Hi-Fi Rush developer Tango Gameworks has released the final patch for its breakout title, following news that the studio had fallen victim to a round of closures at Xbox last week. As part of the developer’s swan song, it confirmed that the game’s physical edition was still coming and thanked the player community for their support.
In a post shared to the official Hi-Fi Rush X (formerly Twitter) account, Tango Gameworks confirmed the final patch would address “some minor issues” and that the physical edition of the game was being worked on with its partners at Limited Run Games. The patch itself is aimed at “[taking] care of some remaining issues” in-game. “Thank you again for your support of Hi-Fi RUSH. You’re all rockstars!” the patch notes read.
Tango Gameworks is one of three studios, alongside Arkane Austin and Alpha Dog Games, set to close after Xbox’s shock announcement last week. The closures and lay-offs kicked off a wave of public outcry, especially considering the success of Hi-Fi Rush in the year since it launched. Microsoft’s VP of Xbox Games Marketing Aaron Greenberg even went so far as to describe it as a “breakout hit for us and our players in all key measurements and expectation,” noting that they “couldn’t be happier with what the team at Tango Gameworks delivered.” According to an email sent by Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty (via Eurogamer), the closure was “grounded in prioritising high-impact titles and further investing in Bethesda’s portfolio of blockbuster games and beloved worlds.”
Just to add insult to injury, not even a day after the closure of Tango Gameworks was announced, Booty spoke in a town hall meeting and said the company needed “smaller games that give us prestige and awards.” Hi-Fi Rush director John Johanas had just one thing to say in response:
Whatever the case, the closure of a studio, even in the face of a successful release like Hi-Fi Rush, doesn’t bode well for the future of other smaller developers under the ownership of major companies like Xbox. The final patch serves as one final reminder of what Tango Gameworks was able to achieve (not even going into their previous work on The Evil Within series or Ghostwire: Tokyo).
You can check out the full (and final) patch notes for Hi-Fi Rush below:
Hi-Fi Rush Final Patch Notes
PlayStation 5 and PC
- (Track 01) After reducing QA-1MIL to zero health, a collision issue would occur where players would fall out of the geometry. Chai will now properly fall to the ground, instead of into the abyss.
- (Track 01) Fixed an issue during the latter half of the 2D area whereby the camera would not follow Chai when the elevating lift falls.
- (Track 02) Corrected a defect whereby if you touched Rekka during her electric charge, your final Rank would not correlate with the Chorus score.
- Some issues would occur when trying to use Macaron’s Gravity Well while Rhythm Parrying an enemy. Well, this is now fixed!
- (Track 03) Cutscenes previously would not play correctly if a Health Tank was consumed during the fight with the HG-0G. Feel free to block a few more hits with your face because this bug is fixed!
- Fixed various text issues.
PlayStation 5
- (Track 01) During the “Dodge Attack” tutorial, there was a discrepancy between what Smidge said and the text. The text will <NOW DISPLAY CORRECTLY>.
All Platforms
- (Track 01) We also QA’d some other issues during the QA-1MIL fight, particularly around transitions between phases.
- Fixed even more text bugs! They just don’t stop!
- Drink prices adjusted in Vandelay vending machines to reflect local currency conversion.
Have you played Hi-Fi Rush? What’re your thoughts on the closure of Tango Gameworks? Let us know in the comments.
Image: Tango Gameworks
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