Guest contributor & industry specialist Kevin Williams is back, this time taking a look at the “rhythm resurgence” as music games return to prominence on the gaming scene. Take it away Kevin!
KWP: In this special feature for Arcade Heroes, we look at the reemergence of the music/rhythm game genre. Once an incredibly profitable and popular genre, the scene had been assassinated by a variety of factors and influences. 2024 is looking more and more like players are ready to get their dance shoes on again. It would be difficult to miss that over the last few months, more than one video amusement music game machine has been on test at several prominent locations. This would not be happening if public interest had not shifted in a positive direction. To that end, let’s take a look at how we got here, where we are, and where the trend is headed.
Rhythm Background
Once the darling of the video games scene, rhythm and music game systems from the late ’90s through the early 2010’s were strong sellers and earners for operators. The music game genre can trace its roots back to the success achieved from the Japanese factories, predominantly the BEMANI series from KONAMI was a runaway success, that still to this day has an incredibly strong following in Japan and is one of the mainstay platforms of the market – seeing many iterations of the rhythm music formula.
However, for the Western market the music game series suffered several blows, that saw their otherwise great success decimated. Once the king of the genre in any market, Dance Dance Revolution is no longer as prevalent as it once was, replaced by the likes of Andamiro USA’s Pump It Up series, and Step Revolution’s Step ManiaX. DDR’s fall from Western graces has resulted in a similar dearth of BEMANI games in the States, with no Japanese-made rhythm game being officially carried by a US distributor (we’ll discuss the UK/EU later).
All this however seems to be about to change, as we see leading facility operators such as Dave & Buster’s, and Round1USA, undertake location testing (LocTest) of new Japanese music game machines towards deployment in their operation. Both of these chains have kept the flame alive, Round1USA in particular catering to the existing crowd of ‘rhythm gamers’ and offering a majority of Japanese rhythm titles from Konami, Taito, and Sega for patrons to enjoy.
Our publication The Stinger Report, was one of the first to cover the issues with the downfall in Western adoption of music games back at the time. To recap – many key amusement distributors got cold feet in continuing to run certain lines as questions regarding the payment of music license fees was reported. Operations running these machines had been reported receiving visits from trade association ASCAP (the American Society representing music Composers, Authors and Publishers) towards the payment of licensing fees for the music being played in public. At the time, an incredibly popular series of amusement music games were sidelined, and distributors in key territories decided to abandon running machines to avoid issues with licensed music. This essentially slammed the brakes on rhythm growth, where it has languished aside from the aforementioned limited imports by a relatively small number of locations.
Rhythm On Test
Recently we have seen a toe dipped back in the music game waters. Initially BANDAI NAMCO Amusement America (BNAA), working with Round1USA and Dave & Busters, placed their successful Japanese drum game Taiko No Tatsujin on test at the beginning of 2023. A game originally launched to Japan in 2001 and seeing major amusement success in the home islands as well as a consumer game series, it had long enjoyed a “cult classic” status in the West, but without any official support. This changed when after extensive testing, NAMCO announced that the game would receive a “limited” US release for the end of 2024. This linked to creating a Western suitable variant of the system and coming to terms with fielding the competition mode, integral to the machines success. Sources close to the evaluation of the hardware reported on strong revenue generation.
Among the revealed details of that announcement, was the inclusion of a monthly subscription for operators. This partly to address the need for the game to be connected to the ‘BANDAI NAMCO Passport’ network and supported player card access to scores. There were suggestions that this subscription fee would also address licensing fee issues, but this was not confirmed at the time of going to the wire.
Following the news of BNAA entering the Western market with a new music game – it was revealed that another popular Japanese music game has been on LocTest. Revealed by Arcade Heroes, the SEGA Corporation Japan release MAIMAI DX was tested at Round1USA sporting a Western translation (USA) version. The unique circular touchscreen and eight-button music rhythm game, has a very strong following in the Asian market, and like Taiko, garnered a strong reputation in the West despite its rarity here. This has recently been followed up by another test at Dave & Busters. It was reported that the evaluation of this machine was being made for possible consideration of its own Western rollout in November.
Unusually the machines on test were linked to the Japanese tournament network (AimePlay via their ALL.Net system), that saw some of their features offline during the period of evening closure of the servers in Japan. The latest series of the machine had been reported in previous Stinger coverage from its appearance on the WAHLAP booth at this year’s Asian Amusement & Attraction (AAA) Expo – as they announced the roll out of the platform in China. Sources reported that the machines seen at Round1USA and D&B were actually on technical test – being set up for installation and with the suggestion that these Westernized units were manufactured by WAHLAP.
For the rest of the industry, it was not known if this platform was going to be made readily available or would also be on a “limited” release. Especially considering the needs for a constant network connection, down time during business hours due to maintenance, and the use of Aime Cards. The SEGA Group JP “AimePlay” platform, offering Amusement IC cards for players to store progress and scores across a suite of SEGA connected amusement games – is supported by an online app, though with certain AimePlay features disabled, (such as camera) and certain songs removed. Attempts to reach out to SEGA Amusement International (SAI) regarding plans to present this machine to the Western market, had not received a reply at the time of writing this coverage.
The Chinese market has continued their love affair with music games, as reported in both the Stinger Report and Arcade Heroes coverage of the AAA Expo back in May. Along with WAHLAP’s representation of ‘MAIMAI DX’ in China – other developers such as ARCCER Amusement presented their music game releases. The ‘Dance Cube’ series borrows heavily on the circular touchscreen rhythm music game aesthetic of the original. It is expected that other grey imports of these Chinese music games will eventually make Western landfall.
The Rhythm Resurgence
As stated previously, there have been continued successful deployment of music games in the Western market. Most notably Andamiro USA with ‘Pump It Up’ conceived in 1999 – the series celebrating a 25-year legacy with the latest version in the series called ‘Phoenix 2024” that brings even more features and licensed songs to the table. The series is built on the strength of K-Pop licensed music, which has been a hit with the loyal player-base and appealing to growing public interest in the music genre. This version of the platform is supported by the “Pump It Up Mall,” which offers an online commerce platform dedicated to supporting the music game community.
Step Revolution with Step ManiaX have defined their platform beyond the conventional amusement archetypes and created a fully established “Exergame” platform. Defined as a exercise amusement piece, the Step ManiaX machines are incredibly popular with their loyal player-base and it has become the most successful “indie” arcade piece on the market. The game merges fitness, eSports competition and amusement into a powerful mix of entertainment. Those now aware of the loyal following of these platforms are missing out on the strong revenue that well-designed music games can offer. The latest application for the platform is the inclusion of a ‘Step ManiaX Tracker’ mobile app, that collects data on the players progress through a global leaderboard, truly defining the Exergaming credentials of the platform.
Europe has not been left out of all the fun, thanks to Konami’s continued partnership with with distributor Electrocoin. Long the source of DDR in Europe, they have been furnishing the latest Dance Dance Revolution A20 Plus machine to interested European and American operators. As of this writing, Konami still has no official distribution contracts in the States, being incredibly weary of the Western market, and are only prepared to work with close partners in fieldling their hardware.
In Japan, the music rhythm game business has continued to be a scene staple. The series of BEMANI machines manufactured by KONAMI are augmented by machines from BANDAI NAMCO, SEGA and others in the market. The machines are supported by extensive tournament competitions such as the KONAMI “Dance aRound” competition and the hugely popular “BEMANI Pro League,” now celebrating season 4.
Regarding the fusion of innovative new amusement technology and rhythm, we have seen some successful deployments, particularly with Beat Saber. The game was given an abortive amusement VR release by VRsenal in 2018 – as a fully automated VR kiosk. Receiving a limited release before the game owners, Beat Games, undertook a removal of the content from representation in amusement. At the time, the move was shrouded in secrecy and was followed by considerable layoffs from Beat Games – who are owned by Meta.
Well-placed sources suggested that Meta were unhappy with the game’s representation outside of consumer VR, as well as the issues of having to address music property licenses used in the consumer game for commercial deployment. The untimely discontinuation of the game left a negative impact on many VR arcade operators who were reliant on one of the strongest revenue generators they had seen. This would not be the last time a strongly represented product in the music genre would be removed from usage, with hardly any reasoning behind the move made publicly. This left a stain on operating music games for the VR scene, much like what had happened with ASCAP pulling the rug out from ops with Guitar Hero Arcade.
The Future Of Rhythm Out West
Things however are about to change in the fortunes of the music game genre in amusement. The Stinger Report reached out to the amusement trade associations regarding the positioning of music licenses and members protection in running music games on the market. The American Amusement Machine Association (AAMA) commented that they had just started research into this situation, gathering data on the scope of the issue. This includes impact assessments in regards to owing licensing fees on game music that operators may need support with.
There have been concerns that the possible re-adoption of music games imported from the successful Japanese market have been hindered by concerns from Western distributors. Previous complaints about the build-quality of Western versions of popular music games aside, there is the issue of some LocTest’s being “hampered” by outside influences which have been mentioned – vested interests who are not keen to have to undertake the responsibility of running converted Japanese machines in their catalogue, and incorporating unique tournament networks needing player cards. There is also the continued spectre of music licensing fees, which is off putting to those who can just sell no fuss redemption and conventional amusement pieces in their warehouse.
But no mater the concerns, the popularity of these games means that major amusement manufacturers will be pushing a music narrative in time for representation at the 2024 IAAPA convention in Orlando. We can expect to see (at least) three different amusement rhythm games vying for competition on the show floor. At the same time, the established rhythm game genres will be in the mists of being relaunched onto the Western market through partnerships with venue operators such as Round1USA.
Can the ghost of previous failed deployments of this genre be eradicated, and will the next few months see a return to the charts for the music amusement piece?
About the Author – Kevin Williams is a widely-respected specialist on entertainment and technology assisting international clients in developing immersive and interactive entertainment technology and facilities. Kevin is Founder of KWP, a lead specialist in immersive Out-of-Home Entertainment for retail destinations and beyond. Along with advisory positions with other entrants into the market he is founder and publisher of The Stinger Report, “a-must-read” e-zine for those working or investing in the amusement, attractions, and entertainment industry. Kevin is a prolific writer and provides regular news columns for main trade publications. He also travels the globe as a keynote speaker, moderator and panellist at numerous industry conferences and events. Author of “The Out-of-Home Immersive Entertainment Frontier: Expanding Interactive Boundaries in Leisure Facilities”, the only book on this aspect of the market, the second edition is scheduled for release soon.
Kevin can be reached at kwp@thestingerreport.com
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