Header Menu

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Song of the Week! 19 February 2011

 

It's that time of the week again! This week it's my choice. Wanna know which song caught my eye?

  Onpu no Uta (音符のうた)
Version
Taiko PS2 4x2 (89)x2 (154) x2 (225)x4 (303)
Taiko PSP 1x1 (85)x2 (144) x2 (209)x4 (285)
Taiko PS2 4, Taiko PSP 1, CD Donderful
120
none
 dojo


Taiko PS2 7 tutorial video
Taiko PSP 2 tutorial video
Taiko Drum Master tutorial video

Although it isn't awfully hard, Onpu no Uta is one of the more interesting Namco Originals to learn about in the PS2/PSP generation. Starting from PS2 Yondaime and going all the way up to Nanadaime/Portable 2, Onpu no Uta was used in the tutorial teaching newbies how to play the game. Unlike any other tutorial, Onpu no Uta is interactive, and you actually get to hit the on-screen notes while Onpu no Uta explains how to play in singsong fashion. Depending on the version and the new features added to Taiko, the lyrics of the song change accordingly. From Godaime onwards, extra lyrics were added for the Yam note and Go-Go Time, and this extra line was changed for the Bell note in PSP. There's even an English version of this song used in Taiko Drum Master's tutorial, though it was never in the actual song list. Naturally, the vocals are immediately recognizable as Don-chan's voice actor, Narahashi Miki. If simply explaining the play method seems confusing, Onpu no Uta will guide you through and make sure you get the basics in your head- in style! After all, seeing and playing is way more effective to learning Taiko than reading instructions!

For all the games Onpu no Uta has been in, it's only playable outside of Tutorial mode on two games only- PS2 Yondaime and Portable 1. Being a 4* song on Oni, like I said earlier it won't be especially known for its difficulty. Both versions are slightly different in the number of notes and the types of notes that appear, which are mostly 1/12 and 1/24 clusters. You'll also notice through all difficulties of the song that when it is singing about a particular note, more of that type of note will show up. For example, when it sings about red notes, there's a bunch of red notes. When it sings about big notes, there's lots of big notes. When it sings about the Bell note, there's one right there, and so on! Make sure you don't miss out on this interesting song if you have one of the two versions!