Rhythm
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Elite Beat Agents dev working on Xbox 360 project
No doubt communicating to Gamasutra via boisterous cartoon speech bubbles, Keiichi Yano of the annoyingly capitalized iNiS confirmed that his team is currently working on an unnamed Xbox 360 project. "Yeah. We are currently working on a title," he said when prodded about Microsoft's console during Seattle's GameFest event. "I can't really get into it more than, 'Yes, we're working on something!'" With iNiS' past creations consisting of feel-good rhythm games such as Gitarooman, the Ouendan series and Elite Beat Agents, said something could easily involve catchy tunes, rhythmic button presses and unintentional gyration. We're certain the iNiS co-founder isn't pressed for ideas, but even if he was, he'd only need to holler for help. The strange men leaping out of his closet in response would probably share some sort of song about putting Gitarooman on Xbox Live Arcade ("it was the best decision ever made!").
Boogie DS taken for a turn around the floor
We puzzled out the basic mechanics of the DS edition of Boogie by watching a gameplay video, and we'd heard about the 3D-glasses gimmick (worked for The 3-D Battles of WorldRunner, right?) along with the first confirmation we received of the game. But there's plenty to Boogie DS that we didn't know, and this Pocket Gamer hands-on covers a lot of that information. Except for the big question of so is the game any good, but that's not really the jurisdiction of the preview. For example, the minigames. We knew they were coming. The minigames described in the preview include tambourine-playing, spotlight-chasing, and a very special one that makes us laugh heartily: moving a slider back and forth to control your dancer's mouth movements, for the purpose of lip-syncing. Magical! You can also create clothing decals for your character's shirts, should you desire to advertise yourself or your interests on a big pink Earl-looking thing.
Guitar Hero DS details surface at Austin GDC
We haven't heard much about Guitar Hero DS since it was confirmed, but Adrian Earle of Vicarious Visions let a few tiny tidbits slip at the Austin Game Developers Conference. The first is really no surprise: the peripheral that was being considered is a go, though the design is not yet completed. Earle only promised that we would "absolutely love it." Perhaps his Magic 8-ball told him so? Or maybe the peripheral is closer to completion than he wants us to think. The second bit is the one we found more interesting, and potentially either horrifying or fantastic. Graphically, they're planning on keeping the DS installment as true to the look of the Guitar Hero franchise as possible. The series has a pretty distinct look that has grown more and more detailed over time, and we can't wait to get a glimpse of how they plan to translate that to the dual screen experience. It sounds like they've set themselves quite a challenge here, and we hope they can pull it off. After all, DS gamers already have some of the best rhythm games ever made ... our standards are high. But the Guitar Hero series is all about fun, so if done well here, it should fit right in.
Trailerama for Atlus's new rhythm game
We still kind of can't believe that Atlus has decided to localize Ontamarama. We're not used to this post-Guitar Hero US in which companies think it's a good idea to release rhythm games. We are, of course, happy with the development, as we have an insatiable hunger for rhythm games. In fact, we actually stopped playing Elite Beat Agents just now to write this post. We're crazy enough to be vaguely curious about Boogie, even.We can't expect Elite Beat Agents quality out of every game, so we'll focus instead on the bizarre multitasking and aggressive cuteness found in Ontamarama. If anything, the circle-then-tap gameplay reminds us of the drag-and-activate mechanic found in Technic Beat, at least conceptually.
Boogie DS video reveals a much more traditional rhythm game
On the Wii, Boogie was half karaoke game, half waggle-dance game. Obviously the DS version doesn't allow you to wave your arms around to dance, which means that the game had to be adapted for the handheld format. Luckily for us, it's been adapted into what looks like a much more familiar rhythm game. For each motion or instrument (headbanging, tambourine, etc.) you touch the screen in a different manner, but always in response to onscreen cues, and always in a location indicated by an icon. The different icons are just window dressing, basically, since you're now tapping the screen to the rhythm. It's less whatever-you-want-to-call-Boogie and a little more Ouendan. This short video shows some of the motions involved in playing Boogie on the go, accompanied by a Commodores cover.[Via GoNintendo]
Play Asia conducting a Nodame Cantabile sale
We've put up several posts in the past about Nodame Cantabile, a conductor-themed rhythm game that follows Ouendan's tap-circles-to-the-beat formula, hoping someone would eventually pick it up and let us know how its mechanics compare against its predecessor's. If we haven't convinced you to try it out yet, perhaps Play Asia's discounted price will; the import shop will have the Bandai title listed at $14.90 ($2.90 US shipping) until next Monday, less than half of its original price!Speaking of Nodame Cantabile DS, have you ever seen the commercial that aired for it in Japan? It's pretty wacky! Jump past the break to watch the clip.[Via CAG]
DS Daily: Let's talk High School Musical
We promise we won't tell anyone that you talked about High School Musical, but odds are that if you don't live under a rock inside a cave, you've been exposed to this crazy phenomenon. Maybe you've even played the new DS game. It's okay, you can tell us. We're all friends here -- and we've seen some pretty solid reviews on it!So, any rhythm game hounds thinking of giving this one a try?
Samba de Amigo rumors return with a vengeance
Just when we thought NiGHTS was all we could expect, the Samba de Amigo port/remake rumors are back, and it looks like there might be something to them. A forum poster at NeoGAF popped up and said that the title appeared on a release list for GameStop. Normally, this would be enough to raise an eyebrow over and nothing more -- since we've seen no such list -- but then another poster popped up, started another thread, and mentioned the same thing. We may not be too bright, but we can add two and two (with mechanical aid). One poster said only "next year," and the other specified February. We'll keep our ear to the ground, but for now, we are enjoying tentative hopes that we'll be getting our shake on soon after the first of the year.
Alvin and the gang to stir up trouble on the DS
Based on the new movie coming this holiday starring Jason Lee, Brash Entertainment's Alvin and the Chipmunks will feature rhythm-based gameplay. The game will feature challenges set to 40 different songs, including "All the Small Things" by Blink 182, "It's Tricky" by Run-D.M.C., "Heartbreak Hotel" by Elvis Presley, "All Star" by Smashmouth, and "Shiny Happy People" by R.E.M. No screens on the game as of now, but expect it to grace store shelves alongside the release of the film on December 14th.
Boogie beaten by babbling baby
We have two responses to this video of Boogie gameplay: first, Boogie appears to be totally broken. Second, awwwwwwwwwww.NeoGAFfer Captain N's niece Kaelyn got a gold medal on "Brick House" by yelling incoherently into the microphone. For those of you unfamiliar with the Commodores' signature song (ignore the video in that link), it has words and rhythm. We know she's playing in easy mode, and we're glad that Kaelyn was able to experience such a rousing success at such an early age, but shouldn't scoring in a rhythm game be based on ... some kind of criteria? There's a difference between casual games and games that you can win without even being aware that you're playing.Boogie owners-- the gauntlet has been laid down. How well can you perform by yelling nonsense syllables with no rhythm?[Via NeoGAF]
Friday Video: Rhythm and blades
After Atlus announced at E3 that they were bringing Draglade stateside, we hoped to see a little of the localization -- and instead of starting small, with screenshots or extra press releases, they put out a video just in time for our weekly video spotlight! That was pretty nice of them, don't you think? If nothing else, we're interested in this title because it is a fighting game with Wi-Fi multiplayer on our beloved DS, which is something American gamers have been often denied. Toss in a few other elements, like rhythm? We're ready to get down.
The B[ack]log: Elite Beat Addict
Alex Ward isn't going to appreciate me saying this, but I recently beat Elite Beat Agents. In one sitting, I might add. If you've ever read one, you'd know that a typical video game manual generally frowns upon such protracted play sessions, urging you to take a break every hour and go stare at something that isn't comprised of polygons. That seemed like terrible advice at the time, and for two very good reasons. The first, being the one most concerned with my personal health, was that severing the connection and stepping outside would result in a sudden depressurization and my intimate inspection of a churning jet engine. Perhaps this would have been the superior option had I packed Lost in Blue for the 5-hour flight from New York to Los Angeles, but I wisely went with Nintendo's music-and-rhythmer instead. The second reason then, was that I found myself far too enthralled to even consider giving up for a moment -- not even when I was losing.
Siliconera checks out Ontamarama
We were piqued by the puzzlish multitasking rhythm gameplay in Noise Factory's Ontamarama before its Japanese release as Ontama. But now that it's being localized and we may actually have a shot at playing the thing, we've graduated from piqued to some degree of interest that is a little greater than 'piqued.'Siliconera's Spencer Yip played Ontamarama at E3 and wrote up a description of the game, which sounds as complicated as ever: it involves first touching a little creature of the correct color, then tapping the D-pad in the direction of a scrolling arrow. We knew that those two components were involved, but didn't know the chronology. We're glad somebody got to play it and tell us!80Pan fans take note: this game, for once, will be keeping the original Japanese music. Is that a good thing? No idea! If it helps, we're pretty sure there was no Avril Lavigne in the Japanese version.
Atlus confirms Ontama, Touch Detective sequel, Draglade for US
If there's one thing to love about E3 -- even the all-new, scaled down E3 -- it's the flood of new game announcements that tend to come with the show. On that front, Atlus has certainly not disappointed us; this morning, they let fly with a bevy of localization announcements. One -- Touch Detective 2½ -- we expected, but the announcements that Draglade and Ontamarama are headed to English-speaking gamers are news indeed. For rhythm game enthusiasts, those last two are very good news indeed. Ontamarama follows the story of Beat and Rest, two "Ontamaestros" who discover an evil demon (as opposed to all the good ones) is cajoling villagers into trapping Ontama, the sound spirits who bring music to the land. Of course, that means our heroes have to get their rhythm on in order to save the day. Also, the word "Ontamaestros" demonstrates why we love Atlus-style localizations. We've been cooing excitedly over this game for months, so unless you've been living under a rock that didn't have wifi, you've probably seen a screenshot or two. Draglade is the intriguing mix of rhythm and fighting that the world has been waiting for. Well, we've been waiting, at least. In the world of Draglade, the premier spectator sport of the day is "Grapping," which sorta makes us think of breakdance fighting -- just with more potential violence. The game tracks the rise of four hungry Grappers, Hibito, Guy, Kyle, and Daichi, and their struggle to make it to the top. Can someone get us a hip hop version of "Eye of the Tiger" up in here? Obviously, Touch Detective 2½ is the sequel to the BeeWorks game released last year. We have such a love-hate relationship with this game that we can't help but look forward to the sequel, if only because we're masochists.[Via press release]
Japanese gamers get EBA characters in Ouendan 2
The Japanese always luck out when it comes to games! From June 28th to July 11th, Japanese gamers with a copy of (deep breath) Moeru! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2 will be able to head to the nearest DS Download Station and download the Elite Beat Agents characters, as well as Neko, for use in Ouendan 2. If we said we weren't jealous, we'd be bold-faced liars. [Via NeoGAF]
Today's finally understandable video: Boogie
Even though some of us have played Boogie, the title continues to confuse others. Today's video pick is the first time it made sense for this writer: instead of a dancing-and-singing game, it's a game where you control a dancing-and-singing puppet. Finally, the lack of direct correlation between controllers and avatars -- like left controller for left arm -- makes sense.It's still too early to predict Boogie's success, but at least we finally understand the basics. And it took us long enough -- the title is close to shipping, with an August 9, 2007 release. See the video after the break.
DS Daily: Phoenix Wright or Ouendan?
The time has come, faithful readers, for us to settle something once and for all. It's bound to be a heated issue, but it's a question worth answering. If you had to choose (and we grow faint just trying to imagine the horror of such a situation) between the Ace Attorney series and the Ouendan/Elite Beat Agents set, which side would you pick? Hot rhythm action or shouts of "Objection!" and an endless cast of wacky characters? It's a tough choice. Let's fight it out.
Elite Beat Agents rocks up in Europe July 13th
Apparently, not everyone believes the language of music to be universal. Pro-G reports that Nintendo of Europe has rolled out of bed (which is the size of Manchester), grabbed a nearby megaphone and proclaimed July 13th as National Elite Beat Agents is Out In Europe Its About Time Seriously What Took So Long...Day. The streets would normally explode in a jovial mass of gyrating gamers at that time, but it's likely that most of them would have imported the rhythm game when it came out in the US eight months earlier. Though some waiting period is to be expected for a continent home to as many languages as Europe, eight months seems an awful stretch for a game which primarily communicates through catchy tunes and brightly colored icons. As importers of Japan's recent Osu Tatakae Ouendan! sequel will attest, the game doesn't quite fall within the realms of text adventure or incomprehensible RPG. With cartridge space limitations working against the possibility of Nintendo recording different language versions of all the songs, it leads to the conclusion that the eight months were spent redrawing the game's many instances of "HEEEEEELLPPP!!" Don't think this is the only case of a suspiciously long delay -- Metroid Prime Pinball also took eight months to make it across the ocean, and the Wii's Super Paper Mario is still without a release date. An instantaneous localization would be obviously be an absurd request, but perhaps it's time for Nintendo of Europe to take a few pointers from Square Enix, Mistwalker and Atlus. Starting the translation process during the game's development might just reduce eight months to something a bit more palatable to the impatient.
Sound reactive DS Lite mod
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/mods/Sound_Reactive_DS_Lite_Mod'; When we last checked in with Acid Mods forumer Rocky, he had outfitted his DS Lite with a clear shell and several LEDs, wowing all the ladies and fellas with its electric blue brilliance. His latest experiment adds a sound amp chip that floods the LEDs with light in time with the handheld's audio. Don't feel like driving out to the dance club tonight? Just find yourself a dark room, load up Darude's "Sandstorm" on your DS Lite, and you've got the same experience right in your hands! Sort of. Rocky has posted a photo tutorial of the installation process, but we're much too squeamish to replace our stock casing or do any sort of soldering. If that seems like too much hardware hacking, you can settle with just watching a video of the jazzed up DS Lite flickering along with music tracks and video game sounds after the post break. Though we can't condone his use of a flash cart to load backed up games, we won't let that get in the way of imagining how cool it'd be to play our favorite rhythm titles with this mod.
Import impressions: Nodame Cantabile
Hey, you guys like rhythm games, right? Maybe just a little? They seem to be kinda popular. Just a guess. Game|Life's Chris Kohler got his hands on the latest non-Ouendan rhythm game to hit Japan, Nodame Cantabile, and served up some melodic stylings on the manga-based title. Unfortunately, it seems Nodame's classical music studies can't quite compare to some of the other rhythm games, but there's some good news to balance the bad. Nodame Cantabile seems somewhat import-friendly -- from the sound of it, you can skip a lot of the dialogue and just run around and hit the performance spots instead. Better still? The price is dropping like a rock, so it may be cheaper to import when compared to certain other hot Japanese titles. The interface changes up some of what we've learned to expect with Ouendan and Elite Beat Agents as well; rather than hitting fixed points, the input circles move, which adds a little more challenge to the mix, but not enough to make it a stand-out. Still, with the possibility of budget prices, this one may be a nice choice for fans of the manga or the rhythm game explosion.
