boasts so many classic songs, very few (if any) were exploited to drive droves of gamers

to their welcoming bosom. Other titles may have featured composers that are now famous

amongst the gaming community, but Theatrhythm features the songs that brought them to our

attention - notably the large anthology of songs they’ve written for the Final Fantasy

series.

The core premise and execution is simple - you’ll play songs either of a ‘Field’ or ‘Battle’

type, tapping, swiping and holding down on the screen to match the patterns thrown at

you in time with the music. Field songs only utilize one track, though holds can swing

up and down in a wavy line to catch you off guard. Alternatively, Battle songs pit your

crew of four heroes up against multiple enemies, with each character getting its own track

that needs to be managed ‘less you take damage and possibly end your run.

The heroes you use are drawn from the entire gamut of mainline Final Fantasy titles, and

the same can be said of the list of songs available.

If you can afford them.

This is where I derail the fun-train and note that Square Enix has fallen in love with In-App

Purchasing to an almost unhealthy degree. Everything from individual songs, packages

of songs separate to those in the first lot, and characters from said Final Fantasy games

are all locked behind a pay wall. Most will only cost you a measly $0.99 a pop, but that

quickly adds up considering the amount of content on offer.

That said, no one is holding you up at gunpoint to buy everything - indeed you could buy content

from your favorite game (or at least the score you enjoy the most) and be content.

Spend enough time in the game and you’ll level up characters, gaining new abilities

and more health to make it easier to barrel through the ‘quest’ mode, potentially

unlocking collectable cards and alternate ‘scores’ to songs you already own.

If there’s any real downside it’s that the iOS version feels woefully thin in gameplay

options compared to the 3DS version - limited initial content is further limited by IAP,

which in turn serves a game that lacks all the modes and interactive options of its bigger

brother. Custom scoring may make for a fun distraction, but that’s all it really is.

If you absolutely, positively can’t get enough of the Final Fantasy series and its

beautiful music, you may love the ability to play out the scores in a stylish way. For

everyone else you’ll be hard pressed to know where to spend your money, making it

all but a minor distraction from other rhythm games you may own.