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The Beatles: Rock Band Review


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On 10/10/2009 at 10:23 AM by Neal Ronaghan

They've been going in and out of style, but they're guaranteed to raise a smile, so may I introduce to you, the act you've known for all these years…
RECOMMENDATION:

Are you a Beatles fan? Buy this game immediately. Not a Beatles fan? Leave it be.

The Beatles have legions of fans that span all age ranges. I was never really a member of that broad group, but I did enjoy some Beatles songs from time to time. However, I am a huge Rock Band fan, so when The Beatles: Rock Band was announced last year, I was interested. After playing the retail copy, I can safely say that The Beatles: Rock Band is an artistically beautiful video game that solidified my fandom of the Beatles.

The game begins with a beautiful animated introduction by the same artist who made The Gorillaz music videos. After that, you can get brought into a slick-looking menu where you can access the game’s different modes. The two main modes are the Story mode where you can play through The Beatles’ career (minus any fighting) and Quickplay where you can hop in and play all of the songs save one that must be unlocked in the Story.

The song list is one of the only sour points. In a world where the big rhythm game releases contain close to 100 songs, a set list featuring 45 songs, technically 43 as songs are combined, is a bit underwhelming. However, the quality of each song and the production values of the experience more than make up for that issue. You have the lavish menus, beautiful backdrops (especially the dreamscapes), the historical resonance, and all the unlockables. In Story mode, you can unlock never-before-seen photographs, each with a few sentences detailing a bit of Beatles trivia or history. Also, there are a few exclusive videos, including one cool one that has the audio from one of The Beatles' Christmas albums.

The new gameplay addition is vocal harmonies, which allows up to three singers to attempt the famous Beatles three-part harmonies. While ideally you want one person on each range, you won't fail out if all three singers sing the same part, which makes it less daunting. If it's still trouble, you can practice it in the new vocal trainer. Also returning is the drum trainer mode, which has a bit of a Ringo twist to it, but isn't anything too new.

Sadly, The Beatles: Rock Band songs cannot be exported to other Rock Band games as it is strictly a standalone experience. There is downloadable content on the way, including three albums and "All You Need is Love." There are some other nice touches, such as No Fail Mode being easily toggled on and off at the instrument select screen and the addition of a countdown when you unpause the game.

The Beatles: Rock Band is the most polished rhythm game yet, as it has a lovely presentation that meshes perfectly with the feel of one of the most recognized bands ever. While the song list is skimpy, the variety and quality of the set list is fantastic. Mix that with the beautiful backdrops,the glut of interesting unlockables, and the other new additions, and you have a fantastic unique experience about The Beatles.

Review Policy

In our reviews, we'll try not to bore you with minutiae of a game. Instead, we'll outline what makes the game good or bad, and focus on telling you whether or not it is worth your time as opposed to what button makes you jump.

We use a five-star rating system with intervals of .5. Below is an outline of what each score generally means:


All games that receive this score are standout games in their genre. All players should seek a way to play this game. While the score doesn't equate to perfection, it's the best any game could conceivably do.


These are above-average games that most players should consider purchasing. Nearly everyone will enjoy the game and given the proper audience, some may even love these games.


This is our middle-of-the-road ranking. Titles that receive three stars may not make a strong impression on the reviewer in either direction. These games may have some faults and some strong points but they average out to be a modest title that is at least worthy of rental for most.


Games that are awarded two stars are below average titles. Good ideas may be present, but execution is poor and many issues hinder the experience.


Though functional, a game that receives this score has major issues. There are little to no redeeming qualities and should be avoided by nearly all players.


A game that gets this score is fundamentally broken and should be avoided by everyone.

Side By Side - All You Need is Xbox 360


"All You Need is Love" is exclusive DLC for Xbox 360 until December 10. Other than that, standard graphical differences between the three systems apply.


 

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