For the last five-to-seven years, the battle royale genre has taken many twists and turns. And though there have been a number of takes on the style, none have been as unique as Headbangers: Rhythm Royale from Team17 and Glee-Cheese Studio.
I was brought into a special Team17 closed-door event in New York City to preview Headbangers Rhythm Royale, among other Team17 titles. It was a chance to see if the game will have staying power or if the game will be a short-lived fad.
The premise of the game is pretty straightforward. You take on the role of a pigeon as you go up against 29 other Pigeons in 23 minigames across four rounds with the goal of claiming the title of Master Headbanger!
There are plenty of minigames throughout the four rounds you have to win. Some are simple like “Run Pigeon Run” which has you simply hit the right button to line up the fruit with the music as you race down the track. Others like Super Striker require a bit more timing precision as you try to kick a soccer ball on time with the music to score a goal while adverts make the ball impossible to see.
There are numerous other games as well like a Simon Says-like DJ game called “Garden Party” and “To The Sky” that has players replay sounds to fly higher. Each game poses a unique challenge that you need to focus on.
That said it’s pretty easy to lose focus as various power-ups or penalties fly across the screen. It’s about finding that ability to focus on the game while making sure you are getting the best power-ups to vault yourself up the leaderboard while keeping opponents down. Otherwise, you’ll quickly find yourself eliminated early and often.
After spending time with the game, I can see it being a fun party game that makes for quite a bit of fun. However, my concern becomes how long that fun lasts. There are plenty of party games that come and go, and Headbangers Rhythm Royale has the potential to be the next big hit. It just really all comes down to the replay value of the minigames.
Headbangers: Rhythm Royale launches on October 31 for PlayStation, Xbox, PC, and Nintendo Switch. The game features cross-platform play to allow everyone to get in on the action, no matter the system they choose.
This preview of Headbangers: Rhythm Royale is based on a PC build played at a special invite-only media event behind closed doors. For more Insider Gaming, check out our hands-on preview of Moving Out 2.
