Early Access Review of ‘BEATABLE’ – An Innovative Hand-Tracking Casual Rhythm Game

Is the Quest’s hand-tracking up to scratch for a rhythm game, especially one that hinges on low latency and precision? After diving into the early access version of BEATABLE, which gets you tapping, clapping, and snapping to the rhythm, the latest offering from XR Games feels adequate for laid-back sessions. However, I’m left pondering whether it’s quite precise and responsive enough for more demanding play.

BEATABLE Details:

• Developer: XR Games
• Available On: Horizon Store (Quest 2 and above)
• Reviewed On: Quest 3
• Release Date: April 10th, 2025
• Price: $10

Note: As this game is in Early Access, the developers consider it a work in progress, and it’s likely to evolve over time. This review reflects the game’s current state without providing a numerical score.

Gameplay

Whether you’re seated or standing, you just need a modest area on a desk, table, or any flat surface to get into Beatable. The game presents four tapping ‘lanes’ across which beats flow from the horizon. The space it occupies is about that of a keyboard, featuring two types of beats you must hit: regular notes and hold notes, accompanied by mid-air cues for clapping and finger snapping. While still a physical challenge, it’s a refreshing shift for those used to Beat Saber’s calorie-burning, arm-flinging gameplay. Plus, it includes a mixed reality mode, which is a neat touch.

Beatable is as intuitive as Beat Saber to pick up. Instead of mapping buttons to colors and positions like in Guitar Hero, you simply tap the table with your palm, streamlining the learning curve. Yet, I’m not sure if I’ll ever master Beatable, and here’s why.

The fun lies in snapping your fingers with one hand while quickly hitting notes with the other. However, I suspect that the Quest’s hand-tracking latency might still be too high to build the solid muscle memory needed for expert levels.

Check out what XR Games shared on Twitter about pushing @MetaQuestVR’s hand tracking:

I lack a precise way to measure how reliably I hit notes, or how genuine my ‘Perfect’ strikes are, so experiences might differ. Precision feels adequate for casual play, but achieving mastery seems to demand considerable tweaking with optimal hand positions. I found myself hovering over notes, trying to tap them with minimal force on the beat, leading to varied success.

Since Beatable depends entirely on hand-tracking, it compensates by using a small input and audio delay, syncing detection in a manner akin to console games. Before you start playing, your best move is to calibrate your setup to match your table perfectly, avoiding the issues of hitting notes too early or late. And crucially, ensure optimal lighting for the best results.

While honing precision is crucial for developing high-level skills, my main gripe with Beatable isn’t about that, nor is it regarding the catchy, albeit unfamiliar, music available. My concerns lie more with the stickiness of the gameplay, which I’ll delve into in the Immersion section.

Immersion

I’m torn. Typically, VR rhythm games make me feel cool, despite how silly I might look while playing—and that hasn’t deterred me, nor should it hinder you. Feeling cool is a missing element in Beatable for me.

Tapping on my desk and hitting the beats is captivating, with plenty of intriguing flow patterns in more challenging songs. However, beyond this, Beatable doesn’t simulate an experience beyond desk-tapping and clapping.

Beat Saber might not turn you into a swordmaster, nor does Dance Dance Revolution make you a great dancer, but they succeed in making you feel as though you are in the moment. In Beatable, I’m unsure of what I’m embodying—I’m just playing. Perhaps that’s fine.

I can’t help but wonder if the experience involved bongos or required managing a control panel that might explode if I miss a beat—something more immersive than striking a note bar with aesthetically appealing graphics—it could increase my appreciation for Beatable.

That said, it’s likely XR Games didn’t aim to emphasize ‘coolness,’ but rather innovate around one of hand-tracking’s greatest challenges: the lack of haptic feedback. Beatable ingeniously makes the table your ‘button,’ though I wish it felt a tad more dependable.

Comfort

Beatable is a comfortable choice because you can play it from any flat surface, whether sitting or standing, and there’s no artificial locomotion involved.

Pro Tip: If you’re vigorously playing on a surface for extended periods, or unsure of how forcefully to hit notes, consider placing a large foam pad on your desktop to reduce both the impact force and sound.

Conclusion

While precision is solid for laid-back playing, developing expertise remains an open question. Utilizing the table as a form of haptic feedback is a stroke of genius, though I hope the studio can further address the Quest’s hand-tracking challenges. If Beatable manages these improvements and maintains a steady flow of DLC music, it might emerge as a cornerstone in a novel and intriguing XR gaming subgenre.

Note: As this game is in Early Access, the developers consider it a work in progress and likely to experience changes over time. This review reflects the current state and does not include a numerical score.