So I Tried… Dead as Disco

Each edition of So I Tried… I will try a game that I have never played before. Will I find something new to love? Will I find something new to despise? I'll take a full half hour, no matter how bad it gets or how badly I do, to see if this is the game for me. This time around, I battled to the beat in Dead as Disco.

What I thought it was

I absolutely love a good rhythm-based game, be it the classic arrow-accuracy of Dance Dance Revolution, or the genre-fusing joy of Crypt of the Necrodancer. As such, I’m always on the lookout for games that have any kind of rhythmic element, which brought me to the mix of dancing and duelling that is Dead as Disco.

As is tradition, I went into the game pretty blind, but I did know that it featured combat somehow tied to music. Looking at screenshots, the title offers a very stylish visual design reminiscent of Arcane, while adding in fast-paced combat and interesting characters to meet, making a very strong case even before hitting the Download button. I had little idea how the fusion of music and martial arts would be implemented, but I was hoping for more than a simple beat ‘em up with a good soundtrack.

What it actually is

The version of the game I played seemed to have a Mega Man–esque stage selection screen, with the options being the members of protagonist Charlie Disco’s ex-band gone bad. Each level would have a different song to bop to while beating down bruisers and other bad guys, in addition to unique environmental dangers, such as a train barreling down the tracks you are fighting on.

The combat itself reminded me of the Batman: Arkham franchise, featuring fast attacks and relying on well-timed dodges and parries. While I was a bit disappointed at first, as I didn’t really see the rhythm element in the tutorial, I did click with the system pretty quickly once the game proper began and the familiar chords of Flashdance’s iconic Maniac (covered by Death Tribe Records) started playing.

Slightly difficult to notice at first, the attacks, dodges, and parries of both you and your adversaries are subtly synced to the beat of the current song; your blows seem to be delayed or accelerated accordingly, though not to a degree that you’ll notice in most cases. It makes for a very satisfying combat system, which transforms the already-fun fighting into a dance of flying fists and cool moves. Adding to this, the stylistic flair accenting movement and attacks make for a very pleasant whole.

Will I keep playing

I cannot wait for this game to be fully released, so yes. Though I am a bit worried about the game running out of steam after a few bosses or featuring songs I don’t mesh with, I do believe Dead as Disco is worth experiencing. If you like a stylish and fun combat system, enjoy rhythm games with a bit of action, or simply want some mindless fun, this may be worth a look.