"A curated soundtrack triggering flashbacks to formative memories."
Mixtape, the narrative adventure game from Australian studio Beethoven & Dinosaur, has launched on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation. The game follows three teenagers on their final night of high school as they travel to a party, with a curated soundtrack triggering flashbacks to formative memories.
Background of the Developer
Johnny Galvatron, a musician from Geelong, Australia, was the frontman of the band The Galvatrons. The band achieved success with their 2008 single "When We Were Kids" and supported acts such as Cheap Trick and Def Leppard.
Galvatron, a former animation student, decided to enter the video game industry. After falsely claiming to a publisher that he had a demo ready for the PAX games convention in Melbourne, he and friends learned game development through YouTube tutorials over three months. The team, later named Beethoven & Dinosaur, secured a publishing deal at the convention for the game that became The Artful Escape. That narrative adventure about a teenage guitar prodigy won the BAFTA Games Award for Artistic Achievement in 2022.
Game Details
Mixtape is a coming-of-age story set in the 1990s, following teenagers Stacey Rockford, Slater, and Cassandra. Stacey plans to become a music supervisor in New York. The game's concept originated from the song "That's Good" by Devo.
Gameplay and Presentation
"The game aims to convey the feeling of songs rather than functioning as a rhythm game."
- Gameplay includes varied mechanics such as skateboarding, street chases, first-person party camcorder sequences, and a scene set in a Blockbuster store.
- The visual style uses a stop-motion aesthetic described as reminiscent of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
- Galvatron cited films by John Hughes and Richard Linklater as inspirations for the game's American setting, though the team is Australian. An ABC rage T-shirt worn by the protagonist is an Australian cultural reference. The voice actor for Slater occasionally uses an Australian accent.
Soundtrack and Themes
- The game features licensed music from artists including Silverchair, Smashing Pumpkins, Iggy Pop, Joy Division, The Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, DEVO, Roxy Music, and Lush. All music licenses were secured in perpetuity.
- The narrative focuses on themes of nostalgia, friendship, and growing up, drawing comparison to The Breakfast Club.
Rating
The game carries a mature rating for strong language and alcohol use.
Release and Reception
Mixtape was released in May 2026 and has received favorable critical reviews.