Witch’s Rhythm Puzzle mini-review

Where most games are a clothes call

Eroge (a portmanteau combining the words ‘erotic’ and ‘game’) aren’t usually known for their sophisticated gameplay. And largely, that’s the case with Witch’s Rhythm Puzzle. As the title indicates, doujin developer Forgime’s inaugural title synthesizes two prominent genres into a simple, sexy diversion. And while it might be appealing to witness two dueling pixel-art witches gradually lose their garb, attention spans may vanish quicker than these girls’ sense of modesty.

Witch’s Rhythm Puzzle’s action takes place on a pair of six-by-six grids. Like Puyo Puyo or Super Puzzle Fighter, you’ll play on one of those fields, while the CPU’s actions are shown on the other one. Woefully, there’s no multiplayer game. It might have been fun to strip friends down to their witchy underwear- or with the R18 patch installed, knock their bra and panties right off them.

Play revolves around a translucent bar that moves across each column in time with the beat of each song. When the beat hits, you can drop a single block down. If you’re able to create a row of six uninterrupted blocks, the entire line disappears and pushes trash blocks into the bottom of your opponent’s playfield. Every time any blocks spill over the top of your grid, you’ll forfeit an article of clothing until a winner is declared. Think Tetris mixed with strip poker and you’ll have a pretty good idea of what Witch’s Rhythm Puzzle is all about.

Although the row-building play is passable, the rhythmic component might hinder players, especially if they’re accustomed to puzzlers where button presses don’t require precise timing. Witch’s Rhythm Puzzle only allows you to drop a block precisely on the beat. Nailing that timing can be tricky, especially since the music changes for each match. Yes, the game allows for calibration to reduce the menace of input lag. But even after several adjustments, block dropping doesn’t feel exact. And when you can’t reliably drop a block, things can become a bit frustrating. I ended up going by the game’s visual indicator rather than attempting to maintain a rhythm.

Gradually, Witch’s Rhythm Puzzle conjures up new variations, with blocks that take up two spaces or quirky time signatures. Once you beat the game’s sequence of fifteen opponents, you’re able to tackle Nonstop mode which does away with the pre-match dialog. An additional reward becomes available after you beat each enchantress; each opponent shows up in the game’s Dressing Room mode. Here, you can toggle on and off up to 16 pieces of attire. That’s welcome, as you might not be able to enjoy these disrobing sorceresses when your eyes are fixated on falling blocks.

Witch’s Rhythm Puzzle was played on PC with review code provided by the publisher.