Just Shapes & Beats

 Switch
User Score
8.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 72 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 62 out of 72
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 72
  3. Negative: 9 out of 72

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  1. SFXacidic
    Jun 2, 2018
    9
    Just Shapes & Beats provides a fun time for both playing alone and with friends. One enjoyable part even after beating the game is being able to play with others online to many of the songs featured in the story. To unlock all the songs both story mode and challenges will need to be met. Other than that, the developers have put a lot of work into this game and it has shown over the years.
  2. theCmanNYCKC
    Dec 24, 2018
    10
    Great game! Love how the story-line goes. When Paradise got destroyed I was a little sad. Also, the ending is great. I love how you have infinite health and have to shoot the Annihilate boss. I would also say the levels are hard but rewarding at the end. 10 out of 10 game!

    From Conley (8 yrs) And you KNOW I made it to the end! Thanks designers and DJs.
  3. AVdE
    Jun 25, 2018
    9
    This game was definitely worth the wait. Awesome music, hard but fair levels and lost of game modes, this game has it all. I especially love party mode, which is an easy and casual way to play with friends unfamiliar with bullet hells.

    There's also an easy mode on the story campaign giving you double hit points, so you don't get stuck for too long if you can't beat a certain track. I    This game was definitely worth the wait. Awesome music, hard but fair levels and lost of game modes, this game has it all. I especially love party mode, which is an easy and casual way to play with friends unfamiliar with bullet hells.

    There's also an easy mode on the story campaign giving you double hit points, so you don't get stuck for too long if you can't beat a certain track. I may or may not have used this feature on 2 levels.

    I mean, what you see in the trailer is what you get, there's not too much to say here except a few nitpicks:

    - The story campaign was fun but really short; you can beat it in a few hours.
    - On my Switch the game lags occasionally. It's always short and a rare occurrence, but very annoying in a game where full concentration is key.
    - A retry option on the pause menu would have been nice for the story and playlist mode.

    The core gameplay though, love it. If you're looking for a unique and challenging indie game, S&B just might be for you.    … Expand
  4. RayRay26
    Jun 28, 2018
    9
    A solid musical game. There's lots to do even when there's only 34 songs. However, being musically inclined, I have noticed the numerous imperfect timings in the attacks and obstacles, which make me mistime my very short dash. Also there's a bunch of multiplayer desync problems like a song ending early or starting midway. Other than those minor problems, I have yet to stop listening to theA solid musical game. There's lots to do even when there's only 34 songs. However, being musically inclined, I have noticed the numerous imperfect timings in the attacks and obstacles, which make me mistime my very short dash. Also there's a bunch of multiplayer desync problems like a song ending early or starting midway. Other than those minor problems, I have yet to stop listening to the soundtrack since day one! I loved the minimalist story too.… Expand
  5. bassman2112
    Aug 1, 2018
    10
    A wonderful game with a spectacular soundtrack, cohesive & unique art style, and extremely satisfying gameplay. It can be really difficult, but it is also completely fair. Its story mode is really endearing, and I have few complaints other than I wish the story mode was longer, and that perhaps you could take a few more hits naturally (without turning on casual mode). Basically myA wonderful game with a spectacular soundtrack, cohesive & unique art style, and extremely satisfying gameplay. It can be really difficult, but it is also completely fair. Its story mode is really endearing, and I have few complaints other than I wish the story mode was longer, and that perhaps you could take a few more hits naturally (without turning on casual mode). Basically my complaint is "it is too awesome, make more plz." Definitely one of the best of 2018.… Expand
  6. Lao3821
    Jun 8, 2018
    10
    Su musica es genial, te incita a seguir jugando mas y mas, sin duda un juego muy recomendable y mas con la portabilidad del switch, sin duda no desepciona me a encantado
  7. Jax360
    Dec 7, 2018
    9
    extremely fun of music action.

    Presentation. 10/10
    Graphics TV. 8/10
    Graphics Handheld. 8/10
    Music. 10/10
    Controls. 9/10
    Fun-factor. 9/10
    Score. 9.4/10
  8. DeusGod
    Jun 26, 2018
    9
    The price compared to the volume feels a bit expensive, but mixed rhythm and shooting games nicely.
  9. Lordfate
    Nov 14, 2018
    4
    Brutal difficulty, cheap, unforgiving oh and to top it off limited continues.
  10. Bobislaw
    Nov 10, 2019
    10
    Ggcbhs bbbbjbbbbjbbj nie ma w sobie sprzątam nie mam najlepsze postacie z bajek ibaśni i legend rocka i on wróci do normy i przepisy na ciasta i desery z nim to są fajne ey y i jak u mamy mieć samochód mnie ochlapał nie mam pojęcia co umożliwia ulepszanie ich struktury i zawartości roku jako pilne potrzeby klasowe z nim nie mam pojęcia co umożliwia u nas na szczęście nie wiem czy to jestGgcbhs bbbbjbbbbjbbj nie ma w sobie sprzątam nie mam najlepsze postacie z bajek ibaśni i legend rocka i on wróci do normy i przepisy na ciasta i desery z nim to są fajne ey y i jak u mamy mieć samochód mnie ochlapał nie mam pojęcia co umożliwia ulepszanie ich struktury i zawartości roku jako pilne potrzeby klasowe z nim nie mam pojęcia co umożliwia u nas na szczęście nie wiem czy to jest słaba ale jakby ktoś y to są fajne mapy do celów i on powiedział ale to nie ja nie mam ale już trochę lepiej niż pół również w usłudze Facebook ma być co najmni żbik

    ej trzy minuty na mnie nie dzwoni do i jak u osóbktóre to są tylko on może i usług w szkole ale nie ten rozmiar pliku nie mam pojęcia a także nie ma w tych czasach u mnie ery klasa energetyczna nie udało mi się że y urhdjdhdjfjtrjtfhrjtjfjfjffjfrjrjrrjrrjtrk    … Expand
  11. SA-Xophone
    Apr 25, 2020
    9
    A near perfect bullet hell with very minor flaws, a few frustrating levels, unlocking extras is somewhat tedious, but the former of these flaws is mitigated by an optional “casual mode” accessible at any time, doubling health. All in all a must buy, especially for those looking for a co-op game or dubstep fans.
  12. Nintendist
    Jun 29, 2022
    0
    the gameplay is not the strong part of this game and it is what i wanted the most
  13. bbcbreno
    Jun 20, 2018
    9
    [TL; DR]
    Game had a simple idea and wonderful execution, unique stages, fluid gameplay and neither so punitive. The main campaign I believe lasts about 3h with a great replay factor. Note: 9.0.
    [History] The story mode is something fantastic, the game can show us an adventure of our protagonist Square and his friends only with shapes and beats, there is only one word pronouncement    [TL; DR]
    Game had a simple idea and wonderful execution, unique stages, fluid gameplay and neither so punitive. The main campaign I believe lasts about 3h with a great replay factor. Note: 9.0.

    [History]
    The story mode is something fantastic, the game can show us an adventure of our protagonist Square and his friends only with shapes and beats, there is only one word pronouncement throughout the whole plot and it's this one: @%&*! . That is, for lack of dialogues, the game got heavy on the animations and sounds and the result is a show apart.

    The mode works similar to the Super Mario World map, but there are lots of interactions and little minigames, nothing difficult or challenging, but it's fun to walk between stages.

    [Graphics]
    The graphics are simple, there is no extraordinary effect. But they knew how to make nice shapes and colors with effects and animations at the point, leaving everything very harmonious, nothing out of the ordinary, the union of all these things makes the graphics very interesting.

    [Sounds]
    There's nothing to talk about. Simply amazing, the songs are cool and lively beats, they are not cloying and the tracks are unique. It would make it easy for the CD to sell in the stores (if we had in the 80s / 90s years).

    [Gameplay]
    The proposal is quite simple: we are a baby blue square and our goal is to dodge everything that is pink, the motto is: "Pink is bad." We can walk in all directions and give a dash, at the time dash we are immune. There is no shot, combo, special or anything else to get our attention of what matters: the shapes and the beats.

    The pink shapes sprout on the screen in sync with the music, but although the game is rhythmic, we do not have to follow the beats, our freedom here is very big (or not, because there is time that has so much rose that can not go to many places).

    [Stages]
    They spent no effort on building level design, the game could be boring and boring if it were not for the unique stages we encountered throughout the game. Seriously, each stage is a unique experience, we get a taste of want more and not with that feeling of "ahhhh I'm tired of doing this, it's so boring!". The stages are abstract, but you can see the reference with several other games, Metal Gear Solid (PS1), Rive Raid and Mario. Still has the theme of 007 and Mortal Kombat.

    [Difficulty]
    In fact the game is very challenging, but I did not get to spend much punitive because of the short stages. If we die (touch 3x in pink), we return to the last checkpoint (which has all the time), the problem that if you die 3x gives game over and has to start all over again, this for me was a negative point of the game . There are a lot of people cursing on twitter because of the difficulty of the game. There is the casual mode that makes it easier. The bosses do not have checkpoint and some are difficult, but nothing like trying 2 or 3 times and decorating their movements, as the stages are short, don't gets so punitive.

    [Multiplayer]
    It can play the campaign with more people (which should facilitate a lot) and has the Challenge mode where we can play alone, local multiplayer or the internet. I tried the mode and it started ok, but after a while it started to bug (it seemed that the stage was out of sync because I took damage without touching anything and the other players went through the pink without taking damage). I have not played much this way to know if it was because I was playing with Japanese or if you will be recurring.

    [Replay Factor]
    We have access to all the songs and we can play any one again, there is a list with the performance note of each stage. Here we can play and play and play the stage until you get a bright and colorful S. Also unlock some cool little things after completing the game.    … Expand
  14. demonter
    Jun 11, 2018
    8
    The overall experience of the game is great!
    advantage:
    Breaking music and rhythm.
    Combined with music experience.
    Vivid and interesting story mode.
    There is a network connection function.

    Disadvantages:
    Short story mode.
    It would be nice if the elements of the checkpoint were random.
    There is an individual case of Karton.
  15. utybo
    Jul 27, 2018
    9
    This game is extremely hard and fun! The story mode is great and lets you have a taste of everything the game has to offer. The music is great, but very oriented towards EDM/chiptunestep (is that a thing?). So you will probably not enjoy the game if that's not your thing.

    Playing in multiplayer mode is a blast and makes JS&B a very good party game. One problem though, I've    This game is extremely hard and fun! The story mode is great and lets you have a taste of everything the game has to offer. The music is great, but very oriented towards EDM/chiptunestep (is that a thing?). So you will probably not enjoy the game if that's not your thing.

    Playing in multiplayer mode is a blast and makes JS&B a very good party game.

    One problem though, I've experienced a few lags when the levels went really crazy. That is caused by the Switch's relatively weak hardware, so you won't have any problem on other platforms. Also, the game can get pretty repetitive.

    This game is awesome! I can't give it a 10 because I think it might get quite repetitive in the end and it does have some minor problems here and there, but overall this is an excellent game.    … Expand
  16. Jibble
    Feb 27, 2019
    9
    This is an all around amazing game. I loved the story, and the music was amazing! If you have a low budget for a game, this is a great one to get! The story is a little short, but there's plenty to do after that!
  17. kurtis89
    May 29, 2019
    10
    Perfect combination of music and gameplay with an extraordinary multiplayer mode.
    It is hoped that in the future they will constantly continue to include new music and modes
  18. maxdechiaro
    Jun 2, 2019
    10
    The best rhythm game on this switch with a very fun multiplayer mode for 4 player.
  19. PhoenixTR
    Jul 16, 2019
    10
    If you played geometry dash or that kind of a game, or enjoy bullet-hell games, this is the game for you. About graphics, there's not much to say. It has its own style, and their style is beautiful. About story, it has a nice story and you can enjoy it. Your adventure, power of music, power of friendship... All i can say about the story is that its amazing. I think there is no need to talkIf you played geometry dash or that kind of a game, or enjoy bullet-hell games, this is the game for you. About graphics, there's not much to say. It has its own style, and their style is beautiful. About story, it has a nice story and you can enjoy it. Your adventure, power of music, power of friendship... All i can say about the story is that its amazing. I think there is no need to talk about musics because my words are not powerful enough to describe this soundtrack. Gameplay is satisfying. So here is my final decision: If you have money, you should buy the game. If you don't, watch this game from somewhere, because this game deserves sharing.… Expand
  20. eIipe
    Jan 9, 2023
    10
    The setlist is very good. Lots of great artists: a mix of chiptunes, dubstep and different electronic genres make this game very appealing in the musical sense. The gameplay is challenging: similar to Super Hexagon. It's a lot of try and repeat, but as addictive as it is, you go through the game without getting bored. One of the best rhythm games available on the Nintendo Switch.
  21. Divaisik
    Dec 4, 2020
    10
    Забавно, Весело, Поиграть с друзьями само то..
  22. nintendosfan
    May 12, 2020
    10
    Un gioco magistralmente perfetto, spero lo tengano sempre aggiornato ed escano dei dlc.
  23. JoelCuzcuz
    Oct 29, 2020
    10
    The music is great, I like the style, and it's very challenging. Over-all, it's just fun. I would definitely recommend this to anyone.
  24. flowerfun
    Mar 10, 2022
    8
    Great game. The levels are very fun and hectic, with tons of bullets to dodge and some awesome music to boot, they capture the chaos present in the songs and some of the levels are VERY creative. The bosses are also great. The game also has a very good overworld map in the story mode, it incorporates some platforming in the overworld and some quick-time events too, which makes theGreat game. The levels are very fun and hectic, with tons of bullets to dodge and some awesome music to boot, they capture the chaos present in the songs and some of the levels are VERY creative. The bosses are also great. The game also has a very good overworld map in the story mode, it incorporates some platforming in the overworld and some quick-time events too, which makes the overworld interesting and fun to traverse. The soundtrack is amazing, one of the best I have EVER heard, nearly every song is a bop. The game's story isn't gonna blow you away or anything but it serves its purpose fine enough. Finally, there are the visuals of the game, they look really nice, they manage to make simple shapes look great and the visuals shine the most in the levels. Overall this is a great game and I can recommend it whole heartily.… Expand
  25. Nicominde
    Jul 4, 2022
    8
    Great music selection, polished gameplay and a surprising story for a rhythm game.
  26. GDChrome
    Dec 29, 2022
    8
    This game's visuals and story are rather simple, but in my opinion that works in the game's favor. this game is wildly fun to play (with a couple of exceptions), and since you only have 2 things you can do, it never feels like any level is too overly complicated. this game doesn't really have much I dislike about it, so why didn't I rate this higher than an 8? well, while this game isThis game's visuals and story are rather simple, but in my opinion that works in the game's favor. this game is wildly fun to play (with a couple of exceptions), and since you only have 2 things you can do, it never feels like any level is too overly complicated. this game doesn't really have much I dislike about it, so why didn't I rate this higher than an 8? well, while this game is great at most things, the factory is definitely a slog to get to, and it kinda makes the main campaign slightly less fun to play. but other than that, it's mainly because while a lot of the individual components that make this game are great, they could definitley be improved. still, worth it's price tag and also play it with a controller.… Expand
  27. Anavgfurry
    Sep 3, 2023
    9
    This game is perfect if you love banger tracks and difficult games. The only things holding it back is the lack of updates. Other than that, this game is fun and has tons of replayablity.

Awards & Rankings

46
#46 Best Switch Game of 2018
66
#66 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2018

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
83

Generally favorable reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 17
  3. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. God is a Geek
    Jul 18, 2018
    95
    Everything I’ve wanted in a new music game. When Sound Shapes hit the Vita a long time ago, it instantly became my favourite music game and I’m glad to add a new entry to my favourite music games of all time list with Berzerk Studio’s Just Shapes & Beats. It is frustrating in some areas with the skill required but every second I’ve put into it has been more than worth it.
    Read full review
  2. Games Master UK
    Jul 14, 2018
    74
    A beautiful bullet-hell with high-energy visuals and music that sometimes descend into chaos. [Aug 2018, p.82]
  3. Shacknews
    Jul 10, 2018
    90
    A hidden gem in this year's long list of video game releases.
    Read full review
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