Today, July 26, 2025 (Saturday), O.N.G.E.K.I. celebrates its 7th anniversary!!!!!!
This year, we released a new version update in March, marking a fresh new step forward for O.N.G.E.K.I.! We hope to continue walking this path together with all of you, and we look forward to your continued support!
To commemorate O.N.G.E.K.I.’s 7th anniversary, we present the “O.N.G.E.K.I. Chart Committee Report & Staff Messages”!
The chart team members who wrote comments this time were also asked to share the deck they’d want to build using the “Card Skin Customization” feature added in O.N.G.E.K.I. Re:Fresh.
For your thoughts on the O.N.G.E.K.I. Chart Committee Report, please share them using the hashtag ” #音撃譜面部会報 ” — and for opinions and impressions on charts from SEGA rhythm games in general, including but not limited to what’s featured here, we’d love to hear from you on X (formerly Twitter) using ” #ゲキチュウマイ譜面サポートセンター “.
Now, let’s get started!
＜Table of Contents＞
Monokrock
Misokatsu Samurai
Revo@LC
rioN
Purearanse
Melon Pop
Mini Miright
Roche@Penguin
Safata
Amaryllis
Mizore Yanagi
Greening Committee Chair
Chart No. 100
＜Koha-D＞
This is Koha-D, head of the SEGA rhythm game team.
O.N.G.E.K.I. has reached another anniversary this year.
2025 has been a year full of various events.
I think Tagawa will convey the details and passion behind all of that in his own words,
so I’d like to take this opportunity to share a little bit of history from my side.
■ Something I Started Thinking About 10 Years Ago
The spark that led to the concept of O.N.G.E.K.I. was a CHUNITHM operations status report I wrote myself —
a document that conveyed the thriving state of CHUNITHM at the time,
while also noting the saturation of the rhythm game market in 2015
and including some offhand remarks about what “if” we were to make the next title,
what that might look like.
Since CHUNITHM was designed with the goal of being accessible to a wide range of rhythm game players,
the report concluded with the thought that if we were to make the next game, “shouldn’t it be a title that appeals to core fans?”
(while also sounding the alarm about market saturation)
Watching the energy of Iroiro Midori in those early days,
I began to sense some kind of potential in things like characters and voice actors —
and those thoughts from that summer ten years ago, still vague and undefined,
eventually became the seeds from which O.N.G.E.K.I. would grow.
■ What O.N.G.E.K.I. Was Aiming For
Through calls for project proposals, ideas for the cabinet design,
and efforts to refine the experience as a rhythm game,
those seeds from ten years ago were nurtured by many sources —
but the core idea of “wanting to make a game that resonates with core fans”
never changed as we moved forward.
===========================
How do we make a game that fans will love for years to come?
===========================
One answer to that question was to cast up-and-coming voice actors
who showed great promise,
with the concept and approach of “growing together with them = becoming a game that fans will root for.”
We had been working with KADOKAWA since the early days of the project,
and they offered us a great deal of advice when it came to casting voice actors.
They understood and supported our philosophy,
and together the two companies selected O.N.G.E.K.I.’s voice cast
and talked about how SEGA and KADOKAWA would work together to build excitement around the title.
■ A Project That Walks Alongside Its Cast
Hikaru Akao, An Haruno, and Risa Kubota were three cast members
who I believe truly embodied what O.N.G.E.K.I. was all about.
At events held at Gamers in Akihabara,
I participated myself many times as just another staff member,
and seeing the three of them backstage, their real selves were no different from who they were on stage —
earnest, naturally free-spirited, and somehow always joyful. They gave me courage,
and I found myself becoming a fan in my own right, watching over them like a parent watching their children grow.
They were genuinely, naturally, completely themselves in conversation.
KADOKAWA was surprised by just how much they blossomed beyond expectations,
and I remember us adjusting our approach each time to keep up.
Watching them grow alongside the growth of the content,
the feeling of cheering them on became the feeling of loving the game.
Even now, we are still able to keep running the game,
and at tournaments I get to see the love that everyone pours into it —
it may look different from what I had envisioned back then,
but I think this is exactly the form we were always aiming for.
That’s O.N.G.E.K.I. for you.
When Risa Kubota announced her retirement from the industry,
I had no hesitation about not recasting the role.
She conveyed to us her love for O.N.G.E.K.I. and for Yuzu,
and was able to reconnect with Yuzu and O.N.G.E.K.I. once more as Risa Hoshina.
The staff who worked so hard to make that happen,
and the fans who welcomed her back with open arms —
A passing thought from that summer ten years ago
passed through many hands, changing shape along the way,
and may have become the “something” I had vaguely imagined back then.
Once again, congratulations on the 7th anniversary.
Once again, thank you for these 7 years.
We look forward to your continued support of O.N.G.E.K.I..
SEGA Rhythm Game Team Representative Koha-D
＜Tagawa-D＞
This is Tagawa, O.N.G.E.K.I. Director.
As of today, July 26, 2025, O.N.G.E.K.I. has reached its 7th anniversary.
This year’s anniversary has arrived alongside a new version, “Re:Fresh.”
This is entirely thanks to all of you who have supported us every day. We are truly grateful.
■ O.N.G.E.K.I. 7th Anniversary
The 7th anniversary song for the O.N.G.E.K.I. Shooters is “Papipupe Popping! Talk!”
Please enjoy the O.N.G.E.K.I. Shooters having a fun pajama party in their casual clothes.
Also, starting with this song, we will be moving away from CD releases and instead offering it as a digital distribution.
Distribution begins on Monday, 7/28, so please look forward to it!
The song page is here!
■ About O.N.G.E.K.I. Re:Fresh
At KOP 6th, held with a live in-person audience, we were able to unveil “O.N.G.E.K.I. Re:Fresh” to everyone. The moment the new version’s logo appeared alongside the MV for “WakeUP MakeUP FEVER!”, the roar that filled the venue and the flood of warm comments from the livestream audience left the entire development team feeling deeply moved and rewarded. Experiencing that cheer firsthand from the commentary booth is something I will never forget.
In the “Memories of O.N.G.E.K.I.” event, we wove memories through the four seasons, from SPRING to WINTER, representing each previous version. Continuing from that flow, the new version returns once again to “spring.” Wishing to deliver a fresh new experience worthy of the season of new growth, we named it “Re:Fresh.” That said, within the world of Kanade-zaka, a full year has not passed — the story continues in a timeline where the characters remain in the same school year.
The “【Re:】” in “Re:Fresh” also carries the meaning of a “reply” to all of you who have supported O.N.G.E.K.I. (think of it like the Re: in an email subject line). It is our way of expressing the O.N.G.E.K.I. team’s gratitude and response to the warm cheers we have received from all of you.
In counterpart to the original sub-theme “Make UP Future!”, we have raised a new sub-theme this time: “Wake UP Fever!!” Both phrases appear in the lyrics of their respective theme songs. These come from the wonderful wordsmithing of Aowai-Fi, who wrote and composed this version’s theme song, and we have inscribed these words on the poster as well.
When we were working on “HEADLINER” as the “milestone” for the 4th anniversary, I remember laughing with the folks at KADOKAWA, saying things like “Wouldn’t it be great if O.N.G.E.K.I. made a comeback someday? Maybe we’d call it ‘O.N.G.E.K.I. Resurrection’?” Looking back on that now brings a nostalgic smile.
Many people were involved in the development of “Re:Fresh.” Among them, rioN’s return to the O.N.G.E.K.I. team was personally a major event. He and I joined SEGA in the same year, and having him back on the team was an enormous source of encouragement. I’m sure he’ll go into more detail in his own comment, but he truly contributed across a remarkably wide range of tasks.
The return of Risa Hoshina was also a major event.
It was made possible through the dedicated efforts of Koha-D and many others. And above all else, it was Hoshina herself who strongly wished to continue voicing Yuzu Fujisawa. We look forward to her continued involvement for many years to come.
In the new content “O.N.G.E.K.I. Adventure,” a new scenario is unfolding. This scenario was entrusted to hotarubi, someone who has become a long-time collaborator before I even realized it. Having worked on O.N.G.E.K.I.’s scenario for each Re:Stage collaboration, their deep understanding of and affection for the characters made our discussions go very smoothly. My heartfelt thanks also go to Aoi Shimada.
We are truly indebted to hotarubi — the fact that O.N.G.E.K.I. has been able to continue as it has owes much to their support. With co-produced songs and joint live events, I’m excited about the new endeavors ahead that O.N.G.E.K.I. alone could never have achieved.
■ The “Present” and “Future” of O.N.G.E.K.I.
Here, I’d like to speak frankly for a moment about the current state of O.N.G.E.K.I..
O.N.G.E.K.I.’s team was restructured following the 4th anniversary “milestone,” and since then we have been doing our best to keep operations going with a smaller team. The new version “Re:Fresh” has not drastically changed that structure — we continue to develop and operate the game with a small but passionate team.
What became the new version “Re:Fresh” is the result of things carefully and steadily built up over several years during the “bright MEMORY” period. True to the words “can go to the next stage!!” we raised at the 6th anniversary, we have finally arrived at that next stage. The road was by no means smooth, but it was your support that carried us here. And at last, we have been able to give something back to all of you.
As for what kind of future we’ll be shaping next — we see O.N.G.E.K.I. entering a period of steady, step-by-step rebuilding once again. We may not be able to deliver a major version update right away, but we plan to continue adding regular feature expansions and new content going forward. We can’t make any promises about specific timing just yet, but we are steadily advancing development one step at a time.
First and foremost, we aim for the 8th anniversary, and we will continue to build excitement for “Re:Fresh.” New Adventures and scenarios are currently in active development. Also, following the 【O.N.G.E.K.I.-Z King Championship】, the 【Primera Fes.】 is currently underway, and new developments beyond that are steadily being planned as well.
While we operate together as GekiChuMai, each title has its own circumstances, and O.N.G.E.K.I.’s pace may feel slower compared to maimai and CHUNITHM. We sincerely ask for your understanding on this point (there are truly all sorts of factors at play, but the entire staff is doing their absolute best).
With “Re:Fresh,” we introduced new features such as changes to the rating system and the addition of Adventure. We hope you’ll take a long-term view of O.N.G.E.K.I. and enjoy diving deep into everything it has to offer.
Following CHUNITHM, which celebrated its 10th anniversary this year, O.N.G.E.K.I. will also aim for its 10th anniversary without ever stopping its forward march.
The entire staff will continue to pour our hearts into creating O.N.G.E.K.I., so that we may celebrate that 10th anniversary together with all of you in grand fashion.
We look forward to your continued and unwavering support.
May we continue to bloom the exciting future of O.N.G.E.K.I. together with all of you!
Onward to the 8th anniversary — Wake Up Fever!!
O.N.G.E.K.I. Director
Hiroaki Tagawa
＜Monokrock＞
Happy 7th Anniversary to O.N.G.E.K.I.! This is Monokrock.
During the 6th anniversary I was incredibly busy and wasn’t able to put out a Chart Committee Report… but now that things have settled down with the new version launch, I’m finally able to write something.
This time, so many things have gotten a Re:Fresh — there’s a ton I want to write about and share!
In this version, MASTER difficulty has been unlocked unconditionally, the rating system has been significantly overhauled, card skin customization has been added, and many other core elements have been actively changed. In the truest sense, the theme was: “Hey everyone, why not give this another go with fresh eyes?” That spirit drove the system design.
Personally, what’s got me most fired up is the display of P SCORE across all difficulty levels — and here I am, 26 years into rhythm games, somehow becoming someone who obsessively grinds BASIC charts. Pursuing the ultimate in a single chart is genuinely fascinating… I think this might be the most seriously I’ve ever engaged with this game.
There have been all sorts of changes, and from my end I’d like to share — within the limits of what I’m able to say — some of my thoughts on the design intent behind the new rating system and the song lineup over the past few years.
Fair warning: this might get a bit complex. Sorry if it’s hard to follow.
■ On the Rating Overhaul
The rating changes were quite a hot topic with this version update — for better and for worse. Those of you who’ve been reading carefully probably already have some idea, but we made some very significant changes. Here’s a rough overview, including the reasons:
· Rating displayed to three decimal places
→ To visualize small improvements. We want to celebrate even minor progress.
· Removal of the Recent slot
→ To prevent a double penalty on rating from both the new song slot during a version update and the recent slot. Eliminates one source of motivation loss.
· Changes to the number of Best and New Song slots
→ With the Recent slot gone, we increased the number of Best slots to average things out and measure whether your rating is genuinely stable. Reducing the New Song slots by 5 minimizes the rating drop at version updates. (We still check whether you’re keeping up with the new version’s charts.)
· Addition of the P SCORE slot
→ As a new ultimate goal, primarily for players at Rainbow Rating and above.
· Addition of new rating colors and adjustments to the thresholds for each color
→ See below.
· Change to the formula for per-song rating calculation
→ See below.
The goals behind making such sweeping changes were roughly: “To achieve a design optimally suited to O.N.G.E.K.I.’s current systems and environment,” and “To create a system that rewards getting better at O.N.G.E.K.I. as a game, and that honors players who are skilled at O.N.G.E.K.I. as a rhythm game.”
“To achieve a design optimally suited to O.N.G.E.K.I.’s current systems and environment”
Those with some background knowledge may have already suspected this, but O.N.G.E.K.I.’s rating system up through bright MEMORY was largely carried over from CHUNITHM.
The reasoning was that making it compatible with CHUNITHM’s system would make the sense of skill level more intuitive, helping to attract players — and I think that was the right design philosophy for that era.
The previous rating system was “originally designed with CHUNITHM’s Level 13+ in mind,” but O.N.G.E.K.I. now has charts up to Level 15+, and O.N.G.E.K.I.’s own distinct level design has been firmly established. Using the old system in that context felt quite awkward, particularly around the rating color thresholds — which is why we overhauled it so extensively this time.
To put it plainly, Rainbow Rating (19.000 and above) and ULTIMATE RATING MASTER are now considerably more challenging and demanding. Even so, those who have achieved them are extraordinarily skilled. You have every right to be proud!
By the way, I noted in an article before Re:Fresh launched that 21.000–21.999 has the official name “Rainbow (Extreme),” but the official name for ULTIMATE RATING MASTER, whose existence was first confirmed on launch day, is 【Rainbow (Extreme)・True】.
Of course, you’re welcome to keep calling it “URM” or “22” or whatever you like — but please do aim for 【Rainbow (Extreme)・True】!
“To create a system that rewards getting better at O.N.G.E.K.I. as a game, and that honors players who are skilled at O.N.G.E.K.I. as a rhythm game”
O.N.G.E.K.I. is known as a precision-focused game, and compared to other titles, achieving a score of 1,010,000 (the theoretical maximum) is relatively accessible. Because of that, many players past a certain point tend to focus on going for scores in the difficulty range they can clear.
This time, I wanted to properly reward the efforts of those players and represent their achievements numerically — so we revised the per-song rating formula and significantly expanded the maximum range of the score calculation component.
Additionally, including the rating gains from updating score marks and clear marks, the aim was “a design where both grinding lower difficulties and challenging higher ones are valid approaches.”
I’m pretty sure anyone who has truly mastered rhythm games will nod along here — ultimately, I believe reaching the pinnacle comes from finding the right balance between filling in lower difficulties and tackling high-difficulty charts head-on. My hope is that rating can serve as a clear, motivating indicator of that journey, giving players a concrete foothold for improving at O.N.G.E.K.I..
And then there’s the P SCORE slot!
I thought long and hard about how to structure this, but including it from the start was always set in stone.
The basic idea is that it’s primarily for players at Rainbow Rating and above — the rough target being whether you can earn one star on a difficulty that’s in your Best slots. It also serves as something of a lifeline for players who are on the verge of Rainbow Rating and desperately want to get there.
I never intended it as a requirement for reaching Rainbow Rating. I considered locking it away until Rainbow Rating, but it would cause all kinds of technical inconsistencies, so I went with having the slot exist from the beginning.
Hitting the dead center of a judgment window is genuinely quite difficult, but up to ☆5, it’s a challenge that is ultimately very achievable in the current environment through repeated plays of the same song. For a player who has truly mastered O.N.G.E.K.I., understanding judgment precision should be second nature — and I believe it falls squarely within the range of skills that rating ought to reflect. That reasoning led me to add the P SCORE slot.
(…And this is purely a personal prediction, but given the current inflation in rhythm games and player skill levels, I suspect that in the not-too-distant future, every title will be engaging in this kind of battle over judgment precision.)
I’ve heard some feedback that it’s become harder to directly compare raw skill within the same rating tier, and honestly… I get that. But rhythm games ultimately come down to a battle against yourself, and everything resolves from there — so I think it’s fine if different types of skill start to show, and players can learn from each other, celebrate each other, or seek out others with the same approach. (Like how you might split into camps of “alt-fingering players” vs. “high-speed players” — though maybe that analogy is a bit too niche.)
Well, it’s still early days, so I think things will naturally sort themselves out as players adapt their behavior to the current environment.
Also, with the previous RATING MASTER, I think there was at least some degree to which a player with high general rhythm game skill could reach it simply by memorizing certain charts, without necessarily mastering O.N.G.E.K.I. itself. With this rating overhaul, the design ensures that “ULTIMATE RATING MASTER” — the ultimate title of skill — can only be earned by genuinely deepening your understanding of and technical mastery over O.N.G.E.K.I.. It may be among the most difficult achievements in the history of rhythm games, but I hope you’ll think of it as one of your long-term goals or something to aspire to.
■ On the Song and Collaboration Lineup
Since the O.N.G.E.K.I. 4th Anniversary on July 26, 2022, I’ve been gradually getting involved in shaping O.N.G.E.K.I.’s lineup. At this point I’m pretty much driving most of it myself. (Of course, everything ultimately gets final approval from the higher-ups.)
To be honest, this is something I’m doing through the involvement of many different people, not just myself — so it’s not really my place to dramatically throw open the curtain on it all. But within the range of things I think are worth knowing, learned from my time working on it, let me share a few things.
I’d like to talk about this without shattering any dreams, but I also want you to have some understanding of the realities involved. This is apparently how society works.
When it comes to finalizing the lineup, there are a few baseline factors that always come into play first.
① Budget
Incredibly important. It’s always a source of stress, no matter when. I constantly think, “If this were just n times larger, the lineup could be so much more expansive.” I’m sorry — could we perhaps get 5,000 trillion yen in the next budget cycle?
② Business Circumstances
Yes, business circumstances. Thanks to business circumstances, some things can happen and some can’t, some exist and some don’t. In the face of business circumstances, we are powerless.
Business circumstances are truly complicated, and (the rest is omitted)
③ Human Resources
Simply put, even if we can get a song, if the workload required to chart it and implement it into the game becomes enormous, we can’t include it. Especially because the amount of work involved in charting for O.N.G.E.K.I. is way too much!
With Re:Fresh, we pushed too hard on this front and caused a massive blow
…On the topic of the lineup recently, Purearanse-kun has joined as a member of the ONGEKI chart team.
In terms of “human resources,” this is an enormous deal — once the human resource situation is reasonably sorted out, we’ll be able to add more variety to the future lineup. In simple terms, things like “the number of new songs per month (volume) will increase, and songs whose priority had been slightly lowered due to human resource constraints will become possible to implement.”
Purearanse-kun is currently working hard to become a full-fledged chart team member, studying chart creation and various aspects of planning, so please cheer him on!!
The lineup situation is still far from being fully realized just because we have a new version — there are still areas where everyone’s dreams haven’t been fulfilled yet, and I’m truly sorry for that… but we’re aiming to improve gradually, so we’d appreciate your continued support.
■The Story of How I Got My Obsessions Into the Game by Bowing on the Floor
Back at the 5th anniversary, I mentioned as an aside that I wanted to try to get a collab with a VTuber I was absolutely obsessed with, “even if I had to bow on the floor to make it happen” — well, through a remarkable convergence of circumstances, not one but two ended up making it in.
I genuinely thought there was no way it would ever happen, so I can’t even begin to express my gratitude. Thanks to everyone involved, including the kind folks at both companies who gave the green light…!
Those of you who can read between the lines may have already guessed — this time, through full-on prostrations in every direction, we’re collaborating with two groups: “Palette Project” and “Re:AcT.”
Lately I’ve been really into digging up VTuber content with strong original music (I’ve become quite the song-oriented person ← is that the right way to use that expression?), and these two agencies in particular have a ton of original songs I can say are clearly outstanding!
With how well recent virtual content original music pairs with rhythm games, I personally stepped forward this time to suggest some especially shining standout tracks. (I’m a huge fan of city pop and chill tracks in particular — I just love them!)
I’ve been seeing way more people getting into both groups’ content than I ever expected, and honestly it’s blowing my mind. Sincerely, thank you so much…! Seeing people grow even more passionate about content I fell in love with than I am myself makes me indescribably happy…
I have no doubt they’ll keep producing amazing music and fascinating content, so please keep diving in!!!
Getting to collab with them at all and include their music was already more than enough to be deeply grateful for, but when the Palette Project members actively promoted ONGEKI and helped hype things up even further, I rolled over approximately five million times. Not only did they keep playing after the collab — they even held ONGEKI singing streams (!?) and ONGEKI singing stream relays (!?!?) …! I didn’t think I’d live to see the words “ONGEKI singing stream.” I’ve been in a permanent state of destroying my house from excitement. Thank you so much.
Feeling strongly that this represents a new way VTuber collabs can look, I find myself genuinely thinking about what else we might be able to do on our end. I may need to prepare for another round of prostrations. Time to gear up…
■Charts I Made
Lately I feel like I’ve been writing about everything but charts in what’s supposed to be a chart team bulletin — wasn’t this originally meant to be a place to write about charts…? But I suppose it can’t be helped since my work has been shifting in that direction.
The text has grown so long that I’m about to get yelled at by our promo lead rioN-sensei, so I’ll keep comments on the charts I’ve written recently to about two lines each.
●Tsukiyomi ni Naru [EXPERT] [MASTER]
After making the EXPERT chart, it somehow ended up being my job to make the MASTER as well, so I made it with the fairly unusual concept of taking the EXPERT’s structure and simply upgrading and repositioning everything directly. Did anyone actually notice?
In Geki!ChūMai, EXPERT and MASTER charts usually have clearly different structures (and chart makers are often switched for that reason), so this approach is rare. On top of that, I went overboard and boosted the entire chart across the board, which deviated wildly from our normal chart-making standards — and I discovered that the result ends up being an absolutely terrifying chart. Well, of course it does.
●Tsuppare! Yankee Tamashii [MASTER]
The intentionally placed boss spawn position landed critically on certain people, and I feel about 3 millimeters of guilt about it.
●MEGALOVANIA [LUNATIC]
I’m so happy it’s gotten such great reception! But it’s such an intense battle that of course the chart was going to be packed with energy!
●Cogito ergo sum [MASTER]
Thank you for giving us the greatest, most powerful fusion imaginable…! I tried to match the chart to the twin guitars accordingly.
●Yuki Otoko [MASTER]
While working on this chart, I felt I lacked enough background knowledge in various historical aspects, so I started from scratch turning knobs just to make this chart. (I managed to get up to around 20+ or so.)
I think it’s one of the best songs in CHUNITHM — possibly the best — and I’m confident I put together a chart that captures its character well while striking a good balance between power and technique.
●Love Labyrinth [MASTER]
I didn’t even realize until I played it at the arcade that this chart has absolutely no notes faster than 16th notes, and when I went for a PLATINUM SCORE run in TECHNICAL SCORE mode it was so incredibly fun — felt like a real bonus.
●L9 [MASTER]
The ancient memory of relentlessly hammering the outermost button came back to me during production, but I leaned pretty hard into fully ONGEKIfying it. Wall attacks would’ve been a bit much, after all.
Truly a legendary track, though — I wouldn’t have even played CHUNITHM if this song hadn’t been in it.
●Kyoren ROMANCE [MASTER]
Isn’t it kind of interesting visually to be dodging the Δ? I’m quite fond of this chart.
●Re:StarT (2023ver.) [MASTER]
I just can’t forget Yume ni Mita Kara Vol.0… I made this with the image of “if I were making a chart like SSS today, this would be how I’d present it.”
●Rhythm of Love [MASTER]
I love DÉ DÉ MOUSE so much that I kept going to clubs just so I could jump all out to their music. Futuredisco Love.
I was conscious of creating a chart structure that makes the overflowing sparkle and the drop points where you just want to jump as hard as you can stand out even more.
●OBLIVION [MASTER]
When I was studying abroad, the memory of hearing this song for the first time flowing from a two-screen cabinet I’d never seen before, and the deep emotion I felt playing it, has stayed with me vividly — I’m truly honored to have been able to touch even one chart for it.
Since LUNA was decided to reference 6B, MASTER is lightly peppered with 4B throughout.
●Nýx [MASTER]
The concept for this chart actually comes from my section of the never-before-shown first draft of Titania, which I made seven years ago.
With absolutely no idea whether this would even work for this song, I built it desperately — and when it came together with an incredibly beautiful level design, I genuinely couldn’t stop trembling.
I ran into Usagi Laundry-kun recently for the first time in a while, and he gave this chart some solid praise — I was over the moon. Yay.
●Distorted Fate [MASTER]
Due to various circumstances, this was made with an extremely tight deadline, and my mental state was as groggy as it was when I made the Engeki chart — but I’m so relieved it came out clean in the end…
I have almost no regrets, but if I had to name one, it’s that I couldn’t make the player play with the screen rotated sideways… Frustrating.
●[HALO] [MASTER]
A chart where you hit notes while dodging lasers on a narrow field actually existed about eight years ago, when I was making a laser test chart for a CHUNITHM song that hadn’t been implemented yet — I made this with the intent of recreating that experience. …However, there were quite a few parts where this concept clashed with the current chart structure, so this may be about the limit of what’s achievable right now…
●Latest Showman [MASTER]
When I saw a certain legendary song covered live in Ryogoku in 2019, I was moved by what an incredible singing voice it was — and when I first heard Latest Showman, that memory was the first thing that came to mind, a testament to how beautifully the voice carries. I made sure to let that powerful vocal extension ring out forcefully throughout the chart as well.
●Honeycomb [BASIC] [ADVANCED] [EXPERT] [MASTER]
Among the chart team, making all charts from BASIC through MASTER for a single song is called “getting a bingo” — and apparently, despite being involved with ONGEKI for over seven years, this was my very first bingo. I believe there’s only one other person on the entire chart team who has done it.
This is a song I’ve been listening to continuously for years since I first encountered it. I put my absolute all into it with the intent of fully sublimating every last lingering regret I had from the Re:AcT collab. Having this song included saved me quite a bit in terms of rhythm game regrets. Thank you so much.
●Λzure Vixen [MASTER]
I made this aiming for a “”galaxy”” I love in every single possible way. There is not a single compromise.
Put your whole heart into hammering those consecutive vertical notes!!!
Up until Re:Fresh, it was a genuinely tough fight on so many fronts — to be honest, there were times I seriously wondered if it was time for me to bow out and considered quitting this job.
But I’ve been supported and saved by so many people, and every time something exciting happens with ONGEKI, I end up crying all over the place from feeling too much — constantly receiving energy and being moved — and with the thought that “if I quit, this game will genuinely be done in an instant, so I’ve got to keep going,” I’ve somehow managed to keep at it.
“We’re able to keep running thanks to your support!” is something often said, but truly, word for word, the current ONGEKI exists because of everyone’s support. Thank you, always.
That said, I also think I can’t keep moping around crying at every little thing like a grown adult — so with a new version comes a change of heart: Re:Fresh!! I intend to continue running the game with the goal of creating an environment where everyone can always play in a Happy frame of mind.
I will continue to work seriously to keep the passionate feelings everyone has given me alive and burning — so please keep on supporting us, from the bottom of my heart…!
P.S.
In the ONGEKI 7th Anniversary Chapter, I’ve hidden a secret title that becomes available for purchase once you meet a certain condition. I just couldn’t forget the excitement and the heartfelt cry from that moment… Be sure to go look for it.
＜Misokatsu Samurai＞
Long time no see. It’s Misokatsu Samurai.
Eel just keeps getting more expensive every year and it’s really something, honestly.
I was technically on the maimai team but I’ve come back to the ONGEKI team. I guess you could call it a return, probably.
Today I’d like to talk about the Re:Fresh launch and some chart stuff.
■On the Re:Fresh Launch
I was in charge of something like an oversight role for specs and QA.
Officially my main responsibility was the various minor changes aside from Adventure and Rating — and as for Adventure, I was the one loudly shouting “this is what I wanna do!!!” while dumping most of the work on rioN. I’m truly sorry about that…
Personally, I feel that version updates for rhythm games tend to focus mainly on new out-of-game elements (unlock systems, UI changes, etc.), and as a result, existing issues and the core rhythm game experience itself often get neglected.
Since my stance is “it’s a rhythm game, so the quality of the rhythm game part has to go up!”, I asked our programmers to handle various things within the scope of what was possible this time around. The schedule was already brutal and I pushed way too hard, and I got quite an earful for it…
There’s still plenty to improve, and while it won’t happen overnight, I’d like to keep making incremental fixes going forward.
We have a survey running, so please write in any requests you have.
On the topic of Adventure — Memory was great in its own right, but lately I’ve felt that “fully hidden” content has become oversaturated, and it turned out there were actually quite a few players — especially casual users and those who started from Act.2 onward — who simply didn’t know the hidden chapters existed at all.
Taking that as a lesson, I kept the heart-pounding excitement of Memory intact while this time making sure the unlock methods don’t require outside research, and making it something every player can complete within the cabinet itself and enjoy.
How was it — did you have fun?
I’d love to do something like maimai’s KALEIDXSCOPE event (it was such a hit!), but getting something on that scale ready would realistically take about three years. I watched it from up close, and that was the product of the maimai team’s collective wisdom, spirit, and sheer willpower.
If we try to do something quickly it inevitably ends up small-scale, and I’ve been thinking that doing something half-baked might be worse than not doing it at all. Reality is tough.
I know there are moments where it feels like “maimai and CHUNITHM have it so much better!” — but I’d appreciate your continued quiet support.
The schedule is packed right now and we may not be able to deliver anything in a big volume, but I hope you’ll look forward to the next Adventure update as well.
■On Charts
I’ve actually been serving as the chart quality leader since around just before bright MEMORY Act.3.
My role is to poke at other people’s charts and give all sorts of feedback and advice.
My own approach to making charts is to work things out logically, but whether that actually results in something good comes down to feel — and I’m also terrible at putting things into words, so I honestly wonder whether I’m really suited for this role. That said, I do enjoy meddling with other people’s charts, so it’s fun.
As for how the chart revision process goes:
① Check the match between the song’s atmosphere and the chart, structural review
↓
② Check the correspondence between sounds and notes/movements, add or reduce elements
↓
③ Fine-tune any rough spots, quality pass on visual polish
That’s roughly the flow.
If there are few things to fix I’ll sometimes do it all at once, but generally it’s about looking at the chart from a macro level first and then gradually zooming in to look at it phrase by phrase at a micro level.
① Check the match between the song’s atmosphere and the chart, structural review
This is the foundational step of chart creation.
It’s like checking the original form of the chart before making any detailed adjustments — things like whether the overall dynamics and play experience match the song’s energy, whether the actions and visual appearance of the chart match the feel of each phrase, and whether the structure is a disorganized mess in the first place.
To put it bluntly, it’s checking for spots where you think “why on earth does this phrase have this chart (or this sound assignment)?”
When I think a revision is needed, I share my thoughts on what direction would work better, and once we’re both on board, I have them redo that section from scratch.
I don’t want to pick a fight, so I do want to keep adjustments that preserve the original form as much as possible — but using a cooking analogy, it’s like saying “we’re making hamburgers today, so go buy the ingredients” and having them come back with fish meat.
Sometimes I’ll think hard about how to make a fish hamburger work, but sometimes I have no choice but to say “we can’t cook with this, go buy it again.” I do my best to keep it to just restocking the seasoning, though.
② Check the correspondence between sounds and notes/movements, add or reduce elements
This is where I really shine.
Most people make their charts somewhat by feel, so I build on their ideas and adjust to make the rhythms and movements feel even better and more aligned with the song.
Making charts by feel isn’t inherently bad — if you get too faithful to the exact sounds while charting, your thinking can grind to a halt, so I think we’ve actually got a pretty good division of labor going.
Occasionally someone submits drum fills or piano licks with completely inaccurate rhythms, and I’m like “please listen a little more carefully when you input those — I’m crying over here.”
When I come up with an idea of my own that seems to fit during the revision process, I’ll add it in here.
The reason recent charts feel like a bowl of ie-kei tonkotsu ramen loaded with extra toppings is mostly because of this.
I do also make adjustments to remove unnecessary elements, but naturally I want to pile in as many things as I think are fun.
I’d like to learn the art of subtraction too. It’s quite difficult, and when you deliver something pared back, comments like “lazy” or “auto-generated” tend to rain down, so I’m not sure what to do about that.
When a simple shoyu ramen gets served, please just say it has a “humble, understated flavor.” A humble, understated flavor — nice ring to it.
Lately my palate has become too refined and I find myself feeling dissatisfied with various things, but this game’s core ingredients are fundamentally delicious. (Probably something you could say about any game, though.)
③ Fine-tune any rough spots, quality pass on visual polish
After that it’s just endless micro-adjustments. I pay attention to visual details and things beyond the notes wherever there’s room to care.
I’ll also have others play it and check whether anything is jarringly awkward.
When time is short, things can get a little rough around the edges. Sorry about that.
I’ve given a rough overview of how I look at charts, but truly this is just my own personal approach. My thinking might change down the line too.
Ultimately these are charts made by other people with different ideas and feelings, so there are of course times when there’s pushback against what I think is clearly the better option — and it often comes down to debating and finding a compromise we can both live with.
That said, I do believe that the final charts we deliver are of a quality everyone can feel satisfied with, even if they significantly miss the deadline. Play them lots!
■My Own Charts
Finally, I’ll leave some comments on the charts I made.
Keeping it to recent ones since it would get too long — sorry about that!
●Lazulis Gambit [MASTER]
I’ll reproduce the comment I posted at the KOP showcase here as well.
I’m Misokatsu Samurai, the chart maker for “Lazulis Gambit.”
I asked Acotto to “please make something like a cool rhythm game core track!” — no specific requests at all, completely free — and they came back with an insanely cool song.
Depending on the song, when thinking through the chart structure there are times we ask the artist things like “could you make this part a bit more intricate?” or “could you throw in some 32nd-note kicks at the end?” — but this time I hadn’t said anything in particular, and then there were these wild sounds at the end, so I selected it as the KOP preliminary qualifying song. Thank you so much.
On the chart itself — due to characteristics of ONGEKI as a game, such as note readability and difficulty of scoring, I’m often confronted with the question of “how to disguise things cleverly without jarring the sounds that are playing, or how to appropriately ensure gameplay integrity without offloading too much onto Side Bells.” But this time, given the difficulty balance of a qualifying song, it seemed fine to make a chart with zero compromises on sound assignment — so out of all my high-difficulty charts to date, this was the most smoothly I’ve ever made one. This probably isn’t my own skill at work. Thank you, Acotto.
With that many consecutive 32nd notes, my estimate was honestly that maybe eight people would get a perfect score — but that turned out to be wildly off, and I’m sorry about that. You’re all very good…. And I’m incredibly bad at the chart I made myself.
KOP exists for its participants but not exclusively for them, so I don’t want to make the qualifying charts any harder — but next year I’ll try to estimate a little more strictly when adjusting the difficulty. That’s all!
●WakeUP MakeUP FEVER! [MASTER]
As mentioned earlier, I had a lot going on in preparation for Re:Fresh (plus the maimai launch), so my own chart work kept getting pushed to the back burner — and I ended up working on holidays with the KOP broadcast playing in the background, pushing myself to the limit of overtime corporate existence.
Things were genuinely dire, the deadline had long since passed, and I was still writing the “W” in the intro when the Re:Fresh announcement went up — hearing everyone’s reactions gave me the energy to push through.
Honestly I thought a lot of things weren’t going to make it, but I’m glad everything launched okay in the end.
The drum sound assignments I had mostly given up on for difficulty balancing purposes were covered by Jako Lemon-shi in the remaster. Grateful.
●ENERGY SYNERGY MATRIX [LUNATIC]
Congratulations on the implementation of per-note speed changes! With various limitations, but still!
I kept asking for this to be implemented for three years, and they finally made it happen.
For the full backstory, please read the comment on the CHUNITHM side — but the CHUNITHM implementation was completed first, and when I pleaded with Meronpop-shi with “if it’s possible in CHUNITHM, then ONGEKI too!”, he shot me down with “please don’t assume the same system works in CHUNITHM and ONGEKI.”
Modifying the in-game parts of a rhythm game is apparently quite a big deal. Fair enough.
They implemented it reluctantly to indulge my selfishness, but seeing their satisfied expression looking at this chart made it all worth it.
By the way, the Neko Matsuri WE in CHUNITHM was made by Minimiraito-kun.
The partial overlap in what we ended up doing was a coincidence — and it makes sense that once notes can move, that’s the kind of thing you’d want to do.
I had a pretty clear idea of what I wanted to do, but the ease with which he was able to sketch it up off the top of his head says a lot about his IQ.
On the future of per-note speed changes: QuiQ is pretty much a one-time gag, so the plan is not to do obvious first-play traps in regular charts going forward (basically keeping it to presentation/visual effects) — though there might be the occasional chart that surprises you!?
Looking forward to the continued evolution of ONGEKI’s charting!
●Taitouka Rei [MASTER]
“Is the moon beautiful tonight?” ← isn’t it kind of wild that that’s a question!?!?
My eyes nearly flew out of my head when I read the lyrics.
Tsubaki, what a terrifying girl…!
●Papipu Pe Popping! Talk! [MASTER]
Happy 7th anniversary! And thank you for letting ONGEKI keep going this far! I packed all of those feelings into this chart.
Personally, I think it’s a masterpiece. Play it lots! And above all, the song is just too good!
Let’s keep talking about ONGEKI until morning, and on into the future!
＜Revo@LC＞
Thank you for seven years of ONGEKI! It’s Revo@LC.
My favorite card is still Chinatsu, as always.
■On the ONGEKI 6th Anniversary Live Setlist
I’d like to talk about the setlist for “ONGEKI 6th Anniversary Live ～Individual on parade!～,” held on August 10, 2024.
I was the one in charge of the setlist for this live.
With it being the anniversary live for the first time in two years, I wanted to make something that felt fresh while also being enjoyable for fans returning to ONGEKI after a long absence.
Much like assembling a game lineup, it came together under various conditions and constraints — but I think we were able to put together the most exciting setlist possible for the 6th anniversary.
―――――
○Individual on Parade!
We opened with the 6th anniversary song, which is also the theme song and title track of the live.
The idea of opening with the theme song and closing with the theme song (instrumental) was proposed by live planner O-san (the person who was central to organizing this live).
Right before the live began that day, backstage, O-san and I bumped fists saying “I have nothing but confidence we’re going to give the audience an amazing time!” and then the show began.
○Little Twinkle
○Suki ga Tomaranai!
○Prominence
○Zest of Blue
The opening block was structured to put the spotlight on each character individually through solo performances.
We packed it with relatively newer songs including some first live performances, while slipping in “Zest of Blue” from the very first generation.
Tsubaki’s solo was being saved for later.
○Butterfly Wave
This was the performance lineup from the previous year’s “AMUSEMENT MUSIC FES 2023.”
It was such an incredible high point, and thinking many people might not have been able to attend, I had it included in the anniversary live as well.
○History × Breaker
And then, to close out this opening block, guest Rie Takase made her appearance.
The bond between the three Tri-Edge members felt so real it was almost like Riku was actually there.
―――――
From here it’s the “Individual on KARAOKE” block. What is it? A corner for cover songs.
The image is Rie Takase challenging everyone to a karaoke battle, with the Kanade Shooters all singing karaoke.
We deliberately wanted a cheap-looking logo, and this logo was actually an impromptu one rioN-kun put together during a meeting in PowerPoint.
○Tsumugi Boshi (Game Size)
This is a cover of a maimai track — “Primera Fes. ～maimai Stage～” in the game.
At the time I believe it was positioned as a song included on a merchandise campaign CD that was being sold concurrently.
Since it’s Tsumugi Boshi, it’s “Tsumugi” and little “Hoshi” (and “Hoshi” Saki).
○Gachi Koi Labyrinth (Game Size)
I deliberately assigned it to two
○Honnoteki Survivor
I was certain the live band would shine in this one, so I saved it for the second half.
Rio delivered an absolutely electrifying performance, as if to prove she’s the leader of Try Edge.
○Y.Y.Y. Keikaku!!!!
This has become a staple at our live shows at this point. It gets the crowd hyped every single time.
It was also performed at the Re:Stage live event two months before this one.
○Natsuyoi Starmine
I wanted to fit in a block of summery songs somewhere given the time of year the live was held, and from here the summer song block continues right through the encore. Still with the live band.
First up, as the last song before the encore — a more laid-back, heartfelt moment.
Since this is the 5th anniversary song, it’s another one that wasn’t around for the 4th anniversary live last time.
―――――
And from here, we move into the encore.
○Summertime Record
This is a cover track included on the merchandise campaign CD “ONGEKI Memorial Soundtrack Himawari.”
As it happens, when we were recording Tsumugiboshi, I asked Izumi-san what songs she’d want to perform live, and this one came up — so I decided to work it into the setlist.
I went back and forth on whether to put it in the karaoke block, but since I wanted it among the summery songs and the track has a strong ending feel, I moved it to the encore.
I think it made for quite the surprise to open the encore with, don’t you?
The sight of Aoi and Tsumugi singing their hearts out during the pre-final chorus is burned into my memory even now.
○Splash Dance!!
I wanted to keep the energy going through the encore too! Did you feel the summer vibes?
○HEADLINER
This was the final song after the MC.
Honestly, I was torn about whether to perform this song at this live. The question was whether we should do it without Hoshizaki Akari.
When we did the 4th anniversary live — the one I went into thinking it might be the last — this song hadn’t even been released yet, so it wasn’t something we could perform.
Two years on, I came to feel that this song was necessary for ONGEKI to step into a new chapter, so I decided to go ahead and perform it.
For the parts where Akari is absent, I asked Akao-san to deliver the song’s choreography via video, as our way of saying that Akari was there with us too.
The dialogue sections for each character in the second half were written specifically for this live. In the end, when the whole venue shouted “Let’s shoot!” together along with Aoi’s call — I was just moved beyond words.
―――――
The next live will be the joint event with Re:Stage!: “Re:Stage! × ONGEKI PRISM☆FEVER!! vol.1 -On×Stage!-“. For ONGEKI, we consider this live to be effectively our 7th anniversary celebration.
Of course, we plan to continue holding live events going forward, so we hope you’ll keep supporting us!
■On the Charts
Now, let me write a bit about the charts I created.
Every day I think about how truly happy I am if these charts manage to move even a little something in the hearts of those who play them.
●Event Horizon [MASTER]
Despite asking 5u5h1 when my schedule was absolutely packed at the time, the track came back with almost no revisions needed. I was a big fan of 5u5h1’s music as a “mentor” figure, so that made me really happy.
Since it’s Aoi’s song, I built the chart around blue as the central theme. I also snuck in a little flavor reminiscent of “All Right!” in certain spots.
●Individual on parade! [MASTER]
I had the honor of charting the ONGEKI 6th anniversary song by the great Watanabe Chel-sensei.
The opening depicts motifs for all six characters, Yuzu included.
Who would have thought the day would come when Yuzu gets to sing! The future really is full of surprises.
●DIE IN [MASTER]
This is THE boss track of DJMAX RESPECT V — a song with all the authority and presence that title demands.
I keep aiming for 99% on 6B (SC), but it’s a real struggle……
I tried to honor the original chart while giving it an ONGEKI-style twist.
There’s a section mid-chart where the button count shifts from 4B → 5B → 6B → 8B, meant to evoke that sense of escalation.
●Ichiban Kagayaku Hoshi [MASTER]
I really just needed to have those red TAP eighth notes before the chorus — I wanted players to feel that energy by hitting them.
I think the “Re:Fresh” launch day had a lot of inventive and memorable charts, but I wonder if this one managed to be among them?
Oh, who’s my favorite character in the series? Hmm, probably Nonoa.
●DEEPNESS（ReC Ver.） [MASTER]
This is personally my favorite song in Hasunosora (and for the record, my favorite character is Rurino).
I loved it from the very first listen, but seeing it performed live at the 1st live left me completely blown away.
The story woven into this track is one of its greatest charms — starting with the two members of the 102nd generation, building out to the four of the 103rd, and then expanding to all six with the (ReC ver.). I think (ReC ver.) can truly be called a culmination of the 103rd generation’s journey.
With that story’s timeline in mind, I laid out colorful lanes for each character (it might be hard to spot, but I was even conscious of the 102nd generation’s “four” members). Wherever all six are lined up, it should generally follow the Fes×ReC：LIVE stage positioning.
And — without saying exactly what — I was also mindful of the number of BELLs.
I asked Mini Milight to draw the DEEPNESS logo at the last minute right before the deadline. Thanks a ton!
●Dolphika [Re:MASTER]
I tried making a solid, straightforward keyboard-style chart — the kind you’d expect from an early original track. I figured there’d be demand for that kind of chart.
It starts from the hardest part of the MASTER chart and builds out from there.
●Gadget wa Princess [MASTER]
This was a rare gimmick-style chart for me — not usually my style.
The first draft had walls mixed in and even I kept getting caught on the gimmicks, but thanks to Misokatsu-kun, we eventually landed on a really well-balanced final version.
There’s a lyric that says “on stage,” so I placed an “on stage” logo in there.
In the “ONGEKI × Re:Stage!” logo, did you notice the “×” changes color to match each character?
I completely forgot to change the colors at first, and when Mini Milight did the test play, they came flying from the cabinet all the way to my desk at lightning speed. I’ve reflected on that.
By the way, the number of BELLs corresponds to Kae’s birthday.
My appearances are fewer compared to the rest of the chart team, but I plan to keep showing up here and there going forward — so when you see my name, please take good care of me!
Until we meet again!
＜rioN＞
Long time no see… or is that the right way to put it?
Hello everyone, I’m rioN.
Before getting into chart talk this time, I’d like to share a little about myself.
■On Returning to the ONGEKI Team
To tell the truth, I left SEGA once, over five years ago, and rejoined the ONGEKI team around February of last year.
It was due to health issues, and honestly, I never thought I’d be able to come back.
In my case, I was very fortunate in that team members including KohaD and Jack-san had been looking out for me, and even after I left, they’d invite me out for meals every now and then, so we never really lost touch.
Through that connection, I was eventually asked, “Would you want to do some freelance charting?” and for a few years I was involved in chart production as “freelance rioN.”
During that time, my health gradually stabilized, I sorted out my feelings, and I could see a path back — so I was able to return as a full member of the ONGEKI team once again.
Regarding those days, Jack-san once said, “Without an occasion like this, there’s no reason to go to the good restaurants around Otori (where SEGA’s headquarters used to be)” — and it’s no exaggeration to say that those outings are part of why I’m here today, so I truly can’t thank them enough.
■Since Returning
Since rejoining the ONGEKI team, my role has been less chart team and more planning and promotions.
About a month after I returned, the version update was announced, and I was put in charge of specs for ONGEKI Adventure and card skins.
Monoklock-san and Misokatsu Samurai-san came up with the new event concept that became the prototype for ONGEKI Adventure, and I compiled the details into a spec document — but since it had been about three years since the last version update, hardly any of the members who’d been through development at that time were still on the team.
It was quite grueling, tracking down answers to “Wait, how did this work again?” one by one through trial and error, but I’m genuinely glad we managed to pull it together and deliver it to everyone.
On the promotions side, I handle daily announcements for events and song additions, and I work out the content for announcements around things like the ONGEKI 6th Anniversary Live, KOP 6th, the CHUNITHM livestream, and ONGEKI version updates — all sorts of things.
That said, I can’t make all the promotion decisions on my own, so as a rule I work things out in consultation with Director Tagawa and check in with other ONGEKI chart team members at key points as we move forward.
Outside of specs and promotions, for example, I wrote the plot for the stories added in ONGEKI Adventure. Starting from the desire to create a slice-of-life kind of scenario, the words “school trip” and “final exams” that appeared at the opening of episode one were born, and from there I built out the story developments and which characters I wanted to feature in each episode while keeping an eye on the overall balance. The plot created by the ONGEKI team was then developed into the actual scenario by hotarubi-san.
Seeing my plot blossom into such a full story — and one that so vividly captured the charm of each ONGEKI character — I was deeply moved and struck by just how amazing scenario writers are. It was a wonderful experience for me personally as well.
Among other things, I’m also primarily responsible for selecting the lineup for ONGEKI merchandise. I keep an eye on what’s been made at past events to avoid overlap, coordinate with the companies producing the goods on which illustrations to use, and act as a point of contact gathering the team’s feedback on merchandise designs and product samples.
I also manage the ONGEKI official X account, so if I notice a lot of requests for “I’d love to see this kind of merch,” I can’t make any promises, but maybe…?
And “Ichigeki” — I’ve taken that over from Midorka-Iinchou-san and now handle it myself. Coming up with manga ideas is quite the struggle, so I gather ideas from the rest of the chart team and work with erantto-san, who draws the actual manga, in meetings to finalize the content.
What I’ve written here is just a part of my work, but looking back on it like this, I realize I was tackling some pretty demanding stuff even in my first year back.
On a side note, this very “Chart Team Newsletter” you’re reading right now is also compiled by me.
This time I asked the chart team to submit comments with “no word limit,” and virtually everyone came back with over 1,000 words, which absolutely floored me.
Monoklock-san in particular submitted a staggering comment exceeding 10,000 words, and you can really sense his extraordinary passion for ONGEKI shining through.
（On the other hand, I’m seriously debating whether to ask for around 2,000 words if there’s a next Chart Team Newsletter… 。。。）
■On the Charts
Let me touch on a few of the EXPERT charts I’ve made since returning.
As I mentioned, my current role is planning and promotions, so I expect my appearances as a chart team member will be fairly occasional.
●Love Labyrinth [EXPERT]
This is the first EXPERT chart I made after returning.
It was quite a challenge since I was simultaneously relearning how to make charts, but somehow the muscle memory came back, and I don’t think my charting tendencies or style have really changed.
I still write out my structure in a notebook as I work (though I’ve stopped printing things on paper).
●Chant Say Yeah! [EXPERT]
This one needed to be on the harder side, and I figured that if I approached it as though I were making a MASTER chart given my skill level, it would naturally settle into just the right difficulty.
In making this chart, I referenced some of my past work — “Äventyr” and “Bad Apple!!” in particular.
(Some of you might feel a strong sense of nostalgia playing through it.)
One thing I was especially careful about was minimizing the use of 4-button or 6-button finger presses.
Partly because I personally struggle with finger presses (honestly, I can’t do them), but more importantly because I felt there was a big gap between high-difficulty EXPERTs (12+ and up) that demand finger presses and the EXPERTs at 12 and below.
So the goal was: hard for a high-difficulty EXPERT, but no finger presses — yet still challenging enough that you need to handle the buttons properly with both hands. I tried to tune it to hit that balance.
●Tsubaki Uruwashi [EXPERT]
I had no idea how to read the title. (Apparently it’s read “Tsubaki Uruwashi.”)
It’s a song for Tsubaki, who I’m a fan of, so before I knew it I’d volunteered to chart it.
The song had such great groove that I found myself making the chart freely without overthinking anything.
It’s a chart I’m personally very fond of, but the fact that unlocking the song itself takes quite a bit of time is a bit of a hurdle, I have to admit.
With ONGEKI Re:Fresh, MASTER charts are now freely playable without any conditions, so there may be fewer chances to play EXPERT charts these days — but I’d be happy if you gave them a try when you get the chance.
Last but not least, happy 7th anniversary to ONGEKI.
And to all the players who have supported ONGEKI through these seven years — truly, thank you so much.
I find myself feeling, once again, how glad I am to be able to celebrate together with everyone like this.
I’ll continue to give it my all going forward, so I hope you’ll stick with us.
＜Purearanse＞
Nice to meet you
My name is Purearanse
I’m a new member who recently joined the Kanadesaka ONGEKI Chart Division
By the time this newsletter goes out, I’ll only have a few charts to show and probably not a whole lot to say — but hey, let’s call it the newcomer’s perspective
Before that — since it’s going to come out eventually anyway, let me get my rhythm game skill level out of the way now
Everyone on the chart team is super good, but I don’t have Re:MASTER!, Emperor!, or the yellow outfit! or anything like that — so some of you reading this are probably better than me?
Please… don’t throw stones at me…
Being a newbie, I’m not working on anything too big yet
Making charts, or doing check work
I’ve also been helping decide BOSSWAVE timing since around QuiQ
The day after a new technique for boosting OVER DAMAGE scores was discovered, Concvssion was added — and when it turned out to be a target for that technique, I genuinely got a little scared
Chart-making is really, genuinely hard
More than once I’ve just placed things based on instinct and ended up with a completely scrambled chart structure…
But on the flip side, that means there’s plenty of room to grow
Look forward to what Purearanse brings next
■On the Charts I’ve Made So Far
●SPILL OVER COLORS [EXPERT]
This is the first chart I ever made
Anyone who has this song favorited in maimai, let’s shake hands
The first draft was an embarrassingly rough chart, but thanks to advice from Misokatsu-senpai it managed to come together
By the way, there are a few spots where I was very loosely inspired by the maimai MASTER chart
●Latest Showman [EXPERT]
It seemed like Misokatsu-senpai was drowning in work and about to explode, so I made this as a small contribution (chart speed and quality checks notwithstanding)
Listening casually, I was reminded of U.○.A., so I laid out some groovy, high-energy patterns in that spirit — and after that, the rest of the chart kind of flowed naturally, so I think this one came together more smoothly than the one above
●Ignition [MASTER]
My first MASTER
Anyone who has this song favorited in CHUNITHM, let’s shake hands
This is what you’d call a “technical song with a technical chart,” and getting it to this point was quite the struggle
I thought it might be divisive, but it seems to have been better received than I expected, which is a relief
I love charts that offer an experience you can only get in ONGEKI
Next year I’d like to write about eight times as many charts as this
This has been Purearanse
＜MelonPop＞
My favorite song in ONGEKI is “Over Voltage”
Nice to meet you, I’m MelonPop
I still find myself muttering things like “I wish I could split into three people,” but in my day job I work as a programmer for maimai and ONGEKI, while occasionally making charts on the side.
Seriously, I want to split into three. One for maimai work, one for ONGEKI work, and me for the arcade.
As mentioned briefly in past newsletters by Misokatsu Samurai-sensei and Chart-100-go-senpai, I’ve been part of the team since around ONGEKI SUMMER.
At this point, I’ve been around long enough to act like a veteran…
■On KOP 6th
I was actually there in person to watch, and when WakeUP MakeUP FEVER! played and the crowd erupted, I completely burst into tears.
The whole venue naturally breaking into clapping was just… I love live audiences！！
■On the Charts
●Amber Chronicle [MASTER]
It all started when I was chatting casually with Luxizhel about “I’d love to make charts for ONGEKI too,” and Misokatsu Samurai-sensei overheard and said “Want to give it a shot?”
The chorus has a real sense of momentum to it, so I made this chart thinking about how to bring that same momentum through the walls and lever controls unique to ONGEKI.
There are so many great songs in maimai — I’d love to see more of them ported over！！！！
Misokatsu Samurai-sensei, Monoklock-sensei, please, I beg of you
●hurrah!! [MASTER]
Those who play maimai might be able to guess this, but — I’m a nijisanji fan.
Monoklock-sensei told me “MelonPop, if you’re making a chart, I’ll include one nijisanji song,” and I went “this one and this one and this one and this one and this one and…” and threw about ten songs at them before this one was finally decided. Thank you so much. Please add more. I’m begging.
I kept saying “colorful lanes are an absolute must！！！ fan marks are an absolute must！！！” as I made it. I tried to recreate the MV as faithfully as possible using colorful lanes.
Walls + TAPs in ONGEKI just feel so satisfying — the chorus is basically nothing but that.
■On Re:Fresh
My main role for ONGEKI is operations, but I was also involved in a small way with the new features in Re:Fresh. And I do mean a small way, given I was simultaneously working on maimai でらっくす PRiSM PLUS…
Of course the entire team worked incredibly hard to bring this version to completion, but Re:Fresh would not have been finished without the help of programmer M-san and designer O-san. I want to use this opportunity to express my deepest gratitude to them…
So, what new feature in Re:Fresh were you happiest about?
For me, it’s the card skin outfit change feature.
I’d been pushing for that card skin outfit change feature since around R.E.D. PLUS, so finally seeing it implemented was such a relief.
There are so many 【SR】+ and 【SSR】 cards I love, so being able to set all ten decks is genuinely wonderful. Everyone should set up their favorites and show them off to friends.
The biggest spec I was personally involved in would be the per-note speed changes that debuted in charts like ∀ (MASTER) and ENERGY SYNERGY MATRIX (LUNATIC).
When I first heard about it at the concept stage, I had about ten question marks floating above my head, but Misokatsu Samurai-sensei showed me a certain chart from a certain game and I immediately went “wait this looks so fun！！！ (understatement)” and before I knew it I’d implemented it. Since CHUNITHM had already implemented something similar first, I asked Chart-100-go-senpai about the spec — but it turned out the ONGEKI version was technically incompatible, so I ended up building the spec nearly from scratch, which is a memory in itself…
Looking at users’ reactions, I can see a delightful chorus of anguished screams that tells me it was absolutely worth implementing.
(Truth be told, the chart editor implementation gave me more trouble than the cabinet side…)
Hope I can write something again next year in good health — until then
＜Mini Milight＞
Good morning. And nice to meet you here. My name is Mini Milight.
I usually write charts for CHUNITHM, but over the past year or so ONGEKI was in quite a critical state, so I ended up being sort of half a member of the ONGEKI chart team.
It was a lot of fun — getting to make edgy charts, weigh in on lineups, all sorts of things. Going forward, Purearanse-kun is taking over the baton. I’m counting on you.
I’m not quite at the CHUNITHM level, but I’ve been pretty into ONGEKI since launch and I’ve gotten far enough in this version to earn ULTIMATE RATING MASTER. And while I’m at it, apparently my “Geki-Chu-Uma-i” score ranks around 15th highest nationwide. Woohoo.
■On Re:Stage
Happy 10th anniversary to Re:Stage！
One year since I wrote a bunch about CHUNITHM’s 9th anniversary & Re:Stage’s roughly 9th anniversary and the two hadn’t even directly collaborated yet. A lot has happened and it’s been such a great time.
There was the moment I was going hoarse at MuPure and then heard the impossible thunderclap sound that couldn’t have been playing — and my legs gave out.
After Gloriostar → Madowashi, I was casually thinking “no way they’d do DBF,” and then that absolutely unthinkable intro started playing and I just froze.
They’d already done FY but then Miku-ryu came out alone and my head was in complete chaos when I got hit with *that* Borderline.
For duality⇋paradox Full, including the context of the MC right before it, I was certain it was Rinka → Hinata and I completely lost my mind with excitement.
And then the joint live with ONGEKI was announced. YESSSSSSS！！！！！！！！！！
I could keep talking about this forever so I’ll stop here. All this person talks about is live shows…
Of course I’m keeping up with Tepri properly too. I make sure to hit 98% on every new song, and I do High Challenge and Arasoi every time to a decent extent.
Recent favorites: Daresu (EX) and Pinpache (EX) for charts, “Creation and Destruction,” “At the Idol Event,” and Rinka HBD II for stories. I haven’t been touching Chart Memo much… sorry.
Cafés, lives, touring editions — so much to look forward to. Thank you for making me so happy.
●Thunder Rescue！ [MASTER]
I still remember rushing over to Revo-san’s place right after the preview video dropped at the end of 2023 and begging them to get this track into ONGEKI.
It’s been about a year and a half since this song came out and I’ve listened to it a truly disturbing number of times, but even recently it keeps accumulating more meaning — getting new story context, having that incredible RRP Night 2 intro, getting an EX chart with Rinka’s full clear scene, the solo ver. audio being released — it just keeps growing on me. What an incredible song.
I’m just grateful beyond
●君とインフィニティ -2021- [Re:MASTER]
I really, really wanted to play a high-difficulty chart for this song, so I made one in my spare time and got it implemented.
↓ Same situation as Vampire (ULTIMA) that I talked about here.
CHUNITHM 10th Anniversary! Developer Comments Revealed!
The chart itself is packed with everything I personally wanted to do with it.
Having known this Re:Stage song back when it only had a HARD chart, I wanted to hit every single 12th and 16th note at the key moments — so I went ahead and hit them all.
I also wanted to cram in as many visual effects as I possibly could, so I did. The exclusive accessory, the giant hydrangea, the GO!, the unit logo — I wanted to put it all in.
The first draft was actually finished a year ago, but there was never quite the right moment to release it, so it sat on my PC like a paperweight for a long time. I’m really glad it finally gets to see the light of day.
Sorry if the timing made it seem like I was hinting at something — that wasn’t intentional.
●CHUNITHM × Re:Stage!
Thank you… truly, thank you… When the collab was confirmed, I started clapping at my desk at work. Sorry for being so loud.
This was a collab I had been waiting so long for. I’m so happy they managed to fit it in.
The song selection involved a lot of back and forth. It started with me bowing down to Moon Strix to get the count bumped up from one song to two. Then after talking with Revo, we decided to go with one classic track and one newer one (roughly post-Reboot in feel), and landed on Happy Typhoon and M.L.V.G. as the mid-difficulty and high-difficulty options respectively. I agonized endlessly over the lineup — I wanted everything in there.
For the charts, both songs have such strong associations with their original charts that at first I was fumbling around trying to figure out how to adapt them into CHUNITHM. At one point there were damage notes and a 20th-note stream that referenced Flavor Youth (EX). What was I thinking.
I scrapped the first drafts entirely and rebuilt them — Happy Typhoon around a cloth-placement concept, and M.L.V.G. around brute stamina — making sure each one pushed what makes CHUNITHM feel like CHUNITHM. As it turns out, this game is actually CHUNITHM.
I added some light visual effects too, nothing as elaborate as O.N.G.E.K.I., but enough to work with.
For Happy Typhoon, it was mostly about putting image colors inside the AIR-SLIDEs. I also complained that the way the air notes clustered in the red chart was 3-3, and demanded it be changed to 2-2-2.
As for M.L.V.G. — sorry for all the fuss. Since I couldn’t place Gainsboro and wanted the payoff to make sense both in terms of note type and thematic landing, I matched it to the jacket’s MLVG color scheme — and then got scolded by a Re:Stage otaku acquaintance (fair enough), so I reworked it somehow. Technically, the color I ended up placing in the current chart is a regulation violation.
Watching the Remembers community go absolutely wild from the moment the collab was announced was a delight. I’d love for the other six units’ songs to make it in someday, along with the two O.N.G.E.K.I. collab tracks that haven’t appeared yet — so please, let’s collab again as many times as it takes. Hotarubi, Revo@LC, Yunagi Aloe — I’m counting on you.
■Talking About YumeSte
Happy 2nd Anniversary to YumeSte!!!! It’s the same day as O.N.G.E.K.I., you know. Fate?
I’ve been pretty into YumeSte ever since the first O.N.G.E.K.I. collab. I mainly play the OLIVIER charts and sit around 98.5%. Every time, you get a chart that pushes right up against the ceiling of what’s possible for that song, and I have a blast playing them.
My favorites are Shizuka and Daikoku. Someday I’d love to see Black Diary in O.N.G.E.K.I..
●Dea Ex Machina! [MASTER]
Pre-production difficulty memo: “13 would be nice, but not so hard that fans of the original chart feel let down.”
Me, who loves the original chart: “Anything less than a 14 would leave me unsatisfied, so I went ahead and made a 14+.”
The OLIVIER chart for this song has such a great play feel and such charismatic layout that it’s honestly one of my favorites in all of YumeSte.
So with that in mind, my first draft captured all of the 24th notes from the source chart, added roughly 1.5 times as many notes in the chorus as what’s already implemented, and was crammed to the absolute limit before I threw it at Misokatsu Samurai. The response was: “This is not O.N.G.E.K.I.” — and I got a thorough scolding. From there I searched for a balance that made sense within O.N.G.E.K.I.’s design language and kept trimming notes until I had something workable.
Whether it was Dokuzu, Kyuukurarin, or THE TRiANGLE, I tend to start by going completely overboard in the first draft, then consult my way toward something playable — so I cause Misokatsu Samurai a great deal of trouble. I’d like to take this opportunity to apologize and express my sincere gratitude.
●I Wanna [MASTER]
Sirius Chapter 3 was incredible. (One year late, I know.)
This chart was made by splitting the song into two halves and combining them together. I handled everything from the first chorus onward. The highlights are the visual effects and the 6-lane sections.
For the big chorus, we tried placing the original OLIVIER chart as-is, and while Misokatsu Samurai and I could both AB it, it wasn’t really O.N.G.E.K.I. — so that got scrapped. We added movement through FLICKs and walls, toned down the key sections considerably, and somehow made it feel like O.N.G.E.K.I.. Making things feel like O.N.G.E.K.I. is genuinely hard. It’s a struggle every time.
I put a lot of effort into the visual effects too. The split effects and the birthday accessories are both such quintessential YumeSte moments that I made sure to preserve them.
I had the chart jump for the 2nd chorus entry. At the Global Stage entrance DJ, I was the only one jumping and it felt a bit lonely — but at the DJ event everyone jumped together and it was wonderful. I can’t make it to the event, but I wonder if everyone will be jumping on the day this goes live.
When this song first appeared on the lineup, there was a vibe in the team of “how on earth are we going to do this…” — but we managed to get it out into the world, and I’m really glad people have embraced it. What a relief.
I also handled the CHUNITHM version. There, I took Luxizhel’s extremely aggressive first draft and made it more approachable to play.
Since it was an Unchallenge song, I focused on making sure it could be cleared through raw skill without feeling unfair. That said, I honestly didn’t expect more than 80 people to clear it in the first week. Once again, I’m reminded of just how much the playerbase has leveled up. You’re all amazing.
For the parts that don’t affect play feel, I stuffed in as many visual effects as I could. Fading effects, accessories that overflow the height of the lane, reversed lane direction, blue TAPs, note count adjustments — I poured out every technique I’d been accumulating and holding onto, and I think the result turned out quite lavish.
When I work on an Unchallenge chart, I always try to make it interesting even to watch — because I want people viewing the chart in videos to enjoy it too. I think Theatore Creatore (co-authored), Gekiretsu!!!! Family Restaurant Girl Won’t Go Home 1000!!!!, and I Wanna are all charts that are fun just to watch. What do you think?
●THE TRiANGLE [MASTER]
The first draft had 4,500 notes. It exceeded Recollect, which is kind of funny.
Actually, I absolutely love what’s commonly called “command pressing” — that unique feeling of holding a wall while pressing individual buttons with your fingers. It’s the best.
So the first draft of this chart had a concept of “I want to do nothing but command pressing in time with the kick, from start to finish” — and it fully committed to evolving and executing that idea all the way through.
…Naturally, Misokatsu Samurai told me in no uncertain terms that it was about twenty times over the limit. From there I rebuilt the concept to highlight the kick’s sense of speed and the 5- and 6-button patterns, while keeping the notable section and the finale — albeit significantly toned down.
There were also some command-pressing layouts I personally loved that ended up getting cut, so I’d love to use them somewhere someday. Things like alternating wall HOLDs and blue HOLDs, crossed command presses, alternating between walls and green while holding a blue HOLD, or doing the notorious section while holding the lever. Now that I think about it, the underlying idea is actually pretty close to those physically-demanding charts in a certain K-game. Human hands are surprisingly capable, aren’t they?
●get the regret over [MASTER]
●Gensou Roukaku [MASTER]
I love purple so much that I’ve set my work PC’s mouse cursor to Hotaru (normal state), Yuko (link selected), and Mary (working in background) — slightly inconvenient, but too cute not to.
For this update, I worked with Monokurokku-senpai to decide on the songs. We’re both deep into the visual novels from that era, so I feel like our conversations basically consisted of nothing but: “The thing about Min-sama is—!” “The thing about Shade is—!” “And this one—! (pointing at the Yuko plushie on my desk)”
I also remember us both playing air guitar to “get the regret over” at that one part in the song in unison. Great workplace.
In the end, both added songs became deeply personal favorites I’ve been listening to for over ten years. When the announcement artwork went up, I was so overwhelmed I cried at my desk — and on the update day, I rushed out of work, sat down in front of an O.N.G.E.K.I. cabinet, and played through the whole thing with my face scrunched up the entire time.
Seeing these two songs sitting next to each other in O.N.G.E.K.I. is still so surreal that I’m tearing up just writing this. Thank you, O.N.G.E.K.I.. You’re the best music game in the world.
The chart production was genuinely difficult. Both songs are around BPM 120 and built around emphasizing double hits in the chorus — so if I wasn’t careful, they’d end up feeling the same. I pushed both in a strong and distinct direction, and I think I managed to differentiate them while drawing out something uniquely enjoyable in each.
I also played through both games right before making the charts, so I’ve woven in light references to story and lore through naming and visual effects — things like the two main characters, Nacht and Azami, crystals, roses and butterflies, Maia and Arisu… both songs actually meshed really well with O.N.G.E.K.I. in that regard.
For those whose only source of information is O.N.G.E.K.I. itself, I’m sure you’ve already gone and played both source games — but I’ll leave things here out of spoiler consideration.
I was thinking of writing all of this in a certain space-like format again, but I discovered a critical flaw: if the site’s background color changes with a version update, everything becomes visible — so I decided against it. I’m incredibly happy the version update happened!! Congratulations on O.N.G.E.K.I. Re:Fresh going live!!!!!!!!
So please, keep giving Re:Fresh O.N.G.E.K.I. your support going forward.
And that’s a wrap!
＜Roche＠Penguin＞
Hello. This is Roche＠Penguin.
The goal I wrote about in last time’s Chart Committee Report — getting Koboshi’s intimacy level to 1000 — has finally been achieved. Yes!
I love characters who are normally laid-back but put out 200% energy for the things they love. Lazy idols are great.
So, are you all enjoying Re:Fresh? What’s that? You’re having an amazing time?! Thank you! (Forced.)
It seems the O.N.G.E.K.I. team has settled down enough to get a Chart Committee Report out. Well, “settled down” might be a stretch.
Even from the CHUNITHM team’s perspective, the O.N.G.E.K.I. team looks like it’s in absolute chaos every single day.
Now, as is tradition, here are my comments on the charts I worked on.
●Ouvertüre [EXPERT]
It’s a fairly wild chart for an EXPERT, but if you can handle it, you’ll be hitting every beat in perfect sync with the music and it feels incredible — so please give it a try.
Personally, I’m a huge fan of Rune (not that anyone asked). Keep an eye on the colorful lanes inspired by her rune motif.
●Gensou Roukaku [EXPERT]
I love vertical streams at this kind of BPM.
Vertical streams are a technique that minimizes visual information while still capturing every note.
From an advanced player’s perspective they can actually be threatening, but…
The colorful lane section in the second half — Mini Milight taught me both how to arrange it and how to animate it. Thank you.
●Awa Hakuchumu [EXPERT]
The bubbles are one thing, but Mini Milight was genuinely wowed by how emotive the lane positioning and movement are — so even if you normally hammer away at MASTER charts, please give this EXPERT a try.
Also the song is just too good (for the nth time).
●Kiraira [EXPERT]
This is just too cool (emotions).
The chart is structured around the colors of the characters singing at each moment, and it turned out quite aggressive to match the song’s attitude — how did it feel?
I went to “Yakusoku.” It was my first VTuber live event, and I showed up thinking I’d just get a sense of the atmosphere — but from the very first moment my tear ducts surrendered completely.
Whether the figures on stage are physically present or not is a trivial question. The excitement and the sense of unity that arises there is undeniably real emotion — something I understood in my bones.
The other day, a call from Monokurokku: “Wanna go to Pare-kan? Already got tickets.” “Genius.”
Looking forward to it.
●Kyoumei Gattai Otogerian [EXPERT]
The lyrics are packed with O.N.G.E.K.I. references, so the chart is very much built around matching them. Did you catch them?
“Betcha-oshi Punch,” “Shutcho Attack,” “The bell rings” — try playing through it with the lyrics in mind!
●STEP BY STEP [MASTER]
The song is just too good (emotions).
You are absolutely required to press the blue button during the “a pinky promise is harder to break than a tightly tied ribbon” section with your pinky finger. (Pressure.)
In the season when petals are falling, please give this song a play.
●Icing Dream [MASTER]
The chart is also structured around the colors of the characters singing.
Did you notice that the “×” in “O.N.G.E.K.I. × Re:Stage!” changes color to match the characters?
At first I completely forgot to change the colors, and when Mini Milight did the test play, they flew from the cabinet to my desk at incredible speed. I’ve reflected on my mistake.
The chart is a bit technical, but please enjoy it by bouncing along to the rhythm.
●Angel♡Pythagori☆Homitai! [MASTER]
After finishing all the note input and revisions, I had Habakiri — someone I co-play with occasionally — handle the visual art sections.
Asking Habakiri was absolutely the right call. It turned out incredibly striking. Thank you.
The other day, the two of us left work saying “July 7th, 2025 — we’re absolutely going to win!!” and went to play, only to get completely destroyed.
●Crimson Teiou [MASTER]
The opening field is matched to the jacket art, so try striking the same pose as REDALiCE.
REDALiCE’s tracks tend to end up with a lot of red notes across the board in their charts.
The second half is an incredibly busy chart — did you keep up?
●Megameteor [MASTER]
I’ve received so many comments saying it’s fun, which is an honor — and Amaryllis told me “I don’t know why, but it’s fun, so write about it in the report!” But charts that come together through momentum and raw feeling are somehow hard to put into words…
I just went to ask Amaryllis what specifically makes it fun, and the response was: “Hmm, I’m not sure what makes it fun (verbatim).” That’s way too misleading.
After thinking it over, I landed on something like: “The chart’s intensity (how busy your hands are) syncs extremely well with the song’s structure, and once you internalize that, you naturally start making big expressive movements, which creates a real sense of exhilaration — a genuinely great chart.” Which is, admittedly, extremely vague.
Anyway, I really think it’s fun, so just play it (giving up on explaining).
If you can articulate any of the subtle interesting points — things too specific to convey normally — please let me know. Not just for this song, but in general.
●Kodoku no Hate [MASTER]
As a DIVA veteran with strong memories of both the original special PV and the Len & Rin extend edition, I made this while soaking in nostalgia — drawing a giant guitar, making you strum it with FLICKs, dropping in a GUO REN DA, and I feel like I really went all in.
●Our Wrenally [MASTER]
I agonized over what would make it feel properly “Our Wrenally” and ended up with this.
In the first draft, the bell placement had absolutely no human heart in it and things got quite dire — but after round after round of adjustments, I think I landed on a placement that’s just barely frustrating enough to be warranted.
Please direct any anger at Penguin, not t+pazolite.
To bring in that maimai feel, I consulted with Misokatsu Samurai a lot — not just making the bells slow, but trying to recreate that feeling in maimai where you can see a slide coming but still have to deal with a stream of taps at the same time — the unease of having to take your hand off the lever while the bells are still visible, that kind of thing.
●Watashitachi Mahou Otome Desu☆ [LUNATIC]
I have this memory of seeing an arcade game long ago — a vertical shooter where idol characters were enemies, singing while their lyrics flew at you as bullet patterns — but I can’t remember the title at all. I’ve searched for it, asked colleagues, asked AI, and everyone tells me no such thing exists, so I’ve concluded I must have dreamed it.
Well, if it was a dream, let’s make it come true! — and that’s how this chart was born.
Bullet pattern charts take far more time to create than regular charts, and quality is obviously paramount too — so for two or three weeks, a PC screen covered in mysterious text was conspicuously visible in the office, and I’m pretty sure I could hear people whispering “what is that person up to now…”
I also managed to recreate the bullet patterns used in past CAVE tracks (internally known as “legacy bullets”), and I’m glad everything landed well. I genuinely think it’s a lot of fun (self-praise) — so please aim for the ABFB No Damage title!
And happy 10th anniversary to GomaMacho!
Thank you so much for entering into a “”contract”” so that we could bring these songs back to play again.
Come to think of it, about three years ago when bright MEMORY was wrapping up its run, I thought I’d leave something meaningful as a final hidden touch — and I slipped something in without telling anyone. (Doing things like this at work is generally not okay.)
I was going to leave without ever saying a word about it, but since then we’ve moved to a new version and I’ve even been able to write this Chart Committee Report — so let me bring it up now.
From what I’ve seen on social media and video sites, it seems like no one has found it yet, so if you’re curious, go hunt for it.
That said, it’s more of a “huh, neat” kind of thing when you find it, so don’t go all out searching for it.
The quality of the music in a rhythm game is obviously hugely important, but if the game part itself isn’t fun, even great songs stop getting heard. The most direct path to enjoyment runs through the charts and the game’s design systems.
You’ll often hear people say they play rhythm games because the music is good — but that sentiment rests on the foundation of the game being fun to begin with.
In theory, if music quality alone translated directly into fun, no rhythm game ever released would have shut down its service.
That’s why we have to put everything we’ve got into making the game part genuinely enjoyable.
The fact that O.N.G.E.K.I., which once nearly ended, has come back this far and achieved a version update is thanks to the efforts of the development team, of course — but above all, it’s thanks to every one of you, our players.
Continuing to play, continuing to enjoy it, never forgetting it, loving the characters and the game through it all — that love manifested as a real result. Thank you, truly.
I’m always sending you my gratitude from the cabinet right next to yours.
O.N.G.E.K.I. still has many critical moments ahead, but we’ll keep the story going as we dream of reaching the next stage.
So then — please keep supporting O.N.G.E.K.I. “again” going forward!!!!!
＜Safata＞
I keep popping up here and there — it’s Safata.
You might think I’m purely dedicated to maimai charts, but I actually love all of GekiChuMai, so I’m greedily yet sensibly working on charts across the board.
■Talking About Re:Fresh
I was actually there in person watching KOP 6th from the venue, and witnessed the whole thing from start to finish.
The energy of being there in person was something else entirely — when Re:Fresh was announced, I genuinely felt like the venue was physically shaking. I found myself tearing up without even thinking about it. That moment is definitely etched strongly in my memory.
Speaking of Re:Fresh, I’ve contributed a small number of charts, so let me introduce them.
●Slow Rise [MASTER]
This one is technically from just before the Re:Fresh era, but
the number of bells, the combo count, the lane colors — they all mean exactly what you think they mean.
I was watching the MV while making it and found myself hugging my monitor, then thought “wait, did I do this before…?” and realized I really do love hugging things.
The song is too good.
I’d love to make more MASTER charts if the opportunity arises.
Until next time — farewell!
The song is too good.
＜Amaryllis＞
Hello again to all the O.N.G.E.K.I. fans out there. This is Amaryllis.
Congratulations on the launch of O.N.G.E.K.I. Re:Fresh.
After three long years, finally achieving a version update thanks to everyone’s support fills me with genuine happiness and gratitude — both as a developer and as a fan.
I’ve moved on from the O.N.G.E.K.I. team and am now on the maimai team, so I’ve been experiencing the new songs and Re:Fresh features the same way you all have — through Twitter (now X) and game centers — going “this game is so fun!” and sprinting through O.N.G.E.K.I. Adventure to collect Shizuku and Jewels.
With that said, let me talk a little about the charts I worked on since Re:Fresh.
●Crazy Party Rush [MASTER]
Among O.N.G.E.K.I.’s most crystalline songs, this is one that reaches the absolute peak of that crystal-clear world.
It starts with a lively, chaotic energy that brings to mind a group of uninvited high school outlaws, then moves into a suspicious mid-section that evokes uninvited street-dwelling robots, and the whole thing is dizzying and fun.
This isn’t exclusive to O.N.G.E.K.I., but one element I value in rhythm game charts is “how much mental and neural engagement is required.”
Staying fully concentrated for two or three minutes straight is enjoyable as a competitive challenge, but it can also be exhausting — so I personally love charts that have some tricky elements along the way but then let you drop your IQ completely at the end and just go all-out. I think this song turned into exactly that kind of chart.
The song moves fast so it’s reasonably difficult, but I’m confident that once you conquer the lever operation and the finger-pressing, the simple rush at the very end will feel amazing — so please give it a try.
●Ikkai Kaite Sayounara [MASTER]
Among O.N.G.E.K.I.’s most serious songs, this is one of the lightest and most graceful.
Making a chart for a song about the difficulty of conveying things through words felt like one wrong step could produce something that works against the lyrics entirely, so I approached it with great care.
I packed in everything I wanted to express, then pared it all back down again, and again, until this chart emerged.
People will feel it differently, so I can’t know how it will land for each player — but if it can in some way convey the brilliance of this song, that’s all I could ask for.
＜Mizore Yanagi＞
Nice to meet you all here — I’m Mizore Yanagi!
I’m normally on the CHUNITHM side of things, but occasionally lend a hand over here.
That said, O.N.G.E.K.I. charts tend to go like: “Alright, let’s do this! So where do I even start… (2000 YEARS LATER)” — so it takes quite a bit of resolve each time I show up.
Lately the workload on the CHUNITHM side has been quite heavy and the timing hasn’t lined up, but maybe when things ease up in the schedule I’ll pitch in again — if such a day ever comes.
●
○Comment
This is a series where I somehow forgot to write a comment in the previous newsletter.
I think I wrote something when FREEDOM DiVE came out, but I have been an absolutely massive fan of xi since the Happy Dreams era, and of course I love this song deeply as well.
However, since Halcyon (MASTER) was nearly finished by the time I came on board, my younger self from three years ago was overjoyed that I finally had a chance to make my own chart.
Halcyon is such a powerful track that it often ends up near the beginning of a rhythm game’s song list, but this time the chart was added four years into the game’s life and is a Re:MASTER chart on top of that, so I was truly allowed to do whatever I wanted.
My memories of struggling and failing to clear the bundled H chart back in 2010 are vivid, and I tried to incorporate some of that essence into this chart.
There are probably sections where my personal philosophy of “which part the chart captures” comes through strongly — as it tends to in my charts — but I would be happy if even a few people can relate to the feeling of “this part of this song is definitely [instrument or vocal of your choice]!”
Since I am no longer involved in the lineup, I would like to formally state here that I want to play HEAVENLY GARAXiES and Re:Genesis.
Thank you in advance. To whom?
●Stellar:Dream [MASTER]
○Theme
A level 15 that demands one-handed strength (which I struggle with)
○To-Do List
・Difficulty is on the slightly easier side of level 15
・SSS+ is achievable with a lot of effort; getting 1,010,000 is difficult; grinding for PLATINUM SCORE is even harder
→ Designed as a KOP qualifier chart where PLATINUM SCORE grinding is viable
・Deliberately place patterns I personally find difficult
・Prepare one absolutely brutal spot
・Test right-hand stamina with “lots of one-handed eighth notes at BPM 250”
・Use a distinctive approach to reading the kicks
○Comment
This song is truly incredible. At the time I was deep in the middle of frantically working on Samba DE Amigo, but I happened to listen to the track during a break and became utterly hooked, so I asked to work on it.
The first draft was a genuine right-hand endurance chart, and a significant portion later became two-handed patterns.
Because the BPM is 250, scattering sixteenth notes around is too fast, eighth notes are too much to follow with one hand, and sixteenth notes with one hand are completely out of the question — this phenomenon arises easily, so the balance ended up requiring quite a bit of adjustment afterward.
For example, the four-lane section in the first half is structured to require a mandatory one-handed sixteenth-note quintuplet.
(Left: current chart Right: initial draft)
For example, the eighth notes in the latter half had HOLDs mixed in, making them heavily restrictive.
(Left: current chart Right: initial draft)
The other distinctive feature is the wall of eighth notes near the end. My initial layout was something quite extreme — I submitted it with the philosophy of “a level 15 should include things even I can’t get through!” — but nobody could clear it and it was promptly rejected.
(Left: current chart Right: initial draft)
For the record, this pattern is essentially the same layout I tried in BATTLE No.1 (around the 98–108 second mark) and had rejected without a second thought.
If someone calls me foolish for trying the same thing at BPM 250, I have no defense.
Through all of that back and forth, what emerged is the hardest chart I have ever made. Please give it a try.
By the way, if enough of you see the images above and get curious, it just might appear someday as a level 0.
●And Revive The Melody [EXPERT]
◯Theme
A 13+ that carries the essence of Don’t Fight The Music [EXPERT] while reducing ambiguity about which hand to use
◯To-Do List
・Three-lane-centered layout, same as Don’t Fight The Music [EXPERT]
・Reduce patterns where it is unclear which hand should take the keys (i.e., reduce patterns that look like either hand could handle it)
・Where both hands are used, stick to the principle of “simple but fast and difficult”
・Quote patterns from Don’t Fight The Music [EXPERT] to create a “same thing, but faster and harder” feel
・Bring in several elements from Don’t Fight The Music [MASTER] to create a sense of connection
◯Comment
As I mentioned in a previous newsletter, Don’t Fight The Music gained significant recognition, which led to the rare phenomenon of “EXPERT having more plays than MASTER,” and I had lingering regrets about having created a complex level 13 (and a quite difficult one within that tier) primarily aimed at experienced ONGEKI players.
I still feel good about the quality of the chart itself, but I witnessed more than a few occasions at the arcade where someone who had clearly just started was getting wiped out on EXPERT…
So this time, while the chart needed to be higher difficulty and have more boss-song flair, I aimed to create something where people who discover ONGEKI through this song will rarely be left with nothing they can do.
As a result, the bullet patterns are fairly aggressive, but I also put care into the placement and count of bells to keep things under control.
Don’t Fight The Music [EXPERT] frequently features a pattern where you handle the axis keys with one hand across a wide three-lane layout, while the other hand covers the remaining two colors of keys and walls, switching left and right frequently — that is a demanding layout unless you are quite accustomed to ONGEKI, so I held that back until the final quoted phrase at the end.
The scenes where both hands divide the three-lane section are limited to around the sixteenth-note triplet sections (which are also relatively manageable with one hand if you try), and when the hand taking the keys switches, it is paired with a wall as a clear landmark — basic but reliable cue techniques are used generously throughout.
The result is that the essence of Don’t Fight The Music appears in a distilled form, and I think it came out at just the right balance.
The difficulty is higher than the previous entry, but this chart was made with a concept that is quite unusual for a boss song.
I hope everyone gives it a play.
Incidentally, I deliberately placed three patterns that go against the concept, and every single one of them has become a wall for my own score grinding — I am very proud of myself. Just as intended.
●Unison Monologue [MASTER]
○Theme
A level 14 with few gimmicks, pushing the sextuplets (24th notes) and the bass thudding to their limits
○To-Do List
・Use only up to 4 lanes
・Capture all the 16th-note bass hits that appear throughout, using key notes
・Capture all the sextuplets (24th notes) that appear throughout, using key notes
・The keys are already challenging, so reduce other elements
・Capture both guitar and drums in the intro; also capture the backing vocals in the outro
○Comment
The background on this song: shortly after the Memories of O.N.G.E.K.I. content had all come out, around the time the fourth Liella! collaboration became a possibility, Revo and I each wrote down one song we wanted — as we always do — and snuck them into the lineup. Then, after various things happened, it ended up releasing now, at this timing. (Same as with “Jump on Three!” and “Like the Sun, Like the Moon” — everyone probably thought those two were a completely random pair back then.)
So the chart itself is something I had been warming up in my head for about three years. That is why I had misokatsu-samurai apply a modern touch to the parts that had grown a bit dated — parts like the beginning of the chorus, for instance.
There may be glimpses of a Canaria-like feel here and there, but many of those sections did not start out that way; as I adjusted things to make them easier to read and hit, they converged toward something resembling Canaria.
Perhaps that says something about how Canaria defined an era for this type of music’s chart design. Does it really?
■In Closing
I have become someone who only pops in from the sidelines every now and then, but I am genuinely grateful to be able to stay involved in any capacity.
It may look easy from the outside, but jumping in from a different project actually involves quite a bit of coordination.
I am truly thankful to everyone who gives the OK.
I recently got to enjoy the Geki-Chu-Mai livestream and KOP as a regular spectator, and it reminded me once again of the excitement of watching from the outside and the energy you receive from the players.
This is really just me rambling with my personal thoughts from outside the team, so please don’t take it too seriously — but lately I have been going around and around on themes like “how to keep this going indefinitely” versus “how to wrap things up in the best possible way” and “how to pass the torch to the next generation.”
A hundred years from now, there might be a world where games are on display in museums and life-size character standees line the halls — and in that world, I hope ONGEKI is there too. That is really all I am saying.
With that in mind, I plan to keep watching over things from a desk about four seats away.
Oh, and when you visit the arcade, make sure to play SEGA’s driving games nearby along with your rhythm games!
Thank you.
■Bonus
The other “bingo” in ONGEKI that monokuro-clock-senpai mentioned in the newsletter is my own High Free Spirits.
＜Chart Section — Issue 100＞
I thought I’d try crowdsourcing some ideas for once. A good suggestion could improve chart quality.
On a 2D xy coordinate plane, within the region [0 to m (integer with roughly 20 < m < roughly 400), 0 to n (integer with 1 <= n < roughly 50 and n << m)], there is a nicely shaped curve f(x), and I want to approximate the shape of that curve using a polyline (piecewise linear path).
The curve f(x) must satisfy the following conditions:
・Passes through (0,0) and (m,n)
・Slope of 0 at (0,0)
・Monotonically increasing within the range (rising to the right)
・f'(x) >= 0 within the range (does not curve downward)
And ideally, it should curve nicely overall without feeling like it has any straight sections.
The polyline must:
・Pass through (0,0) and (m,n) and not go outside the region. Touching the boundary is fine.
・Bend only at lattice points (integer coordinate points)
・Have as many or as few bends as needed, but unnecessary bends should be minimized.
The end goal is that when the finished polyline is rotated 90° and moved vertically, it looks like a nicely shaped curve.
【Suggestion Request 1】
First, I’d like a definition of what shape is appropriate for this curve.
Right now, a 70° arc scaled horizontally and vertically feels right, but I’m open to other good curve suggestions.
Sine waves and parabolas both ended up feeling like they had noticeable straight sections and didn’t quite work.
【Suggestion Request 2】
How to construct the polyline and a good way to prune lattice points.
Simply picking the lattice points closest to the curve and connecting them results in a jagged mess.
Also, more bends are better for approximating the curve, but sometimes skipping a bend results in just the right slope — what condition should determine when to skip a point?
【Suggestion Request 3】
How to balance the polyline as it travels rightward from the origin.
Since the curve is moving horizontally at the origin, the polyline basically starts by traveling along the X-axis.
The question of how far to follow the X-axis before bending is really tricky to get right.
Especially when n is small, this balance has a direct impact on how clean the result looks.
Any good suggestions welcome!
＜Ongeki Chart Division＞
●And Revive The Melody [MASTER]
0s–25s Roche@Penguin
25s–63s Monokuro-clock
63s–89s Jako Lemon
89s–123s Amaryllis
123s– Misokatsu-samurai
On behalf of the Chart Division, I, Misokatsu-samurai, will share some comments.
Since I charted most of the previous KOP song myself, I put out a call for a collaboration with a “I never want to do a tournament chart alone again!” attitude, and several people stepped up. Thank you all so much!
As proper collaborations go, it’s been a while since Licorice Recoil. Almost nostalgic now.
First, about the song itself — it was actually not commissioned specifically as a tournament track.
Around the same time as “Natsu Yoi Starmine,” the vibe was more like “maybe we could slip in an instrumental track as a 5th anniversary commemorative piece,” so I asked the great maestro Kuroma, “Could you make a sequel to Don’t Fight The Music?” — and what came back was more intense than expected (in the best possible way), and the whole staff immediately pivoted.
Between the movie presentation and everything else, I think it ended up being a truly excellent showcase for the track’s debut.
Maestro Kuroma, thank you so much for the incredible song!
As for the chart, with all the surprises, impact, and debut of new elements, I think we pulled off a really well-crafted progression this time around.
The relentless chart flow — I think it had everyone glued to the screen: players competing, people cheering them on, people just casually watching.
I was thinking “take this nostalgia bomb rush!” while working on the coda section. (Probably won’t land, but there it is.)
Back in the R.E.D. era, I was a greenhorn with less than a year of charting experience barging into boss song charts, and I cringe about it now in retrospect — but I think it’s because that shameless version of me existed that things could connect all the way to here.
My sincere wish is that this song, along with Don’t Fight The Music, continues to be loved as part of ONGEKI for a long time to come.
●MY GLORY WANTED!!! [MASTER]
0s–18s Misokatsu-samurai
18s–48s Amaryllis
48s–92s Monokuro-clock
92s–116s Jako Lemon
116s–135s Monokuro-clock
135s–160s Roche@Penguin
160s– Misokatsu-samurai
Revo: “I want to do the grand finals with a vocal track that could only exist in ONGEKI!”
That wish kicked off the music production in collaboration with KADOKAWA.
There were so few precedents for a vocal song fitting for a tournament final, and I ended up asking Kijibato for revision after revision — I am truly sorry for all the trouble…
Incidentally, the interlude, intro, and outro sections received almost no revision requests at all. Incredible.
As for the chart, it was the same team as the 5th anniversary, but this took considerably more time than most recent charts.
The BPM is fast and the song structure changes constantly, so if everyone brings in an all-out chaotic draft, you end up with a song that feels like “nothing can be done about this (deadpan)” from start to finish — something our “veteran chart collaborators” should “understand from experience,” yet the first drafts managed to pack in all the classic pitfalls of a rushed collaboration, and we were starting from something that made me sigh deeply for the first time in a while. I was part of the problem too, mind you.
At the interlude section with the Opfer-like reference, at one point there was a sudden burst of Titania’s 9-lane ending thrown in at an absurdly fast speed, and I nearly did an impression of a certain ramen YouTuber. No way that’s happening!
Monokuro-clock stepped up and fought hard until the chart took a decent shape, and I handled the final difficulty tuning to get it to where it is now.
There are still a few silly-looking patterns scattered around, but that reflects my judgment of “a top-ranked player should be able to handle this sight-reading, barely!” In practice, the balance might actually be just right.
It’s the kind of chart where your score will keep improving the more you play it, so please keep challenging it.
Now then, with both track selection and chart ideas running thin for the championship finals, who knows what next year will bring…