Almost ten years ago, the release of Stranger Things on Netflix kickstarted a wave of media designed to hearken back to the so-called “golden age” that was the 1980s-1990s. For so long, it felt like you couldn’t watch a movie or play a video game without seeing the same aesthetic over and over again, and it got old very quickly. Nowadays, the trend has thankfully died down, but every once in a while, one will slip through the cracks and breach the mainstream. As such, when I first discovered Mixtape, I feared that it would fall into the same cliches that I had grown to despise.
Mixtape is described as a love letter to the music of the 80s and 90s that captures the final hours of a friend group from the era before they all go their separate ways. It’s a coming-of-age story while also being a “mixtape of mechanics” and music alike. Before launch, I worried that it would simply focus on the same themes of growing older at the expense of a fun gameplay loop. After playing the game for myself, though, I am relieved to say that I was completely wrong. Mixtape is pure magic and, aside from a few issues here and there, is an easy recommendation.
Greatest Hits
Mixtape focuses on a small friend group of high school students: Van Slater, Cassandra Morino, and protagonist Stacey Rockford. Stacey will be departing for New York in a day, and as such, the three have one night to spend time together before they must go their separate ways. Thankfully, Stacey has created the perfect mixtape of songs that will serve as a greatest hits of their friendship, as the three experience their past and present through dreamlike sequences and bittersweet moments while they come to terms with the imminent horror that is the future.
If you’ve seen movies like Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, then you’ll quickly realize that the narrative premise at the heart of Mixtape isn’t exactly unique. However, it’s clearly not trying to be. The game wears its influences on its sleeves, and its overall charm frequently overshadows the few moments where it feels too reliant on the films and shows that inspired it. A lot of that charm comes from the characters, dialogue, and, of course, the choice of songs that play throughout the “greatest hits” of this friend group.
The characters of Van Slater, Cassandra Morino, and Stacey Rockford are so rich and realized so beautifully by the voice talent and dialogue. Each has a very distinct personality that doesn’t fit into any archetype that you’d expect from the era. Sure, Slater may seem like the typical stoner slacker on the surface, but his kind and creative soul is the glue that holds the group together. Cassandra may appear like the cliched book smart girl who doesn’t have a rule-breaking bone in her body, but she’s the biggest delinquent of the entire group.
Easily the best character in the game, though, is Stacey herself. From a distance, she may seem like the average tomboy obsessed with rock and roll. Yet, her love of music comes from a very genuine and relatable place of her hating the concept of silence. Every moment of her life has to have a background track, and every time something happens that throws off her playlist arrangement, she goes through a mini background. That trait, and her overall character, was one that I related to a lot.
That sense of relatability is a consistent theme throughout the game. Even if you weren’t raised in the 80s, you’ve met someone like Cassandra, Slater, and Stacey. Perhaps you even embodied some of their most unique or bizarre traits. The resonance you may feel with these characters can largely be attributed to the writing. A lot of dialogue in media set in the 80s and 90s runs the risk of quickly becoming dated because of the use of era-specific slang. While there’s plenty of that in Mixtape, the genuine heart in each line that every character speaks keeps it from getting too cringeworthy.
Every once in a while, a character will say words like “cha” or “narcs,” but they’re balanced out by the frequent heartfelt conversations that they will have with each other. For example, there’s a part where Stacey is feeling emotionally distraught after an argument with a friend, and she finds herself unable to listen to the next song on her mixtape. However, Slater convinces her to give it a shot, saying that “if the music can make the moment…maybe it can change it too?” Additionally, the ending where the protagonists finally say goodbye to each other is absolutely devastating and managed to make me emotional in ways I haven’t felt in a long time. Overall, the writing is fantastic and avoids a lot of the pitfalls that other period pieces often suffer from.
Of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the music that Mixtape uses. The game boasts a wide range of licensed tracks from the era, each of which provides a backing to every narrative beat throughout the story. Unlike other games that occasionally use real-world songs, there isn’t any “content creator mode” that replaces the tracks with royalty-free music, because, as the developers have stated, every scene is designed to fit the respective song, rather than the other way around. This choice pays off in spades, cause the selection of songs placed throughout Mixtape is genuinely perfect.
From Yesterday’s Hero by John Paul Young, which plays during a climactic chase, or Love by The Smashing Pumpkins, which serves as a catharsis for Stacey, each song is implemented fantastically. Every time a new track is about to play, Stacey herself introduces it via a little synopsis that provides details on the song itself, the band, and her thoughts on it. What I especially loved is that the tracks aren’t ones that you’d traditionally expect from projects like this. Sure, there are nods to some popular ones, like two tracks from Transformers: The Movie, but you’re not going to be hearing Starman by David Bowie at any point during your playthrough. What this meant was that I got to discover tracks I’ve never heard of and quickly add them to my very own playlist, which is the highest compliment that I can give Mixtape‘s soundtrack.
As a whole, there are pretty much no issues I have with Mixtape‘s story, writing, and soundtrack, as all of these elements are executed flawlessly. The gameplay and visuals are pretty great as well, though sadly not handled as immaculately as its other components.
A Mixtape of Music, a Mixtape of Mechanics
When I first discovered Mixtape at a Day of the Devs event, I figured that the narrative and music would take center stage, and as such, that the gameplay mechanics would take a backseat. I set my expectations accordingly beforehand, preparing myself for very few moments where I was directly taking control of characters. After playing the game for myself, there actually turned out to be more interactivity than I expected, and I generally enjoyed the gameplay sequences present throughout Mixtape. That said, there were still a few shortcomings worth mentioning.
To start with, every time Stacey introduces a new song in her mixtape, there’s a new gameplay style that accompanies it. For example, the aforementioned chase sequence with Yesterday’s Hero features a side-scrolling platforming segment where you have to avoid obstacles. When The Touch by Stan Bush (featured in Transformers: The Movie) plays, there’s a segment where you play baseball in an empty field that slowly expands the more home runs you land. Each section plays around with different mechanics that aren’t necessarily limited to one genre.
Some of my favorite gameplay sections in Mixtape were the ones that were more peaceful and relaxing. One instance takes place around halfway through the game, where Stacey witnesses one of her friends hanging out with someone she doesn’t like, despite said friend saying they were unavailable to hang out just a few minutes earlier. Most of All by B.J. Thomas plays as Stacey slides backwards in a monochrome setting, and you can control her as she slides into objects that react with realistic physics. It may not be as interactive as you would hope, but it still manages to capture the tone of the moment expertly.
That idea is key to understanding how Mixtape approaches its gameplay: much like how each song “makes the moment,” so too do the mechanics that each moment introduces. Rather than being rich with replayability or different options for progression, it instead focuses on creating a living and breathing music video that immerses you into Stacey’s mindset in subtle and sometimes uncomfortable ways. One of the best examples of the latter is when Stacey describes her first kiss, and the gameplay sequence has you controlling the individual tongues of both her and her boyfriend at the time as they slowly slide against each other. It is exactly as awkward as you’d expect a first kiss to feel, even if you haven’t experienced it yourself.
That being said, while the game does a great job of feeling like a living music video, I kind of wish there were more moments where you could take direct control of the character. Specifically, I feel like there could’ve been parts where choice played a more direct role and there was a little bit more replayability, whether it’s different ways to approach a gameplay sequence or direct control over some of Stacey’s dialogue in Life is Strange-esque sequences. Mixtapes or playlists that are compiled are designed to be listened to over and over again; however, once you beat this Mixtape in particular, there really isn’t any reason to return to it.
My biggest issue with Mixtape, though, wasn’t with the gameplay and instead lies with the visuals. The visuals overall look really nice and combine a cel-shaded style with a lower framerate, which makes it look like an old cartoon that you would find on Cartoon Network in the late 90s/early 2000s. That said, on the Nintendo Switch 2 specifically, the performance is a little rough. Characters often have a very blurry look to them in handheld mode, and the lower resolution at which Stacey is rendered often distracts from the emotion of certain scenes. I usually wouldn’t mind this issue, considering I played it on Switch 2, but considering how many indie and AAA developers alike have managed to make games look gorgeous on the hardware despite its lower capabilities, it’s certainly a shame that Mixtape couldn’t make the same effort.
Still, these issues are not enough to distract from just how good Mixtape is as a complete product. Sure, the gameplay may be lacking, but it justifies the lackluster execution by making an experience that feels like a living and breathing mixtape. Plus, considering the short four-hour runtime and $19.99 price point, this is a must-play regardless of your interest in how it handles its mechanics, as its narrative and use of music will keep you engaged from beginning to end.
The Joy of Nostalgia
In all the years since I graduated high school, I never once missed it. I didn’t miss the bullying, having to wake up early so I didn’t miss the bus, the frustrating classes, and most of all, I didn’t really miss any of my friends. Even now, there are one or two people from that time in my life that I still keep in contact with, and I never once had a desire to reach out to any more. The countless high school movies that I watched since graduation didn’t fill me with any pining for any sort of “golden age,” and I was all too eager to leave the past as a far-off memory. Mixtape changed that for me.
Beethoven and Dinosaur have created a genuinely beautiful experience that isn’t designed as a love letter to the 80s/90s, but is instead meant to be a tribute to friendship as a concept that’s bolstered by a backdrop of incredible songs. The narrative is handled perfectly, despite its similarities to other coming-of-age stories, thanks to the great dialogue and characters. Further, the music choices themselves are brilliant. They managed to expose me to artists and tracks I’ve never heard of before, but have now found their way into my very own playlists.
The limited interactivity in certain gameplay sequences, while sometimes frustrating because of the lack of replayability, is offset by how meaningful each new mechanic feels in the context of the section in which it’s introduced. To be honest, my only real issue with Mixtape is with the lower quality visuals on the Nintendo Switch 2 version. The low resolution that characters are often rendered at occasionally distracts from some of the more emotional story beats. Yet, this issue is quite minor compared to just how well executed the rest of the game is.
Mixtape managed to instill in me a level of nostalgia I haven’t felt in a long time. When the credits rolled, I had to fight off tears as I wondered how my old high school friends were doing after all these years. Since I beat it, I’ve been asking myself if I should try to reach out to my old contacts, which I never thought I’d be thinking about any time soon. Even if I never do, though, I will be forever grateful to how Mixtape managed to make me feel joy when thinking about a time in my life that I once looked at with contempt. Despite the lacking gameplay and visuals, the story, music, and characters of Mixtape have made it a game that is already one of my favorites in 2026.
Disclaimer: Mixtape was reviewed on a Nintendo Switch 2.
