NOTE: The review was done with the standalone software.

The music/rhythm game genre has become very popular over the years. Since the first Guitar Hero game, an incredible number of musical games have emerged. Lately, games based on music groups have started to appear. While some have earned praise (GH Metallica), others failed to meet expectations and became laughable efforts (GH Aerosmith). Strong of their success with the Rock Band franchise, Harmonix decided that it was time for them to pay tribute to a legendary band. Not just a simple band but certainly one of the most iconic: The Beatles. Harmonix, Apple Corp., Yoko Ono, Olivia Harrison and the two remaining Beatles, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr could have just taken advantage of the popularity of these musical games, go for the quick cash and get out. Instead, we got The Beatles: Rock Band, a game like no other. For the elder to remember, for the youngest to discover, a videogame that finally binds multiple generations together.


If you have played past Rock Band titles, gameplay will be very familiar to you since no huge changes were brought to the game with the exception of a few subtle ones. First, the usual “World Tour” career has been replaced by a story mode that follows the Fab Four career from their humble beginnings in Liverpool until their last concert public appearance. The first part of the game lets you play 22 of the 45 tracks available on the disc as you start to play at The Cavern then on the set of the Ed Sulivan show, Shea Stadium and the Budokan in Japan. The second part happens at the Abbey Road Studios with the finale on the rooftop. While the first part of the Story Mode reproduces what it was like while they were playing, the second part presents each song with a special “dreamscape” sequence. The group starts by playing in the studio then transforms itself into a psychedelic video. Of course, you won’t take the time to fully appreciate what is happening on the screen behind the notes while you are playing but it’s almost too bad there is no way to view the videos outside of gameplay.

In terms of gameplay mechanics, The Beatles: Rock Band introduces three part vocal harmonies in which up to three players can sing along together while three more people are playing instruments. There’s nothing much to say about that aside from the fact that it isn’t very easy to master. The game does offer a useful tutorial that teaches you the mechanics but it will still require a lot of practice and patience. Overdrive has been renamed “Beatlemania” and works essentially the way we know it. However, among the little technical changes, the game doesn’t feature freestyle drum fills and the whammy bar doesn’t alter the sound of master track but it will still help you collect more Beatlemania points. When we got to talk to Harmonix about it they told us that they wanted the players to play the tracks the way there were meant to be played.


One last technical change was made towards the “No Fail” mode. Now you can now toggle the option off and on from the player selection screen instead of going deep into the option menu, scroll down and select it. It’s not a huge change but it’s a time saver. The option screen does offer a few things worth checking out such as a Realistic Mode option that increases the volume of the crazy crowd while you are rocking out or the Performance Mode that removes the lyrics and the notes from the screen. Great way to enjoy the dreamscape sequences if you are up to the challenge, of course.

Is the 45 songs unlocked from the beginning in Quickplay mode? Yes with the exception of one that needs to be unlocked once you finished the Story Mode. Playing through Story Mode may give you the 45th song but it will also unlock pictures and movies every time you complete a chapter. Accumulate more stars by “five star” each song and you will unlock even more goodies including the full version of The Beatles Christmas Album, recorded especially for the members of the band’s Fan Club. Just keep in mind that everything about The Beatles cannot be found on the disc though but the content offered is very interesting. At the end of each chapter, the game unlocks a challenge. Each challenge gives you the possibility to play all the songs from the specific chapter in one play through. Eventually, in order to earn enough starts to unlock the rest of the goodies, you will have to play the challenges, increasing your replay value in the process.


Now, there are two ways to get into The Beatles: Rock Band. If you already have instruments at home, getting the $60 disc will do the trick since most of all instruments available on the market works with the game, including guitars from past Guitar Hero games, the drums from Guitar Hero: World Tour and of course all the instruments from past Rock Band games. LIPS (Xbox 360 karaoke game) and Singstar (Playstation 3) microphones are also supported. The other way is to buy the Special Edition bundle priced at $250 that includes the Höfner Bass controller, a large scale replica of the Bass famously used by Sir Paul McCartney, Beatles-inspired and Ludwig-branded Rock Band 2 drums with classic pearl finish and vintage replica Beatles kick drum head. Want to go even more authentic? The Rickenbacker 325 and Gretsch Duo Jet guitars can also be purchased for $100 each. Certainly, something the hardcore Beatle fan won’t miss.

Graphics & Sounds

We all laughed at Ringo’s comments at E3 regarding the visuals of the game when he said that it looked good and that they look good. They were honest and amusing words of course but he was right. Unlike the other music games based on groups, Harmonix wanted to give The Beatles: Rock Band something most of these musical games don’t have: personality. Venues are faithfully replicated and the dreamscape sequences in the second part of the Story mode are fantastic. From the colourful menus to the gameplay interface, everything is unique to The Beatles and remains true to the legend in every way possible.


The same attention to detail and quality given to the visual presentation can also be felt in the audio department. We could easily say that Apple Corp. has helped Harmonix a lot since they were the keepers of the master recordings and all but in the end, Harmonix had to make it happen anyways, right? Anyways, the tracks sound great however what amplifies everything is the attention given to the environmental sounds (the girls shouting) especially during the chapter in which you have to play at Shea Stadium. Finally, audio chatter can be heard before and after each track. The second part of the Story Mode caught my attention even more as recording studio chatter can be heard. Once again, little details such as these give the game a certain charm and distinctive feeling over the other games out there.

Value

The Story Mode isn’t very long as playing through the whole set list can be completed in a day (there’s even an Achievement/Trophy for completing the Story mode is less than 24 hrs upon creating a new save file) but the online play, the aforementioned Chapter Challenges and the promise of future downloadable tracks and albums (three post-launch albums have been announced plus one exclusive track only available to those who own the Xbox 360 version of the game) will expand the replay value of the game. Heck, even the drum trainer renamed Beatle Beats (which are actual beats made famous by Ringo Starr) will make you burn a few hours.

The game may give impression to target a specific demographic (40+ moms and dads) but it remains a game done by the guys and girls who did Rock Band. Adepts of the franchise will take a look at the game and see it as an expansion to their current experience while casual gamers who were scared or shy to grab plastic instruments until now will feel like the game is giving them a chance to finally get into gaming. And honestly, who hasn’t sing along “I Want To Hold Your Hand”, “Can’t Buy Me Love” or “Twist and Shout”? 


Conclusion

If the Rock Band franchise managed to interest non-gaming adult audiences into buying music/rhythm games, The Beatles: Rock Band will not only do the same but it will also reach out to the very last folks who up until now did not care about playing with plastic instruments in front of a television. If games like Pong and Super Mario Bros. managed to pike the interest of mom and dad to play with their kids in the living room, there’s no doubt that The Beatles: Rock Band will make the rest of the family join in and have a great time. Don’t get me wrong, the Guitar Hero and Rock Band games have done great things but I think The Beatles: Rock Band is the ultimate multi-generation gathering videogame.