Mixtape Game Review — Why IGN Gave It a Perfect 10/10 (May 2026)

By Mike Chen · May 13, 2026

Mixtape from Annapurna Interactive and Beethoven & Dinosaur launched May 7 on PS5, Xbox, PC, and Nintendo Switch 2 — and IGN gave it a perfect 10/10, calling it a game that "sets a new standard for coming-of-age stories in video games." With an OpenCritic average of 94% and Metacritic scores between 88 and 91, this one is sparking real debate. Here's my take on why it earned that score and whether it deserves it.

I Wasn't Ready for How Hard This Game Hit Me

I need to be upfront about something: I'm exactly the target audience for Mixtape. I grew up taping songs off the radio onto cassettes, spent my weekends at the skatepark pretending I could kickflip, and thought Silverchair's "Tomorrow" was the greatest song ever written. So when the opening credits rolled and that riff kicked in over a sunset-drenched suburban street, I was already gone. Emotionally compromised within 30 seconds.

Mixtape tells the story of three friends — Nora, Gemma, and Sam — on their last day together before life pulls them apart. That's it. That's the entire plot. No world-ending stakes, no villain, no twist. Just one bittersweet night of skating through empty streets, lighting fireworks on the beach, and passing a Walkman back and forth while the sun goes down. The simplicity is the point, and it works because every single detail is executed with a level of care I rarely see in games.

Why Did IGN Give Mixtape a Perfect 10?

IGN's 10/10 review praised Mixtape for its emotional authenticity and visual craftsmanship. The reviewer specifically highlighted how the game captures a very specific feeling — that ache of knowing a moment is ending while you're still in it — and translates it into interactive storytelling better than any game before it.

The broader critical reception backs this up. Here's where the scores stand right now:

Those numbers tell you something interesting: this is a game critics largely love, but not unanimously. The gap between the highest and lowest Metacritic scores isn't huge, but it reflects a real split in how people experience Mixtape. That split is the most fascinating thing about this game.

The Soundtrack Alone Is Worth the Price of Admission

I played Mixtape with over-ear headphones in a dark room, and I think that's the only way to do it. The licensed soundtrack features Silverchair, Iggy Pop, The Smashing Pumpkins, and a handful of other 90s artists whose music isn't just background noise — it's woven directly into the gameplay. You skate to the rhythm. You light fireworks in time with the beat. The music isn't playing during the game; the game is playing inside the music.

There's a sequence about two-thirds through where Sam hands Nora his Walkman and she listens to a Smashing Pumpkins track while walking alone through a field of tall grass at dusk. The camera pulls back, the world goes golden, and for about three minutes you just... walk. No prompts, no objectives, no dialogue. Just a character existing in a beautiful moment. I sat there with tears running down my face and I'm not even a little embarrassed about it.

The Criticism Is Valid — And I Don't Care

Here's where I have to be honest about the other side of this coin. Several reviewers called Mixtape "suffocatingly automated," and they're not wrong. There is almost no mechanical challenge here. The skating sections are gorgeous but essentially on rails. The fireworks sequences look spectacular but amount to pressing buttons in rhythm. You cannot fail. You cannot lose. The game will carry you to its ending whether you engage with it or not.

For some players — especially younger gamers who want agency and challenge — this is a dealbreaker. I get it. If you're coming from Elden Ring or Hades expecting to test your reflexes, Mixtape will feel like watching a movie where you occasionally press X. One review I read compared it to walking through a museum where the exhibits move around you, and that's honestly a fair description.

But here's the thing: I don't think Mixtape is trying to be a game in the traditional sense. It's trying to be a feeling. And for people who recognize that feeling — who remember being 17 and knowing everything was about to change — it nails it with terrifying precision. I found myself thinking about people I haven't talked to in years, places I'll never go back to, and nights that mattered more than I realized at the time. No game has ever done that to me before.

Who Should Play Mixtape?

This is not a game for everyone, and Beethoven & Dinosaur clearly knows that. If you grew up in the 80s or 90s, if you've ever made a mixtape for someone, if you know what it feels like to sit on a curb at 2 AM with your best friends knowing this is the last time — buy Mixtape immediately. Don't read another review. Don't watch another trailer. Just play it.

If you're looking for gameplay depth, replayability, or any kind of challenge, this is not your game. It's rated M for Mature, mostly for thematic content and some language, but the maturity it really requires is emotional. You need to have lived a little to feel what Mixtape is doing. That's not gatekeeping — it's just the reality of a game built entirely around nostalgia for a specific era and a specific kind of loss.

Annapurna Interactive continues to be the most interesting publisher in the industry. Between this and their recent lineup, they're proving that games can be art without apologizing for it. For more on what's new in gaming, check out our Subnautica 2 Early Access review — another game that does something bold with the medium. And if you need a break from the screen entirely, the Spirit Airlines shutdown story is one of the wildest business collapses of the year.