Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan

Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan
Rhythm - Nintendo DS
Battery Backup - 1 save
1-2 players

Funny thing. Ouendan may be more well known in the West than it is in Japan. In Japan, sales were absolutely dismal, among the worst selling DS games in its library. Yet, on certain internet English gaming boards, Ouendan has gotten a lot of buzz. Its supporters claim it's the best game on the DS. Apparently the buzz must have been something, because Japanese developer INiS is creating an English version from the ground-up just so that it can come out in the West.

The concept is simple. Use your stylus to touch circles on the screen on-beat, follow the paths of those circles, and make spinning motions as fast as you can as directed. It's very similar to most rhythm games where the key is to follow the beat. A score of 300 is given for exact timing. Being slightly off results in a score of 100. A bigger deviation achieves a score of 50. Anything outside of that is a miss. But Ouendan makes this rhythm game its own by utilizing the DS' features. Not only do you have to be on-beat, but you must tap the exact position of the circles on the touch screen. This adds a dimension of accurate positioning on top of accurate timing. Ouendan also features really nice "choreography" in its positioning of its tap circles. It will feel like you're dancing using the stylus. It's in this connection that makes Ouendan stand out in its genre. There's no other game like it.

Presentation is also top-notch, with a total wacky-jappy feel to it. The whole basis of the game stems from a "cheering squad" of men. Each stage has its own story told manga-style. The story usually presents a difficulty, and then in a cry of desperation, they'll call out for this cheering squad. So your rhythmic and choreographed actions will help the male cheerleaders cheer on the scenario character. Playing two players (requires two carts) gives you the option of cooperative play or competitive. Cooperative play just splits the notes between both users. Either way, you'll get an entirely new set of stories specific to multiplayer. It's a neat bonus. As far as the songs, most are famous jRock songs, but there's a little pop and hip hop thrown in there too. Technically the songs are covers, but they tried to find singers that emulate the original material and it works pretty well.

All of this adds up to a package that is unforgettable and irresistable. With several difficulty options and a rank given to you based on overall score, you'll have a blast playing your way through all the stages again and again for improvement. You're not really give anything extra for it, but the game is so fun that you'll want to replay it anyway. Ouendan isn't my favorite DS game - that title still belongs to Daigassou Band Brothers, but it's a definitely a must-buy. It's one of the few games that could only be done on the DS. It's truly a unique experience.