Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer Featuring The Legend of Zelda

 Switch
User Score
8.0

Generally favorable reviews- based on 304 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 242 out of 304
  2. Mixed: 18 out of 304
  3. Negative: 44 out of 304

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  1. RVPar
    Jun 21, 2020
    0
    Эту поделку нельзя называть игрой. Это пиксельная каша для умственно отсталых. Что дальше? Переиздание Super Maro Bros. в оригинальной графике? Идея мертворождённая. И ни о какой новой механике не может идти речи.
  2. B-Bog
    Aug 5, 2019
    3
    I'm writing this review for anyone who was not into Crypt of the Necrodancer, but is still thinking about getting Cadence because they love Zelda and the franchise's music, and the reviews are great. DON'T DO IT. I was in the same position and asked other people for their opinion, which was pretty encouraging. They said it was much more accessible than Crypt, and, aside from the rhythmI'm writing this review for anyone who was not into Crypt of the Necrodancer, but is still thinking about getting Cadence because they love Zelda and the franchise's music, and the reviews are great. DON'T DO IT. I was in the same position and asked other people for their opinion, which was pretty encouraging. They said it was much more accessible than Crypt, and, aside from the rhythm elements, just a damn good Zelda game on its own. Once again, listening to others instead of my own gut proved to be a mistake.

    Cadence is really just Crypt with a Zelda coat of paint, in terms of items, characters, enemies, overworld etc. And it's got the exact same issues as its predecessor: There's next to no tutorial and the learning curve is not so much a curve, but more of a brick wall. It starts out fair enough and pretty slow for a few screens, but then it's the exact same BS as with Crypt: You walk into a screen or a dungeon and ten different enemies come at you from all directions, and you're supposed to just figure out on your own what their attack patterns are and when you can attack them; and of course do it fast and without missing a beat. It's a really punishing experience and aside from the look, gameplay-wise, it hasn't got all that much to do with a regular Zelda game.

    I should also say that I don't dislike games just because they're hard. For example, I absolutely loved Furi. But Furi, even though it throws you basically right into action and the tutorial is brief, does a much better job of explaining its core mechanics and GRADUALLY raising the difficulty. In that game, I could always conceive of how to do things better the next time, if I died. I knew what to do in principal, I just didn't have the skill to execute it yet. I knew what my mistake was, what got me killed. With Cadence, oftentimes I've got absolutely NO clue what would have been the right thing to do. There's just so much confusion because nobody explains anything to you and things aren't clear enough by themselves, as with the enemy attack patterns. One enemy I encountered REALLY early on could kill me in two hits and had a hitting range of two squares. How tf am I supposed to figure out how to take care of this dude, if going anywhere near him is likely to get me killed, which means all my rupees and breakable items get taken away from me?? But he keeps following me all over the screen, and if I want to progress and get diamonds, I have to kill ALL the enemies on one screen.

    Noone ever tells you what your overall objective is in this game, either. It's basically just: Hyrule is in trouble. Go! Story presentation is dysmal/close to non-existent.

    Then there was an item at the fairy fountain just called "Energy Depletion". U-huh. And now I'm supposed to know from this awesomely descriptive name what this item does and if I wanna spend FIVE diamonds on it? Is it depleting MY energy? If yes, to what gain? Is it depleting my enemies' energy? It's unnecessarily confusing and, to be honest, it just seems lazy to me to not have accurate item descriptions.

    I'm also not really a fan of randomly generated worlds and dungeons in this case. While this system does give you something fresh every playthrough, it lacks the charme, atmosphere, and attention to detail that Zelda usually stands for.

    A lot of people seem to be forgiving of these flaws because it's an "indie-game". Well, I expect a bit better from a game that costs 25€ and carries the Legend of Zelda name.

    If Nintendo offered e-shop refunds, I'd probably get one for this. Alas, this is not the case, and I've spent 25 bucks on a game that will probably just collect digital dust in my Switch library.    … Expand
  3. AngelStarr
    Jul 14, 2019
    4
    I bought this game because I loved Necrodancer. I think most people who wrote reviews for this game are content with anything "Zelda". Not me.
    This is no longer a roguelike dungeon crawler with amazing music, which was everything that was good about Necrodancer.
    The game is downright annoying, the music is just a plain mediocre remix of worn out Zelda tunes. The exploration fun is gone.    I bought this game because I loved Necrodancer. I think most people who wrote reviews for this game are content with anything "Zelda". Not me.
    This is no longer a roguelike dungeon crawler with amazing music, which was everything that was good about Necrodancer.
    The game is downright annoying, the music is just a plain mediocre remix of worn out Zelda tunes.
    The exploration fun is gone. The stages are zelda style screens, except they honestly not fun to play with. Necrodancer used to be an immersive DANCE. Now it's just a mind numbing ambient music that picks up the pace once in a while.
    I'm not feeling the groove! I just threw money down the drain on this one. And let me be very clear: I absolutely love the old Zelda hames.
    Do Not buy into the hype. Some things just don't mix well. Zelda's top down design is a contradiction to everything that made Necrodancer so engaging.
    Unless, of course, you're a Zelda fan, and will be pleased with any game that lets you play as Link. To me, that's just. Not. Enough.
    I do not get The Shivers just seeing Link on the screen or hearing the washed up old tune. I look for originality, or at least immersiveness, and I feel like I was too quick to buy this one.
    Downright silly of me. I just love videogames so much, I sometimes just believe the hype. I'm here to be, apparently the ONLY one to tell you: watch out. Overhyped. Not worth even 50% of it's price.    … Expand
  4. Reviewer987
    Jun 14, 2019
    1
    The level design,music and graphics are great. The map has that Zelda feel to it. The enemies feel like they belong in a zelda game. Problem is the playability of the game rivals that of StarFox Zero. Players are forced to move and attack only when the rythm allows them to. You have no clue when enemies will attack. Forcing the player to guess and take damage. Waiting to move andThe level design,music and graphics are great. The map has that Zelda feel to it. The enemies feel like they belong in a zelda game. Problem is the playability of the game rivals that of StarFox Zero. Players are forced to move and attack only when the rythm allows them to. You have no clue when enemies will attack. Forcing the player to guess and take damage. Waiting to move and attack only when the rythm allows makes the gameplay feel slow and restricting. With the rythm mechanic their is literally only one way to play this game. There is no freedom for the player and basically turns the game into a on rail experience.… Expand
  5. IIIAHMIII
    Oct 26, 2020
    0
    Just bought the game for 40 euro. And i never played a game this short in my entire live of 27 year of gaming. It is a joke. The art style and the camera from above a way to far away to even see what is going on. I loved donkey kong jungle beat so i thought he why not try out this bad boy. It is really not for everyone. 3 Minutes into the game and im already bored to death. Watch outJust bought the game for 40 euro. And i never played a game this short in my entire live of 27 year of gaming. It is a joke. The art style and the camera from above a way to far away to even see what is going on. I loved donkey kong jungle beat so i thought he why not try out this bad boy. It is really not for everyone. 3 Minutes into the game and im already bored to death. Watch out before you buy it. it looks way more fun then it is.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

16
#16 Best Switch Game of 2019
26
#26 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2019
5
#5 Most Shared Switch Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 65 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 64 out of 65
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 65
  3. Negative: 0 out of 65
  1. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Apr 28, 2020
    85
    Cadence of Hyrule is a complicated game that's worth learning how to play, because getting into the rhythm can't be beat! [Issue #41 – September 2019, p. 24]
  2. Game World Navigator Magazine
    Aug 2, 2019
    86
    Cadence of Hyrule might be THE surprise release of the year. Not only Nintendo let third-party studio to use its IP, but the result is on par with mainstream releases of the big N. [Issue#239, p.67]
  3. Pure Nintendo
    Jul 31, 2019
    90
    Cadence of Hyrule didn’t click with me at first but the Fixed Beat Mode really helped. Without that mode, I don’t think this game would have as much appeal but the developers were wise to include it. With such a great visual presentation and an excellent soundtrack, players need to check out Cadence of Hyrule even if they’re just a little curious. The gameplay may trip you up as it did for me, but check out the Fixed Beat Mode–you’ll be glad you did!
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