Gabrielle is a normal girl until one day she accidentally sneezed her soul out of her body! To get back into herself, she must go to Monsterville and do the Ghostly Groove dance and collect screams so she can go back home On the way, she’ll meet many friendly monsters, like Vlad the cowardly vampire, Fang the lonely werewolf, the caring “Frankie,” Robert the mummified teddy bear, and others. Help Gabrielle dance and make friends so she can go back home in Gabrielle’s Ghostly Groove, a charming little game for 3DS.

Gameplay is very similar to other DS touch screen rhythm games like Elite Beat Agents. As a song plays, you’ll see icons that you need to tap to the beat of the music. Circles will close in around the icons, and when they are nearest, that’s how you know when to tap. Some icons require you to trace shapes, while others you must flick up with the stylus like you are plucking up a plant. The better you do, the higher your score will be, and you must get a C or higher to proceed to the next dance in the story. The only problem is that the icons are on the top screen, but you must tap the approximate place on the bottom screen, so it can be a little hard sometimes to accurately tap or trace at the right spot. But luckily the game is somewhat forgiving.

There are also a small handful of mini-games, too. Match monsters in windows of Viad’s castle, help Fang collect bones to make a skeleton, feed Frankie’s birds, or help Robert the mummy teddy gather desserts. As you dance and play mini-games, you’ll earn screams that you can use to buy and unlock goodies for Gabrielle, like new outfits, hairstyles, make-up, trading cards, badges, and more! While story mode is pretty short, you can challenge each dance separately and try to beat your best score.

Kid Factor:

If there is one word to describe this game, it’s ‘charming.’ It came out at the right time, too. With the popularity of toys like Monster High dolls, this feels like a perfect fit. The characters are very memorable, and I could see them getting their own cartoon series or toy line, even though that would never happen. Good reading skill is a must, as everything is text based. They did do a good job translating and localizing the script, though.  Younger players and gamers not quite as good at rhythm games may need some help here and there with some of the more difficult dances. Luckily you can keep trying as long as you want, and you’ll get better with practice. Gabrielle’s Ghostly Groove 3-D is rated E for Everyone.

Tags: Game Reviews