Having to wait the best part of a year for Rock Band to receive a European release was a shocking state of affairs and for a while it almost seemed as if we wouldn’t get to see Rock Revolution at all on anything other than import. However, that was all cleared up a few months ago and we only have to wait a few months later than our American counterparts. Still, having a bunch of new screens to look upon with envious eyes whilst they’re rocking out in the States is scant consolation.
With Guitar Hero: World Tour now doing the rounds, you could be forgiven for not being too fussed at the wait. From what we’ve seen of Rock Revolution, World Tour looks superior in many ways and with the sheer depth of content Rock Band and its illustrious sequel have to offer, you could also be forgiven for wondering what the heck the guys behind Rock Revolution are doing even trying to crash the party in the first place. There’s not even a spot for a vocalist, so if you’ve got a regular band you’re going to have to take turns sitting it out whilst just a drummer and two guitarists tear things up.
However, to say that Konami deserve this chance is an understatement. In various guises, Konami has been leading the rhythm-based genre for years with the likes of Guitar Freaks and DrumMania proving huge hits out in Japan long before the Western market caught on. Whilst Guitar Hero and Rock Band will most likely stand toe-to-toe as the two heavyweight contenders, we see no reason why Konami can’t at least get a strong foothold with Rock Revolution from which to a launch a competitive franchise. Konami does at least seem to have accepted the fact that most people interested in Rock Revolution will almost certainly have at least one guitar controller already.
However, the one big push the game has is with its new drum peripheral. Boasted of as being created by real musicians and the most realistic piece of kit on the market, it sets up Rock Revolution as a game that’s marketed as much for drummers as it is for wannabe guitar legends with a mate. Which is what makes its design, with six differently-sized pads in a slightly odd-looking arrangement – and some slightly negative comments emerging from early play tests by our American counterparts – a little worrying. Still, we all know games writers love to bitch about anything less than perfection and we haven’t picked up sticks yet, so we’ll still look forward to our first hands-on with hopeless enthusiasm.
Rock Revolution currently has just over 40 tracks listed with a wealth of huge bands and an impressive mix of great songs – and great songs for playing along to. However, perhaps disappointingly, they’re all covers rather than original recordings – without vocals it is a much cheaper option, and steering clear of licensing master recordings does keep the door open for the wealth of promised downloadable content to follow.
You will be able to record your own tracks, but again, having seen the depth of the Music Studio on World Tour, we reckon this feature is more of a token gesture than any stiff opposition. We’re still up for Rock Revolution in a big way; it’s hard to see how it can be a bad game. It’s just a case of how well it can rock off against its two well established rivals.
