Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun! (Nintendo Switch) Review

Being a rhythm game, the mechanics are going to be simple enough for anyone to play. Compared to home console games like Guitar Hero and Project Diva, which focus on switching between numerous notes quickly, or arcade games like SEGA's Mai Mai, which requires the quickest reactions and body movements, Taiko is very simple. Hit the middle of the drum for a red note, hit the edge for a blue. There are larger notes for two-handed hits, and then special symbols for quick hits within a set time period. Simple doesn't mean easy, however, as each song has four different difficulty levels, and both the hard and extreme difficulty levels offers up decent challenges for even the most veteran rhythm masters.

With the explosion in popularity of Asian music around the world, Bandai Namco is finally embracing the Taiko soundtrack, and instead of replacing the tracks from the Japanese release with English pop songs, they've brought the entire soundtrack over untouched. There are over 60 tracks, split across seven different genres. The largest is sadly the most unfamiliar, with twenty tracks dedicated to Namco originals. The next largest genre is anime themes. They're listed under the title "Anime," but aren't limited to just that. With some Western animation and Tokusatsu mixed in, this includes the theme tunes to the latest Super Sentai - Lupinranger Vs. Patranger - and the latest Kamen Rider - Build. Not to mention the Japanese variation of Disney's Moana's "How Far I'll Go."

For the actual anime under this genre, there are some classics like "Head Cha La" from Dragon Ball and "We Are" from One Piece, to songs from more modern series like Pop Team Epic. For the J-Pop fans out there, this includes 13 tracks from the billboards, including "Zen Zen Zense" from Radwimps, "R.Y.U.S.E.I" by J Souls Brothers from Exile Tribe, and "Train-Train" by the Blue Hearts, amongst plenty of others, giving a wide range of songs. Then there are ten tracks from games. Fittingly for its platform, this includes themes from Kirby and Splatoon, and "Jump Up, Super Star!" from Super Mario Odyssey.

Rounding out the final few, there are seven variety songs - Touhou Project songs, the ABCs, and other silly things. There are five classical tracks, including Mozart's "A Little Serenade," and Beethoven's "Turkish March," and finally three Vocaloid songs. Not all of these are available immediately upon starting the game, as many are unlocked by playing through single-player and party mode. It's not just the regular game included here, either. It's called "Drum 'n' Fun," and the "Fun" comes in the form of a bunch of party games. There are a ton of party drumming games, and various fun little activities.

There's a log cutting game where a muscular Shiba Inu pitches sticks, and the occasional barbell for each player to slice through in tune with the rhythm. Scooping goldfish out of water, dancing at a festival, batting cages, and playing volleyball are just some of the other examples. These fall into either versus, team, or co-op, with each being for 1-4 players, whether they are all actual players or computer AI. The basis of all of these games is the rhythm, picking up on the music in the background, and hitting the buttons to the beat - very simple, but fun and addictive. Playing through the regular songs and these mini-games unlocks new characters with special abilities and new songs.

This Switch version is being released at the same time as Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum Session! on PlayStation 4, but Bandai Namco is clearly more focused on the Switch version. This version has received a physical release along with an extra special peripheral for the hardcore fans. Those who want to "stick" to the original method of playing will be happy to hear that a physical controller has been released over here, as well. Those who don't want to invest in a specialist controller have a few options with the Switch version. There are the standard button controls, of course, but then there is also either a touchscreen option or motion controls.

Motion controls are definitely one of the big selling points, but, sadly, they really don't deliver. The movements are often picked up twice, meaning lifting the Joy-Con registers as another blow, and it gets even worse with the diagonal strikes, as they often don't register, and strangely sometimes pick up on normal strikes. It's really disappointing and something to only use on easy modes and the party mode. Where this version really shines is in the touchscreen mode. The bottom of the screen has a drum dead centre, and touching it and beside it for each of the two different strikes is fantastically accurate and responsive - definitely the best way to play.