Plain and simple, I’m a Beatles fan because of video games – and until I played that specific game, I couldn’t have cared less about one of the most influential acts in modern music history. But this week, the only reason I’m a fan The Beatles: Rock Band15 years old.
It remains the most gorgeous tribute the band has ever received, and deserves to be remembered as both the pinnacle of a forgotten genre and a prime example of how games can make new, younger audiences appreciate things they otherwise wouldn’t be able to.
long and winding road
There is a The Beatles Video game announced by MTV Games, Apple (no not Apple, this), and Harmonix in October 2008. gamble and mainstream Media coverage of new unnamed project. At the time, there were two dominant franchises in this wildly successful rhythm game genre, and every few months the biggest bands in the world would choose a side.
guitar heroThe company owned by Activision and developed by Neversoft managed to secure exclusive deals with groups such as Aerosmith, Metallica and Van Halen, eventually forming their own independent titles. at the same time, rock bandthe series is helmed by Harmonix (the original creator of Harmonix guitar hero, Confusing I know) and co-published by MTV Games and EA, it managed to get bands like U2, AC/DC and The Pixies to put entire albums into its ever-growing, always forward-compatible music library.
Two groups are widely regarded as the Holy Grail of this ongoing Cold War: Led Zeppelin (one of the only rock bands to never have any music in either series) and the Beatles. Both groups have long been fiercely protective of how and where their music is licensed.
So when one of these holdouts announces they’re jumping on the game’s biggest trend, it’s a big deal. There is a warning: Players cannot merge these songs into other songs rock band Gaming, one of the key advantages of the Harmonix series over its competitors. Still, it’s a damn Beatle. This is big news for everyone.
Everyone except me.
people with nowhere to go
As a fan, I browse the Harmonix forums every day, of which there are hundreds rock band I was impressed by the songs on his Xbox 360 hard drive. I know very little about the Liverpool quartet. Aside from a few late-night TV commercials promoting their old music sets, the Beatles were equally distant to me as a black teenager from New York City who grew up primarily in hip-hop, 80s pop, and tony hawk professional skater Soundtrack, as much as possible.
Thanks to my parents, I developed an appreciation for some old rock bands like The Police and Jimi Hendrix. But the Beatles broke up before they could speak complete sentences, and it didn’t resonate with their parents while they were growing up.
That was the 2009 Xbox E3 press conference, of all thingswhich changed my attitude. In a stroke of genius marketing, Microsoft kicks off the show with a world premiere The Beatles: Rock Band. Six happy members of the Harmonix team played “Day Tripper,” followed by Giles Martin, son of the Beatles’ legendary producer, who explained that the Beatles’ catalog was “dedicated to this The game has been carefully modified.” The resulting work is also 2009 remake Released to coincide with the game’s release.
And then, in a moment that today seems like a fever dream No sauce era Giles at the Summer Olympics Festival join on stage Created by Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Olivia Harrison (George’s wife) and real-life badass Ono Lennon. It was a rare moment when the living Beatles and their surviving relatives gathered under one roof (hehe), and the mainstream media devoured it.
Of course, for me, a 16-year-old kid writing a stupid E3 blog for 300 Tumblr fans, the significance of this was completely lost on me. But I’m curious. Finally realized that this is not just one rock band The game’s main menu UI features The Beatles’ avatars and some extra anus. Of course, this is not my band. But that’s clearly what Harmonix is aiming for do it with excitement. The team’s enthusiasm was infectious and I’ve been a fan of their work ever since frequency and amplitudecurious about the final product.
A few weeks after the September 9, 2009 release date, I picked up my copy and quickly discovered my new musical obsession. The Beatles: Rock Band Obviously a great game. But it’s also an in-depth, carefully crafted history lesson, featuring 45 songs, dozens of archival videos and photos, loading screen fun facts and an original film, aimed specifically at those new to The Beatles. Harmonix has worked tirelessly to recreate the sets, stages, stadiums and imaginary landscapes from the band’s entire career, making their significance immediately apparent to me.
fix a hole
Of course, this is about as clean a history lesson as you can get from the Beatles, a band with no shortage of musicians. dispute and damn it. Since music (and gaming) is subjective, not everyone will have the same takeaway. But just as the Wii simplified hobbies for working parents and retirees a few years ago, The Beatles: Rock Band It’s undeniable that it shows how video games can reintroduce and retexture ideas that are culturally relevant to all ages.
a year ago The Beatles: Rock BandI would cynically view them as a bunch of old white dudes with no real classics, e.g. reasonable suspicion or a late registration. Within a month of rolling credits, I purchased 70% of the 2009 remasters. I even learned how to play some of their songs on bass.
Harmonix has since rock band series Create unsung gems like the experimental turntable simulator fuser. Then, in 2021, the company was acquired by Epic Games and successfully released Fortnite. But sadly, its Beatles game only received a handful of DLC releases (the rest Abbey Road, rubber soul, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Bandand free singles all you need is love). It’s an even greater tragedy that Harmonix can’t update these licenses so it remains playable on modern hardware (I’d love it if Epic used its near-unlimited war chest of V-Bucks to rectify this, But I digress).
About 15 years after its release, The Beatles: Rock Band represents one of gaming’s finest moments: preserving a seminal work from another medium in a tasteful and respectful way, in a new and interesting way. The rhythm game bubble may have burst shortly after its release in 2009. but The Beatles: Rock Band Critical to the industry trends that spawned it. It’s the gold standard for a larger phenomenon that makes the entire medium so unique and compelling.
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