Press
  • "The interplay between cerebral dexterity and straight-up danceability is something I've never experienced in ... well, anything. Ever. Retro/Grade wants to lull you into a polychromatic, synesthetic trance, but demands you don't get too absentminded, lest you forget that some lasers are meant to be run into."
    -Joystiq (08/28/2011)
  • "Retro/Grade feels like the missing link between Amplitude and Guitar Hero. It gives the player the accessible rhythm gameplay of the latter, while remaining abstract enough in concept to throw in new elements as the game progresses."
    -Destructioid (09/24/2011)
  • "A breath of fresh air to the increasingly stale world of commercial video-game production, Retro/Grade proves to be an entertaining combination of ingenuity and classic aspects of explosive entertainment, all with a brilliantly designed and animated space-world within which to play."
    -Neon Tommy (10/11/2010)
  • "Retro/Grade bears two honorable distinctions. First, it is one of the most difficult games I've ever played. Second, it is one of the most difficult-to-describe games I've ever had to write a preview for. However, neither of these things will stop me from enjoying Retro/Grade and I doubt it would stop any of our readers from enjoying the game either."
    -411 Mania (09/26/2010)
  • Best Overall Experience
    "It's not another platform, or another shmup, or another of any of the types of games we are used to playing at this point, it's a game that genuinely has a unique premise.... the game's presentation does more than enough to make me far more interested in playing Retro/Grade than playing the umpteenth version of Rock Band or Guitar Hero."
    -DIYgamer (09/14/2010)
  • "It took me a bit to wrap my brain around what was happening in Retro/Grade, but it was very gratifying to play once it started falling into place. It was definitely one of the more fun things that I got the chance to play at PAX."
    -Total Playstation (09/11/2010)
  • "Retro/Grade is a rhythm and action game disguised as an R-Type variety shooter that you play backwards through time. And you can use a guitar controller. The concept is completely bonkers, and it works."
    -VGChartz (09/08/2010)
  • "I'll be damned if Retro/Grade isn't strangely compelling game that I really want to try again, particularly at home when I can hear what sounded like a pretty awesome retro chiptune soundtrack."
    -IGN (09/04/2010)
  • "We've been walking around the exhibit hall for days, and every single time I'm anywhere near the Retro/Grade booth I stop by and play a level or two.... Retro/Grade is great. It's the sort of game you'll come back to many times trying to post high scores and 100% levels."
    -PSN Stores (09/04/2010)
  • "There aren't many games like it and no game dares to wrap the same simple, addictive gameplay into such a wholly original premise. Retro/Grade is a game to watch and a bright spot on the PlayStation Network's calendar..."
    -Thunderbolt Games (09/04/2010)
  • "I love the idea of it.... I just can't stop replaying the little demo of two levels. I really enjoy it!"
    -Rick N Dave Podcast (04/04/2009)
  • "This fantastic little shooter-rhythm hybrid game is smart and bonkers, but Rez it ain't.... I have jumped in and now see why Retro/Grade is so heavily nominated: it's totally leftfield, and distinctly playable.... When ideas like this just spring up in the middle of the afternoon it makes me glad to be alive.... Go play it."
    - Rock, Paper, Shotgun (03/20/2009)
  • "The levels are all synced well with the music, enhancing your ability to dodge shots and collect your own by feeling the beat. It's no longer a shmup. It's a music game. And we couldn't be happier with the end product."
    - Big Download (1/30/2009)
  • "Retro/Grade's a brilliant take on what turns out not to be a shooter, but a rhythm game in deep disguise, rewinding through an unplayed battle and syncing shots and dodges so as not to damage the space-time continuum. Surely one of this year's best left-field ideas."
    -Offworld (01/08/2009)
  • "It's really cool. It's one of the cleverest takes on both the rhythm genre and the side-scrolling shooter genre at the same time. [24 Caret Games] basically didn't have to invent any new mechanics. [They] just had to frame them in a hilarious way. It's awesome! It's so cool."
    -Idle Thumbs podcast Episode 10 (12/17/2008)