I miss this series dearly. EBA + Ouendan are the peak of rhythm games for me, sure we got a clone in the form of "Osu!" but since it's more of a platform to make song charts with the same mechanics rather than its own full fledged game it is naturally lacking personality.
Ouendan 1 was a nice albeit unpolished experiment, Elite Beat Agents was a great evolution with QoL improvements and its own particularly charming group of characters with a sillyness aided by the adoption of North American stereotypes that are simply silly and fun.
Unfortunately I find Ouendan 2 to be a bit of a step down from EBA. A few of the songs simply have kinda boring and tedious charts as well as characters that don't always feel as compelling. However, this could be seen as subjective and we have some nice additions like 2 groups of Ouendan which develop a rivalry during the game, which I love seeing clash and then come around. The gameplay is also the most polished its ever been, thanks to this being the final game in the series.
Despite the language barrier, the stories are mostly easy to follow through illustrations that convey the characters pretty well. However, context will still be lost so I'd recommend following along with translations that are up on youtube or gamefaqs. Even if I don't find these as compelling, they still ooze with the signature charm of iNiS at the time and culminate in a great story of finding the drive to keep going in the face of adversity.
I think I wanted to say more but honestly it's just that these games make me so happy: following the troubles of the people in this wacky world and helping them overcome their hardships through song and dance is great satisfaction and fun and makes me kinda feel less alone. Yet again, the songs, writing, illustrations and gameplay all come together in a style that simply can't be replicated. While I'm sad this is the end, I'm very glad it happened and I'll always cherish these games as something to put on when I'm having a hard time to simply find my groove and get lost in for an hour.
The final song is just great. I am not getting over this one.
Ouendan 1 was a nice albeit unpolished experiment, Elite Beat Agents was a great evolution with QoL improvements and its own particularly charming group of characters with a sillyness aided by the adoption of North American stereotypes that are simply silly and fun.
Unfortunately I find Ouendan 2 to be a bit of a step down from EBA. A few of the songs simply have kinda boring and tedious charts as well as characters that don't always feel as compelling. However, this could be seen as subjective and we have some nice additions like 2 groups of Ouendan which develop a rivalry during the game, which I love seeing clash and then come around. The gameplay is also the most polished its ever been, thanks to this being the final game in the series.
Despite the language barrier, the stories are mostly easy to follow through illustrations that convey the characters pretty well. However, context will still be lost so I'd recommend following along with translations that are up on youtube or gamefaqs. Even if I don't find these as compelling, they still ooze with the signature charm of iNiS at the time and culminate in a great story of finding the drive to keep going in the face of adversity.
I think I wanted to say more but honestly it's just that these games make me so happy: following the troubles of the people in this wacky world and helping them overcome their hardships through song and dance is great satisfaction and fun and makes me kinda feel less alone. Yet again, the songs, writing, illustrations and gameplay all come together in a style that simply can't be replicated. While I'm sad this is the end, I'm very glad it happened and I'll always cherish these games as something to put on when I'm having a hard time to simply find my groove and get lost in for an hour.
The final song is just great. I am not getting over this one.