Brain rot: one of the biggest epidemics happening in the world. It’s caused by people constantly reading things like conspiracy theories, watching YTP, and consuming all the shit-posts they humanly can. The end result is a community of zombies who can’t live without having to see every garbage post and video that’s in existence. Alliance Arts has taken this real-life epidemic and transformed it into one of the wildest rhythm games in recent memory: Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis.

Players take control of Qtie, a lone shut-in who is obsessed with Yunyun, a fictional character who comes to life and infects her computer. Fortunately, it’s a good infection, as Yunyun and Qtie shower praise to one another. However, to appease one another, Qtie needs to constantly make posts that praise the magic of Yunyun. To push her to the extreme, Qtie has a plethora of denpa songs that will motivate her to the end.

To help Qtie push the world of Yunyun, players must type to the beat of the songs. Using the SDKL keys, players will tap, press, and violently clatter their keyboards to the beat of the songs. The more combos you make, the happier the two anime girls on-screen will get. However, getting a Perfect level is a lot easier said than done.

Even on the most Normal of settings, the songs in Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis are a challenge to master. Every moment you are tapping, you cannot look away from the commands that scroll down. What makes it hard is how enchanting and cute the visuals of Qtie and Yunyun are, as their adorable antics will throw you off and make you mess up what could’ve been a perfect combo. It brings to mind the Hatsune Miku rhythm games, which also throw in gorgeous visuals that make it hard to reach a 100% completion on a song.

One doesn’t have to be perfect to be able to craft new brain rot posts; you just have to be good enough. With every completed song, Qtie can craft a new story that she hopes will take the internet by storm. At first, it’s a measly 1% of the world that believes her. However, when strange things occur that seem to coincide with the posts, the internet slowly warms up to Yunyun, to being everyone’s Lord and Savior.

It’s this element that shows Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis really taking the piss out of the internet community. There are those who take strange and nonsensical posts far too seriously, to the point where they dive deep into the rabbit hole and can never return to the surface. The character of Qtie is a prime representation of these kinds of folk, as she lacks a life outside of what’s on her computer screen. Yes, the hikikomori epidemic is a legitimate problem (especially here in Japan), but how it’s presented here is both funny and entertaining.

Qtie’s constant trouble with her mom, her Zone energy drink addiction (which, I can concur, is a tasty beverage!), and her undying love for Yunyun are all showcased with a goofy grin on the game’s face. She represents the weeb and degenerate mentality that many anime fans tend to find themselves treading through, before reality slaps them in the face and gives us a good talking to. Only here, there seems to be no going back to the real world for Qtie, as the demon girl Yunyun pushes her towards online anarchy.

Thankfully, Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis makes it apparent that this is all meant to be laughed at. From the banter between Qtie and Yunyun (played by Nanahira and Haruko Momoi, respectively) to the new stories they conjure up, this game pokes plenty of fun at people with this kind of disturbing mentality and lifestyle. Most impressive are the visuals, with the hand-drawn animations looking as good as one of Studio TRIGGER’s more experimental anime. It kind of makes me want to see what a legitimate show about Qtie and Yunyun would be like.

However, the real treat is the music, featuring selections from KOTOKO, MOSAIC.WAV, and many other artists. These songs are perfect for a rhythm game like this, and are catchy to boot. Although the denpa song genre has since been overshadowed by other Japanese pop artists, it’s still nice to see them being represented in a new medium quite like this. (It still has its massive underground following, thanks to Comiket and other fan-based events.)

My only complaint is the amount of grinding one has to do to reach the next goal. At first, it seemed like Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis was going the easy path with reaching the next tier. However, as soon as you’ve cleared the first couple of objectives, the next ones become far more time-consuming. So be prepared to take some screen time breaks here and there before completing an objective. (Thankfully, when earning enough energy, the game allows you to do just that for fifteen minutes.)

PROS:

• Great song selection
• Challenging gameplay
• Cute visuals, animation

CONS:

• Lots of grinding to meet the next goal
• No dance pad accessory…yet

FINAL THOUGHTS:

Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis is a truly unique rhythm game. But it’s a seriously fun one, filled with great songs and a very goofy narrative. Brain rot may be no laughing matter in the real world, but in Yunyun Syndrome!? Rhythm Psychosis, its silliness is just like its music: catchy as hell!

Promotional consideration provided by Sarah Blackwell of Stride PR.