Topic: Electroplankton Series Impressions

Would love to hear people's impressions on any of these titles. All of them intrigue me especially Beatnes.

I have the actual game, and while neat at first, it's not something you really go back too.
I found the biggest problem is when you find a set up you like, there's no way to say the settings of the little fish creatures.

Probably worth 2 bucks, but there's 10 right? That's 20 bucks total, which is a pretty good deal since you'll never find the retail game. Just don't expect anything mind blowing.

Well we only have 5 for now. Anyone else who actually has the DSiWare releases?

Well, I've played the original Electroplankton before, so I can give impressions from memory.

Hanenbrow is the most recognizable due to its Brawl fame. Fortunately, the game is more enjoyable than the Brawl stage, but not significantly. It's a nice relaxing experience, just overshadowed by the other Electroplankton "games." Little tadpoles are shot up automatically, and you can move leaves around to affect their path, as they rebound off of these leaves, and each hit makes a different sound. As the leaves are hit more frequently, they change color and consequently pitch.

Nanocarp.... [edit: Removed my description of this game because I had it confused with another game.]

Rec rec is a funny one. Four fish swim across the screen repeatedly and at the same speed. You can add a beat or remove it at the touch of a button. When you touch a fish, you can record one measure of sound, and then the fish will make that sound each time it swims by. Since there are four fish, you can record multiple sounds together. It's a short, amusing diversion that I enjoyed a lot as part of a larger package, but I don't know if I'd buy it unless I had 200 points sitting around unused.

Tracy is more creative. You have six "Tracies" that you draw paths on the screen for, and they make sounds along the path. Each has a different musical voice (one as a piano, one as a music box, etc), and the interplay of sounds is great.

Beatnes is the easiest to explain, the most obvious to understand from watching videos, and possibly the best of the bunch. You have different musical voice selections that can be assigned to one of four paths, and you can place notes along these paths for them to be played automatically. It's a whole lot of fun, and there are a lot of good voices, including some sounds taken straight from classic NES games.

If you're looking to just pick up one or two, it depends on what you're looking for. They each are enjoyable in different ways. Rec rec is more fun for humorous effect, There is another Electroplankton game that is just for a single voice but you can tinker with the voice processing more. However, I think both of these games are rendered unnecessary by the DSi's own Sound application. Hanenbrow and Nanocarp are great for relaxing, though I much prefer Nanocarp over Hanenbrow (but both are good). And Beatnes and Trapy are the more creative of the bunch since you have more complete control over the sounds and more variety of sounds. I personally prefer these two over the rest of the bunch, but they all have their merits.

I'm glad to see Electroplankton being offered up to the consumer again. I always thought Nintendo's policy of making it available only online was really shortchanging an extremely creative program that anyone could enjoy. I think this model is even better suited to it. Not all the applications will appeal equally to each user, so being able to cherry pick at a mere $2 each is wonderful. I just bought Trapy and Beatnes, and I'll eventually get Nanocarp, probably.

EDIT: I initially confused Tracy with Luminaria. Luminaria was my favorite of the games, but fortunately Tracy is fun, too! Hopefully it isn't long before Luminaria is out.

Thanks for your input, Adam. Looking forward to hearing more. Just out of curiousity, which ones would be definitely worth it to you and which ones would you skip on?

These games were a damn stretch on the retail package that was loaded with them. Individually they're a joke and an insult to DSi owners the world over. At the very minimum these should have been all 5 games for 200 points and even that might be pushing it.

I haven't downloaded the DSiWare versions yet, but I understand that they're exactly like the originals, so I can speak about those.

Hanenbow is a required download, do not even contemplate skipping it. It's a wonderfully calming yet engrossing little plant that you can shape to create endless unique melodies and textures as the little fish bounce off the leaves. Needless to say, I disagree with Adam on this one; Hanenbow is the best of the entire package. There's probably more depth in it than most of the other parts combined. You can carefully set up complex chains and rhythms, then make subtle variations to cause the whole thing to cascade into a new arrangement. The sounds made by the fish hitting the leaves are quite varied, not only in pitch (based on the angles and speed of impact) but also in tone (which changes as a particular leaf is repeatedly hit, along with its color). You can vary the speed at which the fish release, trap fish in a certain area then layer more on top, and all manner of other tricks. (Try getting one fish to lose all momentum on a single leaf, bouncing shorter and shorter until it stops, and you'll hear an accelerating glissando )

Tracy is also great fun, and it ties with Luminaria for my second favorite. You can produce a tremendous variety of sounds and layerings if you adjust the angle of the lines, curves, length, and the speed a which you trace them with your stylus.

Beatnes is somewhat fun, but gets old quickly for me due to the fact that you can't continue to layer very many sounds before your previous notes drop off.

Most of the others don't really do a whole lot for me, particularly the voice recording ones, which are just good for a quick laugh and then not much more.

I can tell that opinions on these games are going to vary tremendously. Corbie thinks the retail game was barely justified and yet I've heard others say that Electroplankton is/was excellent for relaxation and creative purposes.

Thanks for expressing yourself on Hanenbow, warioswoods. I almost disregarded it. I'm leaning towards getting Beatnes, and maybe Rec-Rec and Hanenbow.

By the way, all 5 for 200 points? That's a bit of an unreasonable suggestion considering that the game did go retail for much more and it's now considered to be a pretty rare game at that.

I am just going by memory here, so some of this may be a bit off. I do remember enjoying Hanenbrow, just not quite as much as the others. Also, I seem to have misremembered Beatnes. You apparently can do only 8-bit sounds, which is fine by me, but Warioswoods' complaint that you can't permanently layer sounds is valid and a bit disappointing, but it still a lot of fun.

I recall playing Luminaria, Beatnes, and Volvoice the most. However, Volvoice I don't think has much purpose since you can do similar things with DSi Sound for free, I think.

I'm in a unique position here in that I use my DSi as my only means of music in my car due to a broken CD player. On long trips (I put in about 3 hours of travel most weekends), it'll be nice for my copilot to be able to create music as we go along. We love messing with the DSi Sound features as it is, so having more music-making potential on this wonderful little machine is definitely a plus.

As for your question, Knuckles, Luminaria (when it's out) is the only one I'd say is a must-have. The rest depend on your tastes and your intentions for the game. Volvoice, Rec Rec, and the one where you spin circles around (it's not out yet, and I forgot the name) are the only ones I'd not recommend.

By the way, I just realized I confused Nanocarps with Sun-animalcules, so I'll have to look into that soon and see what it is, then revise my impressions. Damn these nonsensical, confusing names (and my bad memory)!

Back to Hanenbrow briefly, I think Wario and I enjoy it differently. I approach it not as something to master but as something to sit back and relax with without much effort. Setting up "chains" takes me out of the mood. Just goes to show that these programs are all very different and nuanced, so you can't go solely by a review score, you need to know what you're looking to get out of these "games."

On a side-note, the creator of this game went on to produce an electronic music device with similar properties in some respects, called the Tenori-on. It's really cool... but really expensive. I want one.

Oh, so you don't suggest getting Rec-Rec. Mind elaborating? And yeah, anything that can be done with the DSi Sound (Volvoice) makes the title obsolete. Thanks again for your opinions and I'll definitely keep Luminaria in mind.

Wouldn't be surprised if we got UNO and the remaining Electroplankton titles next week.

@Adam

I also want a Tenori-on. I watched many videos of those things on the web about a year or so ago. I don't see why they couldn't bring an app to DSiWare with most of its features.

Also, we at least can agree that Luminaria is one of the highlights, but as you say, it isn't out yet for DSiWare.

Oh, and I also have done the thing whereby you connect the DS to your car stereo for some freestyle Electroplankton on the road. It's enormously entertaining, particularly with Tracy. I did this myself whilst driving, mind you, drawing little lines with my right hand while steering with the left (and keeping my eyes on the road, of course).

Haha, I did the same with Beatnes just now. Not that I'm recommending this! I intend to go back to music playlists read from the SD card when I go home today, but it'll be nice to have Electroplankton as an option for passengers when riding with someone else.

Knuckles, I think Rec Rec just records multiple voices on loop. You can only do four at once, so you can't layer it much, and I don't think you have control over how the voices are processed. Remember: I'm telling you this from a hazy memory. I did verify that it is the game I am thinking of after mistaking two of the games earlier, but maybe Warioswoods can confirm/refute my suggestion that it is a pretty barebones application that was fun in its time but not really worth it when you can already play with recorded sounds via DSi Sound for free now.

I agree on Rec Rec, it's not all that entertaining. If I remember correctly, the timing of the replaying parts doesn't perfectly match the timing for the one you're recording, so that it's nearly impossible to sync up with yourself if you want to harmonize or anything like that.

It might have been changed for the DSiWare version, or my memory might be exaggerating.

The Game looks promising and for 2 bucks a piece it's a good deal.

Thanks for that guys. Rec Rec is now off my list.

I downloaded Hanenbow and Beatnes today. Not much to say you can tinker with making music for a few minutes or use audience mode and just listen. Its not a game, it's more of just a little gadget to play with. Most people should be familier with Hanenbow from Smash Bros. and Beatnes just plays mario music as you add in sound effects to make a more complex song. 200 points seems a bit steep for this maybe 100 points would be a better price. On the positive side the plankton are cute little critters.

Just a side not Metacrtic scores for electroplankton are all over the board ranging from people who love it to those who despise its existence. I'm not sure where I fall into that.

I'm considering both of those. Would you say they're worth it? I think I'd grow fond of these being the creative, musically-inclined person that I am.

Start with one Electroplankton and see how you like it first. I think I like Hanenbow the best so far. I just not sure there is much to come back too after you try it once.

Good idea. Thanks for the suggestion.

There are 3 or 4 different songs, not just Mario. Press select to change the song. Anyway, on topic: I only got Beatnes as I only had 200 points. It's Ok for 2 bucks. It can get fairly mesmerizing just sitting there tapping in new beats to a simple song. The fact that you beats are only remembered for about 5 times through the beat is not as ridiculous as it seems, it's nice having the beat constantly change and stay fresh. The Audience mode is okay, just kind of stupid because you only listen to the music. Basically, if you enjoy chill mode in Pop plus solo, you would enjoy Beatnes. I give it a 7 out of 10