After much speculation about an upcoming game, it has been confirmed that the Beatles will be coming to a game produced by Harmonix, the makers of Rock Band. There is much to be excited about, besides the fact that this has to do with The Beatles.

Just the details, ma’am

Wired live blogged the event and while much of it is tangential ephemera, there’s a good summary at the top. The key points: The deal is exclusive, the game will be released during the 2009 holiday season, the game won’t be branded with the “Rock Band” name, and Giles Martin will be involved!

The lack of the “Rock Band” name was expected - The Beatles clearly didn’t want to dilute their trademark but from what I am guessing, the core gameplay will remain the same, with the “musical and visual journey” providing lots of trivia, information and history to placate rabid fans, such as myself. (Think of it as Rock Band fused with The Beatles Anthology)

Not just a cash-grab

Also surprising is Giles Martin’s involvement. Giles, the son of Sir George Martin, famed producer of The Beatles, collaborated with his father to produce the 2006 Love compilation album that was also the soundtrack for the identically-named Cirque du Soleil performance. I quite enjoyed the album, so I’m hoping some of that experience will brought over to the game. I’m sure that George Martin would love to be involved himself, save for his age.

Coupled with the fact that The Beatles are known for resisting undue use of their trademark, I believe this will make the game more than just a cheap one-timer meant to empty the pockets of fans. Harmonix, the developers of the original Guitar Hero and Rock Band also have a good track record for originality. While Rock Band 2 wasn’t too much of an improvement over the already great original, there’s no denying it’s not a good game. (I have yet to write my full review of the game, but check out my preview for more)

One point of interest that sure to be a sore wound for Activision is the fact that the deal is exclusive. This means that there’s no possibility of The Beatles appearing in a Guitar Hero game, unlike other artists (such as Oasis) that have tracks available in both series’ games.

The Songs: What’s important

From what I’ve read, the game will feature a variety of songs from their early days (Please Please Me) to their final days together in the studio. (Abbey Road). Obviously, some songs are a natural fit (While My Guitar Gently Weeps) others would just not work with a game. (Revolution 9)

Wired is holding an online poll where you can vote up the songs you’d like to see in the Beatles game. I suggest you take part and voice your opinion, since Harmonix, the developers, are known to check Internet forums for feedback on what songs to include in upcoming games.

My personal preferences have already been stated.

Changing the game

A Beatles music game has real potential to be wildly successful. Besides the fanatics (like myself) who are already in love with Rock Band and The Beatles, a properly-executed game will have potential to drawn in an older generation to video games, and at the same time, introduce the awesome music of The Beatles to a younger generation, that, for whatever tragic reason, has yet to appreciate the wide range of their abilities.

Even though the likely release date is over a year away, it’s safe to say that I’m excited. Very excited!

More Reading

• Apple Corp., MTV Announcing Beatles, Rock Band Deal
• Live Blog: Beatles, Rock Band Makers Team For New Game
• Rock’s holy grail: MTV scores Beatles music for video game
• Which Songs Do You Want to Play in the Beatles Game?

Yesterday, Rock Band 2 was officially released for Playstation 3 across North America. I managed to snag a copy of the SE Bundle after some looking around. Here’s a brief overview of what you get along with my initial impressions. Expect a full(er) review later. And yes, I am going to be lazy and link to the Wikipedia article on Rock Band 2 for those of you in need of some background information. (For those of you looking for just unboxing photos, we have those too, along with a comparison between instruments of Rock Band 1 and Rock Band 2)

For $190 US/CAD (the CAD version actually being cheaper with the exchange rate changes of late), you get the updated guitar, improved wireless drums, microphone, and of course, the game. For comparision, the original Rock Band SE bundle cost only $170 US when it was released 11 months ago. So, where is the extra $20 going to?

Firstly, there are 84 songs included in the Rock Band 2 setlist, versus only 58 for the original. Additionally, 20 more tracks have been promised as free downloadable content via an access code included with the game.

Secondly, the instruments have changed. The drums are now wireless, the pads are quieter and the bass pedal has been reinforced with a top layer of metal, though it’s still mostly plastic. Having quieter pads is the main reason I decided to buy the bundle even though I already have the original RB bundle. (Getting an extra guitar also helps)

The guitar itself is changed, though I wouldn’t say that it has been improved like the drums. The neck and fretboard now have a faux-wood look, though strangely, the body of the guitar included with the PS3 Rock Band 2 bundle is the same black/white colour as the original, and not the “sunburst” colour of the version included with the Xbox 360 bundle. Perhaps the sunburst colour was only for the 360 version? After all, Microsoft did strike a deal with Harmonix to get the game released a month earlier for the 360.

Update: Flameburst/Sunburst Strat Guitar NOT included with bundle

It appears that I’m not the only one noticing that the bundled guitar that comes with Rock Band 2 does not have the flameburst/sunburst design on the body, and only the fretboard has the faux-wood look, as seen in the images here. Others are reporting that the Xbox 360 RB2 SE bundle also comes with the black-bodied guitar. It appears the only way to get the new design is to buy a standalone guitar. I’m a bit displeased at this, since the “sunburst” design was heavily showcased in all the Rock Band 2 previews and promotional images, so it was expected to be included in the bundle. Maybe Harmonix had a surplus of black plastic guitar bodies to get rid of.

Besides the cosmetic change, the guitar fret buttons are quieter as promised, but the strum bar is a bit louder. This is because it has a definite “click” and “stop” to it, rather than the “mushy” feel of the original that turned some people off. (It took me a while to get used to it)

The microphone is essentially identical to the Rock Band 1 version. Gameplay is, of course, basically the same as before. (If it ain’t broke…) There are some nice addons, such as “No Fail” mode that allows you to make it through any song without the annoyance of failure. You can also now play the Band World Tour mode online, expanding your options for the game, since this was undoubtedly the best mode of the original Rock Band. There also doesn’t appear to be a strictly separate “Solo” mode anymore; instead you are free to start a group in Band World Tour mode consisting only of yourself. These are nice updates that add to the replay value.

That’s all I have to say for now. Expect a full review later. For now, you can browse some photos I’ve taken of the Rock Band 2 bundle, along with some comparision shots between the Rock Band 1 and Rock Band 2 instruments.

Update: Rock Band 2 vs. Rock Band 1 drums loudness/noise

I’ve uploaded a quick video that shows the difference in sound between the Rock Band 1 and updated Rock Band 2 drums.

Unfortunately, my camera is not the best at picking up sound, so the video doesn’t fully reflect the difference. I’d say the best example in the video is the difference in noise between the yellow pad hits on the two drum sets. The new drums are substantially quieter/softer than the originals.

Update: Rock Band/Guitar Hero instrument compatibility guide

Joystiq has put together an up-to-date Rock Band and Guitar Hero instrument compatibility guide. Pretty much all the instruments are shown for the Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii versions of available games. The good news? It appears that both Rock Band 1 & 2 instruments are compatible with Guitar Hero: World Tour.

With the recent rumours that Beatles representatives met with both the makers of Rock Band and Guitar Hero to discuss the possibility of a Beatles-themed game, I’ve been more than a little excited at the prospects of rocking out to these tunes. (See more coverage at Wired and the original FT article)

Whatever the outcome, it could be a deciding factor in what console (if any) I decide to buy. I’m already feeling the pain of no DLC for the Wii version of Rock Band, which is putting doubts into my mind as to whether I should have bought the Wii version.

With that said, here’s a list of the top 10 songs (in no particular order) I’d like to see in any Beatles-themed game or available for DLC for an existing game like Rock Band. (Top 10 list idea shamelessly taken from the Wired article and others)

1. Rain
2. One After 909
3. Revolution 1
4. Day Tripper
5. Here Comes The Sun
6. Drive My Car
7. What You’re Doing
8. I Wanna Be Your Man
9. A Hard Day’s Night
10. Helter Skelter

Those would provide a good all-around experience for all the instruments in a Rock Band-like game. Actually, those are just the first 10 that came to mind while browsing through my play list. I actually just want all of the Beatles songs to be released for Rock Band DLC, then I’ll finally be able to justify a PS3 purchase…

Was it worth the wait? For me, it was. However, there are some obvious shortcomings when comparing the Wii version of Rock Band to those on the Xbox 360 and PS3, most of which were expected. Whether these were the fault of Harmonix (the developers) or Nintendo is a matter of debate.

Outsourcing

Similar to the PS2, the Wii version of Rock Band was outsourced by Harmonix to Pi Studios for development of the port. While Harmonix developed the in-house versions of Rock Band for Xbox 360 and PS3, I guess they felt that they didn’t have the expertise to fully develop other versions by themselves. With a completely different team of developers in charge of the Wii/PS2 versions, it was expected that they would be similar in content. Some notable features missing in the Wii/PS2 versions:

• No downloadable content (DLC)
• No character creation
• No Band World Tour gameplay mode

There are a few other differences, but these are the major gripes. The lack of downloadable content was quite a big disappointment, since that was a major reason behind Rock Band’s popularity; with DLC Rock Band became more of a platform for experiencing the music you like, rather than just a game. Whether you blame Nintendo or the developers is a matter of personal opinion. You do get five “bonus” tracks with the Wii edition, but the fact that each of these is already available as DLC for the PS3/Xbox 360 versions makes this seem like a sad consolation prize.

While character creation may seem like a minor thing and thus its absence a bit puzzling, there is a clear reason for this: performance. Performance? What? Well, it turns out that the gameplay footage (of your characters singing/jamming on instruments) is pre-rendered and is effectively just a video playing in the background. Obviously this static content could not match up with the dynamics of custom character creation. This is in stark contrast to the Xbox/PS3 versions, where the gameplay footage is rendered like in any other 3D game. Unfortunately, the pre-rendered video doesn’t look all that great, with some aliasing noticeable if you’re playing on a big screen.

Gameplay

However, visuals might be a somewhat minor point as you’re not likely to notice it much when you’re concentrating on hitting the notes. What matters then, is the gameplay. Rock Band for Wii preserves the same basic gameplay offered by the other versions. However, the glaring omission of the Band World Tour has me disappointed. This mode offered a non-linear way for you to progress through the songs, playing at various gigs in cities across the world and offering the ability to play through set lists. Instead, all that is left is the much more stripped-down version, which just has you playing through groups of songs in order of difficulty, very much like Guitar Hero III. Personally, I can’t see the reason why this mode was left out, as it was one of the features that set the game apart from GH3.

Audio performance is roughly the same, though obviously the game cannot support Dolby Digital 5.1 as the Wii doesn’t have the hardware for it; Pro Logic II is supported, however.

The lack of DLC is offset somewhat by news that they’ll soon be releasing a standalone track pack for Rock Band that adds 20 more songs. (An included paper insert in the game also broadcast this fact) Though you don’t get to choose the songs, as with DLC, the price of $30 is very attractive. The additional track pack won’t need the original game to play, probably because they needed to include the game engine and track data on one disc.

As expected, the game does not support the GH3 controller, with both of the parties involved blaming each other. Realistically, there’s no chance this will get resolved, as each side has no real incentive to do so. It’s unfortunate, because at $60 there’s no way I’m buying a second guitar for either game - plus, the thought of more plastic instruments in my living room doesn’t exactly fly with me.

In the end, the big question will likely be, “Could Rock Band have been written to better take advantage of the Wii?” Right now, it’s pretty much a straight port of the PS2 version, which says something about the Wii’s hardware considering the PS2 is an eight-year old platform. Clearly, a Wii-specific version would have taken much longer to release (the PS2 version itself was released a month later than the PS3/Xbox 360 versions) so perhaps a balance had to be struck. If Harmonix had waited any longer, there might not have been a need for Rock Band on Wii, with Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero IV just around the corner.

Check out more pictures of the Rock Band for Wii unboxing.