Rhapsody, A Musical Adventure
by Atlus
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Category: Video Games
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Product Summary
Brand: NIS AmericaRelease Date: 2008-09-23
Platform: Nintendo DS
Model: RH-00145-1
Publisher: Atlus
Product features:
- Accessible battle system for first time RPG players
- Dual screen NAV system for easy exploration through the world of Rhapsody
- New hidden characters exclusive to the DS version
- Musical mode allows gamers to replay all of the featured cinematics
- Anime influenced graphics challenge the DS 2D capability to the max
Video Game Reviews of Rhapsody, A Musical Adventure
Customer Review: Cute RPG for the DS, but some issues
Summary: 3 Stars
*This review is subject to updates as information in it changes*
Rhapsody was originally released for the PSX back in 2000, where slow sales made it a bit of a cult hit. I have no experience with that original version, but its fans indirectly helped me to make a decision to purchase the game, which first drew my attention when I saw it included in a column on Anime News Network.
Rhapsody tells the story of Cornet, a girl who has the ability to talk with puppets. She's rendered smitten when the prince of her kingdom saves her from imminent doom. The antagonists, a witch and her cronies, come and kidnap said prince, and so Cornet and her troupe of puppets (some of whom you'll recruit on the way) set out to save him.
First things first: This game is short: It took me fifteen hours on my first playthrough, and that's with me getting confused on where to go next (the game isn't always clear on this). Battles themselves are a turn-based affair, and not too terribly difficult. But you can send pancakes, candy, and flan of doom raining down on your foes, and what other RPG lets you do that?
Rhapsody does have a charming, endearing story (which strays away somewhat from "Save the prince" as the backstory of Cornet and her main puppet companion Kururu is explored in detail). There's tons of funny moments as well as heartwarming ones, and is overall, a nice, lighthearted alternative to other RPG's which take themselves too seriously.
The "Musical" aspect of the game has nothing to do with rhythm-based musical gameplay, but rather it refers to how the characters will occasionally break out into singing musical numbers throughout the game. In the PSX version, these songs were translated to English, but in the DS version, there are only Japanese vocals with English subtitles. That alone didn't affect my enjoyment of the game, but it might affect others considering a purchase, so I'm just letting everyone know.
The graphics are cute and colorful, though hardly cutting edge. It was an enjoyable, if short, experience, and overall I was pleased. So, why not a higher score?
Technical issues. After one boss battle, then again before the final boss battle, the screens on my DS suddenly went black and the music stopped. Fortunately in my case, I could shut off the DS, restart from my save point, and continue as normally. But others have reported that their games won't let them proceed past a certain point early in the game. Furthermore, the extra story scenarios don't seem to be accessible through normal gameplay at the moment, and the developers haven't offered a solution yet, though it has been confirmed by a member of the development team that the extra content was included in the game's code. I will continue to monitor Nippon Ichi's web site and forums and update this section of the review if necessary. If these technical flaws are addressed by the company, I will increase my rating of the game.
UPDATE: Apparently, the extra content was only intended to be in the Japanese release of the game, despite the fact that it was advertised on the US promotional site for Rhapsody prior to release (the mention of the extra scenarios was since removed from the US site). Thus my rating of three stars will remain in place unless Nippon Ichi decides to localize the added content (and compensate those who have already purchased the game). The fact that they promoted extra content (and this prompted numerous sales) and did not deliver them is false advertising, though it may not have been intentional false advertising.
Description of Rhapsody, A Musical Adventure
Enter the world of Rhapsody, where music and action combine to create a charming adventure. A beautiful remake of the PlayStation original, Rhapsody for Nintendo DS delivers stunning high-resolution 2D sprites, novel music-based RPG gameplay, and more features than ever before. It has never been easier to pick up and play, so don't miss out on this wonderful RPG symphony of fun.Role-Playing Games
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