What is it with tadpoles and music in video games?  First it was Super Mario RPG, and now this!  OK, maybe that was too obscure of a reference for an introduction.  Anyway, in this game, you play as a young tadpole named Baton.  She swims too far away from her frog family and gets snatched up by a pelican.  She escapes, but now must swim downstream back to her pond in this downloadable music/rhythm action game for Wii U.

In the game, you’ll move Baton up and down as she swims through rivers and streams.  In most stages, the screen scrolls from left to right, and you swim on five lines and four spaces, like a music staff.  Notes on the staff are represented by spiky balls, and you must avoid them.  The more you avoid in a row, the higher your score will be.  Scattered about each stage are bubbles, collect them to unlock goodies. 

Baton has a tail attack you can execute by tapping the A button.  When you pass bamboo, mushrooms, or other long-stemmed things that look like measures on the music staff, tap the A button as you pass by to earn points.  There are also yellow cymbals that if you land on them and tap the A button in time, you’ll launch into the air and nab even more items to increase your score.  If you can last long enough without getting hit, a meter will fill, and when it’s full, you can hold down the A button and release it and Baton will be invincible for a few seconds.  Although I didn’t find that feature as useful as it sounds.  You can also pick up food to refill your life bar, but if you hit too many obstacles and deplete your energy, it’s Game Over and you’ll have to start the stage over again.

Each stage has a new song as well as different obstacles and features to pass.  In one level, you may have to avoid chomping piranhas or hungry trout.  In another stage, you must find ways to jump out of the water so you don’t get hit when lightning strikes the river.  There’s also a stage filled with salt water, which isn’t good for tadpoles to be swimming in, so you’ll constantly be searching for food to fill your depleting life meter.  My favorite stage is Chiptune Lagoon, which features 8-bit music and graphics!

Included with the game is a composition mode.  Here you use the Wii U touchpad to create your own songs and levels.  You can even share them and check out other levels using QR codes.  If you enjoyed playing with the music maker in Mario Paint back in the day, you’ll love doing the same thing here in Tadpole Treble.

The game has a few minor problems here and there.  It froze up on me a couple of times and forced me to reset my Wii U, which is a bit annoying.  They also don’t explain certain aspects of the game very well, like what you must do in stages to pass and/or defeat bosses.  Each stage also has a “Challenge Fly” you can collect by doing certain things, but it’s rather vague on what you must do in each level.  And at only 12 stages, some may find this game too short.  But there is plenty of replay value as every level has multiple medals to earn as well as the Challenge Flies!

Actually the best part of this game is the music.  I’ve played a lot of rhythm games that don’t rely on licensed music, and the songs are very bland and generic.  But not this one!  There are a variety of music types and songs, some even with lyrics, and you won’t mind playing stages over and over because the tunes are so catchy and fun.  It almost has a “Jim Henson” style quality to it (maybe it’s the frog theme, I don’t know).  At any rate, the folks who did the music for this game deserve a raise.  The whole package just has tons of personality that reminds me of the games Twisted Pixel made on the 360 a few years ago.  So if you enjoy whimsical, story-driven music games (you don’t see those much anymore), you’ll definitely want to download this!

Kid Factor:

Tadpole Treble is rated E for Everyone with an ESRB descriptor of Mild Fantasy Violence.  The violence in the game is very minimal.  If Baton gets hit, she just flashes for a bit, and just falls off the screen if she loses all her energy.  Certain fish can gobble her up in one bite, though.  Reading skill is helpful for the instructions and menus, and younger players may get frustrated and need help with the harder levels.  Too bad they didn’t include a two-player mode or something.  With the game’s included composition mode, it could be considered somewhat educational as it presents music concepts in a fun way.  Perfect for kids taking piano lessons or are in band class at school.

Tags: Game Reviews