Made by You: Raspberry Heart and more

Today's three charts are all from osu!Taiko! If you have some Jiro charts in the wings, just drop us a message with a video link at the usual places (in chat or through the Facebook group would be ideal) and we'll pick it up!

Song of the Week! 29 June 2013

Even after the Variety genre was deprived of a good chunk of songs (with all the Vocaloid songs moving into their own folder in Sorairo), new songs are still made for this quirky section which still mirrors some of Japan's interesting aspects. Just like today's feature!

Taiko no Tatsujin Plus - Introducing the Amazing Song Pack

While we are waiting for a Summer pack of new songs for the third PSP Taiko game (as the Spring DLC release has already hinted to), smartphone users can feast their eyes on another selection of recent Namco Original songs for the Taiko + game.

Mario Kart Arcade GP DX Taiko no Tatsujin courses

Been dying to see footage of the Taiko no Tatsujin Mario Kart course? Here's a high quality screenshot of it at last! It looks like your basic Mario Kart loop track so it's not really that difficult....wait, there's more!



It's not the only Taiko course in the game; here is some footage from way back in JAEPO 2013 which we missed out, showcasing a different course with some underwater parts. It's too bad the player chose DK instead of Don-chan, otherwise we could have seen him in action!

Anyway, Mario Kart Arcade GP DX will probably be making a showing at the World Hobby Fair 13 so there will probably be more footage there!

Namco Taiko Blog (27 June 2013) - July's Donchare/Notechart Making

This Thursday's blog entry forecasts a pretty lively beginning period for Taiko in July. What's new this time?

Namco Taiko Blog (26 June 2013): GUMI Contest Winner Interviews

It's finally happened; the results of a year-old contest is finally surfacing on Taiko and the team gave the winners their long-deserved interviews. The four winning composers interviewed are:

Harunaba, composer of Kohi no Aji to.
Ryuwitty, composer of new 10* challenge Juukinzou Fugitive.
Noriyuki, composer of Dokidoki Koi no Yokan!?
Toyonaga Gonta P, composer of Ninjinnin.

Sorairo firmware 2.21 - First videos of the new GUMI songs

After IA's songs were put into Sorairo last week, the five GUMI songs that were delayed due to her birthday being today are finally released, and four of them are the CreoFUGA contest winners.

Taiko no Tatsujin: Shinkyoku Tori Houdai x Kumatomo

What in the world is Kumatomo? Well, you could think of it as Nintendogs with the dogs replaced with smarter, talking teddy bears, and you spend the day interacting with them in different ways. It's not such a weird collab when you realize that Namco is making it. There's a 3DS version and...you guessed it, a smartphone version for auSmart Pass users. Hence the collab with Taiko Shinkyoku Tori Houdai.

The collab is simple; for a limited time, players of the Taiko game will be able to download the theme song of Kumatomo via auSmart Pass and play it. Called 'Oshiete Kuma Tomo', the song is a squeakier, remixed version of Mori no Kumasan (yep, remember that one?). Listen to it here and decide whether you like it or not!

The song is not all you get; there's a special title screen for Taiko as well as special dancers and a teddy bear drum face when you play the song! The song ends with an advert for Kumatomo (hope this doesn't happen every single time you play the song though!)

A Youtube video on the main site shows the teddy bear asking the player what his favorite game is, and you can put Taiko no Tatsujin as an answer too.

Made By You: Special Packer Feature II

Allowing good music to accumulate without featuring them is bad practice, and Packer suddenly turned up with tons of new compositions and accompanying charts so it's time for another Packer special!

Namco Taiko Blog (21 June 2013): Bugfix for Sorairo on Monday

Short one, in relation to the glitch reported in the emergency update on Wednesday night, where players couldn't get their gold medals for clearing 9 Dan and 10 Dan on the Dojo Ranking even though the rank, costume and Joubutsu 2000 are unlocked as normal.

The update goes live on 7am, June 24 2013. It will go under the version name of Sorairo 3.04, rather than keeping the current version number.

Link to original post

Song of the Week! 22 June 2013

Last Thursday's mention about Denden candies made me feel a little bit nostalgic, so today's song comes from the library of Taiko DS' licensed songs! Our first pick for the summer is...

Namco Taiko Blog (20 June 2013) - Taiko at World Hobby Fair '13 Summer

Summer is approaching once again! Time for another bi-annual World Hobby Fair. A Namco Bandai booth will be there to feature the latest stuff in the Taiko franchise, among other things. 

Namco Taiko Blog (19 June 2013): Bugfix in Sorairo Game Version 2.21

Emergency blog post by the Taiko Team just a few hours ago. Apparently there's a glitch in the highest two courses, 9 Dan and 10 Dan. Players are unable to get gold level clears on those two even after clearing all the conditions (although their costumes and Dan rank are updated).

This oversight will be fixed in an emergency update very soon.

Link to original post

Dojo Ranking returns...with a vengeance

The Dojo Ranking mode is back with a whopping 15 courses and an almost full Dan grade system (sans the highest honor given to rhythm gods, Kaiden rank). What better way to see the aesthetic changes in this revamped mode than to watch it for yourself? All those bars rising and falling, keeping track of your progress...Exciting, though a bit slow while changing screens.

We mentioned there was a special surprise in the Dojo Ranking mode right? It's tucked away in the final challenge, the 10 Dan course. Here's a high-quality capture of someone gracefully failing the course, which involves Doom Noiz, Ryougen no Mai, and a hellspawn unknown song.

Want to know what it is? Watch the video!

Sorairo firmware 2.21 - First videos of the new IA songs

The 2.21 June software update for the current Taiko arcade is released today, starting with the public introduction of two IA songs which were previously featured as event-only songs for the NicoNico Super Conference 2 event. The first one is Enmei Chiryou (5/5/6/8), while the second one is Yobanashi Deceive (4/4/7/9). There is still no trace of that new, unknown IA song by Ishifuro announced weeks ago in a Taiko Team blog post.

We'll update the Sorairo-related pages again with the new Dojo Ranking lists, and there's a lot more to achieve in it than the one back in Katsu-Don. There's a really big surprise in it too...

Chiheisen no Aeolia lyrics

Composer: Nozomi Iwase (岩瀬望), K-MASERA from JBG Music Academy
Lyrics: Sariya-jin (サリヤ人)
Vocals: Natsumi (なつみ) from Silver Forest

Random: Taiko stage play

A TV show called Kasou Taishou, which allows for stage plays and then the performers get ratings on how good their play it. (it's a TV show on Youtube so watch it before it gets yanked off the Internet!)

Can you believe this is all done by just one person? The dummy in front controlled by pedals, the note scrolling and all the other stuff on the screen done with his hands. Genius.

Song of the Week! 15 May 2013

The Taiko Team has gone on a birdwatch with their recent Namco Originals, and we're here to cover it! Two very recent, bird-related Namco Original songs are being featured on this blog, with the latest entry for the space-themed SORA song series page and today's Saturday feature, coming from the Sorairo as well.

Namco Taiko Blog (13 June 2013) - Let's make music together!

After the two previous blog entries about Taiko Team sensation Etou's approach on making both notecharts and music for Taiko, today Etou himself wants your suggestions for the making of a brand new chart for the incoming summer arcade tournament!

Behind the Drums: Tatsuya Shimizu @ Zeami

One of the many enigmatous faces in the Taiko Team, Zeami (世阿弥) does not refer to the 14th century Japanese playwright/actor, but is used as a covert alias for Tatsuya Shimizu (清水達也), a prominent composer from Bemani, whose portfolio includes famous rhythm games such as beatmania IIDX, Pop'n Music and many, many other rhythm games.

Zeami is the brainchild of two Namco Original song series, the no Mai series and subsequently the five songs of the Rose series, both of which garnered huge popularity for its blockbuster impact, great-sounding songs, and very difficult Oni charts (Zeami himself charts many of the songs he composed). For a very long time, Zeami had refused to give away even a small hint about his true identity. Not even his face is shown in public!

Since the beginning when he composed Ryougen no Mai, fans were busy speculating his true identity, and all the small bits of evidence gathered from tweets, music style (Blue Rose Ruin) and charts (such as White Rose Insanity Ura's balloon note scrolling at 5.73x speed) points to a certain other composer from a certain other rhythm games-making group.

The ball is finally dropped on June 2014 during the finals of the Taiko Tournament 2013, five long years after he first started making songs for Taiko, when Zeami finally, officially steps out onto the stage revealing himself to be Tatsuya Shimizu, to introduce everyone to his latest Taiko creation, Yuugen no Ran (幽玄ノ乱), confirming all fan speculation, and mentions that a future composition of his would use his Bemani alias Tatsh.

Tatsh's history in the rhythm giant Bemani is long and full of great songs, and they are out of the scope of this blog. A full bio and his song portfolio on Konami's rhythm games can be found here.

Besides Taiko no Tatsujin, this composer also made some compositions for Taito's Music GunGun! 2 and Groove Coaster using the alias Zeami, with some of which also appearing on Taiko games thanks to arcade collaboration events. Tatsuya Shimizu also made songs for Capcom's CROSSxBEATS series, as well as for Rayark's mobile music games Cytus (as Persona) and Deemo.

Website
Twitter

Namco Original

• Ryougen no Mai (燎原ノ舞) (also charter) (*)
• Senpuu no Mai (旋風ノ舞)
• Tenyou no Mai (天妖ノ舞)
• Black Rose Apostle (also charter for Ura)
• White Rose Insanity
• Red Rose Evangel
• Blue Rose Ruin
• Purple Rose Fusion
• Yuugen no Ran (幽玄ノ乱) (also charter)
• Xa
• Souryuu no Ran (双竜ノ乱)
• Shikou no Ran (紫煌ノ乱)
• Amaterasu (天照)

Game Music

• Music Revolver ( ミュージック・リボルバー)
• Day of the future

Other Music Games Songs

beatmania IIDX

• CARRY ON NIGHT (English version)
• PLATONIC-XXX
• Don't be afraid myself
• Sphere
• RED ZONE
• GENOCIDE
• Love Again...
• Twelfth Style
• Under the Sky
• Gekkou (月光)
• Scripted Connection⇒
• Xepher
• Mei (冥)
• The Dirty of Loudness
• Double♡♡Loving Heart
• Tashikanamono (タシカナモノ)
• D.C.fish
• Zenius -I- vanisher
• DEEP ROAR
• Kachoufusetsu (華蝶風雪)
• Bleeding Luv ～Immorality act～
• reunion
• ANTHEM LANDING
• 24th Century BOY
• Change the World
• SHADE
• The Limbo
• Trust -MATERIAL ver-
• Light and Cyber...
• SYNCH-ANTHEM
• Kasoukuukan no Tabibitotachi (仮想空間の旅人たち)

DanceDanceRevolution

• Lesson by DJ
• Trust -DanceDanceRevolution mix-
• Uranus
• Lesson2 by DJ
• WILD SIDE

Guitarfreaks & Drummania / GITADORA

• Venus
• Ryusei JUMP! (流星☆JUMP!)
• Like&Love

jubeat

• HEAVENLY MOON
• Souten (蒼天)

pop'n music

• Tougen Emaki (桃源絵巻)
• Mahjong Fight Club Tokubetsu Setsuzokukyoku (麻雀格闘倶楽部特別接続曲)
• Tabidachi no Uta (旅立ちの唄)
• BREAK THROUGH THE DREAM
• Sweets Dream (スイーツ・ドリーム)

Reflec Beat

• Toumei na Emotion (透明なエモーション)
• Kirakira Station (キラキラ☆ステーション)
• IMAGE -MATERIAL-
• Wizard

CROSSxBEATS

• Impact
• Cross + Angel
• CrossShooter
• I.D.
• Chase the WAVE
• Devil's Classic
• Chase the WAVE
• THE SUN
• S.T.E
• EVERYTHING
• Impact
• Awake,Speedy

Groove Coaster

• Groove Revolver (グルーヴ・リボルバー)
• Seija no Kodou (聖者の鼓動)
• Seija no Ibuki (聖者の息吹)
• Weave Detonator
• FOUR SEASONS OF LONELINESS verβ feat. Sariya-jin (FOUR SEASONS OF LONELINESS verβ feat.サリヤ人)
• STARLIGHT TWILIGHT -GC edit- 
• CYBER Sparks
• Reishiki   (零式)
• Cruel Moon NuMIX
• Messiah no Kaigo (メシアの邂逅)
• FREE CONNECTION 2 -G.C. Special Edit Ver.- (FREE CONNECTION 2 -G.C.スペシャルエディットVer.-)
• BlazeConductor
• FullMoon
• White World

Pump It Up

• Creed -1st Desire- feat. Yu Oda (信仰 -1st Desire- feat. 小田ユウ)
• Sora no Shirabe (空の調べ)
• Ai, Yurete... (哀、揺れて…)
• PRIME

Cytus

• Green Eyes
• Area184
• Realize
• Red Eyes
• Blue Eyes
• Molto Allegro
• Area184 -Platinum Mix-
• ARMA

Deemo

• Daylight
• From RestedPoint
• Rise Up
• Rebellion
• Raise Your Luv

maimai

• GEMINI -M-

Chunithm

• GEMINI -C-

(*): The long version of this song is known as Shin Ryougen no Mai (真・燎原ノ舞).

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pikaby asks: Potential SORA-VII

Earth Rise, Gliese 581, Heliopause, Bunpasong, Cosmic Bird, Hinotori.

The six songs that make up Namco's little space series of Namco Originals (SORA-VI will be up on song series page very soon!), and one series that Namco has not given up on since it arrived on Taiko Wii 2. All of them with their own unique brand of music and tones that emphasize how varied and unknown our universe is.

Though not all of the SORA songs have obvious astronomy references (SORA-IV), there are tons and tons of other space-related stuff that could potentially fit into a SORA-VII, if it gets made. What would you name SORA-VII, and what musical style do you want it to have? Do share~!

Song of the Week! 8 June 2013

The Vocaloid hype train has been a hell of a ride this week, with eight new Vocaloid songs hitting the Taiko arcade this month, and in addition, the PS3 videogame Project Diva F is being localized in August for both North America and Europe. Sounds like the perfect timing for another Saturday Vocaloid feature here, isn't it?

Kinniku no You na Bokura lyrics

Composer, lyricist: Yoshito Yano (矢野義人)
Vocals: Kani Prince (蟹プリンス)

Namco Taiko Blog (6 June 2013): Double CreoFUGA results!

After months of waiting, the results for both the 2013 CreoFUGA song composing contest and the April Fools DOKODON FIGHTERS song composing contest is finally announced!

Namco Taiko Blog (5 June 2012) - Taiko Sorairo June firmware update

Surprise update time! Today a new Sorairo firmware update has been announced (Game Version 2.21), introducing a lot of stuff which has been anticipated for months while also adding something completely new which wasn't mentioned before.

Random: Mascot Character Taiko Battle

Not very often you see people in huge mascot costumes play Taiko, let alone two at the same time! Each city and town in Japan have their own mascot characters showcasing the special characteristics of that area, and many of them regularly have public appearances and show themselves in mascot gatherings all over Japan.

Both the characters here are mascots of Utsunomiya, the capital city of Tochigi prefecture. On the left is the samurai cat Utsuno-mya Kunitsuna, and on the right is a more cute, flowery mascot called Miyari. It's considered a sort of sport to catch regional mascots in action and take pictures with them and stuff!

Personaly, my favorite mascot is Miya-chan, the mascot of Kokonoe town in Oita prefecture, designed by Atsuko Nishida, one of the main artists for Pokemon! I'd like to see her play Taiko some day.

First video of SORA-VI Hinotori

And the latest entry in the SORA series is unlocked! Look at that badass Oni chart (on P1). Many break areas, yes, but when things heat up, they really heat up. From the standard 3/5 note clusters, it changes to 2/4 and back again with no time for you to adjust to it, and the last quarter is made up of 1/12s. Very fun-looking chart, 9* Oni with 666 notes (difficulty 5/5/7/9)

"Hinotori" refers to a phoenix, but in this case the name comes from an orbiting Japanese satellite by the same name. Astronomical references is back!

Song of the Week! 1 June 2013

Let's start this month of June with a double pick that can both be considered as a single song! Can you figure what it is (or 'what they are')?