Will the third time be the charm for me and Namco's Taiko no Tatsujin 3DS titles?

Full disclosure: I've owned a copy of the first Taiko no Tatsujin 3DS game--subtitle: Chibi Dragon to Fushigina Orb--for some time now and have yet to even open it.

I bring that up because the bulk of the remainder of this post will focus on how I'm awfully intrigued by the just-announced third Taiko no Tatsujin 3DS title and I'll probably buy it even though I've completely ignored its predecessor so far.

This third Taiko no Tatsujin 3DS release's subtitle is Dokodon! Mystery Adventure, by the way.

Here's what else is known about this handheld rhythm game at the moment: it's set to hit the streets--and 3DS eShop--of Japan on June 16, its cart will include over 70 songs and it'll offer players an RPG mode (like pretty much every other portable Taiko title).

Oh, wait, I nearly forgot: Dokodon! Mystery Adventure also will feature tunes from Ace Attorney, Kirby's Return to Dream Land and Monster Hunter X.

Now all I need for the folks at Bandai Namco to do is reveal the game's box art--which you just know is going to be brilliant (or at least brilliantly cute and colorful, much like that of Taiko no Tatsujin DS).

Oh, who am I kidding? Even if its cover illustration is a complete turd I'll very likely pick up a copy as soon as AmiAmi or Amazon Japan starts allowing pre-orders.

I don't suppose any of you are in the same Don-chan-loving boat?

(Via famitsu.com and neogaf.com)

Feast your eyes on Taiko no Tatsujin V Version's first trailer

Considering it was announced almost a month and a half ago, it's kind of shocking that it took the folks at Bandai Namco until a couple of days ago to release the first trailer for Taiko no Tatsujin V Version.

That's the name of the latest entry in the company's vaunted series of music games, by the way. Oh, and it's about to be released for the Vita--a fact that's made patently obvious about four seconds into the following, three-minute-long clip.



Despite the fact that I pre-ordered this sucker the first day I was allowed to do so at amiami.com, I can't say I'm completely thrilled by what I see here. I mean, it all looks nice enough, but it's also very ... "more of the same," I guess?

At any rate, I'm still looking forward to getting my hands on it--in part because it'll provide my only other physical Vita game (the first Danganronpa) with a bit of company.

See also: 'Taiko no Tatsujin V Version, eh? If it were up to me, it'd be called Taiko no Tatsujin VI Version...'

Lights, camera, Taiko no Tatsujin DS!

Early last week, I shared some impressions (in this #ADecadeofDS post) of my weeklong playthrough, of sorts, of Taiko no Tatsujin DS.

Although that was my first experience with the vaunted Taiko no Tatsujin series, it was more than enough to get me to fall in love with it.

In fact, I fell in love with it to such an extent that I've since bought (but not yet received) copies of the second and third Taiko no Tatsujin DS games, and I'm seriously considering picking up one of the PSP Taiko titles soon as well.



While we all wait for those copies to make their way to my doorstep, why don't we ogle some of the physical products that are associated with Taiko no Tatsujin DS?

The front cover of this 2007 release can be seen in the photo above, of course, while the back cover can be seen below.



Copies of all three of the DS games--and the first 3DS one, which is known as Taiko no Tatsujin: Chibi Dragon to Fushigina Orb--come with a pair of Taiko-themed styli packed inside their cases, in case you weren't aware.

Here are the two that came with my particular copy of Taiko DS:

Completely adorable, right? Strangely, I've yet to actually use them. Instead, I've used the stylus that came with my original (red) 3DS and the stylus that came with my pink-and-white XL.

As for Taiko no Tatsujin DS' cartridge, well, it's far from amazing in terms of label art, but I snapped a photo of it anyway.

This game's instruction manual is rather nice, though, despite the fact that it was made for a DS title. (In general, I'm not a fan of DS instruction manuals, as they tend to be too long, with too many words and too few photos and illustrations. Of course, the same could be said of most manuals made since about 2001.)



The page above isn't one of the manual's best, mind you, but I'm sharing it here anyway because I love how, in the last of the three boxes explaining how to use the included Taiko styli while playing this game, the document's designers felt the need to point out that you shouldn't stab your 3DS' bottom screen like it's one of the eyeholes in Jason Vorhees' hockey mask.



Pages like the ones above, on the other hand, are nearly worth the price of admission, if you ask me. In fact, I'd do some pretty nasty things if it would net me a poster-sized (and text-free) version of this illustration.

How will the second and third Taiko no Tatsujin titles for DS stack up to this effort? I don't know, but I'm very much looking forward to finding out--and soon. And of course I'll let you know the results of that fact-finding mission as soon as I am able (likely in a post similar to this one).

See also: my #ADecadeofDS write-up about Taiko no Tatsujin DS

#ADecadeofDS: Taiko no Tatsujin DS

Amount of time devoted to this DS game in the last week--Three hours, 39 minutes.

Most recent boss toppled, location reached or milestone achieved--I've played through (and earned golden crowns for) the easiest versions of all of the songs that are available to me at the moment. I've also played a handful of the daily challenges.

Overall comments on the experience--Before I tucked the colorful Taiko no Tatsujin DS cart into my 3DS last weekend, I imagined it would be a nightmare--or at least a bore--to play using buttons rather than a pair of styli. I mention that because despite those misgivings, I began my first Taiko DS foray by--you guessed it--using the former instead of the latter.

I'm glad I did, because it forced me to recognize that this style of play actually is pretty fun. It can be a little awkward, yes--especially when you have to press the left and right shoulder buttons on your DS or 3DS system at the same time to hit a blue "Big Note"--but it's nowhere near as unplayable or even uncomfortable as I thought it would be.

As for playing the game using the two Taiko-branded styli that came packed inside its case, that's nice, too, of course, although it can be a bit trying to transition from one control method to the other. (I've been switching between the two because I don't want to scuff up the screens of my 3DS.) Also, using the styli-plus-touch-screen combo can feel less accurate than buttons now and then--particularly when tackling the blue "Big Notes" mentioned above.

With that out of the way, the other obvious aspects to focus on while critiquing Taiko no Tatsujin DS are its soundtrack and its aesthetics. The former's more important to the overall enjoyment of this game, I think, so let's start with it. Although just 35 songs are on offer here (I've only got access to 30 of them at the moment), that's proven to be more than enough for me thanks to the variety of the selection.

Among the genres represented in this particular title: anime, classical, folk, J-POP and "game music." I can't say I knew any of the included anime or J-POP tunes before I began this Taiko journey, but that didn't keep me from enjoying every single one of them after a couple of plays.

As for the aesthetics, well, that's the element of the Taiko series that first grabbed my attention way back when, so it should go without saying that I find it awfully appealing. Of course, it's bright, colorful, cute and very Japanese--what's not to like? That its protagonist, Don-chan (an anthropomorphic taiko drum), is beyond adorable--not to mention one of my favorite game mascots--helps matters a good deal, too.

In the end, the nearly four hours I've put into Taiko no Tatsujin DS so far has me pining to play other iterations--especially one or more that use the famed "Tatacon" controllers--as soon as humanly possible.

Will I continue to play this game in the coming days, weeks and maybe even months?--Definitely, although it's likely to be set aside sooner rather than later so I can play the first Taiko no Tatsujin title that was released for 3DS a few years ago, which I recently picked up.

Do I recommend it to others?--If you tend to enjoy playing rhythm games and you also like--or at least don't actively dislike--Japanese music, yes, I'd very much recommend buying this game. I'm not entirely sure this is the best version to buy, though, if this is going to be your first time at the Taiko rodeo, so to speak. Both the second and third Taiko DS titles seem to be more robust experiences (offering more songs and modes), for example, and the PSP and Wii iterations are widely adored, too, so consider them if prices for this iteration are too high for your liking.

Next up--Zombie Daisuki

See also: previous #ADecadeofDS posts