Amplitude (PlayStation 2)

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Another returning feature from Frequency is the remix mode, where players can reconstruct the songs in the game to their liking, using an interface that is similar to the actual game. Though the nuts and bolts of the remix mode remain largely unchanged, this mode is way more intriguing this time around, due to Amplitude's online support. Once you've completed your remix, you can upload it to the Harmonix servers, where it will be evaluated--and if it's up to snuff, posted online for other players to download and play. Whether the online component of the remix mode will catch on remains to be seen, but it's an ambitious effort on the part of the developer, regardless.

The visual presentation on a whole is markedly better in Amplitude than in its predecessor. While Frequency sported a kind of Tempest-like abstract minimalist look, Amplitude piles on the eye candy. The playfield itself is much more colorful, featuring lots of bright textures, particle effects, and neon highlights, and the area surrounding the playfield is beyond psychedelic. You'll travel across bizarre quasi-futuristic landscapes and through spinning, pulsating tunnels of varying colors and patterns, all of it peppered with vaguely mechanical-looking scenery objects and small video clips of the bands. Your freQ, a customizable avatar that hangs out in the corner of the screen, has gone from being a static 2D image to a fully animated 3D character. The whole experience can have a truly hypnotic effect on onlookers, though you'll probably be too focused on the action to pay much attention. There are times, though, when it can all be a bit overwhelming, and all the flashing lights and particle effects may actually interfere with the gameplay.

Of course, without any music, Amplitude wouldn't even have gameplay. Thankfully, the game is stocked with 26 different songs. That's roughly the same number as was found in Frequency, though the range of the music is much broader here. Considering the highly subjective nature of music, whether or not less techno and more variety is a good thing will depend on your taste. A few acts return from Frequency, including BT, Akrobatik, Komputer Kontroller, Symbion Project, and Freezepop. There are also some significantly higher-profile tracks in Amplitude, including, but not limited to, tracks from blink-182, Pink, and Papa Roach and a remix of P.O.D.'s "Boom" by The Crystal Method. Whether you like them or not, the songs in Amplitude maintain a consistent level of quality, with only a few missteps.

While the developers of other rhythm game franchises, most notably PaRappa and Dance Dance Revolution, are perfectly happy with releasing the same game over and over again with minimal improvements, Harmonix has upped the ante for the genre with Amplitude. It's an engaging, addictive experience that outstrips its predecessor and brings innovation to the genre. If there were a game that could bring mainstream appeal to the niche genre of rhythm games, this would be it.

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