Taiko no Tatsujin: The Drum Master
The Long-Awaited Arcade Rhythm Game Is Finally Here?
Rhythm games, especially on the PC, are a particular genre of gaming to cover as it's something that players will either enjoy or get put off by it. For decades, Korea has commanded the genre with hits including EZ2ON R Reboot and the PC port of DJMAX Respect V. While I've covered the console version many moons ago, Japanese developers are starting to take note of a niche audience ripe for the picking. Enter Bandai Namco's Taiko no Tatsujin: The Drum Master! released exclusively on Microsoft's console and PC platforms.
Taiko no Tatsujin, literally Taiko Drum Master, is one of Namco's successful arcade titles released in 2001, celebrating its 20th anniversary recently. While the series is popular in Japan, it has only seen one title in North America during the 00s with the PS2's Taiko Drum Master. Since then, the series remained exclusive to Japan and the general Asia region until 2018's Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum 'n' Fun. This was America's first Taiko game in seventeen years. Four years later, a surprise Taiko game would be released on the PC and Xbox platforms which would be a pleasant one. However, several launch issues are turning the surprise into a sour one.
Taiko No Sign In Prompts
In short, no one cared to look past this one important oversight that would prevent players from trying out the new TnT title. Xbox's patented log-in method. See, Taiko no Tatsujin is currently available on the Xbox Game Pass and like almost every single title on the service, players are required to sign in with their Xbox account. The process usually takes a few seconds and it's generally a one time thing. The only problem here is that there's no prompt when booting the game up for the first time, forcing it to be stuck in limbo.
It's almost like an ironic punch in the gut as the players who have been waiting for the title the most are the biggest rhythm game fans. While I have played the Taiko series using the official Taiko Drum peripherals before, it would have been an experience to see how the series play via regular controllers and keyboard. Until Bandai Namco and/or Microsoft fixes the issue, we'll have to wait until we can properly give the long-running rhythm game the preview it deserves. We're not the only ones disappointed, trust us.
Taiko no Tatsujin: The Drum Master! is currently available on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X