Soundfall is an innovative indie game that mixes action and music to create a unique dungeon-crawling rhythm experience with an awesome tracklist.

Rhythm games are arguably one of the most creative video game genres. They challenge a player's sense of timing and rhythm while masterfully mixing music and action. From simulation games like Rock Band to physical dancing games like Dance Dance Revolution, the genre has seen different iterations that attempt to reach new heights. However, in recent years the indie game scene has adjusted the scope of rhythm games to focus on the action first and music second.

Developed by Drastic Games and published by Noodlecake Studios, Soundfall is an isometric roguelike dungeon-crawler rhythm-based looter shooter indie game released on May 11. It was first introduced in 2017 as part of a successful campaign that raised over $200,000 on Fig. The game features both a single-player campaign with local and online multiplayer, plus community-generated levels. At the moment, it features over 120 levels with a cast of five playable characters and custom tracks for PC players.

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Soundfall takes place in an alternative world called Symphonia, where sound and songs are made. The game starts with a talented audiophile called Melody who has been transported to the world of Symphonia to fulfill the prophecy of becoming a guardian of harmony. These guardians are tasked with restoring harmony and protecting the world of Symphonia from Discordians, evil monsters that corrupt songs and demolish rhythm.

Furthermore, Soundfall's gameplay loop is easy to understand for all age groups and skill levels. Simply put, players need to defeat enemies (Discordians) to save a song from corruption and clear the level. The main game mechanic revolves around a metronome tuned to the beat of the level song that both players and enemies follow. For instance, character dashes and attacks should be done with the beat to grant invincibility and extra damage. Similarly, enemy attacks are done along the beat, which means that the flow and speed of a level are dictated by that stage's track.

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Although Soundfall's level are procedurally generated, the game's visuals and art style compensate for the randomness. The world is bright, colorful, and interactive such that different terrain elements will move with the beat to solidify the idea of Symphonia's musical world. Furthermore, Soundfall's music covers different genres which affect the gameplay mechanics, visuals, and player experience. This provides an engaging audiovisual experience that smoothly flows between sound and animation.

Soundfall also rewards guardians with different weapons and armors that make small changes to the game's mechanics. The loot includes weapons of different elements, armor, and character-exclusive modifiers. The rarity and equipment system draws inspiration from looter shooters like Destiny and Borderlands. However, Soundfall suffers from repetitive levels and stale mechanics, which dampen the game's potential. Every player's experience and gameplay loop will remain the same from beginning to end.

Soundfall is the most recent entry to the roguelike action rhythm dungeon crawlers video game genre. This niche game type was popularized by Crypt of The NecroDancer, which Soundfall takes most of its gameplay elements from. While the game looks pretty and plays smoothly, it leaves much to be desired gameplay-wise. Still, Soundfall has a lot to offer, and players who mindless action rhythm games and great music will almost certainly enjoy it.

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