Review for Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun!. Game for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 19/07/2018
Taiko no Tatsujin is a very famous rhythm game series born 17 years ago in Japan. Here we had the opportunity to try the nice game of drums only in sporadic appearances in the now disappeared arcades, but most gamers don't even know what we're talking about. Well, Taiko no Tatsujin is a rhythm game based on taiko, the traditional Japanese drum, which in Japan has had a huge amount of arcade and console titles, and which never came out of the Land of the Rising Sun. However, for the first time, here comes the new game released a few months ago in Japan, in Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 versions. The two versions differ in various contents and have a completely different tracklist; in this case we tested the Switch version, called Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun!
Keep time with your legs and hands / Keep time don't stop until tomorrow
The basic concept of Taiko no Tatsujin is quite simple: red indicators and blue indicators will appear on the screen during the song, prompting you to perform a front (Don) or side (Ka) drum beat respectively. There are also some variations, such as the drum roll or the need to hit the skins with both sticks when the giant Don or Ka appears, but the basic mechanic is still limited to two simple strokes. The concept is therefore relatively very simple, but obviously putting it into practice, especially at high levels, is not a walk in the park.
The drum, in any case, will only be available by purchasing a dedicated bundle. So if you buy the game individually or digitally, you'll have to settle for the other two modes of control. One of them is the hold the two joycons as if they were wands and perform the movements in the air as if striking an invisible drum. We were amazed by the accuracy offered with this system, since at least on paper we didn't give it any kind of confidence. It remains to be said, however, although the accuracy is good considering that it could potentially have been a total disaster, unfortunately it is not enough to guarantee total infallibility. Sometimes, in fact, the shot fails or a Don is mistaken for Ka or vice versa. Things that don't happen too often, but still don't allow a type of game to look for high scores. The only other possible method is that of good old pad buttons, which will never let you down no matter what happens. A more than valid alternative is that of touch controls, but only possible with the console in portable mode.
Be the One, Be the One
The music track sector is extremely varied and rewarding for all tastes. In Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun! there are over 70 tracks, in addition to those offered by the DLC. The selectable tracks range from various genres, such as J-Pop, classical music, Vocaloid, anime and video games. For you who read these lines, probably the important categories are the last two, and in fact in the video games section there are songs like Jump Up Superstar from Super Mario Odyssey, a medley from Splatoon 2, or even a medley from Kirby's Dream Land. As for the anime, we have giants like Cha-la Head Cha-la from Dragon Ball Z, Howling from Seven Deadly Sins, We Are from One Piece, Alola from Pokémon Sun and Moon, Be the One from Kamen Rider Build, and also Lupinranger VS Patranger from the Super Sentai series of the same name still ongoing in Japan.
With strokes of skill
Unlike usual for this type of game, in Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun! we will be able to select a character at the beginning of the game, which will determine special powers in our possession. Such powers range from a lower point loss in the event of a mistake, to one that eliminates the differences between Don and Ka. This obviously greatly facilitates the title itself, but the most reckless will still be able to use the basic characters that are free of any "cheat".
Apart from the Taiko mode, which is the main one where we can simply choose the song in which to try and play it, there is also a party mode full of minigames to be played in the company of up to 4 people. These mini-games are all based on rhythm, such as one in which we will be ninjas who have to hit the wooden logs flying against us in time, or another where a sushi chef will show us a certain rhythm with his dishes and we will have to replicate it as best as possible of our possibilities.
Unfortunately, there are no other modes apart from these two, and therefore the multiplayer aspect suffers a bit, especially given the fact that Super Mario Party has recently been released. Nevertheless, as a rhythm game itself, Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun! it is rich in content and is ready to awaken the taiko player in you.
Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun! is the first arrival of the series here in the West. As such we expected the tracklist to be edited using English songs, and instead we were truly amazed (positively) to see how the list remained untouched, including not only big names like Cha-la Head Cha-la but also more niche like Kamen Rider, Super Sentai, or even the Japanese version of a song from the Disney movie Oceania. If you are a rhythm game lover, the purchase is more than obligatory, possibly by purchasing the bundle with the physical drum. The downsides refer mostly to unhappy distribution choices, such as not selling the taiko separately or how not to make it compatible with the PS4 version, both things that instead happened with the Japanese version of the games.
► Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun! is an Arcade-Musical type game developed and published by Bandai Namco for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4, the video game was released on 19/07/2018
