The game features 42 songs at the outset of the game but an additional 6 tracks may be unlocked as certain conditions are met. The music ranges the genres of J-pop, children's songs, folk music, and familiar anime tracks from Futari wa Puricure and Naruto. The Namco original song, "Bouken Hiyori" is hot and all of the classical music remixes are great including "Beethoven's Turkish March" which is a lively and animated interpretation that plays fast and pounds it out with a driving beat in the background. Other notable songs include "Re:member" of Naruto fame, "Mahou o kakete" which is an Idolm@ster song, "Pecori Love Lesson," "Real Voice," and "Next Level." They're all gems and we're nabbing the soundtrack whenever it reaches market.

The full name for this game is: Taiko no Tatsujin Doka! to Oomori Nanadame.

View the back cover and screenshots on the main NCSX website.

NCS Game Notes
» In the intro to the game, the sun rises behind a house and the Taikos inside and their master wake up. Master parts the curtains to soak in the sun and he runs outside with Taikos in tow to engage in a snowball fight with the girl next door. Other imagery in the intro: A scientist works on a mecha-Taiko which explodes, Twin Taiko Santa Clauses race across the sky on a single reindeer drawn sleigh while glitter trails them, more Taiko clowning, fireworks, etc.

» When you chain a bunch of combos together, watch the bottom part of the screen and witness a show as Taikos dance, spin, and the crowd goes crazy for the action.

» A total of 42 songs are available at the outset but 6 more may be unlocked for a total of 48 tracks. The music is vibrant and highly energetic with "Real Voice," "Your World," "Next Level," "Re:member," "BrandNewWorld," and "Pecori of Love Lesson." The Remember song is from Naruto. Additional tracks include:

- Soul Calibur III New Legend song
- Mappy Medley with Mappy music and sound effects mixed together
- Georges Bizet - The Woman From Arles
- J.F. Wagner - Under the Double Eagle
- Beethoven's Turkish March
- Pyotr Ilich Tchaikovsky's Russian Dance
- Eduardo Di Capua O Solo Mio (hot dance mix version)

» A tutorial teaches the ways of Taiko smacking with a simple exercise which shows the proper cues to hit on the Taiko drum with depictions on the lower part of the screen.

» In the Story mode, the Taikos receive a letter from the drumsticks who are wearing red and blue eyeglasses. A voice-over relays the intent of the correspondence while scrolling text appears in front of the Taiko sticks (male and female). Afterwards, the Taiko is transported to a strange land where it moves to different spots in order to engage in Taiko no Tatsujin drum smacking games. As games are conquered, new paths open up for Taiko to travel to new areas.

» Mini-games are selected by going into the second option on the main menu. Once selected, four mini-game options open up as follows:

1) Snowball fight - The player controls a boy on the bottom of the screen who faces an adversary on the top of the screen. Move left and right by pressing the L1 and R1 triggers and toss snowballs by pressing left on the D-pad and the "O-button." Three mounds of snow are on each side to hide behind but the enemy can whittle away the height of a mound by hitting it with snowballs. Hit the enemy or get hit 3X and game is over.

2) Toy Delivery - Become a Taiko Santa and drop gifts to sleeping children while flying over their houses. Houses with children inside are indicated by "sleeping children" indicators. Press the D-pad to the left or the O button to drop the gifts while the L1 and R2 triggers slow down or speed up the sleigh's trajectory through the sky. When you see a Christmas tree, drop a gift on it and it'll boom upwards. Out of all the mini-games in this collection, the people in our office building thought it was the most adorable but it's pretty difficult to time the drops.

3) True or False - Taiko no Tatsujin joins the Brain Trainer wave with simple brain exercises. If the statement shown on the screen is false, press the R1 or L1 trigger. If the statement is true, press left on the D-pad or O. For example, if the screen shows 1 + 5 = 2, press either trigger since its a false statement. If the screen shows an assemblage of blocks that total 8 squares but the diagram states a total of 7 squares, press either trigger again since the statement is false. Please note that some questions require Japanese language comprehension in order to answer correctly.

4) Rocket Mecha Taiko Launch - Smack the Taiko like a maniac to energize a rocket-powered Taiko so that it launches during the countdown. Once the countdown begins, smack like a madman to bump up the level of power. Once launched, the power that you built up is used to send the Taiko into the stratosphere. While in transit, press the L1 or R2 triggers to avoid obstacles in the sky. During the ascent, it's possible to jettison rocket boosters and parts so that the main Taiko "ship" goes as high as possible.

This document is ©NCSX 2006. All rights reserved. No reproduction in whole or in part of this document may be made without express written consent of National Console Support, Inc.