Rhythm Heaven Groove hands-on: A silly musical good time in a franchise I wish I played sooner

It’s been a very long time since my musically-inclined days in high school marching band as a line-leader and trumpet player, but it all came back to me when I played Rhythm Heaven Groove. I got to play the newest entry in Nintendo’s rhythm game franchise at a special event in New York City a few weeks ago, and it was my first foray into the series. I now wish that wasn’t the case, because I feel like I’ve missed out, even after 11 years passing between this new game and its most recent entry, Nintendo 3DS game Rhythm Heaven Megamix in 2015. Image via Nintendo https://embeds.beehiiv.com/a8d62108-86ed-4039-bf49-44877ba62c15 At its heart, Rhythm Heaven Groove is a collection of rhythm-based mini games with a simplistic art style. But it’s also way more than that. It’s a test of your ability to stay in time with the beat, the same way I would be coached by the drumline while marching at various events, trumpet in hand. Following visual or audio clues, it’s up to you to time the right button presses properly to stay in tune with the beat of a wide array of fun songs with silly or even nonsensical visuals to match it. And it’s full of charm. One game I played featured a girl in her kitchen making a salad, and it’s up to you to slice flying vegetables to the beat, using your reaction time to press A or B depending on the veggie. As the music picks up, the lights go out, and it’s less about the visual cues and more about the audio since you can’t properly tell the vegetables apart. Another casts you as one of several smiley-faced balls to jump through a hoop on time, and it all has to match the rhythm of the music, lest you ruin the tune. Another tests your timing by first giving you audio cues to control a dog catching a frisbee from their owner. Those cues are then taken away, and you need to keep the timing of the beat in your head to catch it and score points. Each mini-game uniquely judges your timing and musical prowess and gives you a named score, and properly racking up points unlocks new levels. At the end of each subset of levels, you play through a “remix” that combines all of the ones that came before it to try and unlock even more. Every song I experienced was catchy and fun, so I’m excited to try out the full list. https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZdMwqKiSeEE?feature=oembed There’s over 80 singleplayer mini games to work through, but the 30-plus local multiplayer ones are where I think the most fun can be had, especially for families or groups of friends on the couch. Using the Switch JoyCons, up to four players can participate in cooperative or competitive modes. One mode we played featured four of us trying to grab a slice of cake as a countdown clock hit exactly zero. Whoever is closest earns the slice, and whoever gets three slices first wins. The other multiplayer mode challenges players to stay on their toes by playing as individual ninjas defending a base by properly timing the swing of a katana to slice enemy arrows out of midair. It’s fun, and satisfying when you nail the timing to perfection while tapping your foot to stay in time. Another way to play Rhythm Heaven Groove is in the new Beatspell mode, which functions as a sort of RPG game where you take part in active battles by casting spells and attacks along with the timing of the music. Pressing B then A along with the music and diamond-shaped visual indicator casts a fire spell. And B, then down, then A casts a cure to restore your HP. It’s unclear how deep or long this singleplayer adventure will last, but it felt like a fun solo add-on to the party game atmosphere of the other modes. Screenshot by Destructoid I think Rhythm Heaven Groove has big potential as yet another Nintendo Switch title to play with younger gamers, but I’d be lying if I said I also didn’t have a really good time throwing it back to my musician days, dancing in my chair and tapping my foot to stay in time with the beat in the hour of game time I had with Nintendo PR on hand. Rhythm Heaven Groove launches for the Nintendo Switch on July 2 for $39.99. 0 The post Rhythm Heaven Groove hands-on: A silly musical good time in a franchise I wish I played sooner appeared first on Destructoid.

Jun 11, 2026 - 21:40

Rhythm Heaven Groove hands-on: A silly musical good time in a franchise I wish I played sooner

It’s been a very long time since my musically-inclined days in high school marching band as a line-leader and trumpet player, but it all came back to me when I played Rhythm Heaven Groove.

I got to play the newest entry in Nintendo’s rhythm game franchise at a special event in New York City a few weeks ago, and it was my first foray into the series. I now wish that wasn’t the case, because I feel like I’ve missed out, even after 11 years passing between this new game and its most recent entry, Nintendo 3DS game Rhythm Heaven Megamix in 2015.

Image via Nintendo https://embeds.beehiiv.com/a8d62108-86ed-4039-bf49-44877ba62c15 At its heart, Rhythm Heaven Groove is a collection of rhythm-based mini games with a simplistic art style. But it’s also way more than that. It’s a test of your ability to stay in time with the beat, the same way I would be coached by the drumline while marching at various events, trumpet in hand.

Following visual or audio clues, it’s up to you to time the right button presses properly to stay in tune with the beat of a wide array of fun songs with silly or even nonsensical visuals to match it. And it’s full of charm.

One game I played featured a girl in her kitchen making a salad, and it’s up to you to slice flying vegetables to the beat, using your reaction time to press A or B depending on the veggie. As the music picks up, the lights go out, and it’s less about the visual cues and more about the audio since you can’t properly tell the vegetables apart. Another casts you as one of several smiley-faced balls to jump through a hoop on time, and it all has to match the rhythm of the music, lest you ruin the tune.

Another tests your timing by first giving you audio cues to control a dog catching a frisbee from their owner. Those cues are then taken away, and you need to keep the timing of the beat in your head to catch it and score points.

Each mini-game uniquely judges your timing and musical prowess and gives you a named score, and properly racking up points unlocks new levels. At the end of each subset of levels, you play through a “remix” that combines all of the ones that came before it to try and unlock even more. Every song I experienced was catchy and fun, so I’m excited to try out the full list.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZdMwqKiSeEE?feature=oembed There’s over 80 singleplayer mini games to work through, but the 30-plus local multiplayer ones are where I think the most fun can be had, especially for families or groups of friends on the couch.

Using the Switch JoyCons, up to four players can participate in cooperative or competitive modes. One mode we played featured four of us trying to grab a slice of cake as a countdown clock hit exactly zero. Whoever is closest earns the slice, and whoever gets three slices first wins.

The other multiplayer mode challenges players to stay on their toes by playing as individual ninjas defending a base by properly timing the swing of a katana to slice enemy arrows out of midair. It’s fun, and satisfying when you nail the timing to perfection while tapping your foot to stay in time.

Another way to play Rhythm Heaven Groove is in the new Beatspell mode, which functions as a sort of RPG game where you take part in active battles by casting spells and attacks along with the timing of the music. Pressing B then A along with the music and diamond-shaped visual indicator casts a fire spell. And B, then down, then A casts a cure to restore your HP. It’s unclear how deep or long this singleplayer adventure will last, but it felt like a fun solo add-on to the party game atmosphere of the other modes.

Screenshot by Destructoid I think Rhythm Heaven Groove has big potential as yet another Nintendo Switch title to play with younger gamers, but I’d be lying if I said I also didn’t have a really good time throwing it back to my musician days, dancing in my chair and tapping my foot to stay in time with the beat in the hour of game time I had with Nintendo PR on hand.

Rhythm Heaven Groove launches for the Nintendo Switch on July 2 for $39.99.

0 The post Rhythm Heaven Groove hands-on: A silly musical good time in a franchise I wish I played sooner appeared first on Destructoid.

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