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Apparently Square Enix likes the idea of tossing together the various Final Fantasy franchise heroes a lot. No, this isn't Dissidia 90210, but it is another silly title and this one is called Theathythm FF (theet-rhythm in pronunciation). Theathythm is a crossover in a slightly similar vein to Dissidia (they both host Cosmos and Chaos waging war with FF characters), though Theathythm plays on FF nostalgia in a different way than the PSP Dissidia games and it does so in a particularly effective way for fans of the series.
Many fans of the FF series will often cite the quality of the franchise's soundtracks which are notably well produced and taken seriously with each installment. Theathythm takes several notable tracks from the long running history of the series and makes them into a playable format somewhat similar to DS rhythm hits like Ouendan (an import only DS series) and Elite Beat Agents in some regards, while adding an FF RPG flavor to the mix. This admittedly sounds rather bizarre and honestly it is but behold, bizarre is not awful.
-The rhythm-
Theatrhythm is all about playing a music/rhythm game first and foremost. Like the above mentioned DS titles, you'll be tapping, sliding, and holding to the beat of FF tracks in the game. The creators (Indies Zero, developing for Square Enix on this one) took the game seriously when it came to syncing the tapping and sliding to the various FF tracks involved. Many tracks benefit from highlighting the sound of your input and following the beat very well, particularly in the case of some battle tracks (such as FFXIII's Saber's Edge).
There are three types of songs which each have their own sort of style name. These three are event stage music ("ESM", generally slow paced and featuring videos from the original games in the background), field stage music ("FSM", these tend to be overworld tracks and have a more moderate speed), and battle stage music (the fast tracks where your characters do battle in according to your performance). These three categorizations do more than just convey the type and speed of a track you'll play; they'll actually highlight some of the strengths of some characters a bit better than others. More on that a bit later.
There are three main methods of play in Theathythm. The first is "Series" play, in which you select an FF game (1-13) and play a series of tracks from it. Each series includes an opening theme, FSM, ESM, and BSM, ending theme. Opening and ending themes are aren't major play tracks and merely a way of earning extra points in a series, they are purely optional to play. When you play one of these themes you merely tap to the beat (the little notes floating towards the center crystal) to earn rhythm points, there's no intended challenge in these. They are more or less extras for fans to have fun with. The meat of the course are the field, event, and battle tracks stringed together.
Any track you play in Series will be unlocked for general play, called "Challenge" in the game's main play menu. Here you can play in a score attack format or practice tracks already unlocked as well as watch demos of perfect plays to get an idea for the rhythm of the track as well as how it is played. This is where you'll go for brushing up your skills in tracks as well as just playing your favorite songs to to your heart's content.
The last play menu is the "Chaos Shrine" where you can unlock some smaller gauntlet plays with some generally tougher enemies and better loot. These short 2 track runs are unlocked by acquiring dark notes during Series play. This mode is the one you'll want to play to grind up a few levels or earn some treasure such as the unlock crystals for new characters.
-The RPG-
As mentioned earlier, your character selections matter a bit even though this is a rhythm game. When you play FSMs having a character with higher agility tends to help the chances of your character finding moogles and other characters which will present you items when you stroll past them. In BSMs having characters with good strength or magic means you'll probably plow through more enemies before the track finishes, concluding the battle. More enemies defeated mean more chances for items and more experience.
Characters also boast abilities as they level up which can be equipped to add benefits in stages. These range from passive stat boosts, to saving your hide when your HP drops from messing up/missing notes, to harder damaging attacks for landing different note streaks. It's also worth pointing out that your survival in a song depends on your HP, which is directly linked to the leveling process, thus leveling up through playing tracks helps you last out the tougher tracks in the game.
While the RPG elements are a bit superficial and not necessary to enjoy the game as-is, they do add an interesting layer to the play and will likely help those who struggle through certain tracks. It adds a tactical layer that you can choose to take advantage of.
-The difficulty-
Theatrhythm is smart in that it includes difficulties that are fair for most people. The basic difficulty is good for casual rhythm gamers and highlights the core points of a track. Basic is the difficulty to play when you want to enjoy a song. Expert takes things up a notch and really emphasizes more notes in a track as well as adding a few curveballs (such as mix ups in slides). Expert is a perfect balance in challenge and enjoyment of a track (especially through hearing how the inputs highlight the track played). Ultimate is the difficulty that will try to crush you. You don't play this unless you want a challenge. Some tracks are pretty brutal in ultimate and add a very good challenge to tracks that feel easily possible in expert. Overall Theathythm ensures there's a difficulty for those who want to enjoy the music and nostalgia or challenge it.
-The chibis... and graphical notes-
Augh, why is this game adorable?! Even as a guy I have to admit the characters all have some nauseatingly adorable look to them. For those who don't know, chibis are pint-sized big headed versions of (usually anime-like) characters. Theathythm is essentially Chibi Dissidia with music battles. Even the classic FF villains and monsters are chibi caricatures, and don't get me started on chibi Ifrit and the other summons.
Graphically the game isn't mind-blowing but everything animates smoothly at 60 frames per second even with 3D on. The video clips shown in events (ESMs) are pulled from each respective FF game and fit the 3DS resolution well. I'm not really sure if the videos are in true 3D though; if they are then not enough of the scenes I've paid attention to show it off well enough.
Overall Theathythm looks clean throughout its menus and play and it really isn't afraid of trying to look "cute". You're not convincing anybody you're tough playing this game. You look at that predominantly blue button-eyed pint-sized cast and try to tell somebody you're the meanest 3DS owner.
-Closing-
Theathythm is an entertaining FF spin-off. When I heard of Dissidia's concept I at least foresaw that panning out decent at the very least. When I heard of Theathrythm I was a bit skeptical as to how they were going to implement RPG elements in the rhythm genre of all things. In a way they probably took the right route by not shoving it so hard on the player immediately. Unless you play the more challenging material on higher difficulties it doesn't feel inherently necessary to utilize the RPG/technical aspects of the game, allowing it to be enjoyed as the rhythm game it is first and foremost but also give players depth if they want it.
Fans of the long running Final Fantasy series will probably be most accepting of this game upfront, especially given the franchise's soundtrack history. Rhythm fans in general could also enjoy it as it plays similar enough to other experiences while adding its own twist as well as its own niche of music. Ultimately I think the final factor in determining enjoyment when it comes to rhythm games is the soundtrack included. If you like the music of the FF series you'll very likely enjoy this game. Otherwise ti may be a coin toss, in which case you should sample some tracks online and see if you dig playing them in this title.
--Pros--
- Many tracks, spanning Final Fantasy 1-13
- Several chibi heroes to play as and unlock
- Fair difficulties that let you enjoy or take on the music
- 1st DLC capable 3DS game in the states, so a content thick game can get thicker
--Cons--
- The RPG elements many not feel necessary to some players
- Tracks are generally short; it's part of how they fit so many in
- You're probably going to be grinding for some of those unlocks so hopefully you enjoy what you're doing
--Chibis--
- Nauseatingly adorable button-eyed big heads
- 'nuff said
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This game is super fun and I’ve waited so long for this game to be a real thing. This game has a lot of songs that you can so conveniently purchase individually for like $1 each and there’s prolly like 30+ songs that are optional to buy. They’re optional but obviously should’ve just been included in the game. 🙄 You’re honestly way better off getting Final Fantasy Theatrhythm Curtain Call, because it has all the DLC included. This game has 3 modes for each song, beginner, expert, and ultimate, and a practice mode so you can try out the songs at their hardest without losing. Ultimate mode is hella hella challenging, some of the songs on ultimate you can get used to. Others are nearly impossible unless you’re a true weeb. There’s also a quest mode where you do random songs and face a boss at the end. And there’s multiplayer although I’ve never personally played it. Id rate this game a 9 out of 10. Won’t give it a 10 because the inclusion of so many songs to purchase is a huge money grab. Just get FFT Curtain Call instead.
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