At the Game Developer's Choice Awards at GDC, I heard about a little game called Audiosurf. In the craziness that was GDC, I found myself too busy to play the demo. Recently, I read on a game blog about how Audiosurf was available via Steam. Now that there was a demo, and I had no more excuses. It was time to give this award-winning independent game a try.

Audiosurf may be a rhythm game, but it's quite different from Guitar Hero or Rock Band. The layout does look similar to Guitar Hero from the screenshots; however, the gameplay itself is quite different. Songs you choose (from music files on your computer) are mapped into something resembling a racetrack. Blocks are places across the lanes, and they can vary in color (depending on the mode). There were a few different modes to play, including dodging certain color blocks and collecting other color blocks.

I found the game to be slightly difficult at first. I didn't quite understand how I was supposed to stack matching color blocks into columns that moved with me, and how to strategize to get maximum points. Sometimes, the columns would fill too quickly on the fast parts or they wouldn't clear matching colors out fast enough, so I would lose points. However, there were some nice touches in the mechanics, such as having the gray blocks (which don't match with anything) clear out automatically, reducing the punishment. Also, there were power-ups and other details that made the game more complex.

The mechanics encouraged skilled play, and I could tell just from the short demo that the game had a nicely scaled degree of complexity. I tried to choose a wide variety of songs during my demo. I absolutely loved the idea of using music I know and love (avoiding difficulties that arise from unfamiliarity with some songs in games such as Guitar Hero). However, this freedom also means that the level of difficulty can vary greatly between songs. Even if I'm familiar with a song, it may have portions that are just too fast for me to handle.

Audiosurf requires different skills than many mainstream rhythm games on the market. It's mainly a matter of timing. I really enjoyed being able to pick my own songs, meaning I never had to play one that I didn't like. Audiosurf may not have had the budget of games like Guitar Hero, but it is certainly a fun rhythm game and a neat way to appreciate your favorite music.  

It’s no secret that I like rhythm games. It’s hard to imagine that someone could be serious about both music and games without drawing at least some pleasure from titles like Elite Beat Agents and Guitar Hero.

I had heard that Electroplankton was some sort of experimental music game, but I never really knew what to expect. I wasn’t expecting to play it this soon, but GameFly was backed up with Halo 3 rentals and somehow this was sent to me instead of a flashy new title.

Electroplankton is really not much of a game. I saw every level in under an hour. There were about 10-12 different areas, each with little plankton creatures that would manipulate tones in different ways. The spontaneous nature of the music is a lot of fun, but my ears quickly grew tired when there was no melody to follow. I breezed through the levels, and after figuring out what made each one unique, I thought, “Now what?” Well, that was all there was.

Fortunately, one of my friends was around. He took a look at it and played it in an entirely different way. One level is set up with four plankton, each with its own tonal pattern and range. The notes change depending on the lines you draw for them to follow on the DS screen. While I drew straight lines, circles, and spirals, he drew different sorts of lines that were more abstract. Suddenly the tones became something new.

Electroplankton really is a neat experiment – the way players toy with the tones is a mark of individuality. The abstract nature of the game allows for more creativity, which is fantastic. However, the experimental nature of the title makes it less of a game and more of an interactive display. I would not buy this game, and together, my friend and I played the rental copy for less than two hours. While I admire the innovation in this game, it seems like it would work better if incorporated into a more structured game.  

Out of all the demos I downloaded off Xbox Live the other day, I was most excited to try out two RPGs: Eternal Sonata and Blue Dragon. I had heard a lot about both and they were part of what motivated me to finally buy a 360.

I had already pre-ordered Eternal Sonata so I decided to play it first. I was immediately impressed by the vibrant colors and the richly detailed landscape. This world felt so alive, from the variation in the foliage to the distinct personalities of the NPCs. It had a great soundtrack based on Chopin’s music, which appealed to the classical musician in me. While it certainly has a few flaws, I realized that this just might be the immersive experience that I have been craving.

Eternal Sonata has a fast-paced battle system that feels like a cross between Kingdom Hearts and the traditional turn-based Final Fantasies. Characters’ movements can be controlled during a limited attack time. The position of a character can greatly change their attack and defense. For example, enemies have a harder time defending against attacks when the attacker is behind them. There are also two special attacks that become available depending on if a character is standing in the light or in shadows. I appreciated all this attention to detail. While the battle system did seem to have a high learning curve, at least for a demo, its original approach pulled me into the game immediately.

Like any other game, Eternal Sonata does have some flaws. The characters speak audible lines sometimes, such as when a battle begins. Some of these lines sound really stupid, including a little boy exclaiming, “C’mon! C’mon! C’mon!” I’m hoping that these lines sounded better in Japanese. Also, my QA tester training helped me to find two bugs in the half-hour demo. I was slightly disappointed, considering the obviously high production value of the game, but most commercial games do have bugs. Sometimes these bugs are reported and closed simply because there is no time to change them anymore.

I really enjoyed the Eternal Sonata demo. It had a nice pace and the demo limits felt natural, not confining. From the user-friendly menu to the inviting fantasy world, it seemed like a polished game that will be a lot of fun for me. Eternal Sonata combines two of my favorite genres: music/rhythm games and RPGs. I’m looking forward to buying it.

However, the Blue Dragon demo hardly sold me on the much-hyped RPG. First, I was disgusted by the childish art style and the ridiculous voices. When the opening cutscene began, I felt like I was watching cheap anime in 3D. I understand that Akira Toriyama of Dragon Ball Z was responsible for the character designs, but I am of the belief that some designs just don’t translate as well into HD. I had no problem with Dragon Ball Z designs in 2D, but in 3D they look wrong. It’s simply too perfect and, frankly, a bit frightening to see things like bloated heads, vacant eyes, and giant portly puppies in three realistic dimensions.

I hate to dismiss a game entirely on its artistic style. I have boycotted a couple, like Psychonauts, for this reason, but I wanted to give Blue Dragon a chance. After all, Hironobu Sakaguchi, who directed the first five Final Fantasy games, and famed Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu were involved. This game must have some redeeming qualities.

I continued past the first cutscene and found myself plagued by laborious tutorial dialogue from frightening giant animals such as the previously mentioned portly puppy. While illustrative screenshots attempted to break up the monotony, there was way too much information to absorb at once. I much prefer in-battle tutorials or other more interactive forms of instruction. I was practically asleep by the time I began the game.

I ran around and fought some enemies, but my entire party attacked with these gigantic genie-like creatures. It was never explained how or why these creatures attacked for us – they could have been anything from alien parasites to manifestations of the warriors’ souls. While it did seem cool, I was left scratching my head and it took my focus away from combat. When my allies needed healing, I explored the magic menus. I was immediately overwhelmed by almost 30 different spells, all at my disposal. Also, I had a large party and it appeared as if only one or two members could actually heal other people and yet they wouldn’t even get a turn in several fights. Desperate to heal my allies, I opened the menu to see if I could heal out of battles.

The menu appeared very industrial and was immediately overwhelming. Compared to the simpler, more friendly menu in Eternal Sonata, this was quite a shock. In a demo, there is no need for hundreds of spells and items. Since the game timer allows one hour to play the game, it is nearly impossible to even cast every spell in the time allotted. While I did find my healing spells within a few minutes, I was deeply disappointed in the overwhelming amount of items and the lack of direction after the hasty, dull tutorial.

I am definitely not pre-ordering Blue Dragon. If the gameplay or story could capture my attention, I would be willing to overlook the ridiculous visuals and childish voices. Unfortunately, my high expectations were met with disappointment in what felt like a hastily assembled demo. I am just glad that I have the Eternal Sonata demo to play, as I would be happy to check it out again.  

After playing Elite Beat Agents at D.I.C.E., I decided that it was finally time to buy myself a Nintendo DS. Of course, I tried out my DS with that very game. Since the day I got my DS, I’ve suffered from a case of Elite Beat Addiction.

I’ve never had a handheld console (unless you count those silly one-game devices from the early 1990’s). I thought that they weren’t as good as “real” consoles because the games were often less serious and much shorter. Fortunately, I was wrong. The DS has a wide variety of games that I am very excited to play. It is highly portable as well, meaning I can game on the go. It has also drastically changed my gaming habits in the last week.

One of the greatest advantages of the DS Lite is its size. I cautiously stuck it in my school bag a couple of days ago and found myself pulling it out to play between classes. This method of breaking up my play sessions was very helpful for beating the Elite Beat Agents on the first difficulty level. It took me several tries, but the shorter sessions were much easier on my brain and hands.

Part of the charm of Elite Beat Agents is in the songs. They’re really catchy and most of them are very fun to play. I was playing a punk song on the second difficulty level and it was so fast that I couldn’t think. I just had to go with the rhythm. Experiences like that allow me to internalize the music and make the game my own. I will never hear those songs again without thinking of Elite Beat Agents.

You know you’re addicted to a game when it begins creeping into other areas of your life. I find myself singing the songs from the game as I get ready in the morning. Then I listen to those songs on my way to class. When I am in class, I sit there, thinking, “I’d really like an Elite Beat Agents break right now.” It is now one of the first things I do when I come home.

After so many disappointments in games lately, it has been great to find a new game to obsess over. I used to come home and play RPGs for an hour or two. Now, Elite Beat Agents has helped me rediscover the joy of daily gaming. Even if I don’t have a large block of time, I can still play my DS.  

I had the privilege of going to the D.I.C.E. Summit this year. (It’s basically a video game conference and awards show hosted by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences.) I helped out behind the scenes as an intern and got to see a lot of cool things. One of them was the game Elite Beat Agents, developed by iNiS.

I had never heard much about Elite Beat Agents or iNiS before D.I.C.E. What I did know was that there was a speaker from Japan. He had made a game I had heard of (Guitaroo Man) and this other game, Elite Beat Agents. I didn’t really know what Elite Beat Agents was about, but one of the other interns at D.I.C.E. had a DS and let me play their copy.

I wasn’t expecting much, but I really liked this game. It was a rhythm game, which is one of my favorite genres. Unlike tradition rhythm games, however, you got to touch the screen in the right place at the right time (instead of just hitting the right button at the right time). It was interactive in a new way, and had fun extras like spinning wheels and good stories.

I was really impressed by the stories, especially since each was very short and very simple. Regular problems, such as a lost puppy or putting kids to sleep, were shown in cute little manga-style sequences. The sounds were great and the scenes were short and sweet. There was a good bit of creativity involved as well, such as having animals or former enemies dancing with the protagonists of the stories. After talking again and again about cutscenes in my classes, I was very impressed by the concise stories in this game. They were simple, fun, and, most importantly, could be skipped easily (a great feature when replaying levels).

Fortunately, I was able to sit in on Keiichi Yano’s speech. He feels that music and games are naturally suited to each other. His presentation emphasized the idea that harmonies and dissonances in music can easily accompany tension and release in stories. He was a charismatic speak with simple but effective ideas. I really enjoyed his presentation.

After the session was over, I had the opportunity to talk to Keiichi Yano. I told him how much I enjoyed his game. I also explained how refreshing it was to play a game with such simple, effective stories. My fellow intern and fan of Elite Beat Agents got his copy of the game signed. Keiichi Yano seemed like a really neat person, and I was so grateful that I had been able to play Elite Beat Agents earlier. If not, I would have missed out on something really special.