The developers at Ritual Studios are no strangers to Boss Rush. I met them last year and even recorded a Spotlight interview! After waiting with bated breath, we now have a firm release date for their game Fretless – The Wrath of Riffson, and it’s SOON.

At PAX East, I confirmed that Fretless will drop it like it’s hot on Steam May 22nd. This game is a 2D music-themed RPG with bright pixel-graphics and bangin’ tunes. The premise surrounds a musician named Rob who wants to win the Battle of the Bands; however, the organizer is plotting to trap talented musicians with a soul-binding contract. You utilize your instruments to battle monster-instrument hybrids and restore harmony in the land.

I played the demo again and immediately noticed the additional polish the team added, from “timed hits” (a la Mario RPG) and grass that moves when you walk through it (I mean, the detail). I am not exaggerating when I say I was bopping my head during every battle. The rhythm helped the accuracy of my timed hits, too.

Additionally, Ritual Studios will release a vinyl OST and a documentary. The OST is by Dovetail, Rob Scallon, and Jeff Jennings and features several guest artists: Andrew Huang, Cult of Luna, Davie504, King Yosef, Mary Spender, Northlane, Ola Englund, Rabea Massaad and Yvette Young. It is set to release this summer, and you can pre-order it HERE. The documentary covers the development process, from conception up to release. We may even see footage from PAX East 2025! The documentary will be available on Rob Scallion’s YouTube channel on day of Fretless‘ release.

I can’t recommend Fretless – The Wrath of Riffson enough. Please wish list it on Steam and try the demo. If you’re interested in learning more about Ritual Studios and the game, you also should check out my interview with them! The trailer is also below:

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The Boss Rush Podcast – A Podcast About Video Games

The Boss Rush Podcast is the flagship podcast of Boss Rush Media and The Boss Rush Network. Each week, hosts Corey Dirrig, LeRon Dawkins, Stephanie Klimov, and Pat Klein, as well as their friends, fellow content creators, developers, and industry veterans come together to discuss their week in gaming, including what they’ve been playing, a randomly chosen rotating weekly segment, the Boss Rush Banter of the week, answer community write-ins, and more. New episodes are released every Thursday. Members of The Boss Rush Network’s Patreon will receive the exclusive Pre-Show at any tier along with other perks.

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