Many within the gaming industry are still trying to wrap their heads around what happened last week with Microsoft and the decisions that led to the shutdowns of several Xbox studios. One of those studios was Tango Gameworks, the team behind the beloved title Hi-Fi Rush. The game was shadow-dropped onto the world in 2023, and it immediately resonated with everyone who played it. The game was a mix of stylized visuals with head-bopping audio that felt truly unique despite being in a gaming industry full of repetitive things. However, despite its “success” in the eyes of Xbox and Microsoft, the studio was shut down.
So why are we bringing this up once again? That’s because the dev team posted on the official Hi-Fi Rush Twitter handle to give what might be the last update about the game. Specifically, they noted that a physical version of the title is still coming via Limited Run Games. If you’re unfamiliar with them, Limited Run Games is a special company that takes digital-only titles and gives them physical media for people to buy and collect. It’s quite a popular service despite only being done in limited numbers with each title they “recreate.”
Furthermore, the team noted that a final patch will arrive for the game later today, fixing “minor issues” along the way:
As you can imagine, the response to this post has been mostly positive. Many gamers, including prominent members of the gaming community/industry, posted praise and condolences about what happened to them and blasted Microsoft/Xbox for what they did. Many promised to get the physical copy on day one if possible, and others thanked Tango Gameworks for all the effort they put into the game. Some even admitted that they’d been waiting for a physical version for a while so that they could finally get the game for themselves.
Arguably, the most infuriating thing about the whole situation with Xbox and Tango Gameworks is that after announcing the shutdown of the company, which is behind many more hit titles than just this one, one of Xbox’s leaders noted in a town hall meeting that they “needed games like Hi-Fi Rush” so that they can get “prestige and awards.”
That made many angry because Tango Gameworks proved that they could make such a title, got a lot of praise and awards, and were shut down a little over a year later. It was a disrespectful statement that helped punctuate the instability of the gaming industry.
