> I can't think of a game that Hifi is a copy of. It has elements of like DMC, and elements of that one rhythm valkyrie game, but it's not a copy of anything.

That just means you don't play very many action games. Ignoring the rhythm aspect for a second the game mechanically has very little in common with DMC. A game with a lot of combos does not make a game.

But it does have A LOT in common with Platinum's games. Seeing as you didn't know who developed the game I'll just say this: The lead game designer on HiFi is one of the guys who left Capcom back in the day and moved to Platinum and then eventually moved over to Tango. Basically just following Shinji Mikami around. He was also the lead game designer on Bayonetta which HiFi shares a lot in common with on a design level. Most action games that use the light/heavy system structure their combos in a way where you start a combo with light and then you can hit heavy to land a finisher changing based on how many light inputs you did. Bayo and HiFi both uses an interwoven system instead. You can start with light or heavy and then do things like HLH, LHL, LHLH and so on. It's not a binary system like most games tend to roll with. If you just mindlessly mash you're still going to pull off a combo because the game is just designed that way.

In addition to that HiFi also essentially has the wicked weave system of Bayonetta. Every single attack string has a unique finisher which summons a huge attack into the world. And a lot of the finishers exist for utility. Some will give you a launcher, some give a wide sweeping aoe attack, some with less range and more damage, etc.

The game also uses the classic Platinum style parry. Instead of just timing a button press you're rewarded for also pushing the analog stick in the direction the attack is coming from (though note: this is an upgrade in HiFi not the base parry.) That is how platinum rolls with their parry in every game and it stands out HiFi does the same thing because pushing the stick in the direction of the attack is not very common in games.

And maybe the most blatant thing is the scoring system. Platinum loves to structure their scoring system as a "verse" based system. You're graded on each fight individually based on: score, damage taken, and time and it's shown to you at the end of the fight. HiFi does the exact same thing just replacing the word verse for "chorus" and replacing damage taken with how well you attacked in time with the beat. The freaking grading screen itself even looks nearly identical with the grades in the same order, on the right side of the screen, and with a total score at the bottom.

The dude literally took all his work and experience on Bayonetta and put a rhythm flair on it. About the only Platinum mechanic it doesn't have is dodge offset. The game is original in the sense that it has a fun twist, but mechanically all the combat systems are taken from the same kind of games the guy made before this one.

And lastly. I never said the word indie one time. HiFi is an AA game. That is different altogether. AA games are those from bigger developers but use a smaller budget (which like I said, is very obvious in this game) and make a more focused experienced that can often be more experimental or niche because they're not looking to sell like 5+ million copies of a game to break even. HiFi is just another great addition to the market which has been booming over the last 5 or so years precisely because of all those so called "soulless" AAA games you were talking about.

You’re right, triple A has been in a multiple year slump. I would have stopped gaming entirely if it weren’t for indie

Elden Ring, Tunic, Neon White, Vampire Survivors.

Some of these aren’t triple a but neither is Hi Fi rush.