Harmonix Digs For Details With The Beatles
Sometimes it can be a small victory in itself for developers of any size or stature to snag that perfect, big name IP for their games, but that's just the beginning of the process. They still have to make a game that will match the brand and that always has a way of providing new and unique challenges to any team. But when you're following up on one of the most critically acclaimed, trend defining games of the decade with one of popular culture's most recognizable faces and music, even the best in the business feel can feel a little bit of pressure, as was the case with The Beatles: Rock Band.
It's no secret that The Beatles have been weary of taking part in music games in the past, but, as Harmonix CEO Alex Rigopulos explains to The Boston Globe, it wasn't because The Beatles didn't see what games could offer...
"It wasn't 'video games, bah!' They got the potential almost from the first meeting... ...The flip side is it was clear they were going to hold us to a very high standard. [The game] had to honor the history and art of this band. It had to be a significant new offering from their catalog.''
Quite a challenge for any developer considering the band's deep impressions upon generations of fans, but at least Apple Corps (no, not that other Apple) gave the developers unheard of access to their records for even the smallest details...
Even the game's sound effects come from Beatles source material - from the cheering crowds at Shea Stadium (taken from recordings of that 1965 concert) to button sounds (a George guitar "kerrang,'' for instance) to the studio chatter you hear as a new game level loads (actual conversations were lifted from the master tapes).It looks like all the right details will be in place for really special experience when the game ships to stores early next month, but you can read the rest of The Globe's coverage on the game to whet your appetite just a little bit more.
[A Fab Four reunion for a new generation] The Boston Globe via GoNintendo
Game-Boy
Posted to Video Games on 10 August 2009
· Comments (1)
Other stuff like this: beatles rock band, boston, harmonix, how games are made
i am still not excited about this. i guess i'll never be a fan of the expansions that are just a single band.