I’ve never been the biggest connoisseur of rhythm games, largely because I find them somewhat monotonous, which is why I’ve never been particularly good at them. Despite knowing that many of my favourite FPS pros play games like Osu!, I never stuck with them for long. However, Nocturne, developed and published by Pracy Studios, caught my attention and challenged my preconceived notions about rhythm games by incorporating RPG elements alongside what appears to be a captivating narrative. Though the full game is scheduled for release in 2025, I had the opportunity to play the demo, which piqued my interest enough to give the game a shot after a long hiatus from the genre.’

Entering the Afterlife

In Nocturne, you take on the role of Karma, a young girl who has just been uploaded to the afterlife called Maya. Yes, very reminiscent of Black Mirror. Karma is first greeted by an “angel”. But things quickly take a darker turn when she encounters Kimothy, a young boy who is exploring Maya when Karma arrives. He introduces her to the dangerous creatures that now roam the virtual world and informs her that the system has been down for over 1,000 years, making her presence an anomaly.

What unfolds is a series of events that thrust Karma into the centre of a world that seems to be deteriorating. She not only possesses the ability to heal the world’s corruption—a state causing things to malfunction and decay—but she’s also on a quest to find her brother. Although the demo offers only a brief glimpse into the plot and characters, the rapid development of the relationship between Karma and Kimothy, along with intriguing side characters like Satoru and Yako, left me eager to see how the full story will play out.

Repetition in Rhythm Battles

As much as I was initially excited about Nocturne’s combat being rhythm-based, my enthusiasm quickly waned, leaving me somewhat concerned. In the game, you control Karma, who not only has the power to heal the world’s corruption but is also quite capable in battle. The problem I encountered with the combat system is that every battle plays out like a song you must complete, with fights lasting anywhere from 30 seconds to a minute. Unfortunately, similar enemies share the same song, which can make the combat feel repetitive rather quickly.

On the bright side, you can speed up the process by pressing the spacebar when your gauge fills up to land critical hits. However, even with this feature, the battles often felt like they dragged on, and the songs became tiresome to play through. The game encourages stealth to avoid combat, but if you’re detected, running isn’t an option as Karma is unable to outrun most of the world’s creatures. This might be addressed in the full game, but in the demo, I eventually gave up on trying to flee.

The boss fight in the demo did introduce some new mechanics, adding a bit of variety, but I’m concerned that outside of these encounters, the game might become a grind.

Visually, Nocturne is passable. While the sprites feel a bit low-quality and could benefit from some polish, the backdrops have potential, so I’m hopeful the full release will offer improved visuals. As a rhythm game, the audio is where Nocturne excels. I enjoyed much of the music in the demo—catchy and fitting for the game’s tone. That said, hearing the same tracks repeatedly started to wear on me, which isn’t a great sign after only an hour and a half of playtime. Nevertheless, I’m looking forward to hearing the rest of the soundtrack, especially since the boss fight music was particularly exciting.

Cautious Optimism

Overall, I’m glad I had the chance to try out Nocturne. It’s rare to see an RPG fused with a rhythm game. While I do have concerns about the game’s lack of polish and the potential for the combat system to become tedious, I believe that if Pracy Studios can address these issues before release, Nocturne could be a compelling experience. The story and characters seem promising, and the music is enjoyable. I’m excited to see how the full game will unfold.