Bit. Trip Beat

Developer: Gaijin Games
Released: Nov 2010
Hours Played: 2.0
Similar To:  Bit.Trip Core / Bit.Trip Void / Retro Grade  / Rflex
Rating: 2/5 Parsnips




GAMEPLAY
This is a single-player, glorified game of pong brought to you by the folks that gave us Bit.Trip Runner. Like that classic, the experience is no easy task and if you want a game that is relentlessly going to put you through your paces and demands your 100% attention then this is it. You are first greeted with a screen consisting of an inch-long paddle that you move up and down on the far left hand side. Dots then start to appear from the right which you must attempt to hit back into space. Striking a dot initiates the sound of various blips and bleeps which, in turn, blend nicely with the catchy tune that's played in the background. Needless to say, the dots gradually start coming at you in greater frequency and in all sorts of tricky ways. The point is to let as few dots pass you as possible.


BALANCE & PACE
If you start missing too many dots you are given warnings and if you continue to mess up you enter a monochrome screen with no music that signals your final chance; screw up here and it's game over baby! The first level, entitled Transition, will probably give you quite a challenge but once you become accustomed to the patterns, frequencies and direction of the dots, you'll become more skilled at completing it and it becomes more doable. There are only three levels altogether but the first two last 15 minutes and the last, 8 minutes. As you might expect, though, gameplay is very intense and it will need your undivided attention.



PRESENTATION & DESIGN
This is full-on retro. The 8-bit graphic style is what you expect in Gaijin's Bit.Trip series and the pong-like gameplay is as retro as you can get. My main gripe with the graphics is that it can be a struggle to read the score. Nevertheless, the music is sparkling and melodic and, like Bit.Trip Runner, is what really makes the game work. Hitting the dots at the right time enhances the musical element and this in turn gives you the incentive to play better. You get the usual chunky menu with the huge and clunky fonts and personally, I'm not a big fan of having to look at hard-to-read fonts. Also, with the use of last century graphics you might expect the menus to be quick but unfortunately this is not the case. On clicking an option you then have to hit a ball with your paddle before viewing the menu. Even after this you get an 8 second black screen.


PROGRESS SYSTEM
Fortunately, the game rewards you with a better score depending on hits. Not only are you given a score that reflects your skill when you complete a level, but you're also given a score that reflects your skill when you don't. Unfortunately, only your one high-score is recorded (which you can view at the leaderboard screen). Ultimately, Bit.Trip Beat is about gradually beating the three levels, one by one, but I still like the fact that you can go back and hone your skills in order to enjoy the game more and to improve your score.




CONCLUSION
What I like about the Bit.Trip games is their casual simplicity and the fact that you know exactly what you're getting into. You really can just fire up one of their games, get the gist of what to do within a minute, spend about 20 or 30 minutes having a blast, and then leave knowing that you've had your money's worth and that you'll revisit it again another day. Personally, I think I may have preferred the levels to be in bite-size chunks rather than in huge-meal form. In other words they could have been trimmed down to about 4 or 5 minutes in length to make 8-10 levels altogether rather than 3 long ones but this is just a minor personal preference. Still, let's not beat about the bush: Bit.Trip Beat is glorified pong, pure and simple but a great glorified pong nevertheless.