The Gamer's Quarter

dessgeega

rhythm tengoku, the new rhythm game from the made in wario/warioware team for the gameboy advance], is out today.

through unscrupulous means (piracy), i've gotten a chance to play the game. i'm very impressed! it's very likely the most creative and inventive rhythm game i've ever played. here are some gameplay impressions (cross-posted, which i rarely do, but give me some slack):

each hythm game starts by introducing the controls (usually pressing the A button at the right time, though some games - like the drill sargeant game - use the d-pad as well) and then gently ease you into play. as you grow more comfortable, the game begins scaling back the visual (and sometimes aural) input, forcing you to rely more on rhythm.

each game lasts several minutes. you play right through to the end, and then your performance is assessed. you don't have to play perfectly, but if you make too many mistakes you'll fail, and have to repeat the stage.

after every five stages, there's a "mix", combining the past five stages into a single track. these are typically awesome. there are also, of course, the requisite bonus games to unlock, and a pretty snazzy drum mode where you can drum to one of a number of tracks - each button (A, B, L, R, d-pad) corresponds to a different drum or cymbal (down is a drumroll, which is awesome).

and of course, the game looks like you'd expect a game from the made in wario crew to look. the style is a bit more consistant than those games (flat colors and cartoony animation, for the most part), but each game has a unique look. and there are lots of cute touches - the camera in the baseball stage zooms in and out (to reduce your reliance on visual input) and typically when the camera returns to normalcy your baseball player will have changed appearance. the game is devoid of the usual stock nintendo characters (though jimmy t's "oh yeah" makes a cameo), so the game is refreshingly clean.

it's a fabulous game, and i encourage everyone to try and play it.
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Harveyjames · the meteor kid Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636

So far I've only played the first game past the tutorial and already this game has exceeded my wildest expectations.

'Hi, baby. How's it going?

This beat is non-stop.'

Update: that drill sergeant does NOT like me.

dessgeega · Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2006 8:30 am Post subject:

yo the beats are strong but the night is long.

i've cleared thirty stages and i only have five medals so far.

this game is great.
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Harveyjames · the meteor kid Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636

I need to get Vib Ribbon.

Yeah, I like that you really have to work for a medal. It's not like Warioware where you can get all the flowers quite easily, if you're willing to put five hours into beating all the minigames one by one; you actually have to be good. I unlocked a Neko Machine, and that's it.

dessgeega · Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2006 10:14 am Post subject:

i just finished all 46 stages and i've got ten medals at most. and maybe three stages perfect.

such a good game.
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dessgeega · Posted: Fri Aug 04, 2006 2:11 pm Post subject:

i would like to reiterate that i think this game has the best difficulty progression ever.

the first time i played through the game, it was a struggle just to pass each stage. then it was a struggle to earn medals. now i find that a bit of persistance will earn any stage's medal. i have 38 now, with all the medals from the first five levels collected.

and of course the medals unlock the drum stages, which are very demanding and good.
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dessgeega · Posted: Fri Aug 04, 2006 2:16 pm Post subject:

also harveyjames and i can't be the only people playing this game, can we?
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SJ · . Joined: 18 Apr 2006 Posts: 61 Location: swamp

I am waiting for the arrival of my new magical memory card (which is on its way from Hong Kong) or news of a US release before I play this.

I'm going to be all over this; word makes it sound like just my sort of game.

JasonMoses · . Joined: 15 Oct 2004 Posts: 407

dessgeega · Posted: Fri Aug 04, 2006 2:46 pm Post subject:

oh, whatevs.

i guess i just find watching arrows move across a screen really boring.
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JasonMoses · . Joined: 15 Oct 2004 Posts: 407

And?

Don't tell me you think every other rhythm game out there is DDR!

Because I have had more than enough of that line of thought!

(every other rhythm game out there is actually beatmania ha ha)

dessgeega · Posted: Fri Aug 04, 2006 2:57 pm Post subject:

oh, so rectangles moving across a screen then.
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JasonMoses · . Joined: 15 Oct 2004 Posts: 407

You got it!

SJ · . Joined: 18 Apr 2006 Posts: 61 Location: swamp

JasonMoses · . Joined: 15 Oct 2004 Posts: 407

SJ · . Joined: 18 Apr 2006 Posts: 61 Location: swamp

ApM · Posted: Fri Aug 04, 2006 3:28 pm Post subject:

I'm playing it!

I'm finding I'm occasionally earning medals without feeling like I'm actually doing very well at all. Then on other stages, I think I've nailed it, and get no medal.

Regardless, I am happy they finally made a music game where you can actually look at the crazy shit happening on the screen. I'm not finding it all that challenging, but it's very pleasant.

Harveyjames · the meteor kid Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636

Donkey Konga has a pretty bad difficulty curve. It goes from stupidly easy, and kind of continues in that vein, and then spikes into sort-of-hard-but-not-hard-enough-to-be-a-fun-challenge. And ends.

Taiko no Tatsujin on the other hand, you have to be some kind of drum genius to even get started.

The Don Don Pan Pan revival stage is giving my friend and I some trouble. We now have 3 medals though, woo!

Incidentally that remix stage where all the characters, even the monkeys, are dressed in Japanese Lover's Rockabilly style is some kind of genius.

squidlarkin · . Joined: 10 Dec 2005 Posts: 100

I spent most of yesterday on this and have 3 stages left. And I have 16 medals. I'm kind of a rhythm veteran, though.

dessgeega · Posted: Sat Aug 05, 2006 1:41 am Post subject:

guitar hero is a harmonix game, right? it does have a pretty good learning curve, though it gets beyond my ability halfway through "normal" mode.

and of course, colored circles moving across a screen.
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dessgeega · Posted: Sat Aug 05, 2006 5:58 am Post subject:

43 medals. replaying is so much more rewarding here than in the warioware games, where i would only try to clear each game's goal to unlock the pyoro game. i feel like rhythm tengoku is really the next step for warioware.
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Harveyjames · the meteor kid Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636

I agree, the endless games like Pyoro are the only reason to keep Warioware around after the honeymoon period is over. This seems to have a lot more staying power.

The endless games in this appear to be excellent, though. I wonder if there's a Pyoro in this, too.

I finally go to put some serious time into Rhythm Tengoku last night. I now have 14 medals! I medalled Rap Women on my first go!

dessgeega · Posted: Sat Aug 05, 2006 7:19 pm Post subject:

dessgeega · Posted: Mon Aug 07, 2006 7:07 am Post subject:

Mr. Apol · Posted: Mon Aug 07, 2006 10:07 am Post subject:

dess i would play this game but i hate everything and am full of LOATHING
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