PlayStation 5 Critic Reviews

A bittersweet story about navigating life, uncertainty, and new beginnings, Goodbye Volcano High is one that will resonate with many, and bends the genre in all the right ways.

Goodbye Volcano High doesn’t feel like it’s treading on new territory, but rather refining a genre that already exists. With every song played, character met, and story beat processed, I felt Goodbye Volcano High managed to exceed my expectations. I laughed and I cried, and that makes it hard not to recommend the game. I’ll leave a quote from Reed to end off on: “Meh, dunno. Hard to think of a good ending right now.”

Goodbye Volcano High is something truly special. It takes a well-conceived gameplay idea, drops it into an immensely unique and superbly crafted world and marries it with sharp writing and wonderful tunes to produce something unmatched. More than just an experiment in adding rhythm gameplay to a narrative experience, it's an earnest, mature, queer, warm and heartbreaking invitation to the end of the world.

I had a wonderful time with Goodbye, Volcano High. It’s an amazing experience that could only be had in the medium of videogames.

Goodbye Volcano High is a story of growth, friendship and love and how all these things, already great when taken individually, become giants when mixed together. Thanks to intelligent game mechanics, the story progresses forcefully by affirming the identity of its protagonists while allowing the player to make crucial choices, while the soundtrack (which ended up straight among my favorites on loop) is much more of an accompaniment: it’s a co-protagonist, who embodies the anxieties, fears and dreams of this ramshackle gang of friends, dealing with nothing less than an apocalypse.

Goodbye Volcano High approaches the exit from adolescence to the fall of an asteroid, with all the powerful and fearsome consequences that follow. The ambiguity of this force of nature, destructive and constructive at the same time, opens new possibilities in the minds of those who are subject to its whims. KO_OP manages to make people smile, move and reflect with an irresistible cast of cartoon dinosaurs that will remain imprinted in our hearts for a long time. It is a pity for some technical problems and for the development of the story that can be seen in some parts, but these defects are not such as to affect the high quality of this fascinating ensemble.

As the lyrics from the song Reunion asks, was it worth it all? I can happily say, yes. Despite its problems, Goodbye Volcano High is every bit worth it, and I’d happily spend more time with Worm Drama if I could.

Goodbye Volcano High is an absolute delight. While the rhythm gameplay segments are a bit of a nuisance by way of their design, the only other real issue is the sorry state of the Trophy list, something that should be easily remedied. If you can look past those fairly minor hitches, then what you’ll experience is an exceptionally written game filled out by a cast of characters without so much as a weak link. Combine the incredibly impressive roster of characters with the high caliber of writing capable of delivering an emotional gut-punch just as easily as raucous laughter, this is not one worth sleeping on.

Goodbye Volcano High is a terrifically-crafted slice of high school drama that succeeds thanks to the strength of its lovable cast of characters, amazing music and a sweet story about perseverance in the face of uncertainty, be it the possibility of your best friends moving on or the possible end of the world. It’s one to recommend, and while it may not be this year’s greatest visual novel (if only because the genre has a lot of heavy hitters this year), it is one that does indeed cap off the summer gaming season with a bang.

Ko_Op shoots for the moon and lands among the stars. A heartfelt coming-of-age tale, there won’t be a dry eye by the time you play the final notes. [Issue#33, p.78]