This week, the second week of December, Japanese gamers will be able to get their hands on the weird but fun Donkey Konga, a rhythm-action title. Donkey Konga requires its players to score points by taking turns doing karaoke on a drum. It may sound crazy, but don't shoot it down before you try it. Last week I was lucky enough to try out the full version of the game myself, thanks to Nintendo of Japan, and boy did I have fun!

The Interface

The idea of the game is to karaoke along with the timeline, playing the right type of sound at the right time. (Notice the horizontal timeline in the screen shots.) You can generate sounds with either the regular Nintendo GameCube controller or with the special Conga Drum controller. There are different sounds you have to make, such as hitting the right or left congo and clapping your hands. The types of sound required are indicated on the timeline by icons in different colors. Namco, the company chosen by Nintendo to develop the game, have developed a user-friendly interface, which allows you to master the controls in just a few songs. It is all about hitting the drum on the right place at the right time.

The Modes & Levels

The songs can be played in three different game modes. There is the single player mode, in which you earn coins that can be used to unlock new songs and buy sounds for your congo. Then there is the option to battle against your friends; the player with the highest score wins. And finally, there is the free mode, where you can play with up to four people just for the heck of it. As a bonus, some funny mini-games are also included.

There are also three difficulty levels to expand the game's lifespan. The easy setting allows the non-musical people among us to be able to play the game, whereas mastering the expert setting really demands weeks of practice. There is also one ultra-hard setting which allows you to show off big time at a party if you know all the songs by heart, as it does not display any icons or timelines - it only plays the music. Crazy, I tell ya!

The Fun

As you can imagine, this game can be a lot of fun at a party. Not only because you make a fool of yourself by clapping your hands and hitting a congo, but also because you can choose from a wide range of songs for your karaoke performance. In total there are 32 songs available, including pop songs, game tunes, classical compositions, and anime (animated) theme songs.

This game guarantees weeks of fun and bruised jaw-muscles because of the laughing! It has been announced that American and European versions are in development. However, it might take up to six months before we see the actual western release. If you want to have the perfect party-gadget, I'd definitely advise to import this one. The only other game that is as much fun would be Dreamcast's Samba de Amigo, a maraca-based rhythm-action title.