Taiko: Drum Master

This article is about the video game released in North America. For the video game series, see Taiko no Tatsujin.

Taiko no Tatsujin: Taiko Drum Master
250px PS2 US front cover
Developer(s)	Namco
Publisher(s)	Namco
Series	Taiko no Tatsujin
Platforms	PlayStation 2, Mobile phone
Release date(s)	PlayStation 2 Mobile
Genre(s)	Musical rhythm
Mode(s)	1-2 Players

Taiko: Drum Master (English title), also known as Taiko no Tatsujin (太鼓の達人) in Japan is a drumming game made by Namco for the Sony PlayStation 2 and mobile phones based on the popular Japanese arcade game. A drum simulating the taiko is played in time with music.

Characters

Main article: List of Taiko no Tatsujin characters

Gameplay

Symbols moving horizontally along a timeline show what to hit and when. Home versions distinguish single and double strikes, arcade versions hard and soft strikes.

Successful play builds up a life meter. If the meter is past a certain point by the end of the song, the song is passed.

In the Japanese version, subtitles under the symbols give the pronunciation of the sounds (for example, "do don do don") using a traditional system called kuchi shoga (口唱歌).

Despite the game's appearance, players may find the game quite difficult to master. Players need to accomplish at least a 65% clearance of a song which is determined by the tamashi gauge to pass, which could be very challenging on harder difficulties as players progress.

North American release track listing

Pop and rock

1. "ABC" by The Jackson Five
2. "American Girls" - by Counting Crows
3. "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" - by Jet
4. "Girls and Boys" - by Good Charlotte
5. "I'm a Believer" - by Smash Mouth
6. "Killer Queen" - by Queen
7. "Lady Marmalade" - by Labelle
8. "Love Shack" - by The B-52s
9. "Material Girl" - by Madonna
10. "My Sharona" - by The Knack
11. "Slide" - by The Goo Goo Dolls
12. "That's the Way (I Like It)" - by KC and the Sunshine Band
13. "The Impression That I Get" - by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
14. "Toxic" - by Britney Spears
15. "Tubthumping" - by Chumbawamba
16. "Walking on Sunshine" - by Katrina and the Waves.

Anime/TV

1. "Dragon Ball Z Theme Rock the Dragon" - by Shuki Levy
2. "Jimmy Neutron Theme" - by Bowling for Soup

Classical

1. "Symphony No. 5" (Beethoven)
2. "Carmen Prelude" (Bizet)
3. "Foster's Medley" (A medley of songs by Foster including Oh! Susannah, Kentucky Home, and Camptown Races)
4. "Hungarian Dances No. 5" (Brahms)
5. "Symphony No. 25 in G Minor" (Mozart)
6. "William Tell Overture" (Rossini)

Namco original

• "Don Rangers" (heard in a small portion from a cutscene in Katamari Damacy) (10 crowns to unlock)
• "Brave Sword, Braver Soul" (from the arcade fighting game Soul Calibur II)
• "Dragon Spirit" (from the Namco arcade game of the same name)
• "Katamari on the Rocks" (theme song from the PlayStation 2 game Katamari Damacy)
• "Ridge Racer" (from the Namco racing game of the same name) (15 crowns to unlock)
• "Taiko March" (combination of several songs from Namco titles including Sky Kid, The Tower of Druaga, and The Legend of Valkyrie) (5 crowns to unlock)
• "The Genji and the Heike Clans" (from the Japanese arcade game Genpei Tōma Den) (20 crowns to unlock)

Japanese release track listing

Pop

• I'm A Slave 4 U - Britney Spears
• I Was Born To Love You - Queen
• American Girls - Counting Crows
• We Will Rock You - Queen
• ABC - Jackson 5
• Girls & Boys
• Killer Queen - Queen
• The Impression That I Get
• That's The Way (I Like It) - KC & The Sunshine Band
• The Loco-Motion
• Slide
• September - Earth, Wind, & Fire
• Tubthumping
• Material Girl - Madonna
• You Can't Hurry Love
• Love Shack
• Lady Marmalade
• Walking on Sunshine

Children's Song

• Alphabet Song

Classical

• Beethoven's 5th Symphony
• William Tell Overture
• Carmen Prelude
• Foster's Medley
• Symphony No. 25 in G Minor
• Hungarian Dances No. 5

Namco original

• Soulcalibur II Brave Sword, Braver Soul
• The Genji and the Heike Clans
• Ridge Racer
• Taiko March
• Mojipittan Medley
• Dragon Spirit
• Saitama 2000

Bonus

• The bundle with the game comes with a Taiko controller with plastic drumsticks where players plug into the PS2 console.
• The oni difficulty is unlocked by clearing 25 songs.

Reception

Reception
Aggregate scores Aggregator Score GameRankings 78.34% (PS2) 75% (MOBILE) Metacritic 77/100 Review scores Publication Score 1UP.com B+ Game Informer 7.75/10 Game Revolution C+ GameSpot 7.3/10 (PS2) 7.1/10 (MOBILE) GameSpy GameZone 9/10 IGN 7.7/10 (PS2) 7.4/10 (MOBILE) OPM (US) PSM 7/10 X-Play Detroit Free Press The New York Times (average)

Taiko: Drum Master was met with positive reception upon release. GameRankings and Metacritic gave it a score of 78.34% and 77 out of 100 for the PlayStation 2 version, and 75% for the Mobile version.

See also

• Taiko no Tatsujin

External links

• Taiko: Drum Master at MobyGames