Making Things is Hard – Hi-Fi Rush Final Update and Limited Run Reconfirmed

While it is very likely Hi-Fi Rush will find a new home on Nintendo Switch in the future, Chai’s adventures have come to a close.

With Tango Softworks closing its doors, final support for Hi-Fi Rush was revealed. This includes a final update for the game proper across all platforms, confirmation regarding Limited Run, and more.

Final Update for Hi-Fi Rush

Check out the changes in our final update. Thanks for all your support, and keep on rocking! 🎸

Patch notes: https://t.co/Ls01tzvIMI pic.twitter.com/SQ3wAd4hAL

— Hi-Fi RUSH (@hifiRush) May 15, 2024

The official Hi-Fi Rush Twitter account revealed, using fitting artwork no less, that a final update will be coming to the game across all platforms. A full list of the bug fixes and minor tweaks can be found on the game’s website.

And going out fittingly, the patch notes include the following;

Drink prices adjusted in Vandelay vending machines to reflect local currency conversion.

Limited Run Games Involvement

Around the time Hi-Fi Rush was announced for PlayStation 5, it was confirmed that a physical release was incoming. Not from Microsoft, but rather, Limited Run Games instead.

The company is known for working with various indie developers in getting their releases in physical format across all platforms. But partnering with Microsoft and Bethesda? That decision is strange, especially now with the heightened risk of Hi-Fi Rush getting delisted in the future due to having licensed music.

When Tango’s closure was announced, fear of this physical run being canceled was discussed. However, it seems the partnership remains according to IGN;

Limited Run Games’ official X/Twitter account replied to one comment that suggested that the company would not move forward with a physical release of Hi-Fi Rush due to Tango Gamesworks’ closure. Limited Run responded that this was not the case and that a physical release “is a go,” but no further information, such as a release date, was disclosed.

Expect Lords of Gaming to report when the physical release is live.

Future of Hi-Fi Rush

So with this final update and a limited run of physical copies, what now? Will we see Chai and his friends on another adventure? Or will their only adventure find new homes?

The game is rumored for Nintendo Switch, so it’s likely Hi-Fi Rush will be released on that platform in the coming months. But after that?

It is not uncommon for sequels to titles to be made by new studios. Following the closure of Clover Studios, Capcom years later made an Okami sequel on the Nintendo DS for example. So Microsoft and Bethesda may give the IP to another Japanese studio like Platinum Games or the like in a few years.

However, that would leave a sour taste in many gamers’ mouths. The original team deserved the chance to make a sequel and robbing them of that chance? Very disappointing for sure.

Closing Thoughts

What hasn’t been said about both Hi-Fi Rush and this current situation? Across the entire gaming industry, everyone is mourning this great loss of talent.

Much like Chai himself, Tango Gameworks showed the world they could be the rockstars of gaming. And the reward for their hard work? Closure because of failure at leadership under both Microsoft Gaming and Bethesda.

Like Okami before it, Hi-Fi Rush will be a cult classic that is fondly remembered and the publisher will ‘celebrate’ with re-releases. But not do much beyond that, knowing they lost the talent and heart that made them such classics.

If you want to learn more about how the game was constructed, GDC published a video on their YouTube channel. It goes over a presentation the game’s director made in May 2024.