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For months, game import sites have teemed with sales of Osu! Tatakai! Ouendan, a rhythm game for the Nintendo DS featuring a trio in Reservoir Dogs suits dancing to solve the problems of helpless people. Elite Beat Agents is a spiritual successor to Ouendan, with a tracklist of North American songs, some smoothed out response times, and a hell of a lot of fun, making it one of the best DS titles currently available.

Gotta Dance!

EBA isn't quite a typical rhythm game, in that you won't simply hop from one track to the next. Each song is accompanied by a story that is doled out panel by panel, comic book style. One tale is of a magician trying to woo his assistant while securing a paycheck; another describes how a weather forecaster desperately needs the sun to shine so she and her son can enjoy a rare day off.

For every mission, the funny into is followed by a loud cry for help, which draws the Elite Beat Agents into action. How does their dancing make each person's problems go away? That would be telling, though it's typically as funny as the goofy introductions, and accompanied by plenty of exaggerated dancing.

Smooth Moves

EBA doesn't break the rhythm genre's typically easy learning curve, though it does add a few new tricks. Numbered dots will appear on the touch screen, sometimes in slow succession, and eventually at a fast clip. Each dot is surrounded by a diminishing circle. When circle and dot overlap, tap the dot to clear it. Occasionally a thick pathway joined by dots will appear, requiring you to tap one end, then keep the stylus point on the pathway to the end, timed by a rolling ball.

Seems simple, but once the game starts stacking dots on top of each other, forcing you to follow the numbers on each as well as the song's beat, things get hectic. Fortunately, three skill levels are available, and almost anyone will be able to get through the easiest mode.

Hit Single?

The track list is…well, pretty bad when taken out of context. All of the 19 songs are covers, and though we're only 80% sure we never need to hear Avril Lavigne's 'Sk8er Boi' again, we're 99% certain that a cover of it isn't necessary. But who knew it could be so much fun to tap along with these dancing fools, no matter what song is playing? So the Cher, Ashlee Simpson and Hoobastank are almost forgivable, and the covers of 'Rock This Town' and 'Lets Dance' provide a reprieve from the lousier tunes.

Detail Overload

Elite Beat Agents is funny and styled with extra helpings of cool, but as in other intense rhythm games, you'll miss some of the background animation the first few times. For the more complex songs there are nicely animated sequences that many players will never fully be able to watch. Unlike console-based games, however, it's not easy to catch all the animations while watching someone else play, thanks to the size of the DS.

Even as some details whiz by unseen, EBA has plenty to keep players riveted. We'll take a dollop of extra content every single time, especially when too many rhythm games are poorly stocked with stuff to look at.

Dodgy track list aside, this is a consistently fun and often funny title that keeps the charm and oddity of the Japanese original intact. It's also one of those games that could only work this well on the Nintendo DS, and it's difficult to resist these Agents' combination of charm and dance prowess.

Video produced by: Michael Benson