Just Shapes & Beats

Just Shapes & Beats
Developer(s)	Berzerk Studio
Publisher(s)	Berzerk Studio
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch
Release	WW: May 31, 2018
Genre(s)	Action
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

Just Shapes & Beats is an action rhythm video game developed and published by Canadian indie team Berzerk Studio. It was released on May 31, 2018 for PC and Nintendo Switch. It is a game where players take on control of a colorful shape which has to survive by dodging pink shapes that move on the beat of the background music.^[1]

Controls

Switch: Left Stick to Move, Right buttons to Dash.

Computer: WASD to Move, Space bar to Dash.^[1]

The game features a full story mode.^[2]

Plot

The game's Story Mode follows the player through a few levels as they collect triangular artifacts before encountering a large circular enemy that serves as a boss. After beating the boss, the player arrives in a verdant landscape to watch the credits, but the boss reappears and steals three large triangles in order to power itself up. This corrupts the protagonist's land, turning everything red and warping many of the inhabitants; it is up to the player to undo the damage by reclaiming and purifying the triangles.

To begin, the player travels through the corrupted overworld and reassembles one of the inhabitants, a sailboat that takes them to a large mountain warped into a volcano by one of the corrupted triangles. The player travels through the mountain to reach the top, defeating one of the corrupted inhabitants (a flower-like being) that absorbs the triangle's power to gain a stronger form. After purifying the triangle, they ride the sailboat to the east, where the boss has built a massive factory that uses another triangle to corrupt the remaining denizens of the land. Infiltrating the factory, the player frees a helicopter-like being that helps them travel deeper into the structure; unfortunately, they are too late to stop the triangle from corrupting a large square with hands that has been seen throughout the game. The player survives against the large square's attacks until they're able to overcome the corruption, enabling the player to purify the second triangle.

With the help of their three allies, the player opens the way to the boss's tower, where the circle confronts them alongside its remaining minions. After a pitched battle ascending the tower, the player seemingly triumphs once more, claiming the boss's crown and the final triangle, but the boss returns once more to blow them off the tower. As the player climbs back up, the boss absorbs the final triangle completely, rapidly mutating into a monstrous final form that destroys the player in a furious assault.

The player's allies mourn, but the other two triangles react, prompting the large square to use them on the player's remains. The triangles' power revives the player in an invincible new form that can attack the final boss directly, destroying it and forcing it to relinquish the final triangle. Reunited and purified, the three triangles undo the damage wrought upon the land, restoring everything to normal.

Development

The first demo of the game was revealed at PAX 2016 and was said to be released that summer. The game got hit with a delay for late 2016 to early 2017 during the event.^[1] After that it got another delay for summer 2018. On March 20, 2018 it was announced that the game would also receive a release on the Nintendo Switch.^[2][3]

Reception

Reception
Aggregate score Aggregator Score Metacritic (NS) 83/100[4] Review scores Publication Score Nintendo Life [5] Nintendo World Report 9/10[6]

Just Shapes & Beats received "generally favorable reviews" according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.^[4]

References