Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure is a tactical role-playing video game developed and published by Nippon Ichi Software for the PlayStation. Released in 1998, it is the first installment in the Marl Kingdom series. A version for the Nintendo DS was released in Japan and North America in 2008, and in PAL regions in 2009. The game was released for Nintendo Switch as part of the Prinny Presents NIS Classics Volume 3 compilation (alongside La Pucelle: Ragnarok) in western regions, and for Windows as a standalone game worldwide in 2022. The game's story focuses on a young girl named Cornet as she seeks to rescue a prince after being turned to stone by a witch. Rhapsody, along with its sequels, are considered musical RPGs, meaning in place of FMV cutscenes, there are musical numbers, complete with vocals. The game is also known for its "overwhelming cuteness" and low level of difficulty. Although this may make the game seem geared towards a younger audience, in Japan, the game and series in general has seen much success. Gameplay When starting a new game, the player can select a game difficulty (easy, normal, or hard), which affects how long it will take to finish the game. The player selects different places on the world map and encounters random encounter battles, such as in the Dragon Quest series. Unlike most role-playing video games, the player can save at any time, except during battle. An oft-mentioned point of appreciation is its relatively unique plot premise and flow. Rhapsody is a theatrical musical in regard to its presentation style, containing frequent cut scenes that are sung, rather than simply spoken and acted. Players are given the option of listening to the lyrics and voice-overs in Japanese, English, or muting them entirely. Hidden throughout the game are high-quality illustrations of characters, which can be viewed any time through the item menu. Battles The battles are fought in a tactical role-playing game fashion. However, unlike other games in this genre, the battles tend to last less than a minute, with the exception of boss battles, and require little tactics. This makes the game stand out in its genre and may have also led to its limited mainstream success with more hardcore players of the genre. Cornet is the main character, but mainly offers support in battle, as puppets that are found throughout the game do most of the fighting