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Spoiler: Summary

Mixtape Has Become Another "What Counts As A Game?" Flashpoint

Main argument:

• many people love Mixtape because:
  • it captures late-90s coming-of-age nostalgia extremely well
  • music, friendships, and emotional tone resonate hard with certain players

But criticism is growing that:

• reviewers are scoring the nostalgia and emotional resonance
• more than the actual gameplay experience

---

The Core Backlash

Main Complaint

Critics argue:

• games like Mixtape are receiving:
  • 9s
  • 10s
• despite being:
  • very short
  • mechanically light
  • limited in scope

Comparison used:

• Mixtape getting glowing scores while:
  • Crimson Desert lands in mid-70s

This is presented as:

• part of the growing trust problem with games journalism

---

What Mixtape Actually Is

Game Overview

• ~3-hour narrative experience
• made by:
  • 12-person studio in Melbourne, Australia
• focused on:
  • atmosphere
  • emotion
  • music
  • character interactions

Gameplay consists mostly of:

• walking
• skating
• mini-games
• light interaction systems

---

The Developers Clearly Knew What They Wanted To Make

Creative Philosophy

Developers reportedly approached the game:

• more like a concept album or film

Each chapter:

• built around a song

Pacing and emotional resonance were:

• primary design goals

---

The Viral "Awkward Kiss" Scene Was Intentional

Developers intentionally designed:

• uncomfortable teenage intimacy

Goal was:

• realism
• embarrassment
• awkwardness

Reviewer notes:

• scene going viral massively boosted awareness of game

---

The Production Scope Is Being Praised

Smart Budgeting

Reviewer strongly praises:

• realistic scoping

Key point:

• small team built a manageable project
• didn't overextend
• likely financially sustainable thanks to:
  • Game Pass funding
  • publisher backing

This is contrasted against:

• modern AAA development bloat

---

The Reviewer Supports More Games Like This

Main stance:

• developers SHOULD experiment
• passion projects SHOULD exist

But:

• scope must match realistic audience expectations

Reviewer argues:

• Mixtape succeeded because:
  • ambitions matched team size
  • expectations were controlled

---

Heavy Rain Comparison

Reviewer compares discourse to:

• Heavy Rain in 2010

Notes:

• same "not a real game" criticism happened back then

But:

• Heavy Rain still:
  • won awards
  • sold millions
  • created memorable shared experiences

---

Story-Focused Games vs Gameplay-Focused Games

Core Design Problem

Reviewer explains:

• narrative games want players to see story content
• difficulty barriers can prevent that

Uses:

• Crimson Skies anecdote

Example:

• skip options added after repeated mission failures
• because some players simply wanted narrative progression

---

The Real Issue Is Review Scale Consistency

Reviewer's central concern:

• not that Mixtape exists
• but that review scoring feels disconnected from audience expectations

Argument:

• when tiny narrative projects score equal/higher than massive mechanically ambitious games:
  • people lose trust in critics

---

Rotten Tomatoes / Oscars Comparison

Reviewer compares gaming criticism to:

• film criticism disconnect

Examples:

• critic vs audience score gaps
• declining Oscars viewership

Claims:

• audiences increasingly ignore critics

---

Game Awards Warning

Reviewer warns:

• if Game Awards lean too heavily into niche prestige titles
• they risk same disconnect Hollywood experienced

Mentions:

• Highguard shutting down quickly despite awards/showcase attention

---

Final Overall Position

Reviewer's Conclusion

• Not everyone will love Mixtape
• That's fine

But:

• industry should encourage:
  • experimental passion projects
  • smaller scoped games
  • sustainable development

Main takeaway:

• Mixtape may not work for everyone mechanically
• but it represents healthy creative experimentation done responsibly

 

[funking giblet]

Girls are woke
Art styles are woke

 

[rm082e]

Most readers look to reviews for buying advice. Is this game worth the price being asked? How does it justify its asking price.

Reviews are increasingly being written from the angle of artistic criticism, not buying advice. This creates a disconnect between the reviewers and the readers. That's the problem.

 

[Gambit2483]

I don't always agree with Laura...and this is one of those times.

That said, she makes a great point, just not one I agree with that correlates to this particular "game".

 

[HRK69]

 

[Danjin44]

I dont care for any culture war crap, my issue solely around the fact this is 3 hours long with barely no gameplay even compare to other point & click adventure games or visual novels.

You literally can watch the whole game on youtube get the full experience.

 

[Alan Wake]

Most readers look to reviews for buying advice. Is this game worth the price being asked? How does it justify it's asking price.

Reviews are increasingly being written from the angle of artistic criticism, not buying advice. This creates a disconnect between the reviewers and the readers. That's the problem.

I don't know how many reviews I've read and thinking afterwards: "OK, but is the actual game any good then?"

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

I haven't played Mixtape, but something tells me the Heavy Rain comparison isn't exactly the best one.

 

[March Climber]

Most readers look to reviews for buying advice. Is this game worth the price being asked? How does it justify it's asking price.

Reviews are increasingly being written from the angle of artistic criticism, not buying advice. This creates a disconnect between the reviewers and the readers. That's the problem.

There's a very, very large category of narrative-only games on steam. A lot of them are even rated 'very positive'. Quite a few of those are looking at Jpeg images and selecting pre-written dialogue options.

How would you go about reviewing these games? Would none of them be able to reach a 9 or 10 due to their genre?

 

[Ogbert]

It's an interactive video.

It's well done and has a lot of charm, but it's not a game.

 

[Arsic]

I haven't played Mixtape, but something tells me the Heavy Rain comparison isn't exactly the best one.

Don't worry no one has played mix tape because it doesn't use any buttons , triggers, or sticks.

 

[Hugare]

We had games like Journey, Flower, Vanish of Ethan Carter, Dear Esther, Dispatch and so many morr that barely had any gameplay in them, but people still enjoyed them for what they were.

I guess people are just addicted to outrage culture and sometimes pick some new game to be outraged at

People have to be more open minded about what a game can be. There are interactive parts in the game, so it's a game. "It's an hour experience and you only press a button", still a game. If it's a 10/10 and worth $60 or whatever it's up to the player.

 

[RoboFu]

They should have just made a movie.

 

[TwinB242]

The game has a 86 on Metacritic. People need to stop acting like every review outlet gave it a 10 and act like its going to be the game of the gen. Thats clearly not the reality of the situation.

 

[laynelane]

"Mechanically light" (in the summary) is one way to put it lol. There's segments where the game will play itself without any input from the player. One thing she highlighted in the video was the diminishing trust for reviewers. That's been ongoing for a while now and this game is a good example of why that is happening.

 

[laynelane]

I haven't played Mixtape, but something tells me the Heavy Rain comparison isn't exactly the best one.

It's not. Heavy Rain has different endings, event and story changes that reflect player input throughout the game, does not play itself, etc. I get what she was going for because it was also highly reviewed, but a true walking sim requiring minimum player input would have been a better example.

 

[lughnasadh123]

What annoys me from both fans and critics alike is the hypocrisy between games where a "cinematics, narrative experience" is a good thing or bad thing depending on their bias for that particular genre. Or how "vibes" is a perfectly fine substitute of any kind of gameplay due to being an indie where AAA titles aren't allowed. People were dinging RDR2 for having some interactivity during it's cut scenes where this game has little to no interaction during it's damn gameplay sections.

 

[reinking]

Heavy Rain had more interactions and multiple endings. I am not sure the comparison is exactly the same here. I am not going to claim that you do not have to "pick up the controller" playing Mixtape because you do. However, I did let the game play the first chapter (skating) without it just to see what would happen. It had a few bumps along the way, but it did complete the chapter. I think that is the problem I had with this being a 9-10/10 game. There are guard rails that prevent you from making any kind of mistake and there is a severe lack of choice other than if you choose to interact for achievements or not.

• but it represents healthy creative experimentation done responsibly

I 100% agree with this. While I did not relate to the story as much as others might, it is a great creative experiment and on that I would score it a solid 8. The music does most of the heavy lifting and it complements the coming of age/teen angst story well. I am not going to hold older songs against it because those songs existed and were listened to during the 90's. Plus, the protagonist has an older sibling and would have definitely grown up with some of those songs (A+ for the Rush shoutouts in the dialogue). As a game though, I just can't score it a high 7 to 10. There just isn't much of a game there even compared to something like Heavy Rain. Aside from multiple endings in Heavy Rain, I will give my biggest argument for that. At times Heavy Rain controls were frustrating. Mixtape had no such issues because there just wasn't much to control.

As a creative experiment/art project I would score it a solid 9.
As a video game I would score it a 3. There is just no substance there. <-- This is coming from someone who likes looking for dialogue and backstory in games. Unfortunately, even the dialogue and interactions for this game felt flat and were just descriptive a lot of the time.

I have no problem that people see it differently and enjoy it (as a game?) but it just did not work for me.

 

[Northeastmonk]

Can't forget about facial muscle exercises

This games just disconnects me from the medium, but there's plenty there. Not really worth worrying about. Honestly if they want their game watched like a movie, that's on them.

Heavy Rain dealt with losing a child and grieving. Isn't this mainly about hormone discovery? Heavy Rain, Detroit, and Indigo Prophecy all had prompts that had impact on the story. They could just put this on Netflix instead of selling it as a fully fledged video game or make it some hybrid Netflix show/game.

If my kids wanted this I'd tell them to watch it versus giving them money. Giving them money says we want more of these games and I could live an eternity without another one.

 

[Danjin44]

Glorified audio book.

 

[near]

Glorified audio book.

Some people like audiobooks

 

[uncreativename]

Two things I said in the other thread, this game doesn't nail late 90s nostalgia, it's going for early 90s to late 80s. Also this game clearly has had a serious amount of money and networking influence (for a 3 hour "indie" "game") put into it (licensing etc) and the marketing push for it. It's being given attention that I don't think it deserves, compared to other, more interesting games that go ignored by the big sites. It's another sign that we shouldn't trust games journalists.

 

[Danjin44]

Some people like audiobooks

Sure but it not a game.

 

[fersnake]

10?

 

[adamsapple]

I'm so proud of her, she went through an entire video without mentioning how she used to work at Xbox even once.

 

[JoduanER2]

There's a very, very large category of narrative-only games on steam. A lot of them are even rated 'very positive'. Quite a few of those are looking at Jpeg images and selecting pre-written dialogue options.

How would you go about reviewing these games? Would none of them be able to reach a 9 or 10 due to their genre?

That much more than what this game offers gameplay wise

 

[near]

Sure but it not a game.

It is a game.

 

[Danjin44]

It is a game.

So to you audiobooks are games?

 

[near]

So to you audiobooks are games?

No, an audiobook is an audiobook.

 

[mckmas8808]

Most readers look to reviews for buying advice. Is this game worth the price being asked? How does it justify it's asking price.

Reviews are increasingly being written from the angle of artistic criticism, not buying advice. This creates a disconnect between the reviewers and the readers. That's the problem.

And it's not a problem on the side of reviewers. Readers and gamers need to smarten up and understand what's being said during reviews.

 

[March Climber]

That much more than what this game offers gameplay wise

...I'll just post the following gif for you:

 

[mckmas8808]

I haven't played Mixtape, but something tells me the Heavy Rain comparison isn't exactly the best one.

While it's not the beat comparison, her point still stands. Many people on GAF said Heavy Rain wasn't a game back then too. You can look up the posts here now if you don't believe me. Time passed and now most accept Heavy Rain was ahead of its time.

It's an interactive video.

It's well done and has a lot of charm, but it's not a game.

It's literally a game.

Sure but it not a game.

It literally is a game.

I'm so proud of her, she went through an entire video without mentioning how she used to work at Xbox even once.

That's hate.

 

[Sorcerer]

Pretty strange how a game that was announced ages ago, and seemingly did not get much buzz, then just seemed to disappear, suddenly becomes a hit.

I remember wondering what happened to this game and even forgot the name when I asked one of the members of Lush (on Facebook) what song of theirs was in the game (if she was even allowed to disclose that). She did not even know the game existed. LOL!!!

 

[Danjin44]

It literally is a game.

10/10 "video game"

 

[ResurrectedContrarian]

My annoyance with the game's hype is not at all about its minimal interactivity. I've played a ton of games like that, even one published by Annapurna themselves, What Remains of Edith Finch. I often enjoy concept games with my wife that are more like dreamy experiences or journeys than they are like traditional games. It's fine to have those.

What's annoying about the Mixtape crowd is the content of that fantasy, not its mechanics. The level of second hand embarrassment I feel at the scene of the girl saying she'll "burn the whole f-in' town down, daddy!" (dropping the F- word in such a manner is the most cringe and retard-brainend signal in all of human language now, I'm sorry to tell anyone who still uses it) and the way these obnoxious teens act, as if there's some genuine rebellion here to their self centered lives... it's deeply embarrassing. All the scenes of flipping the bird and floating around on the big corporate music hits of the day, gag me -- if the authors (as apparently is true) actually lived through the 90s, this demonstrates that they have zero self awareness or introspection on the era at all, and never progressed past adolescence.

What I observed when watching the footage was that we have a new kind of Boomerism now. The worst part of the original aging Boomer culture was their laughable insistence that they were and are rebels or individualists of some kind, because they still break out the Rolling Stones tshirt from their youth when they go drink with other boomers at the gated neighborhood pool. When none of that amounted to anything... all their rebellion, without remainder, was an embarrassment to history, something that reached its final form in those very same consumerist tshirts and fat retirement portfolios all while their permanent adolescence brain ruined the world for generations to come.



^ this commerical is the perfect distillation of the "rebellion" of the 60s and where it ended up. The Easy Rider himself landed here. Trying to live rich in retirement and still wearing the banner of rebellion like your life was anything but selfish. Gag me.

Mixtape showed me that we have another wave of Boomerism, and it's apparently coming via millenial dreams of the 90s, with the same hallmarks of fake rebellion, permanent adolescence, pointless self centeredness masquerading as liberation, and so on. I grew up in the 80s and 90s (end of Gen X more than millenial though) and I know the kind of men the game creators are. And I find them pitiable. That the game was as success is a gross indictment of continued stupidity.

 

[TheUnicornGuy]

We had games like Journey, Flower, Vanish of Ethan Carter, Dear Esther, Dispatch and so many morr that barely had any gameplay in them, but people still enjoyed them for what they were.

I guess people are just addicted to outrage culture and sometimes pick some new game to be outraged at

People have to be more open minded about what a game can be. There are interactive parts in the game, so it's a game. "It's an hour experience and you only press a button", still a game. If it's a 10/10 and worth $60 or whatever it's up to the player.

DVDs and blu rays also have interactive parts, but games they ain't.

 

[LordCBH]

many people love Mixtape

Are those "many people" in the room with us now?

 

[adamsapple]

Are those "many people" in the room with us now?

 

[Danjin44]

We had games like Journey

That game has no dialogue and story only told through game interaction and not only that Journey also had cool co-op which even someone like me who doesn't enjoy online gaming enjoyed it.

Unlike Mixtape, Journey told its story not as movie but as game and only game can do.

 

[near]

DVDs and blu rays also have interactive parts, but games they ain't.

You're able to control a character in Mixtape. It's a game.

 

[Gambit2483]

Just to clarify, she compared this "game" to Heavy Rain. I remember when people tried to question the legitimacy of "Cinematic games" like Heavy Rain.

The difference is, you still had to Play Heavy Rain. At no point could you put the controller down and still progress...and even if you did, that led to the game having Very different outcomes to the storyline, which was a gameplay feature. That is Not the case for Mixtape. So yes, I disagree with her definition of what "makes a game, a game".

 

[Killer8]

It's time to put on the big boy pants and admit that as graphics continue to get better, the name Crimson Desert will be forgotten.

 

[Odinnii]

We had games like Journey, Flower, Vanish of Ethan Carter, Dear Esther, Dispatch and so many morr that barely had any gameplay in them, but people still enjoyed them for what they were.

I guess people are just addicted to outrage culture and sometimes pick some new game to be outraged at

People have to be more open minded about what a game can be. There are interactive parts in the game, so it's a game. "It's an hour experience and you only press a button", still a game. If it's a 10/10 and worth $60 or whatever it's up to the player.

Hey sometimes new games are ass. with shitty writing and a shitty story. " new game outrage" is a made up narrative by people defending trash while ignoring all the new games that get positive reception because they are not garbage.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

I do think the complaints that it's "barely a game" are overblown and it feels needlessly limiting for what a game's allowed to do. Visual novels are a great genre with even less interactivity, but I don't think you see those kinds of complaints when Steins;Gate or Witch on the Holy Night get good reviews. Granted, those weren't getting 10s and weren't marketed nearly as heavily, but still...

The problem isn't the lack of interactivity or wokeness or any of that. It's that the game's just kinda fuckin' gay. Like, as a pejorative. Ironically, I don't think there's anything as authentically '90s as that.

 

[near]

It's that the game's just kinda fuckin' gay. Like, as a pejorative.

Your username is gayer than anything Mixtape suggests. It should be right up your alley.

 

[Meicyn]

Most readers look to reviews for buying advice. Is this game worth the price being asked? How does it justify it's asking price.

Reviews are increasingly being written from the angle of artistic criticism, not buying advice. This creates a disconnect between the reviewers and the readers. That's the problem.

No, the problem is that some folks are expecting scoring based on objective data from something that is inherently subjective. We all value different things.

Bloodsport is a movie with a ridiculous premise, corny acting, bad writing, and so forth. And yet I love it all the same. My spouse has zero interest and doesn't understand why I love the film. The upcoming Street Fighter movie looks to be similarly embracing the ham in an earnest way, and so I'm all in. I would be a fool if I sought out Roger Ebert's take before making a decision on whether I watch it or not, because his tastes don't align with mine. My best friend also loves dumb martial arts films and so I'll get his input before ever considering some media critic.

Let's be frank, the controversy isn't over buying advice. Y'all figured out that this game isn't for you based on available information just as I determined it wasn't for me either. And the game isn't selling millions, so no one is being led astray. The real hang-up is over the arbitrary scoring, which frankly, none of you should actually care about. Roger Ebert giving Top Gun 2.5/4 stars back in the 1980s didn't have any influence on my wanting to watch the film, much less my enjoyment of it. I imagine that was the same for most of you.

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

Your username is gayer than anything Mixtape suggests. It should be right up your alley.

And by alley, I hope you mean my butthole.

 

[Signalis]

And by alley, I hope you mean my butthole.

 

[Northeastmonk]

No, the problem is that some folks are expecting scoring based on objective data from something that is inherently subjective. We all value different things.

Bloodsport is a movie with a ridiculous premise, corny acting, bad writing, and so forth. And yet I love it all the same. My spouse has zero interest and doesn't understand why I love the film. The upcoming Street Fighter movie looks to be similarly embracing the ham in an earnest way, and so I'm all in. I would be a fool if I sought out Roger Ebert's take before making a decision on whether I watch it or not, because his tastes don't align with mine. My best friend also loves dumb martial arts films and so I'll get his input before ever considering some media critic.

Let's be frank, the controversy isn't over buying advice. Y'all figured out that this game isn't for you based on available information just as I determined it wasn't for me either. And the game isn't selling millions, so no one is being led astray. The real hang-up is over the arbitrary scoring, which frankly, none of you should actually care about. Roger Ebert giving Top Gun 2.5/4 stars back in the 1980s didn't have any influence on my wanting to watch the film, much less my enjoyment of it. I imagine that was the same for most of you.

He's also 1 man in a world of countless film critics. I don't think I ever chose a film because he said something about it. It was "Steven Spielberg presents.." versus "Roger Ebert gives it two thumbs up". If you told me that was all made up and his reviews were paid for, I'd believe you.

My problem with journalists and influencers probably started when I realized they were younger and their emotional response was a little more intense for my tastes. That made me tone out their personal opinions pretty quick. A lot of them are mainly there for views and to get paid for doing it. They get to play a game, big deal, a lot of us do that.

I can't say there's someone with a job at IGN, in 2026, that knows something I don't. That's not an ego. It's because me and so many other people paid and played countless games. We get the idea. We don't need the thesis of BS and a number to say it was good. Saying it's amazing and 10/10 is BS because X Y and Z don't add up to anything a lot of us ever called a 10/10.

It's modern day dopamine that's getting injected into these people. That doesn't mean it was really a 10/10. It's just the next new thing that they can gain clout for.

I also watched Bloodsport as a kid. Awesome film!!

 

[viveks86]

Wasn't this already being discussed in the review thread? Now I'm looking forward to the review thread about this review thread about the first review thread about a game that is not a game on a gaming forum.