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• My Night At DJ School With Rhythm Heaven

  I've written about Nintendo's Rhythm Heaven and its predecessor Rhythm Tengoku a couple of times before. I love them, they are my ideal games. Nintendo did not need to do anything fancy to get me excited about the game's long-awaited western release, and yet they were kind enough to invite me to their DJ School event hosted at Scratch DJ Academy last week. You guys are so good to me sometimes. A decidedly casual affair outside of the hors d'ouevre, most of the people I talked to there were from local community meet-ups and hip-hop discussion groups, a welcome change from the depressingly stereotypical otaku at most of the Nintendo events I've attended. DS kiosks glowed on the dancefloor, surrounded on all sides by turntables, and everyone seemed to be having a good time playing around with both. Describing the night's activity is kind of futile, though, so here's a video I shot to give you all a better idea of how it went down: Read More... Posted Apr 17 2009, 10:30 AM by Derrick Sanskrit with | with no comments Filed under: nintendo, nintendo ds, derrick sanskrit, rhythm tengoku, dsi, rhythm heaven, dj

• Nintendo DSi Has "Figured Me Out," Literally!

  They've finally done it. Nintendo has finally made me want to upgrade my old white DS Lite for a new DSi (haven't decided on color yet, but I'm leaning towards the electric blue). I've resisted for months. I already have two DSes, I don't need one with two 0.3 megapixel cameras, that's just stupid. I don't care if my DS can play AAC audio files, that's what I have an iPod for. And no GBA slot? Yeah, I hardly ever use it, but come on! I should have known Nintendo had an ace up their sleeve when it was revealed a few weeks back that Beyoncé would be doing their advertisements for Rhythm Heaven, a game that I want to encourage everyone in the world to buy and play incessantly. I'm not really a fan of Beyoncé (I could go for a little more "Bugaboo" and a whole lot less "Single Ladies") but I certainly don't hate her and this ad campaign is clearly effective (just look at Professor Layton's sales numbers since the Lisa Kudrow ads started airing...a full calendar year after the game was released!). Having read that the ad campaign was supposed to start this week, I flipped over to the Nintendo Channel on my Wii for a peek. Imagine my surprise when I see not one, not two, but three videos with the coolest, most soulful white boy in the world, Jamie Lidell! Behold, his DSi-inspired-and-powered remix of "Figured Me Out" after the jump. Read More... Posted Apr 02 2009, 01:00 PM by Derrick Sanskrit with | with 3 comment(s) Filed under: derrick sanskrit, music, korg ds-10, rhythm tengoku, electroplankton, dsi, nintendo dsi, jamie lidell

• Whatcha Playing: Tappable Rhythm Sequels

  I love a good rhythm game, but Guitar Hero and Rock Band have always felt forced to me. Holding a plastic representation of the object I'm simulating using just feels awkward to me (the same reason I've not enjoyed my few sessions with Mario Kart Wii so far). PaRappa The Rapper and Dance Dance Revolution really did it right, making a game out of the music rather than a simulation. My favorite, as I've mentioned before, is Rhythm Tengoku, the Japan-only Gameboy Advance cart from the WarioWare team that's all about keeping the beat in a series of wild and hilarious cartoon scenarios. It dawned on me the other day that Rhythm Tengoku's DS sequel is finally being released in the west next month as Rhythm Heaven and that it may very well be a deservedly huge hit for Nintendo. I brushed off my nearly year-old import copy last week for a refresher. Read More... Posted Mar 17 2009, 11:00 AM by Derrick Sanskrit with | with no comments Filed under: whatcha playing, nintendo ds, derrick sanskrit, ipod, iphone, rhythm tengoku, rhythm heaven, tap tap revenge

• Yuusha 30 and Wario’s Micro Game Legacy

  A number of sites got their greasy, keyboard crippled hands on early scans of the latest Weekly Famitsu yesterday, and revealed Yuusha 30, thus spoiling all the good fun of Marvelous’ countdown clock. A “new feels RPG” — no comment — according to Famitsu, Yuusha 30’s hook is having four playable characters that you only control for thirty seconds at a time. Each character corresponds with a different game genre. Yuusha’s princess has you playing thirty seconds of scrolling shooter, its demon you play a strategy game, and with the token warrior, a side-scrolling action game. Right now, that’s about all the information there is about Yuush 30 for PSP. But it’s enough to get me chomping at the bit to try it out. While it isn’t widespread enough to call a trend, the micro game is starting to spread beyond its WarioWare confines. Read More... Posted Jan 22 2009, 06:30 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: psp, warioware, wario, rhythm tengoku, famitsu, treasure, yoshio sakamoto, Bangai-o spirits, yuusha 30, marvelous

• Indie Dev Moment: A Game a Month From Kloonigames

  I sometimes worry that even though I talk a big game about championing videogames as a creative medium, I’m full of crap. Nine times out ten, if I’m playing a game, it’s some blockbuster title or the twentieth entry in a franchise that’s been milked for more than a decade. If a game with the word Castlevania in its name is on the shelf next to, say, Rhythm Tengoku, I’m going to buy Castlevania. I’m that guy. I am part of the problem. Read More... Posted Aug 27 2008, 06:00 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: john constantine, castlevania, indie dev moment, rhythm tengoku, kloonigames, infinite lives, petri purho

• Fun Fact: Metroid Meets Metronome

  Did you know that Nintendo's Rhythm Heaven was designed by the same guy who directed Metroid, Super Metroid, Metroid Fusion and Metroid: Zero Mission? It's true! Though prolific Japanese musician Tsunku conceived the rhythm game and composed all of its ridiculously catchy music, it was prominent Nintendo designer Yoshio Sakamoto who directed the gameplay and design elements. Read More... Posted Jul 30 2008, 01:00 PM by Derrick Sanskrit with | with no comments Filed under: metroid, nintendo, derrick sanskrit, fun fact, rhythm tengoku

• E3 Opinion: Because It's Cool To Complain...

  Totally Possible Things The Big Three Could Have Done To Make Me Happy With Their E3 Conferences: Sony: Without a doubt, the one PS3 game that people are most excited about is LittleBigPlanet, and its use for a fiscal presentation in Sony's Conference was charming and delightful. Wouldn't it have been great if they'd done just a little more? Picture this: The lights go down on stage, and up on screen we see a recreation of the stage built out of popsicle sticks and yarn. Sackboy, in Jack's choice of Boston Celtics garb, walks in, lip-syncing perfectly with Tretton's voice (via PlaystationEye, which they've announced will be a feature of the game) and welcoming other Sackboys dressed as if from Resistance 2, Ratchet & Clank, and DC Universe Online, each lip-synched to their own guest as the cardboard frame behind them cycles through string-suspended images of each of those games. Read More... Posted Jul 23 2008, 11:30 AM by Derrick Sanskrit with | with no comments Filed under: boom blox, little big planet, nintendo, derrick sanskrit, microsoft, sony, e3, lips, rhythm tengoku

• Make the Music With Your Games, Kids!

  Written by Derrick Sanskrit Yes, I'm paraphrasing Biz Markie in that title. Thanks for noticing. It should be obvious to readers of 61FPS that I love games where play and music collide. A personal favorite of mine,  Gunpey DS, is an engaging puzzler, but I would be lying if I said that the primary reason I picked it up wasn't its built-in sequencer (click the bottom-most button on the left hand side of this page to see it. No YouTube vids, somehow.) Well, after a year-and-a-half of misuse, it may well soon be time to give up my copy of Gunpey, because Korg DS-10 is coming out soon. Read More... Posted Jun 18 2008, 12:00 PM by John Constantine with | with no comments Filed under: alternate soundtrack, derrick sanskrit, ost, warioware, gunpey, korg ds-10, parappa the rabber, band brothers, rhythm tengoku