My turn~! Today I'm picking a personal favorite of mine (actually, make that my most favorite Taiko song, period). Don't worry, it's a pretty popular song among fans as well.
Kimi no Akari (きみのあかり)
| Version |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All | x4 (166) | x4 (232) | x5 (306) | x5 (382) |
Taiko 13, 14, Taiko 0 M, Taiko PSP2, Taiko Wii 3, Taiko Wii U1, CD Donderful
129
none
ryowhWell, this was quite a surprise when the final secret code of Taiko 13 was released. Everyone was already expecting mint tears to be unlocked, along with 'another song'. Against all expectations, that 'another song' didn't turn out to be an uber-tough final boss (especially since mint tears was, as a 10* Oni, quite easy to clear), but one of the easiest Namco Original songs ever made. Even a rookie Oni player could pass it without breaking a sweat.
So how did it get so popular? Namco Originals typically have two routes to the fanbase's heart- either it's an extreme, unprecedented challenge...or the song is calming, touching and sweet. Kimi no Akari took the second route and set the gold standard for great-sounding songs in Namco Original. Few have matched its quality after Taiko 13. According to the official blog, Kimi no Akari is a 'pop song filled with elements of real life', and has the qualities of the ending theme song for Taiko 13. It is in fact a very fitting goodbye song. Kimi no Akari was well-loved by fans, having being already ported over to both PSP2 and Taiko Wii 3, and continuing its arcade run on Taiko 14. The person who sang it is a new face, Ayano Yasuda (安田彩乃), while the composer is Ryo Watanabe (渡辺量), as also suggested by the song's ID.
As mentioned before, it's one of the easiest Namco Originals in a long while. The last time there was a 5* Oni Namco Original song.....that was way back, 8 arcade machines ago, in Taiko 5. It starts off very calm and almost too easy, then picks up the pace in Go-Go Time, filled with many continuous blue-blue-red clusters. Still, it's all worth it just to listen to the song. It achieved something many Taiko heads thought would be near impossible; be a popular Taiko song at the lowest difficulty possible.
Kimi no Akari (きみのあかり)
| Version | | | | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taiko Wii 3 | x5 (214) | x6 (278) | x7 (486) | x8 (724) |
| Taiko 0 M, Taiko Wii U1 | x8 (724) |
Taiko 0 M, Taiko Wii 3, Taiko Wii U1 129 none exryowInevitably, half of all popular Namco Originals would get a Ura Oni difficulty, and this was no exception. The only difference? It didn't come out on the arcade first, but on Taiko Wii 3. Made a whole lot harder and saturated with notes, raising the difficulty significantly to 8*. The total number of notes in this is almost double that of the regular Oni, which is a huge difference. Like Yawaraka Sensha and Sanpo before it, Kimi no Akari's Ura Oni is a 'nonstop' song. Clusters of three and five notes come at you from the beginning and last all the way to the end. It's not as intense as either one, but that's pretty much a given.
Kimi no Akari was cut out from all songlists soon after Taiko 14 ended, so this Ura never got to see play outside of Wii 3. However its confirmed revival on Taiko no Tatsujin Sorairo Version and Wii U could give this Ura a chance to shine again.
