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SONOKUNI Review: A Stylish, Fast-Paced Game You Need to Play

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SONOKUNI Review – A fast-paced, pixel-art action game that delivers intense combat, stylish visuals, and a killer hip-hop soundtrack. With gameplay reminiscent of Hotline Miami, players must clear rooms with precision, using strategic enemy prioritization and a brief slowdown mechanic to land their attacks. The game’s colorful environments, manga-inspired aesthetics, and memorable character interactions create a unique and immersive experience. As you progress, bite-sized levels challenge reflexes and patience, ensuring every victory feels hard-earned.

SONOKUNI Review Pros:

  • Beautiful pixel art graphics.
  • 2.2GB download size.
  • Graphics settings – Kill glitch, lighting, bloom effect, hut delay, and screenshake.
  • Vibration intensity slider.
  • Three difficulties – Easy, normal, and hard.
  • Excellent hip-hop-infused soundtrack.
  • Cutscenes are a mix of in-game sequences and art screens.
  • Top-down action gameplay.
  • Tutorial pop-ups and opening the Prologue area.
  • It does play a lot like Hotline Miami.
  • Stunning visuals matched with a brilliant soundtrack.
  • You can slow down time momentarily with a button, and it allows you to line up attacks a lot better.
  • The levels are colorful and usually have some manga or Anime images lying around.
  • Level design is typically a case of going from room to room, killing dudes whilst getting a bit of downtime between rooms.
  • Clearing a room will trigger a noise to let you know.
  • As you get further, more abilities get added, which in turn add new enemy types like deflecting projectiles.
  • Very generous checkpoints as you start at the last room you cleared, which is nearly always right where you died.
  • Bite-sized levels.
  • As I said, it’s almost like a puzzler in places, as you have to figure out who the greatest threat is,and you can take out first.
  • It is a solid gam, as in you have to give it time and practice over and over.
  • There are footsteps to show the way, but pressing the L button will zoom the level out and show where to go.
  • Really cool pixel art in game cutscenes.
  • Once you start nailing rooms and clearing them out, you get a great deal of satisfaction.
  • When retrying, you get a pop-up showing what to do and what not to do, which can be instantly skipped.
  • Part of the game’s appeal is how you don’t know what’s going on, but it looks mental.
  • In-game character interactions with very memorable game inhabitants.

SONOKUNI Review Cons:

  • Long initial load time and loading times in general are long, and they make it look like you can change songs, but alas, you cannot.
  • Cannot remap the controls.
  • The music is awesome, but it does repeat tracks a lot.
  • It is very difficult to make out what is an enemy and what is scenery.
  • A lot of trial and error, so be prepared to play the same section over and over.
  • I found some of the rooms to be like a puzzle, I had to suss out who to take down first and then go in order so I didn’t get surprised or killed, the thing is it can take many deaths to get to here.
  • Deflecting projectiles is tedious, not just from timing but also how slow it is for the game to recognise you doing it, you can’t just press deflect at the last second, you have to purposely stop and time the deflect.
  • The game can be a bit text-heavy.
  • You may need some time to adjust to the absurdity.

Related Post: The First Berserker: Khazan Review

SONOKUNI:

Official website.

Developer: Kakehashi Games

Publisher: Kakehashi Games

Store Links –

Nintendo

  • 7/10
    Graphics - 7/10
  • 7/10
    Sound - 7/10
  • 7/10
    Accessibility - 7/10
  • 7/10
    Length - 7/10
  • 8/10
    Fun Factor - 8/10
7.2/10

Summary

SONOKUNI is a striking top-down action game that immediately impresses with its stunning pixel art visuals and an excellent hip-hop-infused soundtrack. The game’s world is vibrant, filled with colorful levels and manga-inspired imagery that add to its unique aesthetic. Cutscenes blend in-game sequences with static art screens, creating a seamless storytelling experience that feels fresh. The gameplay itself draws strong comparisons to Hotline Miami, offering high-intensity combat where players must strategically clear rooms, eliminate enemies, and utilize the ability to slow down time for precise attacks. With bite-sized levels and generous checkpoints that place you right where you died, the game encourages repeated trial and error—something that, when mastered, delivers a deeply satisfying sense of accomplishment.

The level design follows a familiar but engaging pattern: navigating rooms, dispatching enemies, and taking short breaks between combat zones. Over time, new abilities are unlocked, introducing more advanced enemy types like those capable of deflecting projectiles. The difficulty curve is reinforced by three selectable modes—Easy, Normal, and Hard—allowing players to tailor the challenge to their preference. While the game provides indicators like footsteps to guide the way, players can also zoom the level out for a broader perspective, aiding navigation. Despite its intensity, SONOKUNI manages to feel somewhat puzzle-like at times, requiring careful planning to identify and eliminate the most threatening enemies first.

However, the experience is not without its drawbacks. The initial load time is quite long, and loading screens throughout the game can feel tedious. Music, while undeniably stellar, tends to repeat tracks frequently, leading to some moments of auditory fatigue. Players may also struggle with distinguishing enemies from the environment due to certain visual clutter. Deflecting projectiles, while a core mechanic, proves frustrating due to its slow recognition system that demands precise timing and intentional pauses. Additionally, the inability to remap controls limits accessibility, and the game’s text-heavy nature may require patience to fully digest. SONOKUNI thrives on a trial-and-error approach, which means repeated attempts at the same sections can feel exhausting, particularly when deciphering the optimal enemy takedown order.

Despite its few setbacks, SONOKUNI is an exhilarating and stylish action experience that rewards persistence with an addictive gameplay loop. Once you start nailing rooms with seamless efficiency, the thrill is undeniable. Its absurdity, its challenge, and its undeniable style make for an unforgettable ride.

“A high-octane pixel-art powerhouse that blends chaos with cool—SONOKUNI is a game you’ll want to master, one room at a time.”

Jim Smale

Gaming since the Atari 2600, I enjoy the weirdness in games counting Densha De Go and RC De Go as my favourite titles of all time. I prefer gaming of old where buying games from a shop was a thing, Being social in person was a thing. Join me as I attempt to adapt to this new digital age!