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RHYTHM PARADISE GROOVE
review | SWITCH
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a.k.a. Rhythm Heaven Groove
Publisher: Nintendo. Developer: Nintendo EPD. Released: July 2026. Genre: Rhythm. Posted 29th September 2026. By Shane Battams © 2026 |
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After two console generations and more than a decade of absence since its last release, 2026 finally saw the return of Rhythm Paradise with Groove for the Nintendo Switch. Like WarioWare, another series Kazuyoshi Osawa had a hand in creating, RP focuses on quirky challenges that test your rhythm, with entries across DS, 3DS and Wii for European gamers. This latest entry continues the tradition of wackiness, rhythmic gameplay and toe-tapping music, and should please fans and newcomers alike. After all, what other game can you perform a dance routine with an umbrella?
Like previous entries, Rhythm Paradise Groove is a collection of mini-games that test your rhythmic abilities. Controls are dead simple, usually requiring at most a single button press, or a combination of a face button and D-Pad direction, meaning it’s incredibly easy to pick up and play. The challenge comes from the timing, where players must follow the beat of a song to match inputs as well as following audio and visual cues. Hitting spot-on keeps the sequence flowing, while close calls and misses show visual ticks such as your fellow umbrella dancers pulling faces. Calibration can prove a stumbling block, as with modern TVs and input delays, you may need a couple of attempts to line it up perfectly, though handheld mode helps skirt this woe. Once you’ve calibrated, the gameplay feels great.
Rhythm Paradise Groove is a mish-mash of odd rhythm challenges, and it's a lot of fun.
It's the mini-games themselves that stand out, a roster of varied challenges that keep you guessing. Some aren’t too outlandish, such as jumping to catch a Frisby as a dog or jumping through hoops. Others border on insane, such as aiding ghosts to run through a gap while the Moon itself sneezes, and its reaction if it spots you is genuinely unsettling. Each mini-game handily tutors you with a short practice session, allowing players to get a feel for the flow of button presses. Remixes make a return, compiling prior mini-games into a challenge. These can trip you up with challenging transitions between games, and keeping up with the various inputs is trickier. Some of the earlier games linked these with a unifying visual theme, which isn’t the case here: it’s a bit of a shame, but not too big a gripe.
There’s a lot of value for a budget-priced title, especially for solo players. 16 sets of five rhythm games will keep you playing for a good while, especially if you’re striving for perfection. As you progress, mini-games start to repeat, albeit with new wrinkles, such as trickier timing or new obstacles to overcome. These help keep things fresh, and in fairness, there are well over 30 unique challenges amongst the 80 levels. Occasionally, you’ll be challenged to Go For Perfect on a stage, and completing it with no mistakes gifts further rewards, though it requires immense skill. Completing mini-games with few mistakes rewards medals, which unlock a host of extra content outside the mini-games.
There’s a lot of value for a budget-priced title, especially for solo players. 16 sets of five rhythm games will keep you playing for a good while, especially if you’re striving for perfection. As you progress, mini-games start to repeat, albeit with new wrinkles, such as trickier timing or new obstacles to overcome. These help keep things fresh, and in fairness, there are well over 30 unique challenges amongst the 80 levels. Occasionally, you’ll be challenged to Go For Perfect on a stage, and completing it with no mistakes gifts further rewards, though it requires immense skill. Completing mini-games with few mistakes rewards medals, which unlock a host of extra content outside the mini-games.
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Beatspell offers a challenging RPG experience where you battle monsters with rhythm gameplay, and it’s genuinely great fun with a high difficulty towards the end, though calibration can make it a lot harder to complete in docked mode. Drum lessons become available, Score Attack offers a handful of unique challenges with score-based gameplay, and Toy Box offers further mini-games to try without score pressure. Gaining perfects rewards even more content such as comics and unreleased material. There are also multiplayer offerings in the form of cooperative and competitive games. The mini-games are uniquely daft in the best possible way, adding further mileage to the experience. It’s stuffed with content.
The presentation retains the eclectic charm we’ve come to expect from the series, jumping from hand-drawn visuals to pixel art and even stock photos on occasion. It’s vibrant, charmingly animated and always surprises through its sheer creativity. Performance is rock solid at 60fps, keeping mini-games and inputs flowing smoothly. The audio is fantastic, which is good considering how much the game relies on music. Tsunku returns as composer, and the music sways as wildly as the visual style, always keeping you tapping your toes. Electronica, J-Pop and Power Metal appear alongside other genres, and collaborations with artists such as Ado gift vocals to some songs, which is great. The audio cues are distinctive without being overpowering, while the assist voice for visually impaired players adds some welcome accessibility.
The presentation retains the eclectic charm we’ve come to expect from the series, jumping from hand-drawn visuals to pixel art and even stock photos on occasion. It’s vibrant, charmingly animated and always surprises through its sheer creativity. Performance is rock solid at 60fps, keeping mini-games and inputs flowing smoothly. The audio is fantastic, which is good considering how much the game relies on music. Tsunku returns as composer, and the music sways as wildly as the visual style, always keeping you tapping your toes. Electronica, J-Pop and Power Metal appear alongside other genres, and collaborations with artists such as Ado gift vocals to some songs, which is great. The audio cues are distinctive without being overpowering, while the assist voice for visually impaired players adds some welcome accessibility.
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Rhythm Paradise Groove marks a welcome return for the series, offering another dose of quirky rhythm gameplay that is easy to grasp but hard to master. With another selection of outlandish mini-games, fantastic music and a huge amount of content, Switch owners needing a challenging fix will find this well worth grabbing. There are a few quibbles, such as issues with calibration and remixes lacking a unifying theme, but patient players should be able to overlook these troubles. If you enjoyed previous entries or wish to groove to some good music, you’ll have a great time with this budget release.
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VERDICT
"Rhythm Paradise Groove mixes outlandish mini-games, fantastic music, and a huge amount of content to help fashion a welcome return for the series." OVERALL: 8/10 |
OTHER RHYTHM GAMES REVIEWED
Michael Jackson: The Experience (2011, PlayStation 3)
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Sayonara Wild Hearts (2019, PlayStation 4)
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