The Rhythm Is Gonna Get You

If shaking your groove thing or laying your thing down is something you enjoy, you might be interested in Gamespot's Rhythm Game 10 Spot, looking at the 10 Best Rhythm games. From the article: "Some of these rhythm games never made it outside of Japan, and others require you to purchase an expensive peripheral controller, but all of the greatest rhythm games are characterized by a few elements--a noteworthy soundtrack, a unique method of interaction, and an addictive gameplay. To be truly great, the game can be responsible for pioneering the genre or merely perfecting the established formula, and whether you're using your feet, hands, or stylus to map out the beat, we guarantee that in the following 10 games, the rhythm is going to get you." Played Guitar Hero for the first time this weekend, and it is as good as everyone says it is. Highly recommended.

Comments

What about the drums?!?

[iamjoltman]

They didn't even mention Donkey Konga/Donkey Konga 2 or Taiko Drum Master on their list. (OK, they're on the vote thing at the end, but not mentioned in the article!)
Anyway, as a drummer, I was drawn to the Donkey Konga games, and liked them as much as I expected. As for TDM, I've been wanting to get it, I'm still just waiting for the funds to be available for it :)

Game-Journalism Idiocy

[ClamIAm]

Though rhythm games arguably had their heyday 5 to 10 years ago

1995? Yeah, it's 2006 now, but I don't think lots of rhythm games came out in January of '96. I guess I'm bugged by the fact that the author presents this as a common opinion, yet I've never run across people saying this before. It's not a well-known thing like the "Crash of '84" or the golden years of 2-D platform games (which I consider the NES/SNES/Genesis days).

Re:Conspicuously absent..

[gEvil (beta)]

Actually, apparently a company called GameQuestDirect has landed the rights to reprint Rez and a few other games. They go for their original full price ($50), but it's cheaper than getting a used copy off of eBay.

What about Dragon's Lair?

[c0d3h4x0r]

Didn't all of these "rhythm games" really begin with the arcade game "Dragon's Lair"? Unlike all other video games before it, the gameplay was all about pushing the correct direction at precisely the right moment and stringing together and memorizing sequences. It was radically different from the "real time" movement of all other video games. It might not have been about "dancing", but it's a classic "rhythm game" in my opinion.