Mr. Upbeat (character)

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Mr. Upbeat (ウラおとこ?, Ura Otoko), also known as Robert Upbeat[1], is a character that appears in the endless game Mr. Upbeat.

Mr. Upbeat
Image
[[File:Mr upbeat.png|frameless|400x270px]]
Artwork from Rhythm Tengoku
Appears in

Physical Appearances

Mr. Upbeat is a completely black man. He has square, white eyes and a big, green, circular light on his head. His mouth is a rectangle, and is also white.

Story

Mr. Upbeat is a mysterious little guy who sticks to the offbeat. The light on his head is timed to the offbeat.[2] Over the course of the game, he praises the player on their skills[3], but his feet start to feel numb[4] and he eventually gets tired[5], starts complaining about how it hurts[6] and asks the player to stop, even suggesting they play something else[7]. He wonders how it would be if he wore tap shoes[8] and hopes to work in a Game & Watch title some day[9]. At one point he bought himself a Monkey Watch and every Tuesday has "therapy sessions" using it. Every week, he gripes about people assuming he's "some happy-go-lucky sap" because of his name.

Purpose

Mr. Upbeat's game emphasizes the offbeat and teaches players how to accurately keep one.

Appearances

Trivia

  • Mr. Upbeat does not appear in Minna no Rhythm Tengoku. The game Manzai was substituted with Mr. Upbeat due to the Japanese-dialogue focused nature of the game.[10]
  • In Rhythm Heaven Fever, once the player reaches 130 points (and every so often after that), Mr. Upbeat's light will grow over the next few steps, display a series of letters, and then go back to normal. The letters that pop up spell MATCH, which can be inserted into Police Call.
  • Mr. Upbeat resembles Mr. Game & Watch.
  • Although he appears to be bearfoot, he actually is wearing shoes.[11]

In Other Languages

Language Name Meaning
Flag of Japan.svg Japanese ウラおとこ Backwards Man
Flag of the United States.svg EnglishNOA Mr. Upbeat
Robert Upbeat
Flag of the United Kingdom (3-5).svg EnglishNOE Mr Upbeat
Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1974, 2020–present).svg French M. Contretemps Mr. Backbeat
Flag of Spain.svg Spanish Don Contratiempo Don Backbeat
Flag of Italy.svg Italian Mr. Contrattempo Mr. Backbeat
Flag of South Korea.svg Korean 미스터 엇박 Mr. Offbeat

References

  1. "Robert Upbeat. Corporal. #37,042,333." ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever
  2. https://www.nintendo.co.jp/n08/brij/chara/omake.html
  3. "You're a needle-hopping ninja!" ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever
  4. "I'm so impressed by your skill, my feet are numb!" ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever
  5. "So...tired... I think I can see through time..." ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever
  6. "Nooo! It HURTS!" ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever
  7. "Care to take a break? Play some See-Saw, maybe?" ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever
  8. "Wouldn't it be great if I was wearing tap shoes?" ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever
  9. "One day I hope to find work in a Game & Watch title." ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever
  10. https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/#/wii/rhythmheavenfever/0/3
  11. "Can I get some gel inserts for my shoes, please?" ~ Dialogue in Mr. Upbeat, Rhythm Heaven Fever