Rhythm Heaven Groove is a rhythm game that instantly reminded me of WarioWare. It has that same quirky energy, where every stage throws something completely different at you. Don’t come after me, but this is actually the first Rhythm Heaven game I’ve ever played. After spending some time with it, I can honestly say it was fun, weird, and addictive in all the right ways.

If you’re the type of person who catches yourself tapping your foot to a song, drumming on a desk, or making random beats throughout the day, there’s a good chance that you’ll enjoy Rhythm Heaven Groove. The game eases you in with simple rhythm challenges before gradually introducing more demanding ones. Every stage only lasts a few minutes, making it perfect for squeezing in a quick session, or accidentally playing “just one more” for another hour.

Before each new rhythm game, you’ll get a short tutorial explaining how it works. I highly recommend actually paying attention to these. My wife skipped several of them because she figured, “It’s one button. How hard could it be?” A few seconds later she was completely lost, missing every cue, and looking very confused. It was pretty funny to watch. So take the few extra seconds and get familiar with each level in the tutorial before you play the real thing.

Each stage has its own catchy song or beat, and your job is to hit your cue at exactly the right moment to keep the rhythm going. The controls are simple, but that doesn’t mean the game itself is. Timing is everything, and you’ll need to perform well enough in order to unlock the next stage. If you really nail a performance, you’ll earn a Gold Medal, and later you’ll get the opportunity to attempt Perfect scores. There’s something very satisfying about locking into a rhythm that gave you trouble just minutes before and earning a higher score.

One thing I really enjoyed is that the game slowly teaches you to trust your ears instead of your eyes. Once I got comfortable with certain stages, I started challenging myself by closing my eyes and relying entirely on the music. Surprisingly, it’s a lot of fun, and it really highlights how well designed the audio cues are.

The multiplayer mode is another welcome addition. Up to four players can jump into a variety of 30 rhythm games, with some requiring everyone to work together while others have you competing for the highest score. It’s a great fit for family game nights or parties, especially since the controls are easy enough for almost anyone to pick up.

There’s a good amount of content here for the price, with around 80 single player mini games included. It takes a while to unlock everything, but what’s there is incredibly fun, charming, and highly replayable, especially if you’re aiming for Gold Medals or Perfect scores. There’s also a fun standalone RPG rhythm game called Beatspell, where you’ll cast spells to the beat as you battle enemies across eight chapters.

The game warns players at the start that wireless headphones may cause audio delay, which is obviously something you don’t want in a rhythm game. Fortunately, I never experienced any lag or delay with the external audio, docked or handheld. And if you do have any issues, you can do a quick calibration to get everything in order.

The biggest compliment I can give Rhythm Heaven Groove is that it followed me even after I stopped playing. I caught myself humming the songs, tapping my foot to random rhythms, and hearing imaginary metronomes everywhere I went. Although…that might be because I finished the whole game in about a week and my brain was completely saturated with random beats. Either way, that’s probably a sign the game did something right.

As someone who somehow skipped this series until now, Rhythm Heaven Groove made a fantastic first impression. Its simple controls, catchy music, goofy personality, and satisfying rhythm challenges make it easy to recommend. It’s also made me curious to go back and see what I’ve been missing all these years.