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Denver, 9:55 AM
Tue Dec 1
65 posts in the last 24 hours
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10/09/09
10/09/09
I used to be dead-set against music games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero. I thought they were a waste of time and that kids should be practicing real instruments instead. Yes, I thumbed my nose at the music game genre and then put on my monocle and sipped a cup of Earl Grey.
A few summers ago I worked at a local band/orchestra/guitar retail store to pocket some money to pay for tuition. In the span of 2 1/2 months, I sold over $15,000 in guitars primarily to kids between the ages of 10-15. I'd never quite seen a run on guitars like this before. In my usual banter with customers while they're looking at instruments, I usually ask what's inspired the customer/recipient (in this case, mostly kids) to want to pick up the guitar. Answer in a shocking majority of purchases:
Guitar Hero and Rock Band
Fast forward to last winter where I'm student teaching with an elementary music program. I brought my Wii and a copy of Wii Music in as sort of a treat for kids who behaved well during class. Once every other week or so I'd let them play Wii Music for the last half of class (and every day during lunch when the weather outside was foul I'd have the music room open for them to play as well). A week or so after starting this I get a phone call from a parent that goes something like this:
Parent: Would you happen to know where I can rent a trumpet?
Me: Sure, here's the name of a music store I work for and contract with. Might I ask why you're interested?
Parent: Oh, [Child's name] said he enjoyed that Wii Music game you let him play during lunch so we went and bought a copy for home. He played a lot of the instruments in it and really liked the trumpet, we asked if he'd like to learn to play for real and he jumped at the chance.
I'm not sure if music games can actually teach music (though I think there's possibilities to teach rhythmic feel which is wonderful), but what I am sure of is that these music games have opened up a lot of possibilities for kids who would otherwise be uninterested. As far as I'm concerned, if music games can pull kids into music and perhaps inspire them to pick up real instruments, they are nothing short of successful.
10/09/09
10/09/09
Or better yet, in musician terms, a gateway drug.
10/09/09
10/09/09
Perfect for people like me!
10/09/09
Edit: OK, never mind.
10/09/09
10/09/09
That is all.
p.s. I have a picture but for some reason uploading is not working for me today.
10/09/09
10/09/09
Personally I think the Dreamcast was the first to pioneer both formats. Rez used music as a companion that accompanied you throughout the game. Although the interactions did not depend on music so to speak, the game became synonymous with beat creation.
Space Channel 5 was one of the first games based solely on music user interface reactions. Simon Says, but much much cooler. I might be wrong here but you could even go as far to say that SC5 was the precursor to the DDR game fad that was so popular at one time.
Wipeout is another that turned a corner in terms of musical involvement. Although it did not use music as a mechanism for gameplay, it was if I recall the first game to publicly market itself based upon what music the game actually contained. The game tailored itself around the electronic music explosion that hit the US and Europe during the mid 90's. At one point Sony showcased the game in trendy nightclubs across the country. The Soundtrack was as big of a hit as the game itself.
I won't venture into what Guitar Hero and the like has achieved or what the latest and greatest is, but it is nice to reflect on how Video games have proven to be an outstanding medium in terms of reaching out to people that would otherwise have no desire to pursue music in other ways.
*Whistles some Ocarina of Time tunes*
10/09/09
After explaining that it was video game music, he said "Why don't you play video game music like guitar hero?"
So there we have it, after a brief discussion he believed that all the songs in Guitar Hero was just well, from guitar hero.
I wanted to share.
10/09/09
Then I realized that maybe this kid is only new, and he had only played music games so far.
Then I reread the last paragraph, highlighted the "13 age" part, and sighed again.
10/09/09
10/09/09
10/09/09
Isn't that the song Battlestar Galactica wrote to use as a homing beacon? Whos this Jimi Hendrix guy, he must have copied them. :P
10/09/09
10/09/09
however, it's a good alternative for the 95% of the population who won't ever do that.
07/23/09
It's kind of like how FFXI hit the PS2 with a required hard drive bundled in, about the time they started selling PS2s without a hard drive bay. I'd mention the PSP Go, but not taking UMDs is really obvious so I don't think that would surprise anyone who bought it.
Funny how in all three cases, people who have the older version of the console are able to play all the old and new games...
07/23/09
Not quite true with the DS and DS Lite. It can't do the DSi's downloadable titles, and it's missing features from some games since it doesn't have the same capabilities as the DSi. It wouldn't surprise me if, eventually, we see a game that or games that just won't work on the older DS models, period.
07/23/09
You're right, I wasn't thinking there. Any PSP can play downloadable titles though, but the DSi fails to play some DS games AND cuts off anyone who has an old DS from newer ones, so basically they want you to buy 2 DSes or miss out...
07/23/09
07/23/09
And you'll get others who won't play it because it causes them physical pain.
Hand cramps aren't philosophical, they aren't speculative - this causes them in a good number of people. Surely you'd think they might, you know, think about redesigning the grip so there's some kind of support or something?
07/23/09
Whoah whoah, on the contrary, Daigasso Band Brothers still plays every music track in the background. That would be horrible if it didn't. It just made your instrument louder than all the others so you could actually tell which one you were supposed to be playing.
And I do not care to play this game. I'll shell out $100 for Rock Band 2 when it's on sale, but I'm not gonna shell out $100 for a DS game with two peripherals that only I can use, just so I can play a game that's done 100x better on consoles (especially multiplayer) on a handheld system.
I mean, really, good luck finding three friends with the a DS Lite (and not any other DS), and the willingness to buy this game so all four of you can play it together when you're not at someone's house who has the game on a console.
07/23/09
07/23/09
07/23/09
07/23/09
@njd09: I was exaggerating, although I wouldn't expect anything less than $70 (and anything more than $40 is typically taboo for most people for a DS game).
07/23/09
07/23/09
Yeah, but it's kind of the same thing with the iPhone or iPod. Every year (read: months) a newer, better version comes out and then companies start developing for the system with the better specs and processing power. It's the natural order of retail and supply/demand. Technology and products get better over time. You can still be satisfied with a phonograph but don't be surprised when you're favorite band's new album doesn't get a vinyl release.
07/23/09
I must laugh though, i was kind of thinking, 'that guy sounds cool i'm gonna get this new game and be completely open minded' then realised that i've only got a DS(phat) and DSi.
07/23/09
Yeah, it sucks. Balls. But it's kind of the nature of the beast. I wish technology didn't become 'outdated' so quickly, but that's what the market has become. Fads don't last near as long as they used to...
07/23/09
Even if I could convince myself and friends to buy this, and convince them to all come over and play, five minutes would transpire before we power on the 360 and play Rock Band.
Games like this are why sales reports (like the one from yesterday) are created.
07/23/09
I do agree about the exclusion of WiFi, though.