It’s no secret to anyone that I was a big fan of Aaero when it released last year. I rated it with a stellar score of 95/100 and often mentioned it as my personal GOTY when asked about it on social media. When the first DLC (1000DaysWasted)  arrived, I was very excited to finally get my hands on new tracks. Just like before, the DLC comes with 3 new tracks, each with 4 levels of difficulty (counting the no-death chill out mode) and I’ll be rating each track seperately (on the Normal and  Advanced difficulties as I haven’t even unlocked Master yet – *Insert Reviewer Shame*)

Muzzy – Outsiders (ft. Charlotte Haining)

From the very first tunes, this track had me smiling from ear to ear and I knew this would be a ride worth taking. The visual style of the indoor areas already looked amazing, but then there are the segments outside in the clouds… I’m reviewing this with a SUBPAC on and the bass was teethchattering.

I’m only exaggerating a little: I could FEEL this song in my molars and my grin only kept widening the more I played. If you snapped a pic of my face right then and there, you would’ve had a perfect Emoji for the feeling of glee. To my delight, secrets were re-introduced (they were sadly missing from the 1000DaysWasted pack) but all 5 of them were pretty easy to spot.

New enemies are introduced as well and the ribbon you have to follow had some interesting patterns. It’s amazing how changing the pattern between songs accurately translates into a different vibe perfectly matching the song. Overall it has a low difficulty level compared to other tracks but I’m perhaps one of the few people to appreciate that.

Great, great track! Earning a score of 9.5/10

Feint – We Won’t be Alone

I freaking LOVE the vocals in this track. Its audio alone was enough to make this jump to the second spot in my list of favourite Aaero tracks (the first is still Pure Sunlight). Visually it’s a stunner as well, with some really neat ‘trap’ elements.

There are another five secrets hidden in the level to shoot (but you’ll have to be quick about it) and the ribbon placement is just perfectly spot on. Making those jaggy movements to the lyrics of “I won’t, I won’t, I won’t be alone“… It gave me goosebumps! The level’s not too challenging, but I don’t mind that at all. Easy 5 star in both Normal and Advanced mode.

Perfect showing, earning a 10/10 score!

Protostar – Echoes of the Past

This is the third and last track in the pack and sadly it’s not a bosslevel, but the enemy duo does a pretty good mid-boss impression. This level has a higher focus on shooting than the previous two and you’ll have to have mastered the targetting system to 5 star it in anything above normal difficulty.

Songwise it’s my least favourite in this offering: when you miss the ribbon in any of the other tracks, part of the audio skips out which is something you’d expect out of a rhythm game (Guitar Hero does this as well). But this particular track has a few segments that sound like that is happening even though your ribbon accuracy is sufficient. It’s distracting and makes me overcorrect my movements.

The level design is also not one that suited my personal tastes: the inside of the tunnels looks fine, but the canyon-like parts felt a little too bland. The enemies look pretty cool though (they resemble flying AT-ST’s) and having to target both them and their homing projectiles makes for a tense experience.

Would have loved to end with a bang, but the 3rd track scores below the other two: 7,5/10

Final Word

Just one of the first two tracks would have been worth the price of admission ($4.99) for me alone and you’re getting three of them for that dough. Honestly, if you’re a fan of Aaero it should be a no-brainer to get this DLC and if you haven’t played Aaero yet* or don’t like it… I don’t believe we can be friends

*Seriously though, there’s  a free demo in all the storefronts, what are you waiting for?