The Beatles: Rock Band

When Rock Band debuted in 2007, if someone had asked me what I thought I’d be doing on 9/9/09, I likely would’ve told them that my night would be filled with Shenmue, Power Stone, alcohol and tears while celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the Sega Dreamcast. “Playing a Beatles-centric music game” probably wouldn’t have even entered into my thought process. This time two years ago, the original Rock Band was still two months away. Music games were gaining popularity thanks to the first two installments of Guitar Hero. Internet forums were ablaze with debates over which songs and bands should be included in these music games. Through all of head-scratching requests for such timeless bands like Linking Park and Nickelback, you might find a fan or two (or two hundred) pining for The Beatles. “A licensing nightmare”, people would shout, or at least type with several exclamation marks at the end. Then Activision gave us Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, and suddenly the conversation shifted. Instead of “What songs would you like in the games?”, fans now argued over which bands should get their own game. Led Zeppelin? The Rolling Stones? Wham? The debate raged on, with The Beatles always being a popular answer, even while being dismissed as pipe dream. But here we are. 9/9/09 and Harmonix has made that dream a reality, unleashing Beatlemania on the world once with The Beatles: Rock Band.

The Beatles: Rock Band will be instantly familiar to anyone who has played any of the multitude of music games that have been released the past few years. For all their brow-beating about how different the experience of The Beatles is to previous Rock Band titles, Harmonix hasn’t really messed with the basic formula - you’ll still use the same microphone and plastic instruments to play the songs. Sure, the crowd won’t boo you anymore when you screw up, and the user-controlled guitar audio effects have been removed, although whammy bar support remains. The drum fills used to activate Overdrive in previous Rock Band games (called “Beatlemania here) has been replaced by a single green note. Pre- and post-song drum fills have been removed as well. On the gameplay front, the most noticeable change comes in the form of harmonized vocals and support for two additional vocalists. Rather than the usual single vocal track we’re all accustomed to, many of the songs in The Beatles contain up to three vocal tracks to follow. Players can sing whichever vocal track they desire, but will score significantly more points by singing in harmony. Not only does this new feature fit perfectly with The Beatles, it offers significantly greater challenge to songs that are admittedly not very vocally difficult. For players whose pipes are quite up to the task, the game features a new vocal trainer to go along with its drum and guitar It’s also good news for Xbox 360 owners that bought Lips, as those wireless microphones are compatible with The Beatles: Rock Band.

Changes have also been made in the changes made to the typical Rock Band format. For starters, there’s no need to unlock songs - all 45 tracks are available for the moment you boot up the game. So if you and your pals want to get trashed, head into Quickplay and slur your way through Paperback Writer, you won’t need to dive into Story mode for a few hours to do so. Story mode, however, is the main attraction. Rather than the normal “create band, earn fans and money” format seen in traditional Rock Band games, Story mode in The Beatles: Rock Band follows the band from their early days playing at The Cavern Club to their final gig on the roof of the Apple Corps building. From The Cavern Club, you’ll venture to The United Sates for The Beatles historic appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show in 1964. After stops at Shea Stadium and Budokan, you’ll enter what Beatles’ fans have dubbed “the studio years“, and with it the game’s much heralded Dreamscapes. Songs from this period begin with the band in studio, but the walls of Abbey Road quickly break away into fantastical psychedelic interpretations of the song. Some of the Dreamscapes are fairly conservative, but sometimes you’re be singing Octopus’ Garden on the bottom of the ocean. The story mode ends where The Beatles ended - with their somber final gig atop the Apple Corps building. Throughout Story mode, you’ll be given the opportunity to unlock rare and never-before-seen photographs of the band, a nice bonus for die-hard fans and newcomers alike. Loading screens are also peppered with actual studio chatter between the band that was captured on tape during their recording sessions.

Try as I might, I found it difficult to truly find a flaw with The Beatles: Rock Band. There does seem to be a bit of a repetition problem when it comes to character models of fans at the live shows - you’ll swear you’ve seen that same teary-eyed girl at every venue. I also spotted the same hobbling old man gazing up at the Apple Corps rooftop during every song of the Last Gig portion of Story mode. I also found myself rather disappointed with the lack of an digitized Eric Clapton during “My Guitar Gently Weeps” (he played lead guitar on the track). But these are minor and ultimately inconsequential gripes. Perhaps the game’s biggest strength could also be it’s only pitfall: it’s 45 Beatles songs, with more on the way via DLC. If you don’t like The Beatles, it’s a safe bet you won’t like this game. But seriously, what sane human being doesn’t like The Beatles?

Perhaps my favorite thing about The Beatles: Rock Band is how it will no doubt introduce tons of young people to the music of John, Paul, George and Ringo for the first time. Much like The Beatles themselves, the game transcends its genre to become something else entirely. It is quite simply a love letter to the greatest band the world may ever know.