
Basically, the universe that Rytmos takes place in has been destroyed and the player must restore it to its natural state. In order to do this, you must complete various puzzles in different solar systems. There are seven solar systems that have their own musical theme, and three planets that contain a layer of a track that will eventually merge into a full song. When you scroll through the solar systems, it will tell you what their themes are. For example, one planet is inspired by German electronic music, and another is inspired by Indonesian gamelan music. Honestly, it’s filled with music I had never heard of or known about until playing this game.
Each planet is shaped like a cube. After you choose which planet you want to work on, it will zoom in and you can rotate the planet. This allows you to see all of the fractured sides/areas that you will need to complete in order to finish the song. Once selected, it will zoom in once more so you can start working on the different layers of each track. Think of each planet as its own little song.
To complete one of these puzzles you must move the red disc through all of the electronic nodes, then loop it back around to the starting point. Hitting the nodes is important because they are the notes used to create each song. Once you complete a section, those notes will play on a loop until the song is complete and the planet is restored. On the more difficult levels, the game starts adding obstacles and other pieces of the puzzle that you will have to use, like ice cubes, moving platforms and rolling blocks, which will prevent you from moving at times.
The game never gets too frustratingly difficult, which makes it a pretty relaxing title, and there are multiple solutions to the puzzles. It’s easy to pick up and the controls are simple. While the music was unfamiliar to me, it was catchy and interesting. I found myself tapping my feet quite a bit during some of these tracks. And once you start working on a planet, it’s hard to stop. It’s satisfying to hear the completed songs once all the different notes are combined. And once a planet is complete, the instruments used in the songs are unlocked for free play from the man menu. So you can mess around with the sounds/beats and make your own original tunes if you want.
Rytmos is a pretty cool puzzle game. Regenerating the planets and making songs is fun, and satisfying. A little more of a challenge would have been fine by me, or maybe some different game modes. But overall, Rytmos is a great addition to any puzzle fan’s library, and a great game for the Nintendo Switch if you’re looking for something quick and easy to play.
