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Elite Beat Agents bringing good cheer to DS

Yet more innovation from Nintendo in this fresh take on the rhythm genre

Elite Beat Agents bringing good cheer to DS
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DS
| Elite Beat Agents

The Nintendo DS can already claim to have gifted the video games world a variety of new genres. Trauma Centre: Under the Knife for instance was the first cut-em-up sim, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (albeit originally a GBA release) offered an introduction to the argue-em-up, whilst Dr Kawashima's Brain Training delivered the IQ-yerself-up.

Now it looks like Elite Beat Agents will be able to add yet another category to that list, the cheer-em-up.

A fresh take on the rhythm game genre, Elite Beat Agents is the western version of the already-out Japanese DS title Ouendan. Players are recruited into a secret organisation that's dedicated to roaming the world solving people's problems through the medium of song and dance. (Isn't that Bono's gig? – Ed).

The problems you'll face vary from helping a lost dog find his way back home to aiding a babysitter as she attempts to win the heart of a hunky football star. Your role is to tap the screen and trace rhythmic patterns in time to the beat so your team of agents keep doing their groovy thang.

The better you do, the more chance you have of giving the story a happy ending. Get it wrong, however, and you could actually make things worse. It's this potential to impact the lives of others that promises to add some emotional depth to proceedings and separate it from the rest of the dance game pack.

Elite Beat Agents is due for release before Xmas, so stay tuned in for updates and our rocking review in the coming weeks.

Chris James
Chris James
A footy game fanatic and experienced editor of numerous computing and game titles, bossman Chris is up for anything – including running Steel Media (the madman).