I reviewed the last Rhythm Heaven game here, and much of what I wrote remains true. The games are well put together with a great sense of joy underlying the art and sound direction. It’s not just functional, although it is that too; the audio and visuals being clear and harmonious is important for a rhythm game, but having it be silly and fun and catchy is also important to make you smile and remember it.

As I said in my earlier review, there is a delicate balance which depends on the rhythmic skills of the player. I enjoyed most of my time here, but I did succumb to frustration at times as the game’s demands outpaced my ability. This is going to be different for everyone; hopefully the average player can at least get something out of the game before hitting this ceiling. In Megamix, it seems there’s much more beyond the ceiling, with many extra challenges that unlock more games and even reveal some tantalising WarioWare easter eggs if you progress far enough. Sadly I didn’t.

But I digress. The hook of Megamix is it being an evenly mixed collection of rhythm minigames from the three previous instalments, with one quarter of the content being newly created. This could be seen as a let-down, but my merely passing familiarity with the first two games meant that a large chunk of it was new to me. The games sourced from the DS one gave me the most trouble, which is consistent with my brief dalliance with it.

Its main innovation is the inclusion of a story mode. It’s broadly the same structure as these games have always had, but now presented as your journey to help the adorable Tibby back to his home in the sky. The consistently quirky character designs and humorous writing give an extra dimension to the carnival of surreal rhythm games, and make Megamix into an overall stronger package than the previous games.

Another new feature that helps a lot is the bottom screen display (dual screen gaming <3 <3 <3), which has a helpful timing display that cues you on how good your timing is without distracting from the main action.

There’s lots of doodads and gewgaws to unlock, many of which are bought in the in-game store. This introduces a major annoyance, as there are roadblocks in the story that can harshly drain your hard-earned coins; the “challenge train” that awards premium currency also demands coinage unless you rope other players of similar skill level in. So despite making progress in the game, I still felt that these systems were forcing me to take steps back in other ways. These small design decisions soured the bigger picture of the game for me even if playing the minigames themselves is still captivating.

Overall it’s an odd one. If you’re familiar with the series you know what to expect and it gives you more… but recycles three quarters of its content. For new players it will be more novel, but then how to know if your skill level matches up to the game’s expectations? There’s little concession for those with a poor sense of timing. Perhaps watching some on youtube could at least give you a sense of the game’s imaginative charm, but it’s well worth trying for yourself if you’re confident your groovy flow is up to the challenge. Let’s we go, amigo!