When DOOM came back in 2016, it brought with it a cavalcade of games like it, in an echo of the release of the original DOOM. Clones, games taking inspiration from it, and twists from the formula started to appear, crossing the bounds of genre and platform to test something new. When it comes to Rhythm-Based shooters, there’s not a HUGE amount of choice. Sure, there are bits and pieces here and there but there’s not a huge amount of options on console. But now, BPM: Bullets Per Minute has finally been released on consoles after it was initially released on PC in September of last year, but can the console port encapsulate the pure fun that the original PC release did?
Game Name: BPM: Bullets Per Minute
Platform(s): Xbox One (reviewed), PlayStation 4
Publisher(s): Awe Interactive
Developer(s): Awe Interactive
Release Date: 10.5.2021
Price: $29.99
So, basics. BPM: Bullets Per Minute is as I’ve previously mentioned, a rhythm-based FPS. What this means is that you run from room to room in a grid-based system, using a variety of weapons, characters, and power-ups to destroy everything in your path. The big difference is that you achieve a series of multipliers and point upgrades by shooting, reloading, dodging, and killing to the beat of the music. Each floor of BPM: Bullets Per Minute ends with a boss that will test everything you’ve learned so far before you move onto the next floor and have to adjust yourself to the difficulty of the new music track. It’s an incredible premise, and the gameplay delivers to a tee.
While AWE Interactive could have made the game overly complicated with systems that weren’t necessary to the game, they decided to stick to the most basic possible outline. You have a shop, a blacksmith, and a few other room types to explore, but it never becomes overwhelmingly complicated and confusing. That can often become an issue with roguelike games where you don’t know what certain items or characters do, but simply by looking at a gun, you can guess how it will feel to wield and how it will work with the current track.
While the game is graphically stunning, it can become difficult to look at thanks to how sheer and stark the brightness of the game is. The very first area of the game is an almost glowing red, and if you have any epileptic tendencies you may want to give this game a miss thanks to how much everything pulsates. You can’t talk about this game without discussing the soundtrack, and by god, is it an absolutely stunning soundtrack. Guitar riffs from corner to corner, amazing solos, and some insane rhythm, the music serves the gameplay to a tee. It’s up there with the new DOOM soundtracks, more metal than most game music these days and it serves to make the game an addicting experience, in that you’ll return to the game purely to hear that soundtrack over and over again.
Review Disclosure Statement: This copy of BPM: Bullets Per Minute was provided to us for review purposes. For more information on how we review video games and other media/technology, please review our Review Guideline/Scoring Policy for more info.
Summary
BPM: Bullets Per Minute isn’t going to change your mind about the FPS genre, it’s not the biggest piece of revolution in the genre. At the end of your day, your enjoyment of BPM: Bullets Per Minute will circle back to how much you like shooters. But if you enjoy shooters and are on the fence about a rhythm-based shooter, don’t let this game pass you by. It could very easily be your brand new addiction and something that you’re playing for hundreds of hours to come.
