Harmonix, the rhythm-based development studio based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, hasn't been in the spotlight much since Dance Central and Fantasia: Disney Evolved, having been somewhat burned by Microsoft's backpedalling on the Kinect being a mandatory peripheral for the Xbox One. Since then, Harmonix has been stirring the embers of its treasured catalogue, including the four-player cooperative Rock Band and its underrated rail-based rhythm game, Amplitude, for PS2.
Apart from Final Fantasy: Theatrhythm, the rhythm genre has been rather quiet without Harmonix around, but what has the developer has in store will hopefully revitalize the scene with a well-deserved comeback tour.
Rhythm shooter remix.
Chroma, the main headliner for the developer this year, attempts to mix the rhythm genre with the broader appeal of the first-person shooter. Intrigued? Self-described as a game that infuses "fast-paced PC shooter action with music gameplay," where "music is your weapons, [and] sound is your arsenal," it seems to be the natural evolution to the psychedelic rail-based shooter Rez, one of my favorite games that explores synesthesia.
Harmonix granted thousands of players to a private Closed Alpha for Chroma, receiving plenty of feedback on this rhythm-shooter fusion, and according to the official website, "has already started prototyping new directions for the game based on the most successful mechanics." The last update on Chroma was posted on June 10, 2014 on its official Facebook page, where they thanked the many players for their contribution to its first public alpha based on early gameplay prototypes:
The feedback from the outstanding alpha players was amazing and we're truly in your debt. It's been really inspiring to have constructive criticism and optimistic support from an invested community. Similarly, working with the amazing developers at Hidden Path Entertainment has been a wonderfully fruitful collaboration…
We have concluded that Chroma will need some substantial retooling to be the game we want it to be… The team has, in fact, already started prototyping new directions for the game based on those successful mechanics.
Amp it up.
To round out this bold venture in the gaming space, Harmonix has focused on a reboot of its 2003 cult-classic Amplitude, a game that inspired Rock Band Unplugged for PSP with the player having to flip between multiple tracks and hit notes on each track to unlock their musical lines. The original sequel to FreQuency featured its track-layering technology and an incredible soundtrack that included "Rockit (2.002 Remix)" by Herbie Hancock and "Sub Culture" by Styles of Beyond. The HD reboot was fully funded on Kickstarter on May 23 and made a splash at the PlayStation Experience in December.
The developer is well on its way to finishing the game for PS4 and PS3, having pushed the initial release window of "March" to "a summer release." In a recent update on Amplitude's Kickstarter page, Harmonix will deliver a hands-on build at PAX East in March with "a far more polished multiplayer mode."
Having finished the original game to completion on the hardest difficulty, I have fond memories of Amplitude and my customizable DJ as a shirtless dude with a robot head. Our original review of Amplitude by Johnny Liu was impressed with its "psychedelic mind-stream of colors," with Liu saying that "after a few hours of it, I could still feel it banging around inside by brain."
Reunion tour?
Last but not least, seemingly out of nowhere, Harmonix announced new DLC for Rock Band 3 after a hiatus of almost two years. A pack of three songs with Avenged Sevenfold, Arctic Monkeys, and Foo Fighters released in mid-January of this year. Harmonix PR Manager Nick Chester said the reason behind this was because Arctic Monkeys was never in a Rock Band title, but I think it's a soft teaser for the next Rock Band, please and thank you.
Regardless of whether Rock Band 4 is truly on the horizon, Harmonix is on the verge of breaking out once more as a headlining developer with innovative, trend-setting rhythm-based franchises. The rhythm genre solely needs someone to represent, and Harmonix seems ready to fill those shoes this year.
