I think Zero got it right in 2011:
Zero said:I played Patapon, liked it more than LocoRoco in theory... I mean in theory because the core gameplay is ok but setting up this weird system where you have to replay stages and obtain obscure power-ups to progress kind of turned me off to it. I got to the end boss and after getting my ass handed to me multiple times went on Gamefaqs and found out I was missing a bunch of power-ups that are sort of needed to beat him, and that it'd be a LOT of repetition for me to get them at that point, so I gave up. So I guess in the end I enjoyed LocoRoco more because at least you could progress through it in a logical manner.
But both really seemed like, well... I hate to sound like a fanboy, but they seemed like the kind of ideas that Nintendo would have executed right, but that Sony kind of feels like they have to do to keep a wider appeal, without having any idea how to execute them. Basically both games were games I was excited about coming in, but the execution was lacking.
After playing Patapon for about 15 minutes, I was thinking to myself: wow, this is the real deal. After another couple hours... the core rhythm gameplay is still very pleasurable, but the stages are repetitive and haven't introduced many mechanics. From reading more about the game online, I get the impression that it's mainly focused around grinding, and that the rhythm mechanics don't get any more complex or interesting.
I still give the game massive credit for its basic concept, but what a missed opportunity!
It also got me thinking that outside of Rhythm Heaven and Patapon, I can't think of too many non-peripheral-based rhythm games I've played despite loving the genre. Parappa? Necrodancer? What else is there?
