Hydra Harmonics
Hydra Harmonics is a homebrew minigame for the Nintendo 64 made by Team Catch 64 and released on 13 December 2024 for the 2024 N64brew Game Jam. It’s a game where you play as one of four heads on a hydra to eat as many notes as possible.
You can get the ROM from its download page by using the password minigamemadness and the source can be found here. Note that this is the same ROM that includes all the other minigames released for the 2024 N64brew Game Jam competition.
About Hydra Harmonics
The game takes place on a theatre stage, where a four-headed hydra walks along a scrolling background from left to right. Notes appear on the far right side of the screen in the various colours of the hydra heads (plus white) and float leftward for them to eat.
The objective of Hydra Harmonics is to eat as many notes as possible of your own colour (or white) before the music finishes. In that sense, it’s somewhat like a rhythm game since you have to time your bites with where the hit height at which the notes are placed.
The controls are very simple. You can move up/down using the D-pad, C-buttons or joystick and the you can eat by using L, R, Z or A. This way you can play one-handed or with any combination of hand positions.
After the music plays through once, it will play through again at a greater speed, making the notes fly out a lot faster.
Note types
There are seven types of notes that you can eat, each of which has its own effects. You can eat notes of your own colour and white ones as well. Touching an opponent’s note will stun you for a moment.
They all grant points when eaten except for the sour notes.
Standard note
These are your bog-standard notes. Eating one grants a point, and that’s about it.
Left note
Swaps you with the player on your left and grants a point.
Right note
Swaps you with the player on your right and grants a point.
2-swap
Swaps you with a random player and grants a point.
4-swap
Swaps all players randomly and grants a point.
Sweet note
Grants two points when eaten. Appears more often for the player with fewest points.
Sour note
Eating a sour note of your colour (or white) will make you lose a point and stun you for a second. Eating someone else’s sour note swaps you with that player. Appears more often for the player with the most points.
Strategy
The key mechanic in this game is positioning yourself correctly. The player in front has first dibs on any white notes, but has less reaction time than players behind. Also eating any swapping note will make you lose your position. Because of this, you need to be careful to check what other notes are approaching. If the player behind you is about to get a Right note, you might as well eat anything since you’re going to lose your position anyway.
It is also possible to use swaps to your advantage. Moving backwards gives you more time to get any notes that you missed the first time around so this can be used to your advantage.
After the speedup, there is a lot more risk to the the game. If you eat a note and there’s an enemy note right behind it, it’s likely to stun you and any subsequent enemy notes will cause you to enter a stun chain. An enemy eating a swap note will force you out of any stuns though.
When you emerge from a swap, you are invincible for a brief period; use this time to find a safe row to place yourself in. You can try to ‘guess’ where you will emerge after a multi-player swap, but guessing wrong might put you in harm’s way and trigger a stun chain.
Credits
Hydra Harmonics was made by Team Catch 64 which consists of:
- N64 Squid (me): Development
- Gary Jones III: Art & music
- Brozilla: Audio conversion
- StatycTyr: Additional art
Review and conclusion
Since this is a game that I have worked on, I decided to bring in a guest reviewer to give her review on the game. Here it is by Lily Moonlight.
About the Game
Hydra Harmonics is a quirky and entertaining homebrew minigame developed by N64 Squid and the team. Players control different coloured Hydra heads, each tasked with eating musical notes of matching colours while avoiding the wrong ones.
The challenge ramps up as the music intensifies, demanding quick reflexes, coordination, and a perfect pitch. Ok, this last one is optional…
A particularly tricky mechanic is the “head-switching” notes—when a player consumes one, their Hydra head changes its location, forcing a “what the hydra’s going on” moment onto players. This layer of confusion and unpredictability makes every moment a test of both skill and adaptability. The player who successfully consumes the most correctly matched notes emerges victorious.
Review
Hydra Harmonics delivers a fun, light-hearted experience with a cartoonish feel that fits right in with classic animated mayhem. The visuals, sound effects, and frantic gameplay give off strong Looney Tunes vibes, almost as if the Hydra itself could be a member of the cast. The energetic music keeps you engaged, making it hard to resist bobbing along while trying to stay on top of the action.
However, the game’s intensity can sometimes be overwhelming. The combination of different colours, changing notes, rapid tempo increases, and the head-switching mechanic can be quite disorienting. Players may find themselves struggling to keep up, especially as the game speeds up and the screen fills with notes. While this challenge adds to the excitement, it may also lead to moments of frustration.
Despite its chaotic nature, Hydra Harmonics has its own charm and undeniable appeal. The catchy music and quick pace create an enjoyable experience for those who love fast-paced rhythm challenges. If you’re up for a wacky and unpredictable rhythm game, this homebrew gem is worth a try!
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