Musynx review for PS Vita, PS4, Switch

Platform: PS Vita
Also On: PS4, Switch
Publisher: PM Studios
Developer: PM Studios
Medium: Digital/Vita Card
Players: 1
Online: No
ESRB: E10+

As far as I can tell, Musynx has two difficulty levels: hard, and mind-bogglingly hard.

Now, before I go any further, I?ll admit that I?m not the most rhythmically-inclined person. The closest I?ll get to a dancefloor is playing Just Dance. My speed is generally closer to foot-tapping than wild abandon.

That said, I think I?ve mostly managed to overcome my lack of rhythm as far as music games go. I can tap buttons on a screen in something approaching a beat, and I have enough dexterity that going from one spot to another usually doesn?t phase me.

But man, Musynx seems to take things to a whole other level. I accidentally started the game on “Hard,” which proved to be a mistake, because it was so,so hard. Like, so hard that I fully believe it deserves the italics in the previous sentence. Played on “hard”, even at regular speed, the notes come flying down the screen, to the point I honestly believe you?d have to a professional musician (or at least a pro gamer) to keep up.

And it?s not like “Easy” is that much less difficult. Notes still come cascading down the screen at a furious speed, often two at a time. The game becomes a little more doable at this level, but it still requires some pretty impressive sleight of hand to pull off some of the more challenging combos.

All that said, if you are that adroit (and, of course, you enjoy music games), Musynx should provide you with an enjoyable challenge. There?s a nice variety of music to be found here: there?s a lot of vocaloid pop, as you?d expect, but there?s also a nice mixture of classical, rock, and other genres too. The game is also relatively forgiving — a plus, given its level of difficulty — allowing you to miss notes without suffering too much beyond losing a few percentage points at the end (as opposed to cutting off the songs or making it more dissonant the more you fail).

But it?s important to understand going in that you?ll probably fail a lot. Musynx is unquestionably one of the most demanding music games I?ve ever played. I can?t say I particularly enjoyed it (in fact, I wanted to throw my Vita across the room not too long after starting), but if you?re looking for a crazy challenge, you?ll find it here.

PM Studios provided us with a Musynx PS Vita code for review purposes.

Grade: C+