Piltover wasn’t built in a day, right?
Riot Forge‘s new rhythm-runner game, Hextech Mayhem: A League of Legends Story, is perfect for players who love destruction.
In this game, you control the League of Legends champion Ziggs as he sets out to wreak havoc on Piltover and build the biggest bomb the world has ever seen.
However, it’s not as simple as it sounds. With its colorful aesthetic and endless barrage of rhythmic explosions, developer Choice Provisions fooled me into believing that Hextech Mayhem was an easy game.
I was clearly wrong.
My first reaction to Riot Forge’s Hextech Mayhem
The League of Legends rhythm-runner lets players control Ziggs with three simple commands: Jump, slam, and throw a bomb.
Once I got the hang of Zigg’s pace and actions, the game turned me into a demolition artist, rewarding flashy combos with overdriven guitar riffs and bigger explosions.
Though I timed every input perfectly and collected every cog in my way, the ending evaluation only gave me a Platinum rank. What exactly is happening here?
A “game completionist” at heart, I knew that Challenger was the true sign of success in Hextech Mayhem, but how can I achieve that? It didn’t make sense.
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Hextech Mayhem review: The game’s hidden action prompts is the next evolution of rhythm games
After running through the first few segments with the usual jump, slam, and bomb inputs, I suddenly noticed that the levels were riddled with glowing blue items and balloons.
Hidden in plain sight, these background objects were the Chekhov’s gun of Hextech Mayhem. Restart after restart, I started to figure out that they contribute to the overall score once destroyed or slammed.
Turning simple 4/4 beat commands into a diabolical mix of rhythmic patterns and hidden action prompts, Riot Forge and Choice Provisions revolutionized how a music-based game is able to increase its difficulty on the go.
Rather than just adding a ton of regular visual cues akin to Guitar Hero’s difficulty system, Hextech Mayhem lets players decide if they want to stay casual or pursue those hidden prompts without stopping gameplay.
In my case, I wanted to revel in the satisfaction of scoring a true 100% in the eyes of Riot Forge and Choice Provisions.
Spending an entire night dissecting the first Hextech Mayhem level and developing musical muscle memory, I finally achieved Challenger — and I’ve got a clip to prove it.
After completing the first level, I could already see the developer’s vision of providing a novel music experience that welcomes both newcomers and rhythm fanatics like me.
If you’re a fan of beautiful level design, explosive chain reactions, and a rocking soundtrack, Hextech Mayhem is definitely the game for you.
Hextech Mayhem: A League of Legends Story is now available on Nintendo Switch, and PC via Epic Games, Steam, and GOG.com.
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READ MORE: Riot Forge’s debut titles, Hextech Mayhem and Ruined King, are now available
