Oh no! I broke my stylus playing this game! OUENDAAAAAAN!!!!!
Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan is a rhythm game you might recognize based on gameplay. The game was never released to Western markets, so we had to settle for its spiritual successor Elite Beat Agents. But Ouendan is a must-get if you enjoyed EBA.
===Gameplay===
Score: 10/10
If you've played EBA, you know all about the gameplay. There are 3 main things you should get used to.
==Hit Markers==
A circle will appear with a number inside it. A ring will close in on the circle. Your task is to tap the circle when the ring touches the outer edge of the circle. The more accurate your tap, the more points you get. Some hit markers will be on top of one another. Use the rings to determine when to tap.
==Phrase Markers==
A circle will appear with a number inside it, but a trail of some sort will appear as well. Your task is to tap the circle like you would for a hit marker. Only this time, you need to slide your stylus along the ball that appears. Sometimes, you will have to go back to the beginning of the track once you reach the end. At times, you will have to do this multiple times.
==Roll Markers==
Also called Spin Markers in EBA. A spinner will appear. Your task is to spin the spinner as fast as you can using the stylus. If you can get the bars on the sides of the spinner to the top before the ring hits the center of the spinner, you can keep spinning for major bonus points.
It's also worth noting that the Roll Markers are harder than the Spin Markers.
All of that seems simple, right? You might think that, but when you start playing, it's a whole different story. Some of these will come one after another, some will occur a great distance apart, some will appear out of nowhere, and some will be a combination of the 3.
There's one other thing you should know about. The meter at the top of the touch screen acts as your life meter. It gradually decreases. If you do well, it increases. If you miss, it makes a huge drop. On later difficulties and levels, it decreases faster. On the last level on the hardest difficulty, any misses will make the meter plummet due to the speed of natural decrease. If it enters the red, the icon that decreases will change to a "!" The Ouendan will enter a tired position. There will also be a zoom effect. If it drops to the "!!" area, the zoom moves to the leader's face. If it reaches the far left, the cheering fails. Don't let that happen! It's possible to fail without getting any misses. This is because your timing is a bit off and you're not scoring the big points enough to counter the loss from the natural decrease.
===Graphics===
Score: 9/10
The graphics here are similar to those of EBA. The map screen you go to when you want to select a stage is 2-D, with the person you need to help running around a small area. After you help the person, a stamp of their head is all that is left. The storyline is shown on both screens, with the character(s) yelling OUENDAN! (CHEER SQUAD!) at the end. The Ouendan either arrive on the scene or are in the area doing things like making pottery or at the racetrack (for horse racing) when the character encounters a problem. The gameplay then starts. On the top screen, it shows how much progress the person (or animal) is making. If you do well, (s)he will do well. If you do poorly, (s)he will encounter setbacks. All the gameplay is on the touch screen. As you do well, the Ouendan will make their dance moves. If you miss something, they will fall flat on their asses. After a section, it shows the character attempt something, then either a good or bad outcome, depending on where the meter on the touch screen was at the time. In general, the graphics are pretty good.
===Sound===
Score: 8/10
The songs on the game are all J-Pop or J-Rock, so if these genres don't interest you, you probably won't enjoy this game. The song collection is pretty well thought-out, from L'Arc~en~Ciel's Ready Steady Go, to Kishidan's One Night Carnival. All songs are covers, except Melody by 175R, which uses an actual recording. Most covers sound much like the originals. 15 songs in all. However, the DS's audio speakers kinda lower the audio quality. I suggest you use headphones when playing this game.
===Story===
Score: ?/10
The game's storyline is all in Japanese, much like most everything else in the game. There is the occasional English, but only at times. Like myself, you probably can't read Japanese. However, you should be able to understand what's going on just by looking at the pictures. For example, you don't have to know how to read Japanese to see the game's first level involves a student trying to study for an exam with a bunch of distractions around him. The menus are also easy to know where they go. Also, in the openings for each stage is written in manga format, meaning you read from right to left.
===Overall===
Score: 9.5/10
All in all, this is a great game to get, even if you haven't played EBA. The game is also a bit harder than EBA to most people. Personally, I find EBA harder than Ouendan, but that's just me.
===Final Verdict===
Rent or buy? Well, unless you live in Japan, you won't be able to rent the game. There are a lot of videos of this game on YouTube, so check them out. Then you can decide on whether to get this game or not. If you enjoyed EBA, you'll probably enjoy Ouendan.