Michael Jackson urged listeners to “Beat It!”
Society talks about people “marching to the tune of a different drummer.”

Well, thanks to Namco, gamers can ‘beat it’
but they won’t be doing much marching. They will likely be camped in front of
their PlayStation 2, using the Taiko Drum Master to punctuate a variety of pop,
rock and classic tunes.

What is the Taiko Drum Master? This is a game
disc and a controller that plays songs and challenges gamers to time hits to the
controller drum to score points. Consecutive strong hits allow players to rack
up combos. Set record totals and unlock new tunes. The game starts out with 27
songs and will allow players to increase that. From The Jacksons “ABC” to a
version of Madonna’s “Material Girl” (not sung by Madonna, but it is close) to
the themes from classic anime cartoon series and classic snippets from songs
such as the William Tell Overture, the Drum Master has a scrolling line that
shows what type of hit to apply to the drum.

The controller itself is the taiko drum –
hence the name of the program. The game comes bundled with one. For multiplayer
games, you can either buy a second taiko, or use an analog controller. Ok, you
CAN use an analog controller, but to truly experience the joy of this title, you
need a drum.

There are four basic hits – single tap to the
face, double strike to the face, single strike to the edge and double strike to
the edge. Each strike is represented by an icon. Some of the icons are linked,
but for the most part, you get alternating icons. There is also a drum roll.

As for the songs, while there are some that
suspect lyrics for a “family” type program, those lyrics have been cleaned up a
bit. Take Tubthumping by Chumbawamba, one of the featured songs. The song is
essentially one about drinking a lot but rather than the refrain that goes
“pissing the night away,” in the Drum Master edition, the line is “kissing the
night away.”

There are several ways to play the game, from
the Taiko mode to the mini-games. The game also lets you view top scores and
there are three difficulty levels.

While the graphics are bold and bright, they
are not the stars of this title. The great selection of music and the workout
one gets from keeping pace with the scrolling icons are the driving force behind
this title.

Sure, one could sit here and say, “gee, I wish
this song, or that song was included.” The bottom line is that the developers
had to pick a series of songs, and they have done a terrific job.

The sound put out by the drum is not that
intrusive or loud and the drum can take a beating. But whether using a feather
touch, or doing your best Neil Pert (that would be the drummer for Rush for
those who may not know) impersonation, the Taiko Drum Master is up to the
challenge.

This is a terrific product, and a whole lot of
fun to play.

Review Scoring Details for Taiko Drum Master

Gameplay: 8.8

Once the song starts, you have plenty of time
to get ready and then to start your progression. The mini-games are a little
soft (but hold some challenge) compared to the Taiko mode of drumming along to
the songs.

Graphics: 7.8

Colorful, and lush, the graphics are decent
for those watching. If you are drumming, you won’t be paying a log of attention
unless you are involved in one of the mini games.

Sound: 9.0

The pop songs are terrific; the classical
tunes offer an intense drumming experience; the Japanese tunes are decent but
don’t seem to have the impact (at lease in the North American market) as the pop
songs. Turn up the volume anyway; you will like what you hear.

Difficulty: Medium/Hard

The game records combinations, which basically
are successful runs of hitting your marks. At the easy level this is fun and
entertaining and only mildly challenging. At the normal level, this is work and
rife with challenge. At the hard level, you will get an intense workout, and the
challenge level is definitely high.

Concept: 9.0

A very nice song selection and the drum itself
is durable and responsive. From a little tap to a hard strike, this controller
registers it all.

Multiplayer: 8.0

This game does have multiplayer options in the
mini-games. This is rather basic head-to-head competition.

Overall: 9.0

While the game could have used a bigger
selection of pop songs (even those that are modified) in the unlockable areas,
there is little doubt that the songs offered here are very cool, and a lot of
fun to drum along to. This can be an intense workout, but the game is very
enjoyable, and it’s a certified winner.