KickBeat

Martial artistry set to music will have you kicking to the beat.

I hate to be down on a small title trying to do something different and interesting, but I just couldn't get over the fact that Kickbeat felt more like a work in progress rather than something that was ready for prime time. With a better, more varied soundtrack and a little more exploration of how the martial arts theme could be applied to expanding the current game design, a sequel should be a real knockout. I genuinely hope the dev team gets the chance to make it.

It’s not a phenomenal killer app that will keep you playing for hours, but it will certainly make a bus ride feel a little bit shorter as you kick people in the face to the dulcet tones of Papa Roach.

Kickbeat offers a fun variation on the classic rhythm game and provides a very good soundtrack to go with it. The option to import your own songs extends the playtime beyond the two available story modes and although the result of the imports are a bit hit or miss it generally works fine. Rhythm games may not be back in full force but Kickbeat shows that they can still be fun.

KickBeat is an interesting experiment ruined from a couple of clumsy design elements. The lack of a clean layout and the boring progression through the unlockable elements are the main issues of this project. The low price tag and the lack of good European music games on PS Vita are enough to turn KickBeat into a valuable option for gamers who are interested in replacing Lumines.

Kickbeat is quite addicting, with it's beat'm-up-with-guitar-hero-influences gameplay and its wonderful soundtrack. Watch out for certain level of frustration though, as it's rather hard to make up for earlier mistakes and the boss fights are at times terribly unclear.

KickBeat was a really interesting idea that with a little better direction could have made for a great rhythm game on the Vita which, I feel, is a platform that can handle rhythm games very well.

Despite the intriguing fighting-game veneer, the mechanics underneath are very standard, and there’s not much else here to compensate for that fact.

If you’re really dying for a handheld music game KickBeat could fill that void for a bit of time, or in short bursts, but due to the small soundtrack you will most likely get weary pretty quickly unless you’re patient and create a bunch of your own tracks to play with.

All in all, Kickbeat is a good game, but overpriced for its market.

KickBeat is a plucky new contender in the rhythm gaming arena, with punishing difficulty and pumping industrial beats.

KickBeat isn’t a game that will stay with you for years, but the time you spend with it will be fun. It is a decent attempt at mixing up a genre that was getting tired. The ability to add your own music is a nice addition and adds a longevity to the game. It is more than worth your time and attention and another fine addition to the every growing Vita library.

KickBeat is definitely on rhythm, and will consume hours of your time with its beat-matching brawling as a consequence.

That's not here yet, though, which means that as of right now, KickBeat is one long slog of churning guitars, thundering drums and shouty vocals. If that doesn't turn you off of the game, this will: the gameplay isn't all that great yet, either. With time and an active community this could change, but until then, you'll probably want to hold off on picking this up.

Hitting the right buttons in the right order in time to the beat isn’t a terrible way to spend a bit of gaming time, but there’s just not enough meat on KickBeat‘s bones to keep the music flowing.

If you're looking for a mighty challenge, then this may well be the music game for you. That's doubley so if you're still listening to the likes of Marilyn Manson and Papa Roach.

KickBeat is an interesting idea that really works well when you get the hang of it. It just takes a while to do that, so know that going into the experience.

I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by how well it turned out. For only $10, you’ll get plenty of gameplay for the money spent.