Fish around for the notes

AFTER playing Electroplankton, one thing is for sure: There is not a more fearless video game maker than Nintendo. Because only the niche market of musically inclined performance-artist-video-gamers will truly appreciate the potential and complexities of this interesting title, even if the rest of us can’t.

You have to admire Nintendo’s guts for sponsoring Japanese performance artist Toshio Iwai’s foray into, uh, gaming.

All the 10 mini “games” he has created use little swimming fish to generate sounds and colors that make up the compositions. In the first (and best) one, “01 Tracy,” gamers use the stylus from the DS to trace tracks on the touch screen that each of the six fish follow. Based on the shape of the curve, and where it lies on the screen, distinct tones are heard from each fish.

Each of the games takes advantage of different features of the DS: One records and alters your voice, another samples sounds and loops them, a third requires handclaps to make the music.

Sadly, the only way to save the music is to connect the unit to a recorder. So I guess the creation is the art, at least for those who get it.

Details: Nintendo DS platform; $34.99; rated Everyone.

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Kicking it up a notch

Let’s be honest. The real draw of the fighting series Dead or Alive is the buxom battlers who populate its ranks. Their anime-inspired features are the stuff of fan boy dreams. In DOA 4, the girls -- and guys too -- get the full next-generation treatment with improved graphics and stunning cut-screens, making this title a must-have for fans of fighting games. Pulling off the intricate combos needed to crush your opponent is easier than you’d expect, and all the unlockable features (new costumes, videos and characters) will keep the fun fresh, even after the ogling is done.

Details: Xbox 360 platform; $59.99; rated Mature (blood, violence sexual themes and partial nudity).

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Build-a-warrior shop

Finally! A fighting game in which you can create your own characters to do battle! Soulcalibur III lets gamers dream up fierce warriors and ready them for battle with a variety of weapons, armor and, yes, loincloths. The battles are fast-paced and intense, even if the story mode is hard to make heads or tails of. And besides the hack-and-slash swordplay that is the backbone of the game, the makers have added a mode that employs real-time strategy to the fighting. A bonus: The right thumbstick can be used to control the attacks instead of just mashing buttons, as on most fighters.

Details: PlayStation 2 platform; $49.99; rated Teen (blood and violence).

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Caught in between

Lara Croft, she isn’t. Perfect Dark Zero, the continuing adventures of Joanna Dark, is similar to the classic Xbox first-person shooter series Halo, but with a hot chick as the lead. Oh, and without all the drama and excitement. The graphics are decent (but aren’t they supposed to be on the next-gen 360?), and the gameplay is smooth. Subtract the extremely unnecessary blood and bad language, and this game would be perfect for the tween audience, who would surely love it. Instead, we get something too graphic for kids and not exciting enough for older gamers.

Details: Xbox 360 platform; $49.99; rated Mature (blood, language and violence).

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More like flag football

From the makers of the only pro football game in town -- the hugely popular Madden NFL franchise -- comes Arena Football, which could best be described as “Madden Lite.” All of the players and teams from the quirky indoor football league are here (or so we’re told), and the play-calling and action is a lot more simple and fast-paced -- if not more mundane -- than that complex other gridiron title.

Details: PlayStation2 and Xbox platforms; $29.99; rated Everyone 10+ (language, mild violence, suggestive themes).

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For previous columns, or to e-mail Pete Metzger, visit latimes.com/gotgame.