The series’ first time on Steam
Image credit: Bandai Namco
I first played Taiko no Tatsujin in an arcade (in Japan, because I am very cool), where it’s controlled by hitting a recreation of an actual taiko drum. It was fun enough that I wish there was a taiko drum peripheral available for PC now the series is on our platform.
Taiko no Tatsujin: Rhythm Festival is out now via Steam, where it offers over 70 songs to drum through, and a subscription service through which to unlock over 700 more. Maybe I should try to get my Donkey Konga drums working on PC, but I’ll probably settle for playing it with a gamepad.
If you’re unfamiliar, Taiko no Tatsujin games are rhythm games about hitting a drum (on the top or on the side) in time to a beat, as colour-coded notes flow onto the screen from right to left. They’re also terrifically bright and silly, your efforts cheered on by a drum mascot called Don Chan. Their songlists skew extremely Japanese, too, featuring a mixture of J-pop, vocaloid music, and anime soundtracks.
The previous game in the series, Taiko no Tatsujin: The Drum Master, came to PC but only via Game Pass and the Windows store for some reason. Rhythm Festival is the first to arrive on Steam.
It features the usual mixture of modes, practice sessions, online multiplayer, and several difficulty levels. If you’re hungry for more than the songs included in the base game, you can expand your selection with the Taiko Music Pass for a monthly fee, or buy tracks via DLC packs. You can get Tank! from Cowboy Bebop via Anime Pack Vol. 2, for example. Everyone listen to Tank! now.
If you’re tempted, it’s worth giving the demo a whirl on Steam first to see whether the difficulty, setlist, and somewhat grindy structure appeal to you.