Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX

Genre: Compilation / Music-Rhythm / Match-4 Falling-Block Puzzle / Board Game / Misc.

Players: 1-2 Competitive (Local Wireless), StreetPass Supported

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Review:

Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX, released on Nintendo 3DS in 2015, is the final game in the Project Mirai spinoff series of the vocaloid popstar-centric Hatsune Miku Music-Rhythm franchise, and the only game in the Project Mirai series to be localized for Western release. For those who care about this sort of thing, Project Mirai DX is an expanded version of the Japan-only Project Mirai 2 that adds more content to the game.

Much as with the mainline Hatsune Miku games, Project Mirai DX is a Music-Rhythm game first and foremost, but a lot of elements have been tossed into the mix here. Everything in the game is within the framing device of a sort of Virtual Pet where players can care for and interact with their personal Vocaloid, dress them up, arrange dance routines, give them an allowance, feed them treats, and evidently even interact with them via the Nintendo 3DS’s microphone (a feature I wasn’t able to get working). There’s also a fully-functional version of Puyo Puyo (complete with multiplayer play), a version of Reversi you play against your vocaloid, a simulated keyboard where you can play your vocaloid’s voice and compose a short music clip, a photo mode where you can change the angle you view them, an AR mode where you can use an AR card (these can be downloaded from the internet and printed) to see them in your reality… suffice it to say, this is all quite extensive.

Of course, as with a lot of things surrounding the vocaloid phenomenon, describing this can start to sound a bit… well, pervy. However, when it comes to the more dubious elements of the franchise, Project Mirai DX is probably one of the more innocent releases in the Hatsune Miku franchise, due in part to its decision to go with a chibi art style with squat, cartoonishly exaggerated characters. These 3D characters are still highly-detailed, extraordinarily well-animated, performing their dance routines in locales that are generally abstract-looking and seem designed to look like music videos. While the chibi art style is sure to be a “love it or hate it” thing, everything else about the presentation here is top notch.

I suppose the same can be said for the game’s soundtrack – the heavily-synthesized “vocaloid” J-Pop music of the Hatsune Miku series is not going to be to everyone’s tastes, but if you do like this genre, what’s here is excellent. This game contains 48 songs, 20 of them created specifically for this game, and players can swap out the vocaloid in some of the game’s songs to get a different “voice” performing the song if they prefer.

The gameplay here is quite excellent too, and possibly the best thing about it is that players can opt to play using traditional gamepad controls or touchscreen controls, and both types of gameplay feel genuinely different, and have their own separate scores. In each mode, players will be playing notes as they appear on a track that twists and turns around the top screen. However, when using traditional controls, they’ll need to tap or hold one of the four designated face buttons. When using the touchscreen, they’ll need to tap or press on the touchscreen in time with the notes, with some notes requiring a swipe in a specific direction. In the more difficult touchscreen game mode, the touchscreen is divided in half, and players must tap the correctly-colored side of the screen as indicated by the notes.

It may sound complicated, but it’s all pretty straightforward and easy enough to understand, and the variety in the different ways to play the game almost makes it feel like there are multiple Music-Rhythm games in one here, all of them quite a lot of fun.

When it comes to complaints, I have two main issues and one minor comment. First, the notes on the path you need to play in the Music-Rhythm gameplay are often extremely close together, which can make it more difficult to judge their timing, and also more difficult to see when you’re supposed to tap or hold a note. Second, the lack of multiplayer in the Music-Rhythm portion of the game is an unfortunate omission, especially since many of the songs are duets, and it seems like this would have been a good opportunity for both competitive and cooperative gameplay. Finally, as I mentioned earlier here, this game’s appeal may be limited by its topic matter – Chibi characters and vocaloid music just isn’t going to appeal to everyone.

There is one other thing I should note regarding this game. As of this writing in 2022, this game is currently selling for $45-$50 used on eBay. By comparison, the eShop has this normally priced at $20. In other words, if this game seems like it might appeal to you, I highly recommend you get it now, before the Nintendo 3DS eShop closes this upcoming March.

However, if you’re not turned off by the game’s topic matter, Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX is one of the best Music-Rhythm games on the Nintendo 3DS, and an absolute must-buy if you’re a fan of that genre. There may be areas where it could have been improved, but honestly there’s so much extra content here that complaining about what isn’t here seems like nitpicking. And while it’s true that this game may not appeal to everyone, if it does appeal to you, I think it’s fair to say that this game will more than meet your expectations.

tl;dr – Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX is a Music-Rhythm game featuring chibi-style versions of the Hatsune Miku franchise’s vocaloid characters. If you’re a Music-Rhythm game fan who’s not put off by chibi characters or vocaloid music, consider this game an absolute must-buy – not only is it one of the best Music-Rhythm games on the Nintendo 3DS, but it also includes a ton of extra content, including a version of Puyo Puyo, a version of Reversi, and “Virtual Pet”-style simulation elements where you can take care of and interact with your vocaloid. Get it now while the Nintendo 3DS eShop is still running and selling it for only $20 – once the eShop closes, this game will become much more expensive.

Grade: A-

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