You might have heard of Rock Band before. Its one of the many recent video games to cross over to the mainstream. Its a kind of game that every company tries to reach for because tapping into that broader market means huge sales and high profits. Now add The Beatles to that formula and you have a money printing machine.
I saw MTV Games and Harmonix present this band-specific iteration of Rock Band today at E3. They had constructed a set made to look like the famous Abbey Road recording studio. Inside, we sat in rows as the developers took the stage. They introduced the game and walked us through the menus. They explained some key features and tweaks they had made to the typical Rock Band title to make it more accessible to new players attracted by The Beatles moniker. No-Fail Mode is on automatically so that brand new players aren’t scared away their first time. And new players will definitely be making their way to Rock Band.
The game is set to launch in the fall to coincide with the shopping season. Harmonix and MTV Games are hoping that two things will be under the tree for people of all ages, of all places, and especially those that have never owned a video game system before. The first will be a Playstation 3, an Xbox 360, or (even more likely) a Nintendo Wii. The second item will be a set of The Beatles Rock Band. I say a set because a lot is packed into that box. The first is a microphone, possibly even 3 microphones. The game allows for harmonizing of up to three vocalists. The second item is a guitar controller made to look like a guitar used by a Beatle. The third is another guitar replica. The last is a newly designed drum set that even comes with a decorative drum plate.
You would be correct in thinking that this all will cost plenty. But with more people staying at home, video games are a growing past time and what could be more fun than an elaborate form of karaoke? Really that’s all it is, but Rock Band puts smiles on people faces because of the success people feel when playing an instrument and hearing their favorite music. Now you’ll be smiling because that music will be the songs of The Beatles.
The menus and visuals have all be redesigned to reflect the band and the personality of the music. The developers have even considered Historical accuracy saying that the studio-only albums of The Beatles will not be played in front of crowds in the game. Instead they’ve created what they call “dreamscapes” that will amplify the colorful songs.
Having played a pair of songs after the demonstration, we can report that playing the music of The Beatles is definitely fun, and extremely satisfying. We can also report that despite some of the tweaks made to make the game more attractive to less experienced players, The Beatles Rock Band retains a lot challenge when played at the higher difficulties. The Beatles Rock Band is scheduled for a fall release on Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and Nintendo Wii.
You can check out more of Daniel’s writing on Video Games at playreadwrite.blogspot.com.
Great list. 10 out of 10.