61 Frames Per Second

Everyone Should Be Able to Rock

Posted by John Constantine

When Konami announced Rock Revolution back in May, their re-entry into the rock and roll videogame arena, you could practically hear the gaming world’s exasperation, eyes rolling, sighs exhaled in unison. No one wants stagnation, obviously. Guitar Hero’s fresh approach to music games revolutionized the industry three years ago, a feat Konami’s GuitarFreaks hadn’t managed in the better part of a decade. But no one wants clutter. Yet another band game hitting the public means yet another set of proprietary instrument controllers. Problematic, considering the precedent set by Activision last fall. They made it abundantly clear that they’re not interested in having their instruments completely compatible with another publisher’s software, a point they’ve reiterated by developing brand new drum, guitar, and microphone peripherals (with different functions than those made by MTV Games for Rock Band) for the upcoming Guitar Hero: World Tour. It seems that Konami’s chosen a more reasonable approach. Konami associate producer Keith Matejka told MTV News’ Patrick Klepek, "Compatibility is a big issue for music games. Peripherals are expensive for the user and they are expensive to produce. The existing peripherals all deliver only a slightly different gameplay experience. Different teams have varying perspectives on what should be compatible with each game. I think all guitar- and drum-based games need to be compatible with each other to some level."

He’s absolutely right, and not just from a consumer friendliness perspective. While they’ve sold millions of $90 guitar-and-game sets over the past few years, it’s impossible for Activision to continue monopolizing the market as competition continues to grow. Every publisher making an instrument based game is going to have to contend with the market saturation born out of their own success; people simply won’t buy new instruments every year. For the music game genre to be successful going forward, Activision, MTV Games, Konami, and whoever else joins the fray will need to swallow the same bitter pill hardware manufacturers have choked on for years. The money’s in better software, not gear.

Related links:

Whatcha Playing: A Little Singin', A Little Dancin'
The Magical Mystery Tour is Coming to Take You Away

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+ DEL.ICIO.US

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Posted Jun 24 2008, 01:00 PM

Filed under: john constantine, konami, guitar hero, rock band, mtv games, activision, rock revolution

Comments

Roto13 said:

I'm still waiting for some third party to release a set of instruments that's compatible with both Rock Band and Guitar Hero. I can't justify spending that much money on a set of controllers I can only use with one or two games.

June 24, 2008 6:19 PM

Austin said:

why don't the console developers just create universal music controllers like they do with things like steering wheels and gun peripherals? i realize there are compatibility issues between games right now but why does the responsibility of making the universal controllers fall to the game developers?

June 25, 2008 2:01 PM

John Constantine said:

It's a good question, Austin. I think the answer if console makers had their own music software to push, you'd definitely see first party instruments from them. Nintendo's congas for their Donkey Konga/Jungle Beat series are a perfect example. As it is, it's up to the third party publishers making the games to get the hardware in people's hands.

Things are definitely going to change going forward. In 2004, instrument controllers weren't exactly common. Guitar Hero changed the face of the business so who knows? Maybe the Nintendo Vag, Xbox 720, and PS4 will all come with instruments.

June 25, 2008 10:02 PM

about the blogger

John Constantine, our superhero, was raised by birds and then attended Penn State University. He is currently working on a novel about a fictional city that exists only in his mind. John has an astonishingly extensive knowledge of Scientology. Ultimately he would like to learn how to effectively use his brain. He continues to keep Wu-Tang's secret to himself.

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