Rhythm games in general carry a certain stigma on their shoulders. With every video you see of some fit youth playing Dance Dance Revolution or some teenager's fast fingers on Guitar Hero, you get the feeling that rhythm games are a closed off genre of game. Well, I'm here to tell you that there are options out there for people that aren't the most fit or most inclined to jump around on a dance pad. Based on the game Elite Beat Agents for the Nintendo DS, which in turn is based on the Ouendan games in Japan, osu! (yes the exclamation and lower case o are part of the title), is a freeware PC rhythm game that at its core only requires your mouse, your fingers and swift wrist movement.
The main game at the heart of osu! is the original Elite Beat Agents formula. Essentially, you click on circles in time with the beat, click and drag your cursor along a track (and back and forth if necessary), and spinning your cursor in a circle. All of this takes place in rhythm with the beat of the song that you're playing. The only song that's built into the game is a brief tutorial that shows you how to play. It doesn't cover the other ways to play, such as beating a taiko drum or catching the beat, but I haven't played those modes myself. In order to get more songs, you have to download what's called beatmaps on the game's site. You can search for a song you want, and there are quite a number of songs to choose from. You'll be able to find English songs, Japanese songs, anime songs and video game songs among others. Once you download a beatmap file, all you have to do is double click on it to import it into osu! for you to play. As with other rhythm games, some beatmaps are easier than others and you'll want to pay attention to what you're downloading. Also, since all beatmaps are created by players in the community, you'll be at the mercy of flexible standards for difficulty. One person's normal is another person's hard, so you'll also need to look at the beatmap's accuracy expectations, hp drain rate and success rate. You may be downloading a beatmap that is labeled as normal, but it might have a 4 or 5 star difficulty. As long as you pay attention to what you're looking at, you'll be able to find beatmaps that are alot of fun for you. Finally the game has a variety of built-in mods that artificially adjust the beatmaps in different ways. Some make the map harder, such as by speeding up the song or darkening the screen. Others make it easier, such as slowing it down or stopping the failure mechanic from happening when your hp reaches 0. There's even an option to have all spinners automatically completed for you so you don't have to wreck your wrist.
I said that anyone can play osu! and I really meant it. You only need to use your mouse and clicking skills in conjunction with spinning your cursor using wrist action. The one caution I have is that the spinning circles can wear out your wrists after a while. The game does warn you about it, but I highly recommend you take breaks so you don't strain your wrist. I've come away with more than one aching wrist, and it doesn't help you get better at the game when you're risking hurting yourself.
Feeling creative and want to make a beatmap for your favorite song? The game has a full level editor so you can edit existing beatmaps and create your own using mp3's on your computer. You can even make and download skins that will make the game look a bit different based on the theme of the skin. When you factor in multiplayer, there is plenty here to keep you busy even if you stick to just the base game mode. I often find myself playing every day even just for a couple songs. It takes some time to get accustomed to how the game plays, but as long as you keep at it and push yourself, you'll find that you're doing better and better while still having fun.
Rhythm games are generally seen as not for everyone. While this is somewhat true since some people aren't fit enough to jump around on dance pads, there are still options out there for the less inclined like myself. osu! is one of those games, and it's a very fun one. With the options you have for searching for songs, the ability to make your own beatmaps and online multiplayer, there is alot of content available to you that is all done by the community. If you're looking for a rhythm game but don't want to jump around on a dance pad or hold a guitar, definitely consider giving osu! a try. Hopefully you'll have as much fun as I'm having!
Recommendation: Looking for an accessible yet very fun rhythm game? Play this one!
You can check out the game at http://osu.ppy.sh/
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