Xbox Studios Head Says the Company Needs Smaller Games After Shutting Down Tango Gameworks

According to a recent report from The Verge, Xbox Studios head Matt Booty recently held a town hall meeting following the recent Bethesda studio closures. In this meeting, Booty reportedly told staff that the company needs “smaller games that give us prestige and awards”. It’s worth noting that Tango Gameworks, which developed the hit HI-FI Rush, was among the studios that was shut down this week. The title was also notably described as one of Xbox and Microsoft’s “smaller games”. Following this announcement, Hi-Fi Rush director John Johanas reacted to the news with an image, seemingly frustrated by it. HI-FI Rush first launched on January 25 2023 for Xbox Series X/S and PC. The game launched on March 19 for PlayStation 5. 

The game’s details via the publisher:

Hi-Fi RUSH is a single-player rhythm action game from Tango Gameworks, the award-winning studio behind Ghostwire: Tokyo and The Evil Within. In Hi-Fi RUSH, the entire world moves to the beat. Everything from the trees swaying in the environment to each hit landed during combat auto-syncs to the game’s music with stellar animations.

The player takes on the role of Chai, a free-spirited slacker with rockstar ambitions. During a technological procedure to receive a robotic arm, he finds an unexpected “bonus” when his music player is fused within his power unit. If that wasn’t enough, the company behind the experiment labels him a “defect,” making him a target for deactivation. With a squad of corporate overlords and an army of robots after him, Chai must defend himself through rhythmic combat and the help of a motley crew of allies to take down the company’s ruthless business leaders and escape.

Key Features 

Gameplay That’s Always in Sync – Every element in the world of Hi-Fi RUSH is synced to the game’s soundtrack. Combat sequences perfectly align to the rhythm of the music, allowing for gameplay that is not only exhilarating but also extremely satisfying. Hi-Fi RUSH is a rhythm action game, with an emphasis on action. A player’s moves aren’t dictated by the music like in a traditional rhythm game — players have the freedom of a full action game, but inputting actions with the beat amplifies a player’s attacks along with the music.

Packed With Personality – Hi-Fi RUSH features a cast of outrageous characters, each with their own unique personalities and skills to help Chai take down the bad guys and turn up the volume on the game’s playful tone. Hi-Fi RUSH is unlike anything Tango Gameworks has created before and offers a lighthearted and humorous gameplay experience for everyone to enjoy.

Addictive Music – Hi-Fi RUSH showcases an energetic and catchy soundtrack of licensed songs, ranging from well-known rockers to some inspired cuts that will keep players engaged and headbanging as they play. Both the licensed and original music in Hi-Fi RUSH offer more than just background music with each track matching the pace of that level’s characters, environment, platforming, and combat.

Dynamic Visuals – From lovingly animated gags to crisp comic book effects, the visuals in Hi-Fi RUSH are vibrant and fun. Hi-Fi RUSH‘s visual style not only appeals to a variety of audiences—it’s also easy on players’ hardware and doesn’t require an expensive graphics card to look alive and stunning on Xbox or PC.

Streamer Mode – For those looking to livestream Hi-Fi RUSH or post gameplay online, Hi-Fi RUSH offers a Streamer Mode which replaces the game’s licensed tracks with original songs. This mode should enable streamers and content creators to stream and post their gameplay with a low risk of claims, takedowns and muting. This option is toggled in Gameplay Settings. Please note—even if players take these actions, because of forces outside of our control, there is no guarantee that external parties or software won’t interfere with posted content. However, using Streamer Mode is intended to reduce the chances of that happening.

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