Before Hallyu, or the Korean Wave came about, the mid to late 1990s and the early 2000s were the era where all things Japanese were considered cool. Cultural exports including anime, manga, J-drama and J-pop were very well received. It was not uncommon to hear Glay, Speed, Long Vacation, Rurouni Kenshin or Slam Dunk to be mentioned in conversation. It was an era in which Japanese arcade machines were being both the pinnacle of technology and weird at the same time; on one hand you have simulators that can go 360-degrees and on another, you have Dance Dance Revolution machines which players play using their feet (and hand motions).
Speaking of weird looking arcade machines, the Taiko no Tatsujin arcade drumming rhythm game took to skeuomorphism whereby the arcade controller was literally a traditional Japanese drum and a couple of drumsticks. This quirky game from Namco served as a forebear for games such as Ouendan and Elite Beat Agents. While I’ve not play Taiko in any of its console incarnations previously, I was pleasantly surprised to find the latest release, Taiko no Tatsujin: The Drum Master!, was available as a PC and Xbox Series S/X exclusive AND available on Game Pass.
So, I noticed that for the Nintendo Switch release of Taiko no Tatsujin, Hori came up with a Taiko Drum Controller (click here to get it) for that console. Unfortunately, the amazing-looking drum controller is not compatible with the Xbox Series S/X or the PC. I have been using the Xbox Core Controller with mixed results on the game. The problem with the Core Controller would be the X, Y, A and B buttons are too mushy, and the shoulder buttons are just too slow, resulting in mistimed notes.
The game fares a bit better on the PC when played with a mechanical keyboard such as the Logitech G610. No matter the controller, I’m just happy that the game features one of my favorite anime songs, The Cruel Angel’s Thesis from Evangelion, and the funny, animated backdrops featuring a plethora of characters as you progress through any of the songs is just something to look forward to. The base game offers up a range of tracks under several categories such as pop, anime, game music, vocaloid, NAMCO originals, classical and variety.
Doing well to hit the notes will also introduce you to the game’s economy whereby you are rewarded with coins that you can use to purchase new tracks, costumes for your cute little taiko avatar, nameplates, and greetings, amongst other things. There are also DLC song packs that you can purchase with real-world dollars through the Microsoft Store.
If you love music games, or miss the likes of Ouendan and Elite Beat Agents, Taiko no Tatsujin is definitely worth checking out. It’s available on Game Pass for both PC and Xbox Series S/X.
