Is GameFreak's newest adventure a smash hit or is it singing off-key? Find out in our review!
Each level is a smaller part of a game world with its own theme, whether it's a winter wonderland, land of Vegas-styled jazzy showtunes, or a beachside paradise. Levels are bite-sized and can be completed in most cases in a minute or so, meaning even less skilled players can breeze through the myriad areas with little trouble. A glut of the platforming levels find Tempo running across the stage avoiding obstacles like spikes balls, dangerous drops, and parading enemies that need a good thwacking with the magical staff. Like the recently released Runner 2, you need quick reflexes and great timing to emerge victorious, but a few staggers here and there can be forgiven. What you should be vigilant with is keeping in step with the beat. Everything Tempo does, whether it's beaning a ghost in the head or cracking open eggs to pick up hearts for additional health, fits into the music of the stage. Cymbal trees and drums in the background are fair game as well, as long as you swing and hit at the right time.
Depending on the level, it's simple to keep in step with the backing tunes, but sometimes your strikes simply don't line up in a way that feels right. You end up relying on the cheery visuals and oncoming threats to time jumps and attacks, and this in turn leads to frustrating sour notes. It's eaier sometimes, like Space Channel 5, to listen and forgo any visual aid in order to keep in time, but that really can't be done with typical platforming levels. Boss encounters (usually with the same vicious robotic mutt) are much easier to employ this tactic with, since commands are tossed out in a Simon Says-like pattern: "left, right, left, right, hit, hit, hit!" It's simpler to close your eyes and better focus on the beat, especially when returning to the stage and completing it on a higher difficulty. These segments offer more high-octane thrills and entertain more than the sometimes humdrum platforming sections, but are extremely short-lived.
Progressing through each world depends on how many notes you collect in each stage. Like New Super Mario Bros.' coin system, additional levels require you to have collected a sufficient amount of Royal Notes. This is usually very easy to acomplish, but occasionally you may find yourself backtracking should you perform unsatisfactorily in order to rack up the Royal Notes needed to advance.
