The Value Verdict
Hard Pass
While Mixtape is undeniably a visual and auditory feast, it struggles to justify itself as a game. It is a beautifully packaged piece of nostalgia that somehow forgets to give the player anything meaningful to do, resulting in a boring experience that feels more like a marketing exercise.
The Gist (Spoiler-Free)
Set on the final night of high school, Mixtape follows Stacey, Slater, and Cass as they trek across their suburban hometown. The narrative is framed through playable memories triggered by a 90s-heavy soundtrack featuring artists such as The Smashing Pumpkins and The Cure.
While the vibe is impeccably crafted, the story itself feels like a collection of coming-of-age tropes we have seen a dozen times before. It relies heavily on nostalgia bait, hoping that your love for a specific song will cover up the fact that the characters and their dilemmas are quite thin.
The Gameplay Loop
This is where the experience falters. For those looking for traditional gameplay, Mixtape is effectively a walking simulator with very little agency.
The vast majority of the experience involves holding the analogue stick forward while dialogue plays. Even during the action vignettes, such as skateboarding or sneaking, your input feels secondary. The game often completes the action for you, making the controller feel more like a "next page" button.
There is no fail state or system to master. There are some stunning dream-logic sequences, but they lack the mechanical hook needed to keep a player engaged. It feels less like a game and more like an interactive movie. If you value systemic depth or puzzles that challenge your brain, you will find very little to chew on here.
Hardware & Performance
- ›Visuals: There is no denying the craft on display. The stepped animation and UE5 environments are optimised perfectly, maintaining a rock-solid 60fps.
- ›DualSense (PS5): The haptics provide some much-needed tactile feedback, especially the sensation of clicking a cassette tape into place.
Is It Worth the Money?
Much has been said about the indie label here. Despite the small dev team (shoutout to Melbourne-based Beethoven & Dinosaur), the game is backed by the financial runway of Annapurna. This shows in the high-end licensed music and aggressive marketing, making the scrappy indie aesthetic feel manufactured and disingenuous.
- ›Hours vs. Dollars: At $28.95 AUD for a roughly 3-hour experience, the value proposition is poor. You are essentially paying $10 per hour for a movie you have to occasionally nudge forward.
- ›The Verdict: Mixtape is all style and very little substance. It is a playable album that works better as a trailer than a full-priced product. Unless you are a die-hard 90s nostalgia merchant, this is one tape you can afford to skip.