Remember when rhythm games were all the rage years ago? You had O2Jam, Guitar Hero, Rock Band, OSU, Just Dance, and many more on PC and console. Meanwhile, at the arcades, there was Taiko No Tatsujin, Beatmania, GuitarFreaks/Drummainia, and let’s not forget Dance Dance Revolution. And yes, these games are still around by the way.
But it was through the rise of mobile games that rhythm games became more popular with everyone. Don’t tell me you didn’t play Tap Tap Revenge when it first came out on the iPod Touch and iPhone years ago. I’m sure there are more titles out there, but Tap Tap Revenge hits closest to home, at least for most of us.
More recently, rhythm games, at least in the Philippines, have taken a step back and are no longer as popular as before. While OSU continues to enjoy a large player base and there are still communities for the arcade-based rhythm games, the majority of mobile gamers have shifted to games such as Mobile Legends, CoD: Mobile, and the like.
Today, we’re feeling a bit nostalgic about mobile rhythm games. That said listed down three not-so-popular rhythm games we recently played and thoroughly enjoyed, and we think you should try out this 2023. Do note that all of the games listed below are free-to-play as well.
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D4DJ: Groovy Mix
If you love anime and Japanese music in general, then you’re bound to enjoy D4DJ: Groovy Mix.
D4DJ is centered around six main units and their members. For those interested, there is a also story mode for each unit and event, which is quite nice…assuming you don’t skip all of the dialogue.
As for the gameplay itself, it resembles that of a DJ Controller hence the name. Like most rhythm games, you also have a health bar, and if you miss a note you lose life. Once it hits zero, it’s game over, but you can still finish the track.
To play a song, you also have to consume energy. Thankfully there is a “practice mode” called Rehearsal wherein you can play a song without consuming energy. However, you also don’t get rewards in this mode. There’s also multiplayer if you want to play with friends or others.
There are four difficulties, but we recommend looking at the difficulty number instead. That’s because the jump from 12 to 13 and even 14 is quite big.
At the moment, there are over 130 tracks you can choose to play, and the developers constantly add new music with each update. There are also collaboration events with other brands and anime series.
Aside from playing the game, there’s also a gatcha mechanic in D4DJ which allows you to collect more powerful 4-star character cards if you want to be more competitive in the rankings. Just be careful with your wallet since the drop rates are quite low, and earning diamonds as a free-to-play player is hard.
So if you want to try out being a DJ or just want to play some of your favorite anime songs, give D4DJ: Groovy Mix a try, and let us know what you think. Do note that the game requires a constant internet connection to play.
D4DJ: Groovy Mix is available on App Store and Google Play.
Arcaea
Think D4DJ: Groovy Mix isn’t difficult enough? Well, there’s another mobile rhythm game we tried that’s even more challenging, and it’s called Arcaea.
Aracaea has been around for quite some time. While the base game is free-to-play, you do have to purchase bundles to unlock the other songs in the game as well as the other available characters to choose from. There’s also a story mode, but it’s quite difficult to follow so we ended up skipping most of the dialogue.
Unlike D4DJ, however, there is no gatcha element in Arcaea. Instead, you have to keep playing in order to accumulate points to unlock new songs. There’s no energy system too, meaning you can keep playing and practicing to your liking. The game even works when you’re not connected to the internet, although some features will not be available.
As for the gameplay itself, the layout is similar to piano tiles albeit with only 4 notes. However, what makes Arcaea difficult is that there are two layers where you have to tap. This can make it a bit difficult to play if you have a phone with a smaller screen.
That said, we suggest you play this game with a tablet like an iPad to make it easier. Also, if you’re a thumb player, it’s time to practice using your other fingers while playing games.
Thankfully, there is no health bar here so if you miss a lot of notes the game won’t just end. The downside is if you do end up missing a lot of notes you won’t get a good score at the end.
It took us a lot of time practicing before we got used to the gameplay of Arcaea. So, don’t give up when you have a hard time playing it at first, and keep at it.
Arcaea is available on App Store and Google Play.
Phigros
The last rhythm game we played recently is called Phigros and is the most unique out of the three. Arguably, it’s also the most difficult to play too, and that’s because, unlike D4DJ and Arcaea, there’s no “lane” in Phigros. It’s actually this system that makes Phigros very unique as a rhythm game.
Rather than a constant location of where you tap at the bottom of the screen, like most rhythm games, the location of where to tap in Phigros varies per song. Sometimes, the bar even moves slowly upwards, becomes titled, and even randomly switches to the sides or even the top of the screen midway through the song.
It’s not only the line where to tap that moves too. The direction in which the notes come from also changes, and the notes can move directions last minute, making it harder for the player.
It’s a bit complicated to explain, and yes it’s equally difficult to play because you need to have full concentration as the tap area continues to move around as the song progresses.
The notes themselves are easy since you only have, tap, hold, drag, and flick. But once the lane starts moving around, that’s when it gets difficult. For reference, it’s difficult to full combo songs on easy, and after days of continuous playing, we still have yet to full combo a song on hard difficulty.
As for the songs, you do have a bunch to choose from similar to Arcaea, but you do have to play the game and progress the “story” in order to unlock them. There are a bunch of genres too, ranging from EDM, pop, trance, anime music, and many more.
Unfortunately, there is no multiplayer mode in Phigros if you want to play with friends. But still, it’s a great way to pass time and practice your hand-eye coordination. We just hope you don’t rage-quit and end up breaking your phone.
Phigros is available on the App Store and Google Play.
So if you’re like us missing rhythm games on mobile, why not give one of these a shot? And if you did try them, share your opinion in the comments section below of what game you enjoyed more. Also if you have any other rhythm game suggestions, let us know and we might just do a part two.
