It’s not every day that a video game’s action can make you cry, but it has happened. The Zero Escape series shocked me with a number of shocks, but one genre I didn’t expect this to happen in is the music genre of games.

And yet it happened. I reviewed Deemo: The Last Recital on PS Vita, but couldn’t do a video review because it doesn’t play on PlayStation TV. I was similarly disappointed when Deemo came to Nintendo Switch and couldn’t be played in docked/TV mode.

Fortunately, things have changed. Button controls were recently added to Deemo for Switch, so I grabbed it from the eShop, played it again, and am finally ready to write up a video review. So without further ado, here is my review of Deemo for Nintendo Switch!

Story

Deemo is a game that uses what is called visual storytelling. Cutscenes appear throughout the game without dialogue, allowing the visuals to explain the story and what is going on.

The plot of the game revolves around a young girl who falls from the ceiling into the strange house of Deemo, a lonely, dark being who spends his time playing the piano. After he catches the girl, a tree starts growing from the piano as he plays music, and the two work together to reach the hole in the ceiling and find a way to get the girl back inside and bring her home.

Deemo’s story is unique not only for its visual storytelling, but also for its finale. I won’t give anything away, but Deemo has one of the most emotional and heartbreaking stories of any game I’ve ever played, let alone a music game per se, and the musical journey you go through while playing makes it all worth it.

Gameplay

Deemo is a rhythm/music game with exploration elements. Throughout the game, you engage in rhythm-based gameplay as you explore each room of Deemo’s house to unlock new areas, cutscenes, and songs while clearing the game’s song library.

Progression is very simple: as you unlock songs, you unlock new songs. It’s a very typical rhythm game formula. The way you explore is even more unique: many of the story scenes that lead to new objectives can only be unlocked by interacting with objects in rooms around the house.

To put it bluntly, the game has a glaring flaw: it’s not explanatory. There’s a lot to explore in this game, but there’s absolutely nothing in-game that you can explore. There are button prompts for the music menu and settings, but only vague flashing icons as new rooms open, and when you enter a room, nothing tells you what you can and can’t interact with. This causes a lot of confusion.

The tutorial screen only explains how to play the rhythm game. It shows how to use the touch screen and (after the latest update) how to use the keys to hit notes and earn points as you play each song.

Speaking of which, playing Deemo is a bit like playing Guitar Hero or Rock Band, without the instrument peripherals. There are notes flying towards a horizontal line at the bottom of the screen, and you hit the notes by tapping the screen or pressing a key. If you remember the PSP game Rock Band: Unplugged, it’s very similar to this, but instead of Rock Band’s long “hold key” notes, you have slider notes where you slide your finger across a sliding screen in a long sequence.

As mentioned before, completing songs unlocks new songs and increases the height of your tree in the story. This directly relates to reaching story scene milestones. The better you sing, the higher your tree will be and the faster you will be able to reach the story finale.

This also relates to the length of the game and the content it contains. After completing 55 songs from the game library, I was able to unlock the end of the game. Assuming you don’t fail any of the songs (which you will if you play on any difficulty other than easy), it will take you around 4 hours to complete the game’s story.

Well, it’s not that long, but the rest of the game’s content makes up for that. Once you’ve completed the story, you can replay it in New Game Plus style play to unlock new story scenes called “Moments” that expand on the plot even further. Considering that some of these can only be unlocked on a fourth playthrough, the time increases from 4 hours to around 10-12 hours.

But that doesn’t mean you’ll be doing the same thing over and over again. There are no songs designated for story progression. After these first 55 songs, you can play the rest of the game’s song library on subsequent playthroughs. As of the last update, the game has 241 different songs to play through. So if you experience every song, the amount of content is estimated to be around 16-18 hours if you don’t repeat anything. Of course, this is assuming you never get to complete any of these 241 songs. There’s a lot to do.

Music game prices are always odd, but we’ll talk about that. Deemo definitely has a lot of content, but Vita players will quickly notice that the Switch version of Deemo costs $30, compared to $15 for the Vita version. There’s a big difference, so let’s do a quick comparison: the Vita version has paid DLC; however, on the Switch, all extra songs and all future songs are added via free patches.

Controls

Deemo has always been a touchscreen game, so everything you can do can be done with the touchscreen. However, this is not the only way to play. The Switch version is the first version of Deemo to offer physical button controls and the ability to play on a TV without special equipment.

When it comes to key controls, Deemo’s notes are divided into three categories. By default, one color is controlled by the arrow keys, another by the face keys, and the last color is controlled by holding down the ZL or ZR triggers. The arrow key and face key controls can be customized as needed, so you can create a scheme that is convenient for you. However, the trigger notes cannot be adjusted.

Presentation

There’s not much to see visually here. The cutscenes are hand-drawn animation, and the actual gameplay features very simple notes scrolling across the screen. A lot of the art is very well done and has a unique style, but it’s notable for the lack of scale in the graphics etc.

Performance is fine; short load times. Smooth frame rates. You know what that sounds like.

A Heart-Gripping Story Goes Beyond a Rhythm Game

As we said, DEEMO II has a rich selection of music, but also a rich story. DEEMO II follows a similar (pardon the pun) rhythm to the first story. In this sequel, you will find yourself in a world brought to life through music. The land is currently plagued by the emergence of the “Hollow Rain”, which causes swirls of white flowers to appear on anyone it touches.

We follow Echo, a young girl who “bloomed” but somehow reappeared, and Deemo, the station’s security officer. Together, the two must find a way to save the world through music. Rhythm games often allow the gameplay alone to carry an entire project. But it’s great to see a game that wants to do more and goes all out to create a thoroughly entertaining journey where music plays to advance the plot.

Breathtaking Music with Light-Hearted Melody

Like any rhythm game, it’s the music in DEEMO II that makes this game fun to play. Before you log into the game, you’ll be asked to turn up the volume or use headphones to play the game. Once you start playing, it’s clear why: almost every track in this game is a joy to play and listen to. The first track that plays after completing the tutorial, “Echo over you…”, is an upbeat piano piece that’s perfect for setting the mood for the orchestral rhythmic gameplay.

Due to the story and atmosphere, many of the songs in this game feature gentle piano melodies that serve as the backbone of the music. There aren’t many groovy jams or pop music. Most of the songs don’t even have lyrics. However, if you want a good, feel-good rhythm game, DEEMO II has that in abundance. Great music isn’t just limited to the rhythm section. The background music throughout the game is great and perfectly reflects the genre of the game.

Mesmerizing Art Style Drags You Into Its Melancholy Worldview

DEEMO II has a fantastic style in its character design. The game uses gothic and fantasy elements similar to games like Nier, but combines them with an intricate art style like ink art.

The world we explore is full of colorful characters, each with their own unique outfits and visual characteristics. Some of the Inhuman characters are very detailed, and it was a lot of fun interacting with them and watching them go about their daily lives.

But…A Gameplay with Mixed Reviews

DEEMO II’s rhythm gameplay is top notch. The game includes many interesting mechanics, such as dragging your finger across the screen to hit multiple notes. It also includes tried-and-true rhythm game classics, such as holding down a longer note for a better score. In the free-to-play section, you will have to complete several missions and achievements, as well as collect several items. The game is also fully voiced, which is a huge investment, but a big payoff in a story-driven game like this.
World’s motion controls can be a bit annoying at times, but are adequate for the basic plot of traveling to different locations through various set pieces. Also, while DEEMO II’s music is great, there isn’t much variety in the song selection. Almost all the songs fall into the same classic genre, which is something you can avoid in rhythm games with a lot of popular music. It doesn’t stop you from playing the game, but for those who like to play a variety of music genres in their rhythm games, DEEMO II may be a disappointment.

Should You Play DEEMO II?

In short, yes! DEEMO II is a great rhythm game, and it’s very different from other rhythm games currently on the market. The selection of song genres may be limited, but there are certainly enough tracks to enjoy whenever you’re in the mood for some bombastic piano music. Plus, the story is incredibly engaging, and even if you get burned out by the rhythmic parts of the game, you’ll want to keep playing to see what happens next.

Rhythm game fans will have little to complain about DEEMO II, as the gameplay is fluid and precise. Every button press is incredibly satisfying and the varying difficulty levels will have you constantly improving your performance levels. Be sure to check out DEEMO II and let us know what you think about the game!