Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure

Last updated
Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure
Rhapsody Box Art.jpg
North American PlayStation cover art
Developer(s) Nippon Ichi Software
Publisher(s) Nippon Ichi Software
Director(s) Kōichi Kitazumi
Producer(s)
  • Sōhei Niikawa
  • Kōichi Kitazumi
Designer(s)
  • Sōhei Niikawa
  • Ryōji Nomura
Artist(s)
  • Ryōji Nomura
  • Noriaki Kitamura
  • Masayuki Aikawa
Writer(s)
  • Sōhei Niikawa
  • Kōichi Kitazumi
Composer(s) Tenpei Satō
Series Rhapsody
Platform(s)
Release
December 17, 1998
  • PlayStation
    • JP: December 17, 1998
    • NA: July 30, 2000 [1]
    Nintendo DS
    • JP: August 7, 2008
    • NA: September 23, 2008
    • AU: March 26, 2009
    • EU: March 27, 2009
    Nintendo Switch
    • NA: August 30, 2022
    • EU: September 2, 2022
    • AU: September 9, 2022
    Windows
    • WW: August 30, 2022
Genre(s) Tactical role-playing game
Mode(s) Single-player

Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure [lower-alpha 1] is a tactical role-playing video game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the PlayStation. Released in 1998, it is the first installment in the Rhapsody series. [2] A version for the Nintendo DS was released in Japan and North America in 2008, and in PAL regions in 2009. [3] The game was released for Nintendo Switch as part of the Prinny Presents NIS Classics Volume 3 compilation (alongside La Pucelle: Ragnarok ) in western regions, and for Windows as a standalone game worldwide in 2022. [4] The game's story focuses on a young girl named Cornet as she seeks to rescue a prince after being turned to stone by a witch.

Contents

Rhapsody, along with its sequels, are considered musical RPGs, [5] meaning in place of FMV cutscenes, there are musical numbers, complete with vocals. The game is also known for its "overwhelming cuteness" [2] and low level of difficulty. [5] Although this may make the game seem geared towards a younger audience, in Japan, the game and series in general has seen much success. [2]

Gameplay

When starting a new game, the player can select a game difficulty (easy, normal, or hard), which affects how long it will take to finish the game. The player selects different places on the world map and encounters random encounter battles, such as in the Dragon Quest series. Unlike most role-playing video games, the player can save at any time, except during battle. [6]

An oft-mentioned point of appreciation is its relatively unique plot premise and flow. Rhapsody is a theatrical musical in regard to its presentation style, containing frequent cut scenes that are sung, rather than simply spoken and acted. Players are given the option of listening to the lyrics and voice-overs in Japanese, English, or muting them entirely. [6] Hidden throughout the game are high-quality illustrations of characters, which can be viewed any time through the item menu. [2]

Battles

The battles are fought in a tactical role-playing game fashion, but unlike other games in this genre, the battles tend to last less than a minute, with the exception of boss battles, and require little tactics. This makes the game stand out in its genre and may have also led to its limited mainstream success with more hardcore players of the genre. [2]

Screenshot of a typical battle scene. Rhapsodybattle.png
Screenshot of a typical battle scene.

Cornet is the main character, but mainly offers support in battle, as puppets that are found throughout the game do most of the fighting for her. Kururu never actually fights in any battles in the original, though she does in the remake for the DS. Each character learns different skills as they level up, except Cornet (in the original only), who has attacks called Rewards. Cornet can blow her horn during battle to power up the puppets and gain appreciation points, which allow her to unleash these devastating techniques. Most Rewards are represented by foods, such as flan, cake, and candy.

Like in most tactical RPGs, each character has a certain move number and can attack at a certain distance. Most party members can only attack at close range, unless he or she has a long-range skill. Each character can also equip three accessories and use items. The game features some normal status problems (sleep, paralysis, etc.) like in most console RPGs, but has some original ones too, such as frog and philanthropy. Each enemy also has an element (thunder, wind, earth, fire, water, dark, holy) and a weakness to the opposite element. [7] Each element has its own set of spells, which can be used to take advantage of such weaknesses.

Unlike in most tactical RPGs, instead of gaining experience points each turn, all the characters get the same number of points at the end of battle. After earning enough experience points, the character will level up and become stronger and possibly learn a spell. [7] There are also skill points, gained when a character strikes the finishing blow. The more of these points a character has, the higher his or her critical rate becomes. [7] Inotium, the in-game money, is also won after every battle. Occasionally monsters will join Cornet after they are defeated. These monsters can then be used in battle, like puppets, and can use special monster abilities.

Plot

Story

The game centers around the adventures of Cornet, a girl who can talk to puppets and has a magical horn that grants wishes, and Kururu, a puppet that has the heart and soul of a human. The majority of the game is about Cornet and Kururu trying to save Prince Ferdinand (whom Cornet is in love with) after he has been turned to stone by the self-proclaimed "most beautiful witch in the world". [2] The witch, Marjoly, also has a crush on the prince and meant to put him to sleep, but messed up the spell and accidentally turned him to stone.

Characters

Development

Sohei Niikawa first developed the concept of Rhapsody shortly after he joined Nippon Ichi Software in 1996. At the time, the company was working on tabletop and mahjong games. Realizing a potential financial problem within Nippon Ichi, Niikawa devised the scenario and script for Rhapsody. [18]

After deciding that the game should contain musical elements, which were influenced by Disney films, Niikawa recruited Tenpei Sato to write the music in May 1998. [19] [20] Having composed and performed musicals in the past, Sato composed the game's musical numbers. [21] The music was recorded at Sato's home studio, [22] where he upgraded it to include ProTools as well as recording booths. [21] Despite the vocal booth at his studio being narrow and the recording sessions taking place during the summer months, Sato admitted that the cast sang their best. [20] When he heard the English versions of the songs, he was able to "hear the styles of Disney and Broadway". [21] Three albums have been released. The first, titled Marl Oukoku no Ningyouhime Original Soundtrack, was released in Japan by A'Zip Music on January 22, 1999, and contains 22 tracks from the game. The second, Marl Oukoku no Ningyouhime: Original Vocal Album, was released by KSS on February 24 of the same year and contains 8 vocal tracks. The third, Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure Original Game Soundtrack, was released in North America by Atlus on July 30, 2000 alongside the game. [23]

Cornet's voice actress, Kahoru Fujino, admitted that she was surprised about the game being a musical RPG. [22]

An English localization of the game by Atlus was scheduled for release in North America in May 2000, [24] [25] but was delayed to July 30. [26]

Release

After the first release of the game, a cheaper edition called The Adventure of Puppet Princess + 1 was published, which featured an art gallery, sound test, and a bonus CD. The North American release of the game had these features, but instead of the bonus CD was a soundtrack CD, with vocal and instrumental songs from the game. The third release (The Adventure of Puppet Princess (PSone Books)), did not come with any extra CD. There was also a Rhapsody calendar released. [27]

Nintendo DS version

Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure was released for the Nintendo DS on September 23, 2008. [28] The gameplay has been changed significantly, and the battles were changed to be similar to the ones found in the sequels. Kururu also engages in battle in this version of the game. Though extra scenarios from the third game in the series were advertised, translated, and given as the reason for the removal of the English song vocals, they were absent from the game. NIS America removed this content because of localization issues. [29] Reports of glitches have also surfaced such as freezing. [30]

Reception

Reviews for the PlayStation and DS releases of Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure were mixed. Adam Cleveland of IGN said the original PlayStation release "packs more wallop than some RPGs I've seen" and that the younger demographic "will have a blast with this beginner's RPG". [42] Miguel Lopez of GameSpot praised the PlayStation version for being a "nonconventional production". [5] Johnny Liu of Game Revolution had mixed feelings on the original release, calling it "average to sub-average game from a gameplay perspective, but it pretty much falls flat everywhere else". [39]

Legacy

Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure has two sequels, Rhapsody II: Ballad of the Little Princess and Rhapsody III: Memories of Marl Kingdom .

Rhapsody's influence has extended into Nippon Ichi's subsequent series of tactical role-playing games. One of the characters of La Pucelle: Tactics is a descendant of the characters in the game, while the shops named after Cornet's rival, Etoile Rosenqueen, have spread even to the Netherworlds of Disgaea: Hour of Darkness. [2] Antiphona no Seikahime: Tenshi no Gakufu Op.A takes place in the same world and features Marjoly, who also appears in Disgaea 3: Absence of Justice as DLC (and like all other DLC, is included with the Vita port, Absence of Detention, for free) and makes cameo appearances in each game of the Disgaea series.

See also

Notes

  1. Also known as Marl Ōkoku no Ningyō Hime (Japanese: マール王国の人形姫, Hepburn: Māru-ōkoku no Ningyō-hime, lit. "Puppet Princess of Marl Kingdom") in Japan.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlus</span> Japanese video game company

Atlus Co., Ltd. is a Japanese video game developer, publisher, arcade manufacturer and distribution company based in Tokyo. A subsidiary of Sega, the company is known for video game series such as Megami Tensei, Persona, Etrian Odyssey, and Trauma Center, as well as Print Club (Purikura) arcade machines. Its corporate mascot is Jack Frost, a snowman-like character from their Shin Megami Tensei series. Outside of video games, the company is known for their Purikura arcade machines, which are selfie photo sticker booths popular in East Asia.

<i>Disgaea: Hour of Darkness</i> 2003 video game

Disgaea: Hour of Darkness is a tactical role-playing video game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console. Set in a world full of demons and angels, the story follows Laharl, the son of a demon overlord, who upon being awakened after a two-year slumber, aspires to succeed his father’s place while also fighting rival demons in the process.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nippon Ichi Software</span> Japanese video game developer

Nippon Ichi Software, Inc. is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. The company was founded in 1991 and has developed several role-playing video games, most notably the Disgaea and Marl Kingdom series. Its mascot is the penguin-like Disgaea character Prinny.

Tactical role-playing games, also known as strategy role-playing games and in Japan as simulation RPGs, are a video game genre that combines core elements of role-playing video games with those of tactical strategy video games. The formats of tactical RPGs are much like traditional tabletop role-playing games and strategy games in appearance, pacing, and rule structure. Likewise, early tabletop role-playing games are descended from skirmish wargames such as Chainmail, which were primarily concerned with combat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tenpei Sato</span> Musical artist

Tenpei Sato is a video game composer and voice actor. His most notable works are his soundtracks for Nippon Ichi Software games, such as Disgaea and Phantom Brave. He also provides voice-over for games and movies.

<i>Contact</i> (video game) 2006 video game

Contact is a role-playing video game developed by Grasshopper Manufacture for the Nintendo DS handheld game console. It was published by Marvelous Entertainment in Japan on March 30, 2006, by Atlus USA in North America on October 18, and by Rising Star Games in Australia, Asia and Europe on January 25, 2007 and February 2, respectively.

<i>Persona 3</i> 2006 video game

Persona 3, released outside Japan as Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 3, is a 2006 role-playing video game developed by Atlus that is the fourth main installment in the Persona series, which is part of the larger Megami Tensei franchise. It was originally released for the PlayStation 2 in Japan in 2006 and in North America in 2007. It has received several enhanced re-releases and ports: Persona 3 FES, an extended version featuring a new playable epilogue and other changes, was released for the PlayStation 2 in Japan in 2007 and worldwide in 2008. An abridged PlayStation Portable version, Persona 3 Portable, was released in Japan in 2009, North America in 2010, and Europe in 2011, and ported to the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S in 2023. Persona 3 Reload, a remake of the core game for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S, was released on February 2, 2024.

<i>Summon Night</i> Video game series

Summon Night is a series of role-playing video games, mixed with elements of a visual novel based dating sim. The series is primarily developed by Flight-Plan, published by Banpresto, and owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment. The character designs are by Izuka Takeshi. The series has had six main line entries, and seven spin-off entries, spanning the PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation Vita, Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS video game consoles.

<i>Etrian Odyssey</i> (video game) 2007 video game

Etrian Odyssey is a 2007 3D dungeon crawler role-playing video game by Atlus for the Nintendo DS. It centers around first-person exploration of a mysterious dungeon known as the Yggdrasil Labyrinth using a player-created party of characters. The game received mixed to positive reviews from critics, who criticized its punishing difficulty as limiting its appeal, but also making its gameplay more rewarding.

<i>Luminous Arc</i> (video game) 2007 tactical role-playing game

Luminous Arc is a tactical role-playing game developed by Imageepoch for the Nintendo DS, and the first in the Luminous Arc series. The game was released on February 8, 2007 in Japan, August 14, 2007 in North America, and October 18, 2007 in Australia by Atlus, and in Europe the following day by Rising Star Games.

Kururu may refer to:

<i>Rhapsody II: Ballad of the Little Princess</i> 1999 video game

Rhapsody II: Ballad of the Little Princess is a role-playing video game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the original PlayStation and is the second installment in the Rhapsody series. The game takes place twelve years after the event of its predecessor, Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure, and features much of the same characters. Like its predecessor, Little Princess includes many musical interludes and focuses on the themes of falling in love and fulfilling your dreams, though the tactical role-playing game battle system of Rhapsody was discarded for a more traditional RPG battle system.

<i>Rhapsody III: Memories of Marl Kingdom</i> 2000 video game

Rhapsody III: Memories of Marl Kingdom is a role-playing video game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the PlayStation 2. It is the third installment in the Rhapsody series. Unlike the previous games in the series, this game was only released once, although a special limited edition version of the game was released concurrently.

Rhapsody is a series of RPGs developed by Nippon Ichi Software. The three main games in the series are Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure, Rhapsody II: Ballad of the Little Princess, and Rhapsody III: Memories of Marl Kingdom.

<i>A Witchs Tale</i> 2009 video game

A Witch's Tale is a 2009 video game for the Nintendo DS. It was developed by Hit Maker and published by Nippon Ichi Software.

<i>Disgaea</i> Video game series

Disgaea is a series of tactical role-playing video games created and developed by Nippon Ichi. The series debuted in Japan on January 30, 2003, with Disgaea: Hour of Darkness, later re-released as Disgaea: Afternoon of Darkness and Disgaea DS. One of Nippon Ichi's most popular franchises, it has branched off into both a manga and anime series. The Disgaea games are known for complex gameplay, extremely high maximum stats and humorous dialogue. The Disgaea series has shipped 5 million copies as of 2021.

<i>Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey</i> 2009 role-playing game

Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey is a role-playing video game developed by Atlus and Lancarse for the Nintendo DS. The game is the sixth entry in the Shin Megami Tensei series, which forms the core of the Megami Tensei franchise. It was released in Japan in 2009, and in North America in 2010. An enhanced port for the Nintendo 3DS, Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux, was released in Japan in 2017, and was released internationally in 2018 by Atlus in North America and Deep Silver in Europe.

<i>Radiant Historia</i> 2010 video game

Radiant Historia is a role-playing video game co-developed by Atlus and Headlock for the Nintendo DS. It was released in Japan in 2010 by Atlus, and in North America in 2011 by their subsidiary Atlus USA. An expanded remake for the Nintendo 3DS, titled Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology, was released in 2017 in Japan and released in North America and Europe the following year, with the European version being published by Deep Silver.

Ningyo-hime, which can mean both "Mermaid Princess" (人魚姫) or "Puppet Princess" (人形姫), may refer to:

<i>Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk</i> 2016 video game

Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk is a dungeon crawler role playing video game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software. It was released in Japan in June 2016 for the PlayStation Vita and in September 2017 for the PlayStation 4. The game was then released internationally on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Microsoft Windows in September 2018. It was followed by Labyrinth of Galleria: The Moon Society.

References

  1. 1 2 IGN staff (May 11, 2000). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (PS; Preview)". IGN . Archived from the original on April 4, 2018. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Kalata, Kurt (November 26, 2005). "Marl Kingdom". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on July 19, 2009. Retrieved April 22, 2007.
  3. 1 2 Herring, Will (October 2008). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (DS)". GamePro . p. 93. Archived from the original on September 26, 2008. Retrieved September 24, 2008.
  4. "Prinny Presents NIS Classics Volume 3 launches August 30 in North America, September 2 in Europe". Gematsu. May 5, 2022. Archived from the original on June 27, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Lopez, Miguel (June 27, 2000). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure Review (PS)". GameSpot . Archived from the original on December 25, 2022. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  6. 1 2 Atlus staff, ed. (1999). Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure instruction manual. Atlus. p. 8. SLUS-01073.
  7. 1 2 3 Atlus staff, ed. (1999). Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure instruction manual. Atlus. pp. 16–19. SLUS-01073.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (2000 Video Game)". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on 8 October 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2020. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of the title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (2000 Video Game) Japanese Cast". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on 15 October 2020. Retrieved 7 October 2020. A green check mark indicates that a role has been confirmed using a screenshot (or collage of screenshots) of the title's list of voice actors and their respective characters found in its closing credits and/or other reliable sources of information.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  10. "Cornet Espoir". RPG Dreamers. Archived from the original on October 3, 2002. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  11. "Kururu". RPG Dreamers. Archived from the original on October 3, 2002. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  12. "Ferdinand Marl E." RPG Dreamers. Archived from the original on October 3, 2002. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  13. "Etoile Rosenqueen". RPG Dreamers. Archived from the original on October 3, 2002. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  14. "Marjoly". RPG Dreamers. Archived from the original on October 3, 2002. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  15. "Gao". RPG Dreamers. Archived from the original on January 1, 2003. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  16. "Crowdia". RPG Dreamers. Archived from the original on June 17, 2002. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  17. "Myao". RPG Dreamers. Archived from the original on October 3, 2002. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  18. "Disgaea 1 Complete Nippon Ichi Software interview – 'the foundation of entertainment is to get people to laugh!'". Metro . July 25, 2018. Archived from the original on February 5, 2020. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  19. "『マリーのアトリエ』にちょっぴり嫉妬!?『マール王国の人形姫』の裏話も飛び出した音楽制作秘話を公開【電撃日本一】". Dengeki Online (in Japanese). October 11, 2012. Archived from the original on May 23, 2019. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  20. 1 2 "スタッフの部屋 - 第2回" (in Japanese). Nippon Ichi Software. February 23, 1999. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  21. 1 2 3 Kotowski, Don (August 15, 2010). "Tenpei Sato Interview: A Detailed Retrospective". Video Game Music Online. Archived from the original on February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  22. 1 2 "スタッフの部屋 - 第1回" (in Japanese). Nippon Ichi Software. January 30, 1999. Archived from the original on May 20, 2019. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  23. Rzeminski, Lucy (2000). "RPGFan Music - Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure OST". RPGFan. Archived from the original on October 24, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  24. "Atlus' "Mystery RPG" revealed as Rhapsody". Gaming Intelligence Agency. January 20, 2000. Archived from the original on February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  25. "Rhapsody goes Gold". Gaming Intelligence Agency. June 18, 2000. Archived from the original on February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  26. "Rhapsody delayed to July". Gaming Intelligence Agency. June 18, 2000. Archived from the original on February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
  27. "Rhapsody - Propaganda". RPGamer. Archived from the original on June 27, 2013. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  28. "Rhapsody ~A Musical Adventure~". NIS America. Archived from the original on October 12, 2014. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  29. Gann, Patrick (October 12, 2008). "Rhapsody DS "Glitch" Actually Intentional". RPGFan. Archived from the original on October 2, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  30. Jenni (October 14, 2008). "Falling Flat - Encountering Rhapsody's DS Glitches". Siliconera. Archived from the original on June 12, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2013.
  31. "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure for PlayStation". GameRankings. Archived from the original on December 5, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  32. "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure for DS Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on June 1, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  33. EGM staff (August 2000). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (PS)". Electronic Gaming Monthly .
  34. Juba, Joe (October 2008). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (DS): PSone RPG Port Complete with Spontaneous Musical Numbers". Game Informer . No. 185. Archived from the original on July 11, 2019. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  35. "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (PS)". Game Informer. No. 87. July 2000.
  36. Chau, Anthony (May 2, 2000). "REVIEW for Rhapsody [A Musical Adventure] (PS)". GameFan . Archived from the original on May 10, 2000. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  37. Jake the Snake (August 11, 2000). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure Review for PlayStation on GamePro.com". GamePro. Archived from the original on April 4, 2005. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  38. Kevin S. (January 9, 2009). "Rhapsody ~A Musical Adventure~ Review (DS)". Game Revolution. Archived from the original on September 18, 2015. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  39. 1 2 Liu, Johnny (June 2000). "Rhapsody [A Musical Adventure] Review (PS)". Game Revolution. Archived from the original on September 10, 2015. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  40. Stella, Shiva (September 23, 2008). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure Review (DS)". GameSpot. Archived from the original on July 12, 2015. Retrieved April 10, 2014.
  41. Hatfield, Daemon (September 25, 2008). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure Review (NDS)". IGN. Archived from the original on May 25, 2015. Retrieved June 8, 2015.
  42. 1 2 Cleveland, Adam (June 28, 2000). "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure (PS)". IGN. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2016.
  43. "Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine . August 2000.
  44. "Joga Rapido: Rhapsody". Ação Games (in Portuguese). No. 155. September 2000. p. 20.