Elite Beat Agents (Nintendo DS)

Elite Beat Agents are a super-secret agency made up of the coolest group of guys this world has ever known. Of course, according to official records, they do not exist. Their leader, an ex-CIA agent named Commander Kahn, scans the world, seeking out cries for help. When he finds one, he dispatches the agents, who assist their targets by performing a song and dance. The hypnotic nature of their rocking revives the targets with "Groovy" energy that boosts their willpower and helps them overcome their obstacles. Whether they`re helping a lost dog find its way home or helping a babysitter charm a hunky football player, no crisis is too weird.

• By tapping and tracing patterns that appear on screen with the stylus, players play along with the song`s rhythm
• After each section, the player gets judged; The animated story changes depending on how well the player performs
• If the player makes it though the whole song, he or she will be judged on the whole thing and get one of three endings -- the worse players do, the worse the story might end up
• Every scene is accompanied by rump-shaking tunes, but players have to keep the Elite Beat Agents grooving
• Rhythm games have come and gone, but no one has ever seen anything like the Elite Beat Agents!

There’s always a huge ranges of games from Japan that are never released in the West, but usually there’s a very good reason for that: either they’re not very good or the concepts and references just get lost in translation. One of the few exceptions is Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan. The original name translates as Go! Fight! Cheer Squad and involves a trio of male cheerleaders trying to help ordinary citizens in a variety of bizarre situations. Although many loved the soundtrack it didn’t really translate for a global audience so this is the Westernised remake.

Each of the game’s missions are portrayed on the top screen via some gorgeously drawn comic book sequences involving such calls for help as a shipwrecked Paris Hilton lookalike and a weatherwoman trying to make it sunny. At this point the EBA (now part of a secret government agency) burst onto the bottom screen and you have to help them dance sufficiently well to then encourage their charge to victory.

This is essentially a rhythm action game where you tap sequenced markers in time with the music on the touch screen or occasionally follow a slider along on its path or spin a wheel. You have a steadily decreasing power bar, which is only kept at bay by successful hitting your marks. The way this integrates with the music, the agents dancing and the comic strip is wonderful and assuming you like enough of the songs (everything from Sk8er Boi to YMCA) this is the best music game on any system.
Harrison Dent