GamesRelay

Name: LEGO Rock Band

Lego Rock Band is the latest version from a long series of music games by developers Harmonix Music Systems; this time they've created a family friendly version of there classic game and what better choice than to team with Traveller's Tales and come up with a version to incorporate the popular toy that everyone loves and owns at least three million pieces of; LEGO.

On the off chance you've never come across the Rock Band games before then you'll need to know that they are a music based game (hence the name), players must use a guitar controller, a microphone, or a set of drums to play music; this is achieved by coloured bars appearing on screen, as the bars scroll downwards and a certain point is reached they must be played by pressing (or hitting) the corresponding colour on the controller, if the timing is just right then the note is played, if not then a mis-keyed note is heard. Generally the music is popular music from one genre or another, and games like Rock Band allow you to play as you would in a band with a player on lead guitar, bass guitar, drums, and a singer, although you don't have to play as a band you can simply play on your own or with up to three other people. It's designed primarily as a party game and the series has proven very popular with a wide range of folk from hardcore gamers right through to the casual players.

Normally in a Rock Band game you would have the option to Tour, but replacing this is the Story Mode, this takes your LEGO Rock Band from relative unknowns and gives them a purpose in life, as you start off with just your four piece band you'll play various gigs throughout Legoland. You're rewarded for good gigs with LEGO Studs (taking the place of money) and fans, the more studs and fans you collect the more you get noticed and eventually you'll be prompted to hire a Manager who'll book you in bigger gigs and make sure you get paid more. The Manager is just the first member of staff you'll employ, the more famous you get the more you'll need people to help you out in the background to make sure you're getting what you're owed and to make sure you get out there and reach your fans; with each hiring of a new member of your entourage the ability to earn money and fans increases. To get to your new fans and gig bookings you'll need to purchase vehicles with your studs, you start off with the classic Camper Van but before you know it you'll be purchasing Tour Buses, Speed Boats, Private Jets, and even Transporters to get you to your gigs. You can also use your studs to buy upgrades to your musical instruments, new clothes for your band, entourage and roadies and even some new goodies for your Rock Den where you band hangs out in-between gigs. Occasionally you'll come across a Rock Challenge to complete; these involve invoking the power of rock to pull off an incredible feat such as demolishing a building, causing the rain to fall on a baron farm or to fight off a giant dinosaur. These mark the end of a particular section of venues and upon completing them you'll be awarded with more studs and fans before being told of a new vehicle you've gained access to.

LEGO Rock Band is aimed more at the younger generation, the use of LEGO isn't the only way that the developers have enticed them to join in the fun, the game now includes a very easy mode which basically means that you can hit any button and your note will play. There is also a short version of the songs that basically shortens the song, this is to help to those with short attention spans who might get bored during some of the longer numbers. It's also impossible to fail a track, on other versions of the game you would fail if the crowd became dissatisfied with your woeful attempts at keeping in time with the music, but now if you're failing miserably at a song you'll just lose studs instead. Losing a heap of studs is likely to ruin your chances of purchasing the next upgrade needed so there is some skill needed to progress through the game, you just never have to suffer the humiliation of defeat. There's also the chance to recover your studs as after so much has been lost you'll enter a recovery phase and have the chance to earn all your lost studs back. That's not the only change that has been made to the game for the little ones, all of the music in the game is suitable for their ears and any downloaded content you have for the other Rock Band games will work perfectly well with the game provided its suitable for them, so if you've some songs with swearing in then they won't be accessible in LEGO Rock Band. Don't worry if you're now thinking this is “Rock Band Light”, it's not; the game has all the modes normally associated with Rock Band, and, yes, the Expert difficulty level is just as hard as it always is to the point where you might as well put the controller down and learn how to play the instrument in real life. The different difficulty settings can be mixed and matched so Junior can play at a very easy level while the adults can rock the joint using expert if they so desire.

The game is as well presented as any Rock Band game and like all LEGO games, LEGO has been used to recreate some of the key elements of the Rock Band world, right from the original Rock Band intro which has been remade using the LEGO elements, down to the notes which are represented with 2x1 pieces of LEGO instead of the usual bars. Graphically the game is well up to standard; The different venues you play at are all solidly constructed and the cut scenes that intersperse each Rock Battle are all done with typical LEGO humour that you'll know and love, or at least the young ones might be familiar with it if you're not.

Musically however, and what the game is all about is a bit of a mish-mash, there are 45 tracks included with the game ranging from the 1960's through to current times. The musical offerings vary from Jimi Hendrix to P!nk and to be honest it's a little mystifying as to why Harmonix have chosen some of the songs that they have for this title given it's target audience. It's not hard to imagine that most children would be more interested in the P!nk side of things rather than playing through old classics from Hendrix, it's not hard to imagine them scratching their heads either as some of the other featured bands and artists pop up such as Europe, Elton John, The Police, and Carl Douglas. It's understandable with it being a family game that they've tried to include a wide range of songs designed to appeal to everyone including any parents that might be taking part in the game but even so there are some odd choices; still it would be hard to imagine not being able to find a track that everyone would like to play at least. With only 45 tracks available which seems small compared to the full fat version of Rock Band, the first iteration of the game held 58 tracks on its disc with Rock Band 2 coming bundled with 84, so you can't help but feel a little out of pocket.

LEGO's version of Rock Band is a great addition to the Rock Band family and a great way to get your kids involved with the game. If you've been a little anxious about them playing the full version which isn't the most child friendly game, or if they've been finding it a little too difficult then this is a great choice. As a stand alone title it might be a little hard for you to swallow, especially given that its been given a full retail price as opposed to being treated like an add-on which it really should have been. The lack of songs for its primary target audience is shameful enough but that might have been avoided if Harmonix had seen fit to include more of them. If this had been a reduced price title akin to the other expansion packs the game has received then it would have been a no-brainer to recommend this title, as it stands however, the main point of the game is its downfall, and although the game is good and well presented you might be better off waiting for it to drop in price or for a cheap second hand copy if you've already got any of the other Rock Band titles.