Platform: DS
Genre: Rythm
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: iNiS
ETA: Q4 2006
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Nintendo’s “Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan!”, released in Japan for the DS last summer, was an extremely bizarre rhythm game that really showed off the strengths of the touch screen. Unfortunately, it was a little bit too bizarre. The story of Ouendan focused on a group of gruff male cheerleaders, who would pop up to aid any average citizen in trouble and cheer them to victory. If this concept wasn’t strange enough, some of the stories would be a bit too alienating for overseas audiences – how many Americans care about matsuri festivals or ramen shops? Furthermore, the whole soundtrack was comprised of popular J-Pop songs, which would cause all kinds of licensing issues if it were localized. So for a long time, it seemed like Ouendan would be destined to stay in its homeland.

Thankfully, Nintendo saw the light, and is now bring the game to America under the title “Elite Beat Agents.” In the process, they’ve retooled the entire game, creating a whole slew of new scenarios while still maintaining the same flippant goofiness that made the Japanese version so appealing. The delinquents from the original version have been replaced with tough guy agents in suits, apparently part of a super secret organization similar to the FBI or CIA. One has a ridiculous pompadour. Another has a huge, red afro. They all wear sunglasses. The leader is named Commander Khan, who covertly observes the needy

citizens of the country and sends his elite agents to cheer them one. One of the people in trouble is a young girl who has to woo a young football jock while babysitting some bratty kids. Another details the harrowed journey of a dog separated from his owner. Yet another involved a director who has persistent problems on the movie set. The story is told with comic-style animation on the top of the screen, with a very distinct, exaggerated, and humorous style.

The gameplay in Elite Beat Agents is simple. Numbered circles appear on the bottom screen,

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with an outline slowly closing in. Hit the outline when it reaches the circle, and you’ll succeed. Miss the beat and you’ll lose part of the “Elite-o-meter”, which is essentially your health gauge. If it drops too low, the person you’re cheering on will fail, and it’s time to start from scratch. The action starts out simple, but eventually, you’re hitting several different markers all over the screen, tracing patterns, and spinning wheels in an attempt to stay in the game.

So far, Nintendo has only announced two new songs for the game: Deep Purple’s “Highway Star” and Steriogram’s “Walkie Talkie Man”. The Japanese version had around fifteen songs, so hopefully this American rendition will have the about the same number. There’s no release date yet, but anyone remotely interested should definitely import Ouendan if they haven’t already (there’s no region lockout on the DS and it’s easy to understand) to hold them over until Elite Beat Agents is finally released.

- Kurt Kalata

(June 16, 2006)