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Samba de Amigo: Party Central is a motion-based rhythm game developed and published by Sega. The game is a sequel to Samba de Amigo and was released on the Nintendo Switch on August 29, 2023. In Samba de Amigo: Party Central, players shake their controllers like a set of maracas on time with the shapes on screen. In contrast to its predecessor, the game has less focus on Latin music and more on popular music genres in general.
Gameplay[]
Similarly to its predecessor, the player is tasked with shaking their controllers, represented in-game by maracas, to different angles to the beat, being guided by the on-screen graphics. Six rings are arranged in a circle and balls come out from the center of the circle in Samba de Amigo: Party Central. The player must shake their controller to a ring's location when a ball reaches it. A line of arrows may also appear, reaching from one ring to another, and the player must move their controller along it. Occasionally, a stick figure appears and the player is told to copy its move, either static or moving, in order to gain extra points. When the player shakes to a multicolored ball with a question mark on it, a happening, such as "High-Fives", "Crazy Dash", "Home Run", and "Pose Rush", is randomly selected and either a minigame is switched to (the player has to complete it for a higher score) or the gameplay is temporarily altered. Button controls are also supported.
The player is represented by Amigo, who can be customized to wear different types of clothing purchased with in-game currency earned by completing songs and leveling up. The environment becomes more lively based on the player's performance.
Game modes[]
The standard mode allows the player to play any song at any difficulty level.
The "StreamiGo!" mode has Amigo trying to become a famous online streamer. The player must complete missions and defeat opponents to earn more followers. A simulated chat room for each character is displayed on-screen.
There are both competitive and co-op two-player modes. One of them is "Showdown", in which two players battle each other.Another of them is "Love Checker", in which two players play together to see how compatible they are based on their performance.
Four players can play together online. "World Party" is an eight-player online mode in which players, along with 12 computer-controlled ones, compete through three randomly-chosen songs to get obtain the highest score to avoid losing. Differing events occur and items can be used. At the end of each round, the losing players are eliminated.
Release[]
Samba de Amigo: Party Central was announced during the Nintendo Direct on February 8, 2023. A demo for Party Central was released on August 15, 2023, prior to the game's launch.
There will be eight downloadable content packs of songs to be released throughout the rest of 2023 after the Samba de Amigo: Party Central's launch. The Digital Deluxe edition of Party Central, which contains the Sonic the Hedgehog Music Pack and Sega Music Pack of songs and costumes based on Sonic the Hedgehog, Miles "Tails" Prower, Space Channel 5, Super Monkey Ball, and Puyo Puyo, began selling on launch day.
Soundtrack[]
| Song | Artist |
|---|---|
| Azukita | Steve Aoki and Play-N-Skillz featuring Daddy Yankee and Elvis Crespo |
| Bang Bang | Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj |
| Bom Bom | Sam and the Womp |
| Break Free | Ariana Grande featuring Zedd |
| Celebrate | Pitbull |
| Centerfold | The J. Geils Band |
| Chosen Mask | Sega |
| The Cup of Life (Spanglish Version) | Ricky Martin |
| Escape from the City | Sonic Adventure 2 |
| Fist Bump | Sonic Forces |
| Fugue in G minor | Cover |
| Get Busy | Soolja |
| Good Feeling | Flo Rida |
| Good Time | Owl City and Carly Rae Jepsen |
| I Love It | Icona Pop featuring Charli XCX |
| I Really Like You | Carly Rae Jepsen |
| I Will Survive (Eric Kupper Mix Edit) | Gloria Gaynor |
| I Won’t Let You Down | OK Go |
| Just Dance | Lady Gaga featuring Colby O’Donis |
| Karma Chameleon | Culture Club |
| La Bamba | Cover |
| Let You Go | Diplo and TSHA featuring Kareem Lomax |
| Let’s Find It and Shake It | Sega |
| Macarena | Cover |
| Make Way | Aloe Blacc |
| Move Your Feet | Junior Senior |
| Moves like Jagger | Maroon 5 featuring Christina Aguilera |
| Pa’lla | Max Pizzolante |
| Panama | Matteo |
| Payback | Cheat Codes featuring Icona Pop |
| Plastic Hearts | Miley Cyrus |
| Pompeii | Bastille |
| Runaway (U & I) | Galantis |
| Scent of Your Sweet Love | Sega |
| Sucker | Jonas Brothers |
| Tik Tok | Kesha |
| Vamos a Carnaval | Sega |
| XS | Rina Sawayama |
| You & Me | Marshmello |
| You Give Love a Bad Name | Bon Jovi |
Downloadable Content[]
Sonic the Hedgehog Music Pack[]
Released within the Digital Deluxe Edition and separately on Samba de Amigo: Party Central's launch date.
| Song | Source |
|---|---|
| I’m Here | Sonic Fronteirs |
| Open Your Heart | Sonic Adventure |
| Reach for the Stars (Re-Colors) | Sonic Colors: Ultimate |
Sega Music Pack[]
Released separately and included within the Digital Deluxe Edition on September 27, 2023, this downloadable content pack contains songs from other non-Sonic Sega games.
| Song | Source |
|---|---|
| Bakamitai (Taxi Driver Edition) | Like a Dragon franchise |
| Go Go Cheer Girl! | Space Channel 5: Part 2 |
| Theme of Phantom R | Rhythm Thief & the Emperor’s Treasure |
Day one update[]
The following songs were added to the game as a free update on Samba de Amigo: Party Central's launch date.
| Song | Artist |
|---|---|
| Let’s Take a Shot | Pitbull featuring Vikina |
| Shake Señora | Pitbull featuring T-Pain and Sean Paul |
Japanese Music Pack[]
Released on Samba de Amigo: Party Central's launch date, this downloadable content pack contains Japanese songs.
| Song | Artist |
|---|---|
| Kaikai Kitan | Eve |
| KING | Hatsune Miku |
| Matsuken Samba II | Ken Matsudaira |
K-Pop Music Pack[]
Released on September 27, 2023, this downloadable content pack contains K-pop songs.
| Song | Artist |
|---|---|
| Cupid (Twin Version) - Sped-Up | Fifty Fifty |
| Dynamite | BTS |
| Permission to Dance | BTS |
Persona 5 Royal Music Pack[]
Set to be released on October 26, 2023, this downloadable content contains songs from Persona 5 Royal.
| Song | Source |
|---|---|
| Colors Flying High | Persona 5 Royal |
| Life Will Change | Persona 5 Royal |
| Rivers in the Desert | Persona 5 Royal |
Virtual Singer Music Pack[]
Set to be released on October 26, 2023, this downloadable content contains songs by virtual singers.
| Song | Artist |
|---|---|
| Goodbye Declaration | flower |
| Phony | Kafu |
| The Vampire | Hatsune Miku |
Reception[]
Before the Samba de Amigo: Party Central's release, the demo version played by critics was received positively by them. Michael McWhertor of Polygon stated that "Sega has retained the soul of Samba de Amigo's colorful arcade antics with Party Central", but noted it lacked the tactile feedback of the original Dreamcast game that made it more immersive. On the other hand, Ruby Innes of Kotaku Australia praised the game's full usage of the Joy-Con's rumble mechanics, as well as cited the combination of motion-based rhythm gameplay and Samba de Amigo's art style as attractive. Giovanni Colantonio of Digital Trends found it appealing as a rhythm game targeted towards casual audiences, but also found the motion controls to be inconsistent sometimes and reminiscent of the Wii's problems with motion controls.
Samba de Amigo: Party Central received "mixed or average" reviews according to review aggregator website Metacritic. Destructoid gave the game a six out of ten, mentioning that the game "provides a thrilling rhythm-based challenge with a selection of decent songs [...] It’s just a shame that the game’s Latin-inspired routes take a backseat to a poppier soundtrack." The Gamer commented negatively on the game's music, claiming that "we’re trading ‘Samba de Janeiro’ for ‘Moves Like Jagger’, and that’s unforgivable." However, they remained positive about the inclusion of Sonic the Hedgehog, Space Channel 5: Part 2, and the K-pop downloadable content soundtracks.
External links[]
- Samba de Amigo: Party Central at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- Samba de Amigo: Party Central at GameFAQs