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Hands On With Ultimate Band: Disney's Peripheral-Free Band Game
Posted by Brian Crecente at 5:00 PM on June 23, 2008
Ultimate Band is Disney Interactive's answer to those people who want to have the music band game experience without the need for all of those expensive, room-filling peripherals that are required for titles like Rock Band and Guitar Hero World Tour.
This band game light is both peripheral and original music free, using only cover bands so the developers would be allowed to tweak the music to better fit the game. Those tweaks include the ability to have the lead singer be either a man or a woman, no matter who originally sang it.
The Disney folks told me that they did a number of focus tests during their development of the game. In them they asked potential gamers which of nine versions of the game they would want to play. The options ranged from a peripheral-heavy version of the game with original music, to the game they ended up producing. All of the tests showed, they told me, that gamers wanted a game that didn't require peripherals.
To play Ultimate Band gamers use the remote and nunchuk to strum, drum and flick their way through songs on a bass or lead guitar or drums.
To play lead guitar a player strums with the remote to the beat, matching the on screen timing, while holding different buttons or no buttons on the nunchuk. Depending on difficulty settings, you can guitar with just rhythm strumming or with as many as four virtual frets. The frets are triggered by holding the C, the Z, the C and the Z buttons or no buttons.
Bass is played by flicking the nunchuk and strumming while drums are played by drumming straight down with both controllers for standard drums, to the side for cymbals and then twirling the controllers in the air to mimic grandstanding.
A fourth option for playing, called frontman, consisted of dancing with the controllers. Because the game is peripheral free there is no way to sing in the game.
It may sound like the recipe for a douche simulator, but I actually found the game quite a bit of fun. The biggest problem I saw was that it was far to easy for even the most novice of Guitar Hero or Rock Band players.
I play guitar on medium usually (yes, I suck) but even on the expert setting in Ultimate Band I was able to score above 80 percent.
Hopefully this is something that can be tweaked, though it may be they'll be satisfied trying to drawn in younger, less dexterous gamers instead.
ULTIMATE BAND FACT SHEET
Publisher: Disney Interactive Studios
Developer: Fall Line Studio
ESRB Rating: E10+ (anticipated)
Audience: Tweens, teens and music fans
Coming Holiday 2008 for Wii™ home video game console
It's no secret that the music video game genre has exploded in recent years. While the attention of this genre has focused mainly on creating music simulation games for an older demographic, Disney Interactive Studios has been developing a performance-based music video game that will appeal to tweens, teens and families alike. With songs that represent new favourites and old classics, truly interactive venues, and innovative controls using only the Wii Remote™ and Nunchuk™ (no peripherals), Ultimate Band for Wii will round-out any family's entertainment library: right music, right console, right price.
Why Disney Interactive Studios?
Video games rated E through T represent an $AU 11.51 billion market and no one knows the audience for those games better than Disney Interactive Studios, especially when it comes to developing third party titles for Nintendo platforms. From January to November 2007, Disney Interactive Studios was the No. 2 publisher of Nintendo DS™ games in North America according to NPD. Also in 2007, the company sold 3.4 million units of Nintendo DS video games in the United States alone (source: NPD Data). Fall Line Studio, which is developing Ultimate Band, is Disney Interactive Studios' Nintendo-dedicated entity, focusing exclusively on developing games for Wii and Nintendo DS™. Fall Line Studio co-developed last year's Hannah Montana: Music Jam video game that introduced new music mechanics to Nintendo DS titles through its unique "Creative Play Mode" where players could compose original songs using four different instruments. It also helped solidify Disney Interactive Studios' position as a leader in creating music video games for tweens and families.
The Gameplay
· In Ultimate Band, there are four band roles that players can take on - drums, lead guitar, bass guitar and a band front man - all with unique motion mechanics using the Wii Remote and Nunchuk.
· Players can either follow a unique narrative story mode or stand up and jam to any songs and venues they've already unlocked.
· Ultimate Band offers group and family entertainment through multi-player modes that include head-to-head competition or cooperative play.
The Music
· 30+ songs made famous by artists such as The White Stripes, The Who, The Jonas Brothers, Weezer and more.
· All of the songs are re-mastered so they are performed in the gender of the front man and lyrics are age-appropriate.
The Atmosphere
· Players can customise their bands by creating characters that look just like them, or by selecting from different character genres.
· Imaginative and real-life venues, such as a haunted mansion or a garage, come to life during gameplay and react to how well fans perform.
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
Amazon_Chris
Posted 5:35 PM 23/6/08
That looks...Horrible. I'll just stick to Guitar Hero. When does GH Aerosmith come out anyway?
Amazon_Chris
everybest
Posted 5:34 PM 23/6/08
They all look the same after Guitar Hero came out. I honestly can't tell this game apart from Guitar Hero or Rockband.
I guess you could say that about Bemani, but at least those were produced by the same developer.
Where's the innovation?
everybest
bigman88zz
Posted 5:32 PM 23/6/08
i dont think gamers want a game that doesnt require peripherals, but rather a game that is compatible with the peripherals they already have. of course, that will never happen, unless there were some universal peripheral.
bigman88zz
Torgen got his apology faceplate but not his fixed GH3 disc
Posted 5:31 PM 23/6/08
"It's not for you"
Remember these words.
Torgen got his apology faceplate but not his fixed GH3 disc
DGUW
Posted 5:30 PM 23/6/08
@icegoat: Of course it's contrived. They contrived a video game to be an easier version of a band simulator. There's another word you're looking for, but that's not it. Uninteresting, perhaps? Not for you?
I think that if you have a young one that isn't able to navigate Rock Band, then something like this might make sense. But considering it's a Disney game, that might be the target market. That and older folks, who like the kids, can't do the Rock Band thing.
Not for me, but not inherently a bad game either.
DGUW
Tietsu
Posted 5:29 PM 23/6/08
Wow...this hurts worse than that month I stopped caring.
Tietsu
NeoAkira
Posted 5:24 PM 23/6/08
@Bob6k:
I wouldn't say Disney made that. I would say Disney provided the legal consent for Square Enix to use their characters.
NeoAkira
Bob6k
Posted 5:23 PM 23/6/08
@ItsSuperEffective: Kingdom Hearts, and kingdom hearts 2
Bob6k
ItsSuperEffective
Posted 5:17 PM 23/6/08
The thing is, Disney made it.
When was the last time Disney made anything good? Especially in the game world. I think Pirates of the Carribean (the movie) was the last Disney-made thing I liked. I want this game to prove my wrong though. None of my friends can fake guitar like me, so hopefully this will train them.
ItsSuperEffective
Locke562
Posted 5:15 PM 23/6/08
Sure Disney, Jump on the bandwagon. You're only a few years late.
Locke562
A-bleeding-memory
Posted 5:13 PM 23/6/08
I prefer feeling like a douche with small, plastic instruments, thanks.
A-bleeding-memory
Vanguarde
Posted 5:12 PM 23/6/08
Do. Not. Want.
Vanguarde
hk458
Posted 5:08 PM 23/6/08
Ahh...It looks so confusing...keep it away!!!!
hk458
icegoat
Posted 5:05 PM 23/6/08
"contrived" was the word I was looking for.
icegoat
icegoat
Posted 5:04 PM 23/6/08
I think the whole music game idea has gone way out of proportion and is starting to get a little ...old for me.
icegoat
xRiOT
Posted 6:10 PM 23/6/08
"Hopefully this is something that can be tweaked, though it may be they'll be satisfied trying to drawn in younger, less dexterous gamers instead"
If Youtube is anything to go by it is the younger gamers who seem to dominate Guitar Hero... Well they kick my arse at any rate.
xRiOT
PollockRoc
Posted 6:07 PM 23/6/08
Some of you guys may not realize it, but I don't think you're in the target audience for this game. Take into account that not every game detailed on this blog is developed for the people reading about it, but maybe for your children, or a young niece or nephew. This is a game that I'm not interested in, but I will mention it to my sister for her kids, as they both like GH but lack the motor functions yet to play the game properly. This seems like a similar, more age appropriate game that they would be able to enjoy.
PollockRoc
Touy
Posted 6:05 PM 23/6/08
@ItsSuperEffective: Wasn't there a PS1 Disney DDR game that wasn't awful, considering it's demographic?
But yeah, I'd rather stick with Rock Band. That said, I'm pretty sure that I'm also not the target audience here.
Touy
bigman88zz
Posted 5:45 PM 23/6/08
"All of the songs are re-mastered so they are performed in the gender of the front man and lyrics are age-appropriate."
lol, age appropriate. then again, it is disney.
bigman88zz
Onizuka-GTO
Posted 6:42 PM 23/6/08
hey, this looks....interesting.
you know, not everyone has the money to go out and buy every fricking piece of expensive plastic that can only be used for one game.
no way in hell im i gonna pay £100+ for a bloody game. don't care if it has a bollocking drum set. let alone £60+ odd for guitar hero. screw that.
i rather work with what i got, so this sounds PERFECT for me.
but like they ,said i hope they tweak the difficulty setting, with an optional ULTRA HARD or something.
i could really see this appealing to me.
:)
Onizuka-GTO
icegoat
Posted 8:09 PM 23/6/08
@DGUW: Sorry, but no. The word contrived has more than one meaning. Look it up, wizkid.
icegoat
spiderweb1986
Posted 9:12 PM 23/6/08
The only thing that bothers me is that this is a Disney game. The Jonas Brothers are in the track list here - and I think I could live with one song from them, since there were plenty of songs that I didn't like in Guitar Hero 2 - but who knows how many Hannah Montana or High School Musical songs are in there along with the rock?
PollockRoc is right. This isn't for us.
spiderweb1986
nypad5
Posted 8:58 PM 23/6/08
Well im not gonna point out the obvious which has probably been said thousands of times alredy but...I can tell I would have more fun playing this then Battle of the bands HAHAHA.
nypad5
DGUW
Posted 8:53 PM 23/6/08
@icegoat: Contrived: labored, not natural, obviously planned, etc. Very clearly, this game is contrived. It's unoriginal, and an obvious copy of other rhythm games. Your original comment was akin to saying that rain is wet. Indeed it is, but so what?
DGUW
pandafresh
Posted 9:52 PM 23/6/08
no more guitar hero wanna be games plzkthx!
pandafresh
happycodemonkey
Posted 9:33 PM 23/6/08
Such vitriol! This seems like an excellent game for non-video-game-playing little brother or sister, especially since it doesn't require expensive peripherals that mom and dad might be hesitant to drop the cash for. They're not getting Rock Band, but who says they want Rock Band?
happycodemonkey
DavidRS
Posted 10:07 PM 23/6/08
whoop-de-freakin'-do.
call me when disney make a game not obviously aimed at the kids to tweens market.
(and before you flame, i'm a teen myself. i just don't care for shovelware and things like this.)
DavidRS
jp182
Posted 10:05 PM 23/6/08
@PollockRoc: i totally agree. I love the hate that spews forth for something that isn't meant for people. I know a few 5 and 6 year olds in my family that I'd love to have play this instead of getting frustrated with my Rock Band and eventually breaking my controller.
jp182
Onizuka-GTO
Posted 11:41 PM 23/6/08
@lucasreis: have to agree.
parappa the Rapper was a great game.
what other game scores you for Freestyling Rapping eh?
Onizuka-GTO
lucasreis
Posted 11:04 PM 23/6/08
Even the original Guitar Hero is making me sick. The clones are even worse.
I miss Parappa the Rapper.
lucasreis
oosiegewolfoo
Posted 10:48 PM 23/6/08
"30+ songs made famous by artists such as The White Stripes, The Who, The Jonas Brothers, Weezer and more."
The Jonas Brothers......Alright...Im turning my back and walking away..i cant stand them.
oosiegewolfoo
dunnace
Posted 10:45 PM 23/6/08
@DavidRS:
Pure. It's a quad bike game akin to motorstorm.
dunnace
Number41
Posted 1:11 AM 24/6/08
I wonder if the reason for the game being somewhat easy is due to the inaccuracy of the controls when compared to dedicated peripherals. As in, they have to be more forgiving of "mistakes" in order to make it playable. (It's not my intention to bash the Wiimote here, the inaccuracy I'm thinking of is that which stems from having to account for all the little variations in how people wield the thing.)
I'd hate to think they were making it easy because it's a kids' game. Aren't kids supposed to be really good at video games?
Number41
Slartibartfast
Posted 1:52 AM 24/6/08
at least the music sounds like it could be good. I'm suprised the white stripes are going to be (covered) in it. However if they cover it so it sounds like a 13 year old is trying to sing like Jack White, then there will be blood. To bad this is the first music game there in, I would love to play Seven Nation Army and Blue Orchid on Rock Band or Guitar Hero.
Slartibartfast
Talleh
Posted 3:30 AM 24/6/08
Wasn't this game made already? Marching Band or something...and then a dancing game. Between this, Rock revolution, Guitar Hero World Tour, and who knows what else, we've found the new game that everybody wants to play and wants to copy.
Talleh
Game_Munkee
Posted 5:07 AM 24/6/08
"people who want to have the music band game experience without the need for all of those expensive, room-filling peripherals" Wasn't those called Frequency and Amplitude?
Game_Munkee
enigma89
Posted 4:46 AM 24/6/08
I want to laugh so bad at this horrible game they are about to make, but that would be like laughing at a man in a wheelchair that's about to fly off of a cliff into a large drum of thumbtacks and used syringes.
enigma89