The Beatles: Rock Band
By Marc Saltzman,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Amazing band simulator features the biggest group. Ever.
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The Beatles: Rock Band
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The Beatles Rock Band
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What’s It About?
"Do you want to know a secret?" Fans of the Fab Four can now try their hand (or voice) as one of the legendary rockers in THE BEATLES: ROCK BAND, an extraordinarily fun music game. This ambitious interactive band simulator takes you through a magical mystery tour of 45 remastered tracks that span The Beatles' legendary career -- from their early performances at the Cavern Club in Liverpool ("Saw Her Standing There," "Twist and Shout") all the way through to their final show on the rooftop of Apple Corps headquarters in London ("Don't Let Me Down," "Get Back"). If you've ever played a song in Rock Band or Guitar Hero, you'll be familiar with how to advance through this new game. Depending on which instrument you're using -- the game ships with a guitar-shaped controller, as a complete "band in a box" or by itself if you already own an instrument peripheral -- you must strum, drum, or sing along with familiar songs and follow the onscreen prompts to hit the correct note or drum at the right time (for singers, it's karaoke-style lyrics that float across the top of the screen).
Is It Any Good?
This game is extraordinarily fun. Fans of the band to get the most out of it. Not only does this game include dozens of familiar songs, amazing locations, behind--the-scenes photos and videos of the band to unlock, but there are many multiplayer options, downloadable singles and complete albums, and, for the first time in the series, singers can harmonize and be rewarded for it (depending on the song, two or three singers, all on one microphone or separately, can try to hit harmonies to earn "double fab" or "triple fab" bonus points). Aside from a couple of song omissions, there's not much to complain about with The Beatles: Rock Band -- and you'll no doubt find yourself wanting to play this game "eight days a week."
This is a fabulous game for kids and parents to play together. Parents grew up with the music, and kids grew up playing Rock Band.
Online interaction: Players can jam together in different cities, regardless of which instrument they're playing.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about whether this game is ideal for young gamers or their parents? Who likes it more -- parents who grew up with the music, or kids who grew up with Rock Band?
Did this game give you a good sense of what made The Beatles such a popular group? Can you think of other situations where popular media has crossed over into other mediums?
Game Details
- Platforms: Nintendo Wii , PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360
- Subjects: Arts : music, rhythm, singing
- Skills: Collaboration : cooperation, meeting challenges together, teamwork
- Pricing structure: Paid
- Available online?: Available online
- Publisher: MTV Games
- Release date: September 9, 2009
- Genre: Music & Dance
- ESRB rating: T for Mild Lyrics, Tobacco Reference
- Last updated: August 31, 2016
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