This is undoubtedly a bit of an odd situation – I could definitely see why folks might decry such a culling of the track list when the game made the jump to Switch, even if it now sports a different name.
While Future Tone on PS4 had a track list spanning over 200 songs, Mega Mix has about half that, with extra DLC coming down the line. The fact that Mega Mix is so clearly a retooled Future Tone makes certain other aspects of the game stand out as well. The optional macro support for shoulder buttons helps a bit, but it’s as much a band-aid solution now as it was three years ago. While these notemaps feel entirely at home on an arcade cabinet, or if you’re using the imported arcade controller, there’s an obvious disconnect when playing those same songs with a controller.
I should stress that this isn’t just a problem that will be noticeable to players that have had the chance to try the original arcade release – the difference in notemap design will be noticeable to any series veteran, and even if this is your first time playing the series, chances are you’ll notice that something doesn’t feel quite right once you start reaching those higher difficulty songs. This was a problem on the PS4 version of Future Tone, and it’s a problem on Mega Mix as well. Comparing how each song is played, between a “traditional” Project DIVA notemap and its Future Tone counterpart, showcases this difference rather well – namely, songs will be much harder to clear on the higher difficulties when using a controller, versus the original horizontal button layout that arcade players would have access to.
While that game is in many ways identical to its PlayStation Portable and PlayStation Vita counterparts, some very core aspects of the gameplay are very clearly designed for the arcade cabinet’s unique control scheme and button layout – a problem that might not be immediately noticeable, but is nonetheless significant. Let’s get it out of the way – Project DIVA Mega Mix is itself essentially a retooled version of 2017’s PlayStation 4 port of Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Future Tone, itself a port of the arcade cabinet of the same name. For all intents and purposes, players should feel right at home! On a base level, Mega Mix’s gameplay is almost identical – to the point where players can even change things to PlayStation button inputs in the menu, if that is what they’re accustomed to seeing. If you haven’t played Project DIVA before, the series concept is simple – it’s a rhythm game, where notes fly across the screen in a sort of hectic neon goodness. Beyond everything else, it’s – for my money – easily the best rhythm game available on the platform. Mega Mix features over 100 songs, an entirely new optional gameplay mode in Mix Mode which takes advantage of the Joy-Con’s motion controls, a heap of customization options, and more. There’s a lot to love about Miku’s first foray on Nintendo Switch. While the virtual singer has appeared on Nintendo platforms in the past, Mega Mix marks the first occasion where Nintendo players will be able to have access to the traditional Project DIVA gameplay on their system of choice. After more than a decade of PlayStation exclusivity, Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA finally comes to Nintendo platforms, with Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA Mega Mix.