When you think about the Nintendo DS, do you think it is a music making machine, I didn’t think so. Now with the power of the Korg DS-10 Synthesizer, you can make music and beats on your beloved handheld. XSEED games has taken a chance and published this non-game. Like most of their other localized titles, XSEED’s games usually don’t make a huge impact in retail, but are profitable due to the niche markets they are pursuing. This could not have been truer with Korg DS-10 Synthesizer. Although the game is not a game (which seems confusing), it still incorporates all the features of a true synthesizer and along with the truly complicated nature of making music.
The graphics are as simple as they need to be and no major computing power is required to display all the knobs, sliders and switches needed to produce all the different effects and sounds. What is necessary is precision to place each option to the optimum setting necessary for what the user wants to create. This precision is never more apparent then with the keyboard, which is ultra precise and responsive. I would have wished the developers included a zoom feature because for those of us that require vision correction, the text is quite small.
The amount of settings and options in the synthesizer makes my head spin, especially because I am a novice with music creation tools. I was able to create a few simple beats that sound comparable to a SNES or NES soundtrack. It sounds more like a Castlevania soundtrack, but I can’t seem to let you all listen because there is no, and I mean no, export feature. The only way to get your sounds to another format would be to record them from the headphone jack into recorder of some type. I did not try this due to that fact that my music sucks and you would be flabbergasted by the simpleton nature of my creations.
There is multiplayer in this title, but I don’t have anyone else to play with, please don’t feel bad. But you can exchange data between Nintendo DS’. Overall, the goal of this multiplayer is to allow two or more users to work on the same data, which is a neat idea, but it is not included in score for this title. If you do buy this game, make sure you try it out with a friends and let us know.
Taken as a whole package, this title is a cool tool for anyone looking to get into musical creation. I feel like it could be used to create chiptunes, NES style music, and that would be a reason for any gamer, who likes that kind of music, to buy this game. Although, Korg DS-10 Synthesizer also has a steep learning curve and a 55 page manual (which is massive). I can only recommend it for a gamer who wants a music creation tool on the go and is willing to put in the research time. Korg DS-10 Synthesizer isn’t really a game and does seem daunting when you first open it. Also, it is hard to find, due to the fact it is such a niche title. Just give it a rent and only purchase it if you feel it is worth the thirty dollar price tag. I have created some awesome stuff, but I hope that any further titles will support some sort of transfer to SD media, especially on the DSi, so we can all share our awful creations. I look forward to all subsequent follow up games to this title by XSEED Games and will be willing to try them out.
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