Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
In the newest entry of the NPC photography series, we're looking at the NPCs of Hi-Fi Rush! There's a lot going on in the wacky office hellscape of Vandelay Campus -- so let's see what the game does with... uh, all that.
Cold Open: 0:00 - 0:38
Opening Titles: 0:39 - 1:16
NPCs of Vandelay: 1:19 - 31:57
Outro: 31:57 - 33:03
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Follow me or support the channel if you're able!
-- Patreon: patreon.com/SolidArf
-- Buy Me a Coffee: ko-fi.com/solidarf
-- BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/solidarf.bsky.social
-- NPCs of Gaming: instagram.com/npcsofgaming
-- Website: aarafafzal.com/npcs
Recommended Videos:
-- Full NPC Photography Playlist: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZN3hp91xDmzoYeVBe4dwd2vSGXRsz3fV
Selected References / Works Cited:
-- Digital Foundry (2023). "Hi-Fi Rush - The DF Tech Review." YouTube. youtube.com/watch?v=8qppoWhanwk&ab_channel=DigitalFoundry
-- Matsumura, Kazuya (2023). "Hi-Fi RUSH - NPC." ArtStation. artstation.com/kazuyamatsumura
-- Stock images from Pixabay.com
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BEHIND THE SCENES:
-- Here is a scrapped moment from the script:
"The only joke I felt truly mixed about was in the game’s epilogue. After saving the company and restoring it to its rightful owner, Chai gets a job there — and there’s a little joke about how he's not getting paid.
[Insert quote here from Chai reflecting on his new unpaid job]
…And I get it! It’s fine. But I do think it is weird to use the same style of humor as they use for all the NPCs under Kale’s rule… in a moment we’re supposed to believe the company can be different. Can be better. I’m not saying this couldn’t have been a funny moment. Chai is a pretty goofy, irreverent character. Does he have “ideas” for this job? Was hiring him even a smart decision? Here, the game chooses self-deprecation in a moment it could have chosen triumph or irreverence instead — and probably told a more unique joke."
^ I decided to cut this because it's the only moment that necessitated full spoilers, but it was a genuine point of critique for me. It reminded me of Parker Johnson's excellent article "We Need to Drop the Savior Narrative On the Tango Gameworks Acquisition" -- https://paletteswap.site/true-colors/we-need-to-drop-the-savior-narrative-on-the-tango-gameworks-acquisition/ .
-- Disability is also a major theme in the game when it comes to the human characters -- but I didn't feel qualified to go deep into that. I chose to focus on the robot NPCs and what the game has to say about labor instead.
-- It was nice to make a simpler, back-to-basics NPC photography episode again with this one! Hi-Fi Rush wasn't super high on the priority list for me initially, but that's part of what made the process feel more low-stakes and enjoyable. That also paired nicely with the tone of the game.
In the newest entry of the NPC photography series, we're looking at the NPCs of Hi-Fi Rush! There's a lot going on in the wacky office hellscape of Vandelay Campus -- so let's see what the game does with... uh, all that.
Cold Open: 0:00 - 0:38
Opening Titles: 0:39 - 1:16
NPCs of Vandelay: 1:19 - 31:57
Outro: 31:57 - 33:03
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Follow me or support the channel if you're able!
-- Patreon: patreon.com/SolidArf
-- Buy Me a Coffee: ko-fi.com/solidarf
-- BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/solidarf.bsky.social
-- NPCs of Gaming: instagram.com/npcsofgaming
-- Website: aarafafzal.com/npcs
Recommended Videos:
-- Full NPC Photography Playlist: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZN3hp91xDmzoYeVBe4dwd2vSGXRsz3fV
Selected References / Works Cited:
-- Digital Foundry (2023). "Hi-Fi Rush - The DF Tech Review." YouTube. youtube.com/watch?v=8qppoWhanwk&ab_channel=DigitalFoundry
-- Matsumura, Kazuya (2023). "Hi-Fi RUSH - NPC." ArtStation. artstation.com/kazuyamatsumura
-- Stock images from Pixabay.com
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BEHIND THE SCENES:
-- Here is a scrapped moment from the script:
"The only joke I felt truly mixed about was in the game’s epilogue. After saving the company and restoring it to its rightful owner, Chai gets a job there — and there’s a little joke about how he's not getting paid.
[Insert quote here from Chai reflecting on his new unpaid job]
…And I get it! It’s fine. But I do think it is weird to use the same style of humor as they use for all the NPCs under Kale’s rule… in a moment we’re supposed to believe the company can be different. Can be better. I’m not saying this couldn’t have been a funny moment. Chai is a pretty goofy, irreverent character. Does he have “ideas” for this job? Was hiring him even a smart decision? Here, the game chooses self-deprecation in a moment it could have chosen triumph or irreverence instead — and probably told a more unique joke."
^ I decided to cut this because it's the only moment that necessitated full spoilers, but it was a genuine point of critique for me. It reminded me of Parker Johnson's excellent article "We Need to Drop the Savior Narrative On the Tango Gameworks Acquisition" -- https://paletteswap.site/true-colors/we-need-to-drop-the-savior-narrative-on-the-tango-gameworks-acquisition/ .
-- Disability is also a major theme in the game when it comes to the human characters -- but I didn't feel qualified to go deep into that. I chose to focus on the robot NPCs and what the game has to say about labor instead.
-- It was nice to make a simpler, back-to-basics NPC photography episode again with this one! Hi-Fi Rush wasn't super high on the priority list for me initially, but that's part of what made the process feel more low-stakes and enjoyable. That also paired nicely with the tone of the game.
