This ending month's Ura Oni feature is about yet another tune that has seen quite the time lapse between its console debut and its first arcade venue... for a Namco Original, of all things!
Taiko Session
～Live Version～
| Game | Genre |  |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PS2 2 |  | - | ★5 156 | ★6 230 | ★8 230 | - |
| AC Nijiiro (Y6) PS4 (DLC) NS2 (MP) RF | | ★3 58 | ★4 86 | ★6 156 | ★7 230 | ★9 408 |
140
jazz (PS2 2 only) / jazz2From the dawn of the series as the man behind many a Classic song arrangement down to the modern era voicing the Lantern Eel ever since the first Nintendo Switch game, the nicknamed Jesahm (自営山) has a storied Taiko curricula like few other composers, even inside Namco's inhouse wing! He's also had a hand in the creation of a few original songs across the years, with Taiko Session being his very first one, starring Masanobu Murakami (村上正信) for its trackdown process.
Hailing from the base tracklist of Doki! Shinkyoku Darake no Haru Matsuri, Taiko Session has had across the years the... shall we say, dubious achievement of being the 8* Oni song with the lowest note count across the entire series, an "achievement" that became moot after its modern-era revival with a star rating change and the arcade-exclusive Machigai Sagashi from Nijiiro Version's early days stealing the thunder in the ongoing rating standards. What's uncontested to date, however, is the enormous time span that it took from its console debut back in March 2003 to its first arcade foray in Nijiiro Version cabs of June last year, spanning a whopping 8108 days. Only another console-debuting song in Taiko has waited for a longer time for its arcade baptism (Honoo no Fighter) and the closest contender in the Namco Original genre is also another PS2-spawn tune, just shy of reaching the 8000th day at the day of this post's original writing!
The original Muzukashii/Oni mode (nowadays the modern Oni chart) dabbles in both 1/12 and 1/16 charting, mostly leaning on the Don side of things. Ever since the modern-day return via the PS4 entry's DLC roster, unique modes for Kantan and Futsuu were also joined with an Ura Oni that is just as note-light than its regular counterpart is, coupled with the short running time of Taiko Session itself, making it for as little room for accuracy mishaps for 1st-timers to walk out with a clear. It's still flowing as an unalterated, cozy BPM pace, so reading this 9-starred chart should be the least of your worries!
