PaRappa & Gitaroo Man chaps team up for Rap Rabbit
Click! Back! It's all in the mind
Two of the main chaps behind such fine rhythm games as PaRappa the Rapper and Gitaroo Man have teamed up to crowdfund a musical battle game they're currently calling Project Rap Rabbit [official site]. It'll visit an alternate version of 16th century Japan with a rabbit who -- get this! -- raps. He thinks he's people! It's the gamebaby of Masaya Matsuura, who's known for rhythm 'em ups like PaRappa and Vib-Ribbon, and Keiichi Yano, designed Gitaroo Man and directed Elite Beat Agents. I'm delighted to see them rhythming onto PC. Have a peek at their pitch video:
The rap battles of Project Rap Rabbit will have players tapping buttons to beats, as is customary, but with the added element of picking different styles of verse -- ones which coerce, boast, laugh, or joke -- to counter what your opponent is spitting. That sounds a nice touch.
Even though I've only played PaRappa and Elite Beat Agents on friends' consoles, I'm well up for more from some of those games' lead developers. I'm into dogs who learn karate from rapping onions and crack cheerleader squads who appear when people most need motivation.
The developers plan to release Project Rap Rabbit by August 2018, assuming they can get the £855,000 they're looking for on Kickstarter.