Rhythm Heaven

thumb|alt=The boxart.

Rhythm Heaven, known as Rhythm Tengoku Gold in Japan, and Rhythm Paradise in Europe, is a rhythm game for the Nintendo DS. It was released in Japan in July of 2008, the United States in April of 2009, and Europe the following month.

Technically, this game is a sequel, but the first game, Rhythm Tengoku, did not materialize outside of Japan. It was for the Gameboy Advance, and was quite popular, enough so to warrant a sequel, which, fortunately, did get released outside of Japan. You know, this game, the one I'm writing a walkthrough for.

It was developed by the same people who created the WarioWare series, with a little help by a well-known Japanese music recording producer named TSUNKU. If you enjoyed any WarioWare game, you'll definitely have a lot of fun with this title.

Controls
The first game, Rhythm Tengoku, primarily utilized the GBA's A button, and on some occasions, the D-pad.

This game, however, utilizes the DS's touch screen, and, in just one case, the L or R shoulder button, depending on which hand you're playing with.

There are 4 main control types, tapping, holding, sliding, and flicking.

Tapping is self-explanatory. Tap the touch screen with your stylus. Holding is also self-explanatory. When tapping, keep the stylus on the touch screen instead of picking the stylus up off it. Sliding, very simple, just move the stylus up and down on the touch screen. Flicking is done by holding the stylus to the touch screen, and quickly sliding while releasing, kind of like writing a check mark with a pencil. It's all in the wrist.

About rhythm
For the musically impaired, rhythm is a variation of any length and any accentuation of sounds, pitches, and other things.

If you are a musician, many things in this game will come naturally to you, and you just may complete this game in a day or so once you get the controls down.

If you aren't, that's fine, you can still enjoy this game just the same.

Listening to the background music's meter, tempo, and sometimes melody are key to getting through the game.

Try not to rely on the game's visuals too much, as they can confuse the player into doing the wrong thing.

Also, this game forgives you a bit more if you're late in your rhythm than if you're early. Try to use this to your advantage.