Music
games, dance games, rhythm games. They were a part of the video games
world ever since chips became powerful enough to play more than just a
simple combination of MIDI tones.
Titles like PaRappa the Rapper, Beat Mania, and Samba
the Amigo shaped our childhood and made us love both music and video
games. But the history of music games goes even further, with titles
like Dance Aerobics dating back to 1987, back when the NES was the most
powerful video games machine available, chugging out simplistic MIDI
melodies that were enough to make you get in the groove and work out a
bit.
With the new century, we received a new wave of music
games, titles that required complex peripherals like huge plastic
guitars that were used as controllers and it is safe to say that the
noughties were a decade of Guitar Hero and Rock Band.
Those two titles created a sort of an explosion of
popularity for music games selling tens of millions of copies and
turning dorms and living rooms into live band stages were everyone could
be a rock star, if only for a night. Rock Band and Guitar Hero were
massively popular during the glory days of PS3 and Xbox 360 but their
fame faded with the arrival of the new console generation.
Never massively popular but always around were dance
games such as Dance Dance Revolution and Just Dance. Their peak was
around the turn of the 21st century, back when DDR made a literal
revolution in video game parlors around the world.
And let's not forget note smashing rhythm games that
evolved into VR fireworks like Beat Saber and Thumper or mobile friendly
titles such as Lost in Harmony or Voez. These days we have dozens of
quality music and rhythm games and while they never won the popularity
contest, music and rhythm video games always had (and still have)
relatively large but extremely faithful following.
If you want to ride your music, play your favorite songs
in a video game, tap on notes like maniac, dance till you drop, or
simply enjoy unique video games we have some exciting titles to show.
Just Dance 2019
One of the two most popular dance video games in the
world, Just Dance is the more home friendly part of the pair. The game
is available for every major console and when we say every we really
mean it. Aside from the usual suspects in the form of the PS4, Xbox One,
and the Nintendo Switch, Just Dance 2019 can be found on the PS3, Xbox
360, Wii, and the infamous WiiU.
So yes, if you want to play this game you can do it on a
wide range of platforms. Even mobile devices have their own version of
Just Dance called Just Dance Now.
The premise of the game is pretty straightforward: you
play a song and then have to mimic the moves shown on the screen. In
other words, you have to dance according to the choreography. This can
be done by using your smartphone with Just Dance app installed or (on
Nintendo consoles) by using motion controllers.
The game is filled with songs and there are also
additional ones that can be unlocked by subscribing to a service called
Just Dance Unlimited, which offers always evolving selection of songs
that can be downloaded. Great for families, excellent for staying in
shape, and superb for dance lovers Just Dance 2019 is the best thing to
play if you dance your way through life.
Audiosurf 2
Audiosurf was a true revolution. The game promised to
scan every song you have on your hard drive, creating unique music
filled levels for each song.
And it delivered upon its promise becoming an instant
hit in those days when digital games just started to become a regular
deal. It was one of the early Steam hits and soon after everyone played
it.
The game is pretty simple - you have your hovering
spaceship, which moves on top of a runway dotted with blocks that
represent individual song notes. The goal is to collect as many blocks
as possible without hitting dark blocks that are to be avoided.
And Audiosurf 2 follows its predecessor's simple formula
but it also adds some of its own flavors like improved visuals, new
game modes, and better UI.
The difficulty is tied to the song's rhythm - slower
paced tunes are easier to play while faster rhythm means higher
challenge. You can see the difficulty of each song as soon as you select
it.
The second game in the series not only offered to play
any song you have on your hard drive, it also came with the support for
playing songs found on YouTube but the feature was dropped at some
moment and it still is unavailable. So, if you're in the mood for riding
some songs bear in mind that the game works only with songs you have on
your hard drive; streaming songs aren't supported.
Rock Band 4
While Guitar Hero started the whole "play your favorite
songs in a video game" craze, Rock Band ultimately became the more
popular option.
Instead of limiting players to guitars, Rock Band gave
them a chance to play as a full band, adding keyboards, drums, and
vocals to the mix. And the latest release of the famous series is the
only one available on current-gen consoles. The formula didn't change
much, with only visuals becoming prettier than before.
You have your own rock band and they can play a bunch of
songs. The basic version of the game comes with 65 songs but the online
library of downloadable songs counts more than 1,500 titles ranging
from the earliest years of Rock and Roll to the modern times and
spanning from pop rock to death metal.
In other words, there's something for everyone. If you
want to be a part of a rock band but don't have the time or knowledge
needed to play an instrument Rock Band could be a nice sub for a
real-life gig.
Thumper
Thumper looks like Audiosurf when you look at it but it
holds its own when it comes to the uniqueness of the experience and the
overall originality. Instead of riding your own music you follow dark
industrial notes of Thumper's soundtrack that are oppressive,
futuristic, and strangely catchy like all quality industrial music
usually is.
The game is all about riding on top of a twisted Sci-Fi
railroad while following notes and rhythm of the tyrannizing music,
trying to stay alive while also getting closer and closer to the Head.
The Head is a nasty looking alien or whatnot that is
always on your horizon. It looks like a mixture of Salvador Dali and
some nasty demon and your beetle (the ship really look like one of those
large, black beetles with rigid black wings) has to pull off combos
that arm it with some sort of a bomb that is launched at the head. And
each level has the same goal - pull off combos, receive the bomb, launch
it at the head, and take it down.
The music and the overall atmosphere is superb, there
are lots of levels that become tougher and tougher, gameplay is really
addictive, and the game looks best when played in VR. If you like
rhythm-based games that go deeper than hitting the right notes do check
out Thumper.
Beat Saber
Imagine Audiosurf but in VR and with notes being sliced
with dual lightsabers instead picked with a futuristic F-Zero-like racer
and you get a rough idea what Beat Saber is like.
The game sounds cool in theory and it is even better in
practice. Beat Saber is one of the games that helped VR to turn into a
proper gaming platform; it is a music rollercoaster capable of sucking
you in and holding you for hours on end; it is one of the best VR games
on the market and a perfect party title.
There are lots of songs in the library and each one is a
small firework of excitement and pure elation. The symphony of rhythmic
hand swipes tuned to go in line with incoming notes in order to cut
them in half is mesmerizing and easy to learn gameplay is made both for
casual and hardcore gamers.
You can play a level that asks nothing more than simple
slices up and down that can be performed by your grandparents or you can
opt for a hardcore experience and test your hand-eye coordination and
inner sense of rhythm.
The choice is yours but no matter on which difficulty
the game is played, Beat Saber is a must buy for owners of any major VR
headset (the game can be played on Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PSVR) who
like their games musical and for all who are looking for a perfect VR
game for parties.
Dance Dance Revolution A
No, the title of the game is not a typo; the latest
member of the famous Dance Dance Revolution is called simply A and is
available only on arcade systems in your local video games parlor.
Shame, because previous entries always found their way
to gaming consoles so if you want to dance your way to the top you'll
have to let the whole world see you doing it (or you can simply go with
Just Dance 2019).
The addictive and cardio intensive gameplay is back,
with the famous D-pad dance stage again being used for dancing to the
tunes and dual arcade systems for some casual or even competitive
multiplayer between friends.
There are plenty of songs and players can play songs
featured on older Dance Dance games by unlocking them in Extra Level
game mode. The game is still fun as hell and great for everyone who has
rhythm. The sequel, called Dance Dance Revolution A20 (those names are
just getting better and better) is slated for late March 2019 release
and it will come with new songs, but only in Japan for now.
Guitar Hero Live
The oldest and most recognizable music game franchise
has only one member on current gen consoles, Guitar Hero Live. The game
served as a sort of a Guitar Hero reboot meaning new controllers and no
backward compatibility with old songs like in Rock Band 4 but developers
promised a huge influx of new content via online service dubbed GHTV.
Sadly, GHTV servers went offline a few months ago means
that you can only play the game's original 42 songs that can be found on
the disc. Even worse, Activision closed down servers that hosted GHTV
service just three years after the game came out which practically
doomed the game and left players just with songs that shipped on the
disc.
That's bad but if you want to play a Guitar Hero game on
new hardware, Live is the only option. While songs themselves are far
from the best selection for a Guitar Hero game, the gameplay and the new
"live" background layer made out of crowd and band members who react to
your performance are great additions and new control scheme makes
things a bit more complicated but also more enjoyable once you get the
hang of it.
My personal favorite is Rock Band 4 mainly because it
supports songs featured in previous games, which is unbelievably good in
case you own previous Rock Band games.
Rez Infinite
Tetsuya Mizuguchi is a video game legend, the man who
brought us amazing games such as timeless Lumines, otherworldly Tetris
Effect, and rhythm-based shooter, Rez. Rez was something completely
different back when it debuted on the Sega Dreamcast.
A minimalistic rail shooter with simple polygonal
visuals that revolved around electronic music. There were no sound
effects, no dialogue, just music. Player actions (shooting, aiming,
killing enemies, etc.) would add to the music with subtle effects (like
in Tetris Effect and Lumines) and even further, the whole world beats to
the rhythm of the music, with noticeable visual and sound effects.
Even shooting isn't done in real time. Instead, each
shoot lands along with beats that play in the background, making boss
battles a real test of whether you have the rhythm inside of you or not.
The game has five large levels and with each enemy destroyed players
receive new upgrades and evolve to the next stage (which is represented
by the player's avatar), receiving new weapons and new physical forms.
Rez Infinite is a remaster of the original game out for
the PS4, PC, and Android and it looks and plays great. High resolution
combined with a quality surround system or a pair of audiophile
headphones is the way to play this one. Enjoy supreme electro soundtrack
while battling demons of the digital age and for just a couple of hours
forget about the real world and experience life in polygonal form.
Voez
I saved four similar rhythm games for the end of this
list. All four can be enjoyed on smartphones and tablets (both on
Android and iOS) and some of them can be played on other systems, too.
Voez can be found on the Nintendo Switch and mobile
platforms. The game is a touch-friendly rhythm title that features
gameplay revolving around tapping moving icons that rhythmically appear
while different songs play in the background.
The game proved to be a major hit among mobile gamers
and even the Nintendo Switch version received praise and accolades from
both reviewers and players. Voez ended up as a sort of a rhythm game for
the smartphone era, with touchscreens replacing hefty guitar
controllers and electronic sounds replacing rock and metal riffs.
The game is a relatively soothing experience that gives
you a sort of a physical enjoyment of tapping icons and pulling off
combos while enjoying to music. The game features a story that follows
six different characters (mostly teenagers) while they live their life
over the course of one year. It isn't much but it is a nice addition
that provides additional motivation to play the game.
But you don't have to know a single bit of the story
because Voez is all about its rhythmic tap-based gameplay that is so
good you'll forget about the story each time a new song starts.
Lost in Harmony
Lost in harmony is a mix between a classic rhythm game
for smartphones (tap on those icons in rhythm with the music) and an
endless runner (or better to say skater) but with levels you can
actually finish.
The campaign is made out of lots of different levels,
each placed in a unique area. There are city streets, busy piers filled
with ships delivering goods and huge containers, sunny island piers
idyllic country roads and more. Backgrounds are hand painted and are a
joy to look at while playing the game. You can play Lost in Harmony on
smartphones (Android and iOS are supported), Nintendo Switch, and PC.
The gameplay is made out of evading different obstacles
(depending on the stage), tapping on icons as they appear on the screen
when certain notes play and riding on certain lines that award extra
points.
There are special moves that knockdown bosses (yes,
there are boss battles and they are pretty good) and make them miss
their attacks until they are defeated. Lost in Harmony also features a
story that is much better than in other games shown here. We won't spoil
it for you but you can be sure that the story is well written,
emotional, and interesting to follow through the end.
There are more than 30 levels and while most of them are
easy to beat a couple will surely sweat your hands and put your
reflexes to the test.
Arcaea
This title is for those who don't know what to do with
their immense skill at rhythm games. The playing field is divided with
two lines, one near the bottom of the screen and one placed a bit above
the middle. The bottom one is where you have to tap on notes as they
blaze away at incredible speed, like in Guitar Hero games.
The middle line is for special "chords" that have to be
followed with fingers touching the screen. Harder stages even see the
middle line with individual notes, which can make for extremely tricky
gameplay when the rhythm goes into sixth gear.
The game is pretty unique and while it looks like
classic Guitar Hero and Rock Band games it plays differently and even
early levels can pose a tough challenge.
The best way to play is with thumbs (unlike other
similar touch-based rhythm games that play better with a phone placed
down) while holding the phone because the duality of the playing field
requires thumb coordination and cooperation. Arcaea has a rudimentary
story but it works simply as a vessel to serve players new and trickier
levels.
There are more than 90 songs and new ones arrive regularly via updates. An immense fun that can be found on Android and iOS.
Lanota
Lanota is the most original game from the mobile bunch.
It uses the touchscreen as a drawing board for a large circle with notes
coming out from the middle of it.
The circle is beautifully animated and it looks
gorgeous. You have to not only tap on incoming notes but also to flick
them in various directions, catch them when they arrive at the edge at
the right time, and the game also has rail moves when the player has to
hold down fingers on the screen while following rail lines.
The circle moves its position, it rotates and goes up
and down, creating superb animations with lots of effects; Lanota isn't
only the most original rhythm mobile game featured here, it is also by
far the prettiest.
Songs are of various genres and each one can be played
on three difficulty levels. There's the main story and while not on the
level of the story seen in Lost in Harmony, it's pretty good and serves
its purpose of keeping you hooked till the end of the game.
Lanota looks like if some magical picture book came
alive and its superb combination of gorgeous visuals and original
gameplay puts it on the top of the best rhythm games I've ever seen on a
mobile device. Aside from owners of Android and iOS devices, Lanota can
be played by all of you who own the Nintendo Switch.
Share This :
0 komentar