Rhythm games are always reinventing the genre in the best way possible. Each year, we see fresh takes that continue to leave their mark on the industry. Just in the last few years, we’ve had Hi-Fi Rush, Dead as Disco, and more. At Summer Game Fest: Play Days 2026, I may have very well had the chance to check out the next big rhythm game hit: Mr. Records. Announced at this year’s Day of the Devs: Summer Game Fest Edition presentation, Mr. Records follows an old man named George who owns a record shop. I was able to check out the game on Steam Deck for 30 minutes, and all I wanted to do was keep playing when time was up.
Mr. Records has quite an interesting gameplay loop that puts rhythm and music at the heart of everything. The game is really split into two halves that complement each other well. First, you have what is essentially a store management sim. George owns a record store, and naturally, there are customers hungry to find their next listen. Each morning, George goes downstairs to open up shop, and customers will then flood in, ready to have you assist them in finding what they are looking for.
I was able to experience two days of opening and closing the store, which brought a handful of customers. Each time I’d talk to them, they’d tell me a specific detail about a cover art or genre they were looking for, and then it’d be up to me to find and match their preference to a record. If you get it right, you earn funds and grow the relationship, but if you get it wrong, you’re not getting any cash. In the full release, I’ll be curious to see how extensive this system gets. Since this was the start of the game, I only had two customers at a time, but I expect that to grow greatly in the full release. Dialogue isn’t extensive, but it does feel like Mr. Records is going to have some essence of a story. George regularly chatted to his friend on the phone at night and revealed some heartfelt messages. I imagine the relationships with each customer will slowly become their own stories, too. This is perhaps what I’m most interested to see in the full release, as I got just a small taste, but enough to get me intrigued.
Of course, Mr. Records cannot be a rhythm game with its store management side alone. Once the shop closes up, the second half of the game really opens up. George heads upstairs to rest, and there, you are able to purchase records with the funds you earned from the shop. Upon purchasing records, they appear next to your record player, and when played, you enter a wild world that is a full-blown rhythm level based on that song. One of the neatest things Mr. Records does with its gameplay loop is this right here, as you cannot actually sell a record downstairs until you’ve cleared the rhythm level as George.
Gameplay inside the rhythm component is a lot of fun, with George able to slide up and down using the thumbstick, jump over obstacles, and more. Each environment is incredibly wacky, reminding me of Thank Goodness You’re Here! with the charm and colors. There’s something about the overall visual design here that is really charming, and the hidden humor throughout each level was fun to experience, too.
Over 45 songs are confirmed to be in the game at launch, and the five or so I was able to play were such a treat. There’s a rating system to grade how you perform on each level, and a harder route is available after clearing, too. I expect plenty of replayability for each level based on what I saw. As for the tracks themselves? They’re excellent and often hilarious. Wired Productions shared a small snippet of a handful of tracks in the reveal trailer, and I highly recommend checking that out to get a feel for the compositions. While I really enjoyed the tracks I heard, the demo I played mostly kept with the same sound, so that’s something I will be keeping an eye on for the full release.
Mr. Records is one I’ll certainly be keeping my eye on next year, as I really did love what I was able to check out. The dual-gameplay systems are a lot of fun together, and I’m already preparing to take over the record store and create the biggest record collection I can as George.
