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Incredibox – a French beatbox disco in your pocket

An animation-focused music app

Price: $4/£4
IAP: None
Version: 4.6
Size: 117.3 MB
Developer: So Far So Good

Incredibox

Incredibox has an extremely rich online history. So rich in fact, that when doing a bit of research on its back story we came across somebody referencing the app as being from their childhood and how glad they were to rediscover it again. And while, considering it launched as a webpage in 2009, enough time has technically lapsed for someone to have discovered it online, forgotten about it and then rediscovered it, the kind of passage of time leaves us thinking, well, that’s a bit rich, I don’t like that at all.

Choose from a variety of styles

But that’s how both time and the internet works. And while this French creation has been around for a decade, it’s now finding new audiences during the Coronavirus crisis as we all scramble around desperately for distraction. Incredibox is the perfect solution. While it doesn’t require much skill, and isn’t really a music creation app, its mix of animation, expertly crafted sounds, and game-like approach to media creation leaves its potential audience vast.

Start adding icons to the avatars to activate different sounds

Because this app is far more of an experience than anything else. It comes with 7 different sound themes, which offer you the chance to create minimalist beats or soaring choruses, depending on the chosen vibe. And these different sounds don’t just focus on obvious genres. They’re all pretty indescribable, but the beatbox approach provides the invisible string that ties them together.

You can pause and start different sounds as they play

The animation here is a big deal too. Each set of sounds is delivered by a line-up of guys which, when different sound icons are applied to the avatars, transform them into all-singing, all-dancing music makers. The attention to detail is wonderful, each sound and mouth movement expertly crafted. When they’re all going, full of color and action, the result is mesmerizing. In fact, if that’s the vibe you’re after, you don’t even have to stress about creating your own mix of sounds. You can simply hit auto and it’ll play a mix of sounds for you to enjoy!

As you play back what you’ve made the animation follows

There are various other mechanics that are plugged in too. While the avatars will play their little sounds on loops, the layering adding the magic of in-sync collaboration, you can also start and stop different avatars. This can provide a nice middle 8 or even resemble a drop if you were to bring it down to just a sound or two before unleashing the full chorus. This will require a little skill and the use of multi-touch to switch avatars on and off at the same time – the benefit being that it makes you feel like a bonafide DJ.

You can listen to others’ creations too, which are shared through the app

That’s where the longevity comes in. While it can feel a little limited, the sounds themselves are so good and well-produced that it’s impossible to not be entertained. The more you play around, the more you can achieve. And, of course, you can record and save your creations which can then be played back with the full animation retained. You can also share your creations with the world both in and out of the app. Incredibox even has its own Top 50 rankings – if you share and get enough votes you can have your creations reach a much wider audience.

Incredibox is a lovely app and it’s clear to see why it’s stayed around for so long, but it’s also clear to see why someone might find it, love it, then entirely forget about it. Because really, this app can only be enjoyed in short bursts. But if you’re looking for short-range distraction, you can’t go wrong with this app.