The music is the game

Most survivor shooters play a song behind the fight. In Encore the song is the fight. You are the performer, the arena is your stage, and the soundtrack only grows when you play well.

Hit the beat, drop the bass

Your instrument fires by itself. Your job is the beat. Press the Rhythm Action as the ring closes and THE DROP bursts out around you, a gold blast that throws the front row back and grows with every on beat press in a row, and your next volley lands as critical hits. Every press tells you PERFECT, GOOD, EARLY or LATE, so you always know why a hit landed or missed. Tune the timing to your own headphones under Options, Rhythm.

Every layer is a power

Chain kills without getting hit and the track adds a new layer at every combo milestone. Each layer plays a new part and gives you a new weapon: Verse pulses bass that throws enemies back, Chorus fires drum shockwaves, Bridge bends your shots into waves, and Finale chains synth lightning from every kill. Take a hit and the combo drops to zero and the song falls back to its first layer. Earn it back.

Work the crowd

The Audience Meter is watching your show. Keep moving, keep the combo alive and step into the spotlight to keep them on their feet. Stand still and they get bored. Let the meter hit empty and the crowd boos you, costing combo, notes and health; on Veteran and Mastery an empty room ends the show.

Build your band

Twelve instruments, each with its own notes, sound and way to fight: the guitar, bass, drums and synth, plus a flying V whose stream tightens the longer you keep playing, a bass guitar that slaps through a line of fans, a keyboard that fires five note chords, bongos that hit hardest up close, a violin lance that hits harder the farther it flies, a French horn blast that shoves the front row back, a flute trill and turntables that spin records through the crowd. Between waves you spend notes backstage. From the second break an instrument is always on offer, and each one joins your set and plays alongside the ones you already carry, up to four at once. The eight new ones hit harder once the song reaches their part. Evolve them into forms like The Shredder, Face Melter and Grand Piano, spend combo on riffs, dash through danger, and stack upgrades that trade power for risk.

Four venues, four headliners

Play the Forest, Cyber City, the Catacombs and the Amphitheatre. Fifteen waves stand between you and each venue's boss: The Headliner, THE SILENCE, The Bellkeeper and The Verdant Conductor. Beat the final boss and keep going in endless mode.

Every show teaches the next one

When a show ends, Encore tells you what brought you down, gives you one tip for next time, and names the next performer you can unlock and how. Every run pays Encore Coins to spend on permanent upgrades Backstage, right from the title screen.

A full lineup

Twelve performers, from The DJ and The Rockstar to The Pianist and The Metal Head, each with a passive that changes how you play. Four difficulty settings take you from the Opening Act to Mastery.

Learn it in two minutes

A short tutorial plays the real song and walks you through the real game in order: move, shoot on the beat, build the combo and hear the band join in, take a hit and hear it drop, riff, dodge and shop. Play with keyboard and mouse or a gamepad; the menus, the tutorial and every button prompt follow whichever one you pick up.

Take the stage.