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| UNBEATABLE centres its identity around music, rebellion, and a striking anime-inspired visual style. |
By Juli Scarr
UNBEATABLE is one of those games where you can tell pretty quickly whether it’s going to work for you. Not because it explains everything upfront, but because it commits hard to its tone right away. UNBEATABLE treats music like the centre of everything, not a side feature.
What became clear early on is how much time UNBEATABLE is willing to spend between songs. There’s a full story here, with characters who talk a lot, wander a lot, and exist in spaces that don’t always rush you forward. That’s a big contrast to the rhythm sections, which are focused, demanding, and very clear about what they want from you once the music starts.
Playing through both sides makes UNBEATABLE feel like two different experiences sharing the same heartbeat. When the story and rhythm line up, it feels great. When they don’t, the gaps between songs feel longer than they should. But whenever the game pulls you back into playing songs, everything feels sharper and more assured.
That push and pull ends up defining the entire experience. UNBEATABLE isn’t always moving fast, and it isn’t always trying to be tidy. What it does best is give you space to settle in, then ask you to focus completely once the music kicks back in.
UNBEATABLE Details
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S
Reviewed on: PC
Developer: D-CELL GAMES
Publisher: Playstack
Genre: Narrative Rhythm Game
Available game modes: Single-player
A Story That Takes the Long Way Around
UNBEATABLE’s story mode takes its time, sometimes more than you might expect from a rhythm game. You play as Beat, a musician in a world where music has been outlawed, moving through different locations as she connects with Quaver, Clef, and Treble while trying to keep creating in a space that constantly pushes back. The setup is easy to follow, and the game doesn’t rush to explain everything right away.
A lot of what works here comes down to the characters. A lot of the dialogue is dry and deadpan, and the group’s back-and-forth helps carry the slower stretches. When the writing focuses on small moments, frustrations, and everyday interactions, it feels more natural. Those scenes tend to land better than the bigger story beats that try to juggle too much at once.
Pacing is where the story mode struggles the most. You can go a while without playing a song, with more walking and dialogue filling the space in between. Some of this helps establish the world, but other parts feel like they’re mainly there to connect one musical moment to the next. It’s noticeable when too much time passes before the next rhythm section shows up.
Not every idea introduced along the way works equally well. Alongside the main rhythm combat, there are smaller activities and minigames meant to break things up. Some of the smaller diversions land, but a few feel rougher than the main rhythm parts, which adds to the stop-and-start feeling.
As the story moves into its later chapters, it becomes more focused than it is early on. That slower build means you’ll need some patience, especially if you’re here mainly for the rhythm side of the game. If you’re willing to spend time with the characters and let the story unfold at its own pace, there’s enough here to stay engaged, even when momentum dips.
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| Story scenes lean on dry back-and-forth between Beat and the band to carry the slower stretches between songs. |
When It’s Just You and the Music
When UNBEATABLE puts you directly into playing music, it settles into a groove quickly. The gameplay is built around a simple two-button setup, with prompts coming in along two lanes, one above Beat and one below her. You’ll get it quickly, and then the game starts asking more of you as tracks speed up.
What I liked most is how fair the rhythm gameplay feels. When you’re on time, it feels great. When you’re off, the game makes it obvious without feeling cheap. That makes jumping back in and trying again feel natural instead of frustrating.
The game mixes things up just enough to keep you paying attention. Some enemies trigger follow-up actions across lanes, while others need repeated inputs or avoidance instead of a straight hit. These moments add variety without overcomplicating things, and they help keep songs from blending together.
Arcade Mode Is Where the Music Takes Over
Arcade mode strips everything back to the songs themselves. You pick a track, pick a difficulty, and you’re straight into playing. It’s the kind of mode where you finish a song, tell yourself you’ll stop, then immediately run it again because you know exactly where you messed up. If you want to improve, it gives you a simple loop that’s easy to fall into.
If you’re here mainly for the rhythm side of UNBEATABLE, this is where you’ll likely spend most of your time. It shows how strong the gameplay feels when nothing else gets in the way.
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| UNBEATABLE’s rhythm combat keeps things simple on paper, then ramps up fast once patterns start stacking. |
A Style That Holds Everything Together
UNBEATABLE’s presentation is one of the most consistent parts of the experience, and it plays a big role in why the game sticks with you. The mix of anime-inspired 2D characters and fully 3D environments is noticeable right away. Instead of feeling out of place, the contrast helps characters stand out clearly while still letting the world around them feel grounded.
Character designs play a big role in how the game comes across. Expressions, posture, and movement sell personality even during slower scenes. Animations stay easy to follow during rhythm sections, which matters once songs start speeding up.
The environments themselves aren’t huge, but they’re visually distinct. Colour, lighting, and framing do more of the work than size, making areas easy to recognise even when you revisit them. Nothing feels overly busy, and important details tend to stand out without the game needing to point them out constantly.
The soundtrack does a lot of the work here, because the rhythm side depends on it staying clear and readable. Some tracks stick with you more than others, but the overall variety keeps longer play sessions from feeling repetitive. Sound effects and audio cues are clear, making it easy to understand when timing is right or off.
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| Beat’s high-speed chase scene shows how UNBEATABLE blends anime-style characters with a bold, colourful world. |
UNBEATABLE Is Best When It Stays Focused on the Music
If UNBEATABLE hooks you, it’ll be because the songs keep pulling you back. The rhythm gameplay is easy to understand, builds naturally as tracks speed up, and stays engaging the more time you spend with it. When you’re moving from song to song, it’s easy to lose track of time.
The story mode is a slower experience by comparison. Its characters and world are interesting enough to want to see things through, but the pacing doesn’t always match the energy of the rhythm sections. There are stretches where you spend more time walking and talking than playing songs, which makes the rhythm moments feel farther apart.
What ties everything together is how consistent the game feels overall. The presentation, music, and gameplay all point in the same direction, even when rough edges show up. UNBEATABLE doesn’t constantly change how it plays or ask you to relearn its rules. Instead, it rewards getting comfortable with its patterns and sticking with it.
If you enjoy rhythm games and like spending time mastering songs, UNBEATABLE has a lot to offer. You’ll get the most out of it by leaning into the arcade side and letting the story unfold at its own pace. When the focus stays on the music, the game settles into something that feels easy to recommend.
UNBEATABLE Review Summary
Liked
- Rhythm gameplay stays fair and easy to read as songs speed up.
- Arcade mode makes it easy to replay tracks and chase better runs.
- Visual style stays consistent and keeps characters readable.
- Soundtrack supports the rhythm gameplay with clear beats and cues.
Didn't Like
- Story pacing can leave long gaps between rhythm moments.
- Some minigames and diversions feel rougher than the main rhythm sections.
Overall Assessment of UNBEATABLE
Gameplay: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (4.0 / 5)
Presentation: ⭐⭐⭐⭐½ (4.5 / 5)
Performance: ⭐⭐⭐½☆ (3.5 / 5)
Story: ⭐⭐⭐☆ (3.0 / 5)
Fun Factor: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (4.0 / 5)
Overall Value: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (4.0 / 5)
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