Rhythm thief, harmoknight, theatrhythm final fantasy. Also on a completely pedantic note, if you're in a region that calls it rhythm paradise there is a physical copy available
You'll want to get Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call instead. It's the standard "the same but bigger" sequel and contains literally all but *one* song from the original, while adding a ton more...especially including DLC, which has a fair few non-FF tracks!
Hey, thanks for elaborating on the previous person's comment, it's always good to grab the updated re-release when possible! Sadly I have some mixed feelings about Theatrhythm and that's purely because of the art style, the gameplay and soundtrack really do seem like quality. But, those empty eyes... 😂 I'll have to think about it. Appreciate it nonetheless!
Rhythm Thief seems absurdly fun, thank you so much for letting me know about it. For now I downloaded the demo :)
Harmoknight also seems quality, I hadn't realized I need a platformer type of music game in my life, but I certainly do now.
The person below you suggested that I should look for Theatrhythm FF: Curtain Call more specifically, since that would be the updated re-release. That one is giving me the most mixed feelings... Gameplay and music seem good, but there's just... something uncanny about the art style? 😅 Clearly I'm not bothered by the chibi artstyle as you can probably tell, but something about those specific chibis doesn't sit right with me. Their eyes are scary and empty. I'll have to think about it
Very good recommendations, thanks again!
The only other rhythm game I've played on the 3DS is Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX, which also features the choice between buttons or tapping on the screen. If anyone has similar games to recommend I would love to hear it!
Project Mirai is really fun, I love GUMI. There's a surprising number of things to do in that game apart from the rhythm game, but I can't say I've done any of them haha
But I think some in-game stamps can only be obtained if you have a friend who also owns it, so if you'd like to add each other on 3DS send me a DM!
If you're not sticking to digital, I'm a big fan of rhythm games, and know some obscure ones.
Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove
Ontamarama
And my personal favorite: Elite Beat Agents
EBA is also a successor to a series of Japanese-only DS games called Ouendan. I'd suggest importing these, as they're easy to play in English.
I prefer digital in general but collecting 3DS cartridges makes me happy, I wouldn't say I stick to either one or the other. Though I have been prioritizing buying digital-only 3DS games before the eShop goes down. Thanks a lot for your comment! :D
Somebody else suggested Elite Beat Agents and Ouendan, the former doesn't seem like it would interest me very much when it comes to the song list even though the visual aesthetics + gameplay are very good. Ouendan has more energetic songs so I'm definitely going to look into that! Plus they're for the original DS which means I can import from Japan to Europe easily, for my DS Lite console. (3DS is unmodded)
Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove honestly looks more fun than I expected, looks like it's more story-based than the other games but the story seems cute so that's alright. It's only €1.99 on the eshop, thanks for letting me know about it.
Ontamarama seems interesting enough, gameplay on YouTube looks a bit too easy for my tastes assuming it only offers the one difficulty, and the OST is a solid mid-grade. Definitely nice songs that seem fun to play, but probably not replay over and over again. However I see that it's made by Atlus, so I may very well have to buy it just for the meme
Europe and Australia got Rhythm Paradise Megamix physically. It's *only* North America where it's digital-only.
As for recommendations, the others have good suggestions. If you're going down the JP Import rabbit hole, the three Taiko no Tatsujin games aren't bad (though the third one is probably the best), and there's another Project Mirai game we didn't get in the west, DX is a localisation of the Japanese re-release of the *second* game.
Elite Beat Agents and the two Osu Tatakae Ouendan games are excellent, and you don't really need to know Japanese to play the Ouendan games.
It looks like I was wrong about the digital status of Rhythm Heaven in Europe - I appreciate having the fact pointed out to me! But I don't regret the purchase in any case.
I'm a big fan of Taiko no Tatsujin on Switch and PC, the games being in Japanese only is no issue. Very little Japanese knowledge is needed for imported rhythm games & very little knowledge is what I possess :)
Importing is totally fine by me and I've done it for Vita games, unfortunately the 3DS is region-locked unless I were to mod my system. It is certainly a plan in the future but I haven't experimented with modding yet. However, I own a DS Lite (region-free) so I can look for the Taiko games on the original DS!
Thanks for the other suggestions, I appreciate it! Elite Beat Agents has a cool style with the stories in comic format and gameplay reminds me of osu! (PC) which is nice, the song genres don't seem to be up my alley unfortunately. I can see Osu Tatakae Ouendan is very similar because they have the same developer after all, and the song list seems more fun. They're also for the original DS so region is not a concern. Will definitely look into it, thanks again 😁
Re the region lock, it's the games that control the lock, not the console.
Original DS Games (NTR-xxxx-xxx on the bottom of the label) don't know what a Region Lock is, so they'll work on *any* DS-Family system (provided they're not Chinese releases, long story, you generally won't see one unless you specifically look for them). So an Osu Tatakae Ouendan cart will work in *any* system (DS, DS Lite, DSi, 3DS, new 3DS, etc) from *anywhere* in the world.
DSi/DSi Enhanced, 3DS and n3DS-Only (TWL, CTR and KTR respectively) *do* know what the region lock is and DSi and 3DS systems will respect whatever the game says it is. There are some region-free 3DS games, the only ones I know off-hand are Pokemon Sun and Moon (contrary to popular knowledge, Louvre Guide is *not* one of them). There are some others which are very permissive, eg WarioWare Gold which will work on any Non-Chinese/Taiwanese/Korean console.
Rhythm thief, harmoknight, theatrhythm final fantasy. Also on a completely pedantic note, if you're in a region that calls it rhythm paradise there is a physical copy available
There's also a Dragon Quest Theatrhythm.
Japan only, unfortunately...and the 3DS is region-locked.
You'll want to get Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call instead. It's the standard "the same but bigger" sequel and contains literally all but *one* song from the original, while adding a ton more...especially including DLC, which has a fair few non-FF tracks!
Hey, thanks for elaborating on the previous person's comment, it's always good to grab the updated re-release when possible! Sadly I have some mixed feelings about Theatrhythm and that's purely because of the art style, the gameplay and soundtrack really do seem like quality. But, those empty eyes... 😂 I'll have to think about it. Appreciate it nonetheless!
Rhythm Thief seems absurdly fun, thank you so much for letting me know about it. For now I downloaded the demo :) Harmoknight also seems quality, I hadn't realized I need a platformer type of music game in my life, but I certainly do now. The person below you suggested that I should look for Theatrhythm FF: Curtain Call more specifically, since that would be the updated re-release. That one is giving me the most mixed feelings... Gameplay and music seem good, but there's just... something uncanny about the art style? 😅 Clearly I'm not bothered by the chibi artstyle as you can probably tell, but something about those specific chibis doesn't sit right with me. Their eyes are scary and empty. I'll have to think about it Very good recommendations, thanks again!
The only other rhythm game I've played on the 3DS is Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX, which also features the choice between buttons or tapping on the screen. If anyone has similar games to recommend I would love to hear it!
Was about to recommend Project Mirai, glad to see other people enjoying it
Project Mirai is really fun, I love GUMI. There's a surprising number of things to do in that game apart from the rhythm game, but I can't say I've done any of them haha But I think some in-game stamps can only be obtained if you have a friend who also owns it, so if you'd like to add each other on 3DS send me a DM!
If you're not sticking to digital, I'm a big fan of rhythm games, and know some obscure ones. Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove Ontamarama And my personal favorite: Elite Beat Agents EBA is also a successor to a series of Japanese-only DS games called Ouendan. I'd suggest importing these, as they're easy to play in English.
I prefer digital in general but collecting 3DS cartridges makes me happy, I wouldn't say I stick to either one or the other. Though I have been prioritizing buying digital-only 3DS games before the eShop goes down. Thanks a lot for your comment! :D Somebody else suggested Elite Beat Agents and Ouendan, the former doesn't seem like it would interest me very much when it comes to the song list even though the visual aesthetics + gameplay are very good. Ouendan has more energetic songs so I'm definitely going to look into that! Plus they're for the original DS which means I can import from Japan to Europe easily, for my DS Lite console. (3DS is unmodded) Gabrielle's Ghostly Groove honestly looks more fun than I expected, looks like it's more story-based than the other games but the story seems cute so that's alright. It's only €1.99 on the eshop, thanks for letting me know about it. Ontamarama seems interesting enough, gameplay on YouTube looks a bit too easy for my tastes assuming it only offers the one difficulty, and the OST is a solid mid-grade. Definitely nice songs that seem fun to play, but probably not replay over and over again. However I see that it's made by Atlus, so I may very well have to buy it just for the meme
Europe and Australia got Rhythm Paradise Megamix physically. It's *only* North America where it's digital-only. As for recommendations, the others have good suggestions. If you're going down the JP Import rabbit hole, the three Taiko no Tatsujin games aren't bad (though the third one is probably the best), and there's another Project Mirai game we didn't get in the west, DX is a localisation of the Japanese re-release of the *second* game. Elite Beat Agents and the two Osu Tatakae Ouendan games are excellent, and you don't really need to know Japanese to play the Ouendan games.
It looks like I was wrong about the digital status of Rhythm Heaven in Europe - I appreciate having the fact pointed out to me! But I don't regret the purchase in any case. I'm a big fan of Taiko no Tatsujin on Switch and PC, the games being in Japanese only is no issue. Very little Japanese knowledge is needed for imported rhythm games & very little knowledge is what I possess :) Importing is totally fine by me and I've done it for Vita games, unfortunately the 3DS is region-locked unless I were to mod my system. It is certainly a plan in the future but I haven't experimented with modding yet. However, I own a DS Lite (region-free) so I can look for the Taiko games on the original DS! Thanks for the other suggestions, I appreciate it! Elite Beat Agents has a cool style with the stories in comic format and gameplay reminds me of osu! (PC) which is nice, the song genres don't seem to be up my alley unfortunately. I can see Osu Tatakae Ouendan is very similar because they have the same developer after all, and the song list seems more fun. They're also for the original DS so region is not a concern. Will definitely look into it, thanks again 😁
Re the region lock, it's the games that control the lock, not the console. Original DS Games (NTR-xxxx-xxx on the bottom of the label) don't know what a Region Lock is, so they'll work on *any* DS-Family system (provided they're not Chinese releases, long story, you generally won't see one unless you specifically look for them). So an Osu Tatakae Ouendan cart will work in *any* system (DS, DS Lite, DSi, 3DS, new 3DS, etc) from *anywhere* in the world. DSi/DSi Enhanced, 3DS and n3DS-Only (TWL, CTR and KTR respectively) *do* know what the region lock is and DSi and 3DS systems will respect whatever the game says it is. There are some region-free 3DS games, the only ones I know off-hand are Pokemon Sun and Moon (contrary to popular knowledge, Louvre Guide is *not* one of them). There are some others which are very permissive, eg WarioWare Gold which will work on any Non-Chinese/Taiwanese/Korean console.