Released in 2001 (2002 in North America) by Koei, Gitaroo Man is now regarded as a bona-fide classic. Like many Japanese rhythm games before it, it initially confused American audiences with its wacky story, music, and characters. The game is now a valuable collector's item, and will cost you a fair price to purchase for your PS2. Let's take a look back at this PS2 classic.
In Gitaroo Man, the player takes control of U-1. An awkward and shy teenager, it is revealed to U-1 that he is in fact the hero of the planet Gitaroo. U-1 picks up his guitar (Gitaroo) and faces off the invading enemies. Enemies are bright, colourful, and are very quirky. Enemies include a maniac UFO, a funky man in a bee suit, and a crazed conductor.
In the game, you face off against your enemies in three different sections for each stage. In the "charge" section, U-1 charges his energy bar by hitting the correct notes on a trace-line. In the "guard" mode, the player presses buttons on the Playstation gamepad to avoid attack, much like a "QTE" event. In the attack mode, you use the same trace-line to attack enemies. The game is challenging on normal mode, especially in later stages.
Fans of J-POP will find much to like about the music for each level. The songs are by Japanese band COIL and are very catchy and often upbeat and fast. The game consists of ten stages, with each song very different from the next. Funk, Metal, and Pop are represented, in addition to many other cool songs. A two player mode exists, but does not contain all of the stages. A PSP port was released in 2006, and is very faithful to the original. Fans of music games should definitely pick this one up.
No comments:
Post a Comment