The music video game genre has been in a profound slump this year, with sales down 46% so far, according to the NPD Group. Part of that is due to the recession, of course, but part of it may be waning consumer interest in Guitar Hero and Rock Band. The games’ publishers, Activision Blizzard and MTV Networks (owned by Viacom) have seen the impact on their bottom lines and are taking big steps to shake up their businesses as a result.
As a story in the Times explains, the biggest change comes in the form of The Beatles: Rock Band, a risky bet worth tens of millions of dollars in royalties alone.
But as MTV launches the game with its distribution partner, it’s also implementing a new strategy: flee the hardware business. Sure, there’s a limited-edition, $250 hardware package, but quantities are limited. And there’s a $160 “value bundle” featuring original Rock Band hardware that MTV is eager to get rid of.
If you’re new to music video games and want controllers for The Beatles: Rock Band, MTV has a preferred solution: buy Guitar Hero.
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Take a look in every corner of your gaming room, and I am sure you will find a pile of plastic gaming peripherals in one of them. Everyone has it, whether it’s secretly tucked at the bottom of a coat closet, or in a far away crevice of your living room (guilty here). The gaming industry has been transforming into a world where you need a specific peripheral for everything you play.
Over the course of gaming consoles history, the evolution of the “gold standard for controllers” has been a long fought battle. The original Nintendo set the bar with its simple directional pad plus A and B buttons, that would only be outdone by itself two generations later with the analog stick featured on the N64. After that, PlayStation and Xbox fanboys clashed as to which controller was king. However, throughout the course of gaming history, we as gamers only needed to choose between which system had the best controller and that was that. From there, we were free to play any game for that system, and we were content.
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Chalk this one up into the category of “Peripherals you probably won’t ever use”. Similar to the Xbox 360 Chatpad, this keypad attaches to your PS3 controller (except at the top) and gives you text input. It works via Bluetooth, so you could essentially use this with any Bluetooth device that accepts keyboards.
The cool thing about this Keypad is that is has a mode that turns the main key area into a touch pad that acts like a laptop mouse pad. You can use it to navigate the internet easier and word is this could be integrated in some games in the future.
No pricing has been officially announced, but this Wireless Keypad will launch in November.
According to an item description released by Best Buy on the upcoming Guitar Hero: Aerosmith game, that no one really wants to buy, will have other instruments. The description is as follows:
Take on the roles of Aerosmith members Joe Perry, Brad Whitford and Tom Hamilton.
I know damn well they all didn’t sing. Best Buy may have jumped the gun, but is anyone going to buy a drum kit that is only for GH and mind you probably at least for some time only to play Aerosmith songs? I think the boat was missed here.
While over at Wal-Mart earlier today, I spotted a nice stack of Rock Band drum kits for sale. They had both Xbox 360 and PS3 versions for $79.92. Yeah, gotta love being 7 cents below MSRP.
I guess is people bought the standalone game, the drum kit is good. I think putting out extra guitars would be have been a better first step, seeing that’s what people need the most to complete their four person band.
Anyone who is unhappy with the musical instruments that comes with the beloved Rock Band game can rejoice. Sometime in the first half of this year, Mad Catz will release every peripheral for every console that Rock Band can be played on. This includes wired and wireless guitars, professional quality drum set, and top notch microphone. Here is a direct quote from Darren Richardson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz, courtesy of Gameargus.
This agreement with MTV Games represents a natural opportunity for Mad Catz to combine our core competencies of producing and distributing high-quality accessories with the entertaining experience of Rock Band’s interactive controllers,”
You have to love third parties throwing their hat in the mix. It always benefits the gamer because we are given a choice as opposed to settling for what is already there.
Microsoft announced that the Xbox 360’s HD-DVD will be updated sometime in 2008. The news was revealed at Microsoft’s 25th hardware anniversary party in London.
No word on exactly what we can expect from this update, but I’m assuming it will just be a faster drive. If it’s anything else, I think Microsoft will have a lot of angry customers on their hands. Not only have they redesigned the Xbox 360 during it’s life cycle to add new hardware features (HDMI ports), but now peripherals might be outdated within 2 years on the same console life cycle?
Here’s to hoping that’s not the case, but this editor is skeptical.
There is now an attachable mini cam available for retail that can record up to 2 and a half hours of video to your PSP released in a statement by Sony today. The camera will retail for $49.99 and be available on May 16th of this year. There will be a built in microphone and the camera lens can swivel 180 degrees as well as take still photos. There will also be the ability to edit and share via wireless. Be sure to watch the newest Girls Gone Wild tapes to see if anyone is using it.
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