Brisbane-based band DZ Deathrays has released its own official video game, Dive Bar Superstars, after a brief delay, today on the App Store and Google Play Store. The game was developed entirely by the band’s drummer, Simon Ridley, during lockdown and as part of the launch a special stream featuring the band and game will be held on PandaTV’s Twitch channel at 8PM tonight, 19 November.

I’ve had a chance to play around with an earlier version of the game in the last week, and it’s a unique take on a music game. It’s more a 2D brawler than it is a rhythm game, with the player able to swap control between the band’s two guitarists as they jam, sending out waves of good vibes and rock via button mashing, raising the audience’s spirits. A nice touch is the vocals becoming inaudible if you drift too far away from the mic, which can happen as lightning tends to strike if you stick around too long.

There’s also some platforming challenges to reach power-ups, around the stages the band performs on, and it all takes place with some lovely 2D spite-work and surprisingly fluid animations and special effects. For fans of the band, there’s also a surprisingly large number of songs on offer, although you’ll need to play more of the game to unlock specific tracks rather than settling for the randomised option.

The game is out at a pretty affordable AU $2.99 on the App Store and Google Play store now.