Well,
The Mrs and I put our pre-order in for the Wii version. Are any of you big fans of The Beatles, too? Are any other Seikens-ites getting this game?
Peace,
manaman
The Beatles: Rock Band
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Dr. Sheexy
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I really want to play some rockband, haven't done it in a while. I don't have a system or the stuff for it, but I play with a friend of mine, not sure if he'd get this version though, no idea if he's a fan.
To be honest I can only name a few Beatles songs off the top of my head, I'm really stupid when it comes to music. XD
I gotta say though, a game of nothing but one band's music would be pretty cool by me, no running into absolutely terrible songs that they decided to throw in for some reason.
Having to sing about the Holocaust after we took up the games "random track" challenge was a mood killer when my friends and I were jamming.
To be honest I can only name a few Beatles songs off the top of my head, I'm really stupid when it comes to music. XD
I gotta say though, a game of nothing but one band's music would be pretty cool by me, no running into absolutely terrible songs that they decided to throw in for some reason.
Having to sing about the Holocaust after we took up the games "random track" challenge was a mood killer when my friends and I were jamming.
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Dr. Sheexy
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For me I've got no musical ability whatsoever, so it's kind of the only way I can do anything "musical", but I gotta agree it seems like it'd be more worth it to pick up an instrument and just force myself to learn or something.Quemaqua wrote:Honestly... as a musician, I like neither the Beatles nor music games. I really don't understand what people like about these so much. I have tried to get it and failed utterly.
But to me the fun comes with playing it with my friends, I'd never play it by myself.
It's really fun when you are all struggling to keep the song going and you have to save each other with star power or whatever, and it's got the fun of Karaoke where you can just sing/scream your head off for a good laugh.
I'm always my group's singer.
It's more of stupid fun to me than anything else. XD
Not necessarily this version, but I had though about trying one of these Guitar Hero or Rock Band games for a while, but I eventually took the time at my local Walmart to play a few songs with my friend to find out how much we utterly suck at it. Suffice it to say, I've lost my interest. Making a fool of yourself in a humorous tone is one thing, completely sucking and making an ass of yourself is another... I fall in the latter. <.<
Well,
As for The Beatles, you all are entitled to your opinion--I believe they are truly consummate musicians of their day and I believe all their music has lasted and influenced more modern musicians, dare I say, more so than any other group out there. So, I guess you can tell I love The Beatles. I can get loads of their songs stuck in my head and start singing them/playing them at random times.
Which leads into being a "musician." I enjoy these games because they really are more about doing something different while listening to the songs. If you play guitar you know that playing a Guitar Hero or Rock Band game doesn't simulate the experience but provides a feel of engagement with the music unique from others experiences (but sort of like DDR for non dancers). Then, I love the feel of trying to "make music" in unity with friends who don't play any instrument. Playing in a band is so satisfying because everyone has to come together and be in sync. These music games are the closest to actually making music that many people get to and I think the experience is similar and worthwhile to share.
But, I've always been dissappointed with the track selection in other games. They usually have a few fun ones and a bunch of ones I wouldn't listen to on my own. That's why I'm really excited for this game in particular.
Anyway, I'm excited,
manaman
As for The Beatles, you all are entitled to your opinion--I believe they are truly consummate musicians of their day and I believe all their music has lasted and influenced more modern musicians, dare I say, more so than any other group out there. So, I guess you can tell I love The Beatles. I can get loads of their songs stuck in my head and start singing them/playing them at random times.
Which leads into being a "musician." I enjoy these games because they really are more about doing something different while listening to the songs. If you play guitar you know that playing a Guitar Hero or Rock Band game doesn't simulate the experience but provides a feel of engagement with the music unique from others experiences (but sort of like DDR for non dancers). Then, I love the feel of trying to "make music" in unity with friends who don't play any instrument. Playing in a band is so satisfying because everyone has to come together and be in sync. These music games are the closest to actually making music that many people get to and I think the experience is similar and worthwhile to share.
But, I've always been dissappointed with the track selection in other games. They usually have a few fun ones and a bunch of ones I wouldn't listen to on my own. That's why I'm really excited for this game in particular.
Anyway, I'm excited,
manaman
Don't get me wrong, I think the Beatles were one of the most influential bands of all time. I just don't enjoy their music much and can't imagine it being fun to "fake play" with a plastic toy. At least when you play Hangar 18 it's nice and fast.
Also, as manaman said, these games really don't have anything at all musical about them. You're just tapping buttons that correspond to colored dots on a grid that happens to move with the beat of music. If you try to learn an instrument you'll quickly discover just how big a fantasy these games are. But I guess that's partly why I think it's utterly stupid how much time people devote to them. I know some people who would now be decent at an instrument if they simply stopped playing the stupid game and picked up the real thing. The time investment they've put in to try and get "expert" level on all the songs or whatever is insane, and roughly analogous to what you'd need to do every day to get a good, practical ways in with learning an instrument. That just strikes me as a colossal waste of time. Sure, most entertainment sort of is, but most entertainment isn't attempting to simulate something you could do in real life by simply practicing in almost the same way you do when you're enjoying said entertainment.
I guess what it comes down to is the initial frustration. Most people pick up an instrument, hate early practice because they sound terrible, then give up before they have the chance to get good. This is far less of a problem with guitar than it is with something like piano, flute, violin, etc., but the issue is still there. So with these games, you can barely know what you're doing and still not feel like you sound awful, thus that initial injection of good vibes keeps you at it. If they can find a way to lessen the pain of the initial hurdles to real instruments, I think these games would attract far fewer customers.
Sorry if this sounds preachy or whatever. I know people like these games, I just for the life of me don't get why. Or maybe that's wrong. I get why, I just don't understand why *so much*. I had fun playing Guitar Hero the first couple of times, but then I got bored with it and had no interest in playing it again. But people are on the 2nd sequel with band spinoffs and an active competitor that's spitting out a third entry. That boggles my mind in every conceivable regard.
Also, as manaman said, these games really don't have anything at all musical about them. You're just tapping buttons that correspond to colored dots on a grid that happens to move with the beat of music. If you try to learn an instrument you'll quickly discover just how big a fantasy these games are. But I guess that's partly why I think it's utterly stupid how much time people devote to them. I know some people who would now be decent at an instrument if they simply stopped playing the stupid game and picked up the real thing. The time investment they've put in to try and get "expert" level on all the songs or whatever is insane, and roughly analogous to what you'd need to do every day to get a good, practical ways in with learning an instrument. That just strikes me as a colossal waste of time. Sure, most entertainment sort of is, but most entertainment isn't attempting to simulate something you could do in real life by simply practicing in almost the same way you do when you're enjoying said entertainment.
I guess what it comes down to is the initial frustration. Most people pick up an instrument, hate early practice because they sound terrible, then give up before they have the chance to get good. This is far less of a problem with guitar than it is with something like piano, flute, violin, etc., but the issue is still there. So with these games, you can barely know what you're doing and still not feel like you sound awful, thus that initial injection of good vibes keeps you at it. If they can find a way to lessen the pain of the initial hurdles to real instruments, I think these games would attract far fewer customers.
Sorry if this sounds preachy or whatever. I know people like these games, I just for the life of me don't get why. Or maybe that's wrong. I get why, I just don't understand why *so much*. I had fun playing Guitar Hero the first couple of times, but then I got bored with it and had no interest in playing it again. But people are on the 2nd sequel with band spinoffs and an active competitor that's spitting out a third entry. That boggles my mind in every conceivable regard.
Last edited by Quemaqua on Sat Aug 22, 2009 9:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Dr. Sheexy
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Oh yeah, I think that's completely ridiculous. Reminds me of this news post I read about some kid who quit highschool in order to play Rock Band professionally. Most insane thing I ever read.Quemaqua wrote:But I guess that's partly why I think it's utterly stupid how much time people devote to them. I know some people who would now be decent at an instrument if they simply stopped playing the stupid game and picked up the real thing.
I only play it like, once every few months and I can't go further than medium so at least I'm not wasting too much time with it. XD
Yeah, I dunno where the heck they find some of the songs they do. I guess they're trying to appeal to some niche market of people that I had no idea existed. XDmanaman wrote:But, I've always been dissappointed with the track selection in other games. They usually have a few fun ones and a bunch of ones I wouldn't listen to on my own.
Hey,
I guess I should say this will be my first purchase of this genre of gaming and the people I plan on playing the game with are fellow musicians (my wife included) and we all just enjoy the party-game aspect of it when we aren't breaking out our real instruments. My comment you quoted me on Quemaqua was really intended to say that it's a different experience but it's a fun experience. Like most of these things, moderation should be exercised. People should choose where to invest time. I have never tried to "beat" songs I've played before in a music game like this. I just play what I can, enjoy it and move on. Since I could listen to the songs of The Beatles and dance, drum on my legs or sing along--heck, even play along--I figure this is one more thing to add. A unique experience that is fun and interactive. And myself and those I'll be playing this game with are fans of The Beatles.
So, I guess that's where I'm coming from,
manaman
I guess I should say this will be my first purchase of this genre of gaming and the people I plan on playing the game with are fellow musicians (my wife included) and we all just enjoy the party-game aspect of it when we aren't breaking out our real instruments. My comment you quoted me on Quemaqua was really intended to say that it's a different experience but it's a fun experience. Like most of these things, moderation should be exercised. People should choose where to invest time. I have never tried to "beat" songs I've played before in a music game like this. I just play what I can, enjoy it and move on. Since I could listen to the songs of The Beatles and dance, drum on my legs or sing along--heck, even play along--I figure this is one more thing to add. A unique experience that is fun and interactive. And myself and those I'll be playing this game with are fans of The Beatles.
So, I guess that's where I'm coming from,
manaman