There are plenty of rhythm games out there that deliver snippets of story in-between bouts of tempo-matching finger tapping. The haunting Deemo is the first one I’ve played that lets the music tell the tale.
It’s not quite like any rhythm game I’ve played before, and I’ve played more than my fair share. The genre is a passion of mine. As a music lover I’ve always wanted to play music, but lack the discipline to learn. Playing with music is the next-best thing.
One of my favourite mobile rhythm games is Cytus, an incredibly stylish offering from developer Rayark. It’s one of the first games I install on any Android or iOS device I acquire. When I discovered the developer had released a new game earlier this month, I gladly applied my $1.99 to its procurement. It was not at all what I expected.
I imagined another set of songs set against a stylish backdrop, and a new way to play — the screenshots made it seem similar to DJ Max Ray, another of my favourites. When the music is playing and fingers are tapping, it does feel a great deal like that popular title — almost like I’m playing a piano.
But the mostly piano-driven tracts of Deemo are more than just a place to score points. Each tune reveals a small facet of the game’s story. It’s the story of a shadowy creature, the eponymous Deemo, who sits alone in his castle, playing the piano.
The opening songs are wispy, ethereal, and decidedly down-beat. Deemo is alone. Deemo is lonely.
Then one day a strange young girl falls from the sky into his world. Immediately the songs begin to brighten. First they speak of her adventurous spirit, leading her to this strange place. The happiness grows with the pair’s blossoming relationship.
But there’s a darkness at the end of the tunnel. Each time Deemo plays his piano, a tree reaching towards the heavens — and his new friend’s freedom — grows taller. He doesn’t want her to go. The songs grow tense, darker.
This is the rhythm game equivalent of musical theatre. It’s simply brilliant.
With a story covering a wide range of emotions, Deemo‘s soundtrack is a glorious mix of genres, from classical instrumental to hip-hop, light and airy pop to guitar-driven metal. There are 28 songs in all, with 84 variations, with three difficulty levels capable of transforming even the simplest song into a finger-twisting nightmare.
I never imagined a rhythm game could be like Deemo. It’s truly something special. Deemo is currently available on iOS. Hopefully it’ll make its way to Android and beyond — everyone with the slightest interest in the genre needs to play this.
Deemo
Genre: Story-drive piano rhythm game
Developer: Rayark
Platform: iOS
Price: $1.99 (additional song packs $4.49)
Get Deemo on iTunes
Comments
2 responses to “App Review: A Remarkable Rhythm Game With A Touching Tale To Tell”
Hoping for an android version! I like rhythm games but I’m not super into them but I’m crazy about the theming in this game
I really wish they would tell us whether it’s iOS at the beginning of the article. It’s frustrating to find out you don’t have the platform for it.
One of the reasons I fell in love with DJ Max 1&2 was its great range of music styles similar to what Deemo seems to be like. Unfortunately it wasn’t quite the same after the first two.
I was thinking, why does this game look so similar to Cytus? then I saw the developer’s name; they are the ones who made Cytus. that’s why
Hi – I’m new to Deemo and have purchased the full version AND all the songbooks, I was that impressed with it. But I was wondering about the calibration setting. Can you tell me how that works? I’ve experimented with it but don’t have a clue what I’m looking for. What I’m wanting to do is have it actually be a charming hit when I have the note land precisely on the line – but no matter which way I’ve moved the calibration, I haven’t been able to figure out what it’s doing (I feel blonde saying that but I don’t care – I don’t know the answer and am not afraid of looking dumb 🙂 ) Sometimes it seems like I’ll get a charming hit if I hit the key just before it hits the line and others it seems like I have to hit it on the line and other times even when I know I’ve hit it right, it says I didn’t. Now, I know some of that is probably me which is fine, but I’d really like to understand what the calibration does and which direction I need it to go. Thanks for any answer since this is posted a year and a half after you wrote this 🙂