"How do you review a game that isn't a game?"

First of all, let me say that 10 is a very fair score for Electroplankton because, quite simply, it's one of a kind. When the DS first burst on the scene, fans knew to expect products that were wildly imaginative and different from what gamers had come to expect from a system, let alone a handheld. Electroplankton was released to the delight, or perhaps chagrin, of Japanese gamers and import enthusiasts and the game's departure from the norm confirmed our expectations.

Electroplakton is essentially a music or, more appropriately, sound toy. It isn't really a game as such since there aren't levels, bosses, or main characters, but Electroplankton does have plenty of charm and limitless entertainment. Electroplankton consists of 10 different themes or plankton as follows: Tracy, Hanenbow, Luminaria, Sun-Animalcule, the crowd pleasing Rec-Rec, Nanocarp, Lumiloop, Marine-Snow, retro favorite Beatnes, and Volvoice. These plankton are presented in a simple bubble scheme and the player's advance through plankton selection is accompanied by eastern-sounding chords. This essentially means that even the game selection screen has the potential to provide a few hours of musical experimentation. Electroplankton's presentation is similar to another hyper-imaginative title that was ripe with subtle genius--Namco's Katamari Damacy. The artists make use of basic primary colors and simple polygonal shapes that are more than adequate and furthermore help to set the mood for the experience. Electroplankton also has an interactive background all throughout that produces bubbles (as this all takes place underwater) with every stylus tap. Now on to the actual meat of the Electroplankton.

Tracy
Bear in mind that although I can hold my own in Japanese conversation, I can't read it to save my life, but fortunately, this requires absolutely no literacy as in line without Nintendo's "anyone can play" approach. The first electrplanktons to play with are the Tracy plankton. 6 triangles of different colors swim about producing sounds unique each one. The pitch and duration of their sounds are directly dependant on the path and distance they each travel. Moderately fun, but quickly deteriorates into cacophony.

Hanenbow
What appear to be tadpoles are ejected from a leaf to create various tones depending on what objects they strike. Their trajectories can be manipulated as well as their eventual destinations. Very fun and very zen. Be forewarned, the constant manipulation of petals will suck you in.

Luminaria
Four stars race along a path off arrows to produce a different note with each marker they strike. Fun, but the satisfaction comes from planning out a good path of notes to be played. It's probably more likely to compose something recognizable in luminaria than the other modes, but this really isn't about recognizable sounds.

Sun-Animalcule
I like the name of this because as a child I always learned that prokaryotes were originally called, "wee-animacules." Place your animalcules across the board to have them produce different notes in succession. Again, there's potential here to compose something reproducible. Fun and relaxing up until the moment when your animalcules lyse.

Rec-Rec
The obligatory beatbox. Kudos to the designers for incorporating a mic function that utilizes speech as opposed to just recognizing noise (Warioware). Place audio samples into a loop and play it back to impress friends, family, yourself. Very fun to play with and more fun to show off. Show all the kids on your block this feature and they won't think your DS is lame anymore, they'll just think you're a dork, but so what.

Nanocarp
To be honest I don't really get the appeal of interacting with this one, but I do like the sounds it makes when it's just left to itself. Essentially, sound ringlets are produced whenever you interact with a nanocarp and these ringlets expand outward to interact with other nanocarp, that in run produce more sound ringlets. It's a little bit too random for my tastes, but soothing to hear,

Lumiloop
Basically what you get when you cross a turntable DJ and Yanni. A crescendo of new age synth sounds accompany lumiloop revolution. Fun.

Marine-Snow
Meh. I'm really not a fan of this one, but as far as I can tell, it's a array of snowflakes that produce notes when touched an change places with one another. I'm pretty sure I'm missing something here because this wasn't fun at all.

Beatnes
Layer soundtest samples on top of short retro loops. Very simple idea that provides for a lot enjoyment. My only gripe is that your compositions only last for about 3 iterations. Fun.

Volvoice
Your basic sound manipulator. Record speech or whatever and play it back with 16 options to choose from that range from 1/2 speed, 2X, to distortion. Guilty pleasure.

Sound
Well, it's a game about sound. All the audio is adeqaute and works well. The DS' tiny speakers aren't able to do Electroplanktons justice, but the early limited edition boxes came with nifty blue earbuds. I think these are all sold out by now, but here's to hoping an American release will occur (replete with blue earbuds).

Graphics
Cute and simple design. Everything has two eyes and a creepy smile, but that's Nintendo's trademark. Nothing is visually stunning, but there really isn't reason for anything to be visually stunning either.

Value
This is really a niche purchase especially since it's only available as an import and imports aren't cheap. Also, it's not a game, but more a work of art.

Conclusion
Being the only one in its gender, it wins by default. There's nothing like it on any console or handheld. It lacks all the excitement and energy of a traditional game, but it makes up for this deficiency with creativity and originality. Electroplankton is commended for the fact that it was even produced in an industry full of war games and street racing titles.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 05/23/05