Song of the Week! 29 January 2022

   

 

While yesterday's 'First Video' post was about tracks that were already covered by us the day before, have an actual brand-new Namco Original getting released today!

 

Hello, Mr.JOKER D-D-Dice
       打打だいず

Game	Genre
AC Nijiiro		★4 (178)	★7 (316)	★8 (484)	★10 (821)	-

185-275
???

The xBox/PC Taiko launch has been... shall we say, an 'interesting' specimen to look after these past days, one that -sadly- reprises the Session de Dodon ga Don approach of unveiling everything the game has to offer Day1 as public-announced content that goes daily that leaves with little to chew on at the moment. So here we sit, about 1 full year since we last talked about the nicknamed D-D-Dice (打打だいず) under these lines with another of his Namco Originals's debut... as another contest winner, nonetheless!

While also trying his mettle on this past contest with the collaboration piece Tendome no Arcanebit (天穹のアルカナビット) co-starring Tanchiky and siromaru, the one piece that made the artist score a consecutive song-contest triumph was the second of his 'lone ranger' pieces, one that by admission of the same author over Twitter (link) was inspired by the brief addiction he got for watching games and Bandai Namco's Little Nightmares, leading to a horror-driven experience. Among the Taiko Team contest judges, steμ definitely wasn't constrained by under-flattering the victor, not only penning the track as 'a perfect balance of pop and technical parts', but also one of the most suitable songs for a music game as to make first listeners wonder (no matter if seasoned Taiko veterans or first-timers) where the song is leading to at every turn, in such an incremental and well-balance approach to make the transition not as dishorienting or tone-deaf. D-D-Dice also made it winning another song contest in 2021, leading to his craft's debut in Taito's Groove Coaster series with the song Cosmostart (コスモスタート).

Hello, Mr.JOKER on Oni plays it straight with no custom scrolling shift trickery outside of the BPM changes, but it sure doesn't lessen the blow of the several 1/12th-to-1/16th shifts! With the latter half anchored at BPM 275, it's also easier than ever to have accuracy mishaps, not only for stamina prowess but also for such hybrid cluster tempo changes in rhythm with really little "visual distinction" of sorts to latch on.