Ultimate Band

Ultimate Band
Developer(s)Fall Line Studios
Publisher(s)Disney Interactive Studios
Platform(s)Nintendo DS, Wii
Release
  • NA: November 25, 2008
  • EU: April 9, 2009
  • AU: April 14, 2009
Genre(s)Music video game
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Ultimate Band is a music video game for the Nintendo DS & Wii. It is developed by Fall Line Studios, and published by Disney Interactive Studios.

Gameplay

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Ultimate Band allows players to play guitar, drums, bass or be the front man or woman in a band (though vocals are not supported).[1] The Wii version follows the fortunes of an upstart rock band, with the player building the career of their customizable character, unlocking bonus songs, venues and accessories.[2]

Ultimate Band forgoes the use of specialized peripherals such as guitar and drum controllers, relying mainly on the Wii Remote and Nunchuk for the Wii version, and the touch screen and stylus for the DS version. For example, to play notes on guitar in the Wii version the player must press a button combination on the Nunchuk while strumming the Wii Remote up and down.[1] The DS version, based on Hannah Montana: Music Jam's code base,[3] will also allow players to create and record their own songs,[2] and have greater song customization options.[1]

Ultimate Band features support for Disney Interactive's DGamer community network.[4] The game will also feature connectivity between the Wii and DS versions, with DS players being able to control stage lighting and effects using the touch screen while a band performs on the Wii.[3]

Soundtrack

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The Wii version of game features over 30 songs which comprise "a broad selection of current hits and all-time rock favorites" by "some of the biggest names in rock, alternative, popular, emo, and indie rock music".[2] The DS version only contains 15 songs, 11 from the Wii soundtrack and 4[5] exclusive to the DS.[3]

All songs are cover versions in order to better tweak the music to fit with the game, to self-censor explicit lyrics, and to allow both male and female vocalists.[6]

Song title Artist Wii DS
"All Day and All of the Night" The Kinks Green tickY Green tickY
"All Right Now" Free Green tickY -
"All Star" Smash Mouth -[5] Green tickY
"Always Where I Need to Be" The Kooks Green tickY -
"Anna Molly" Incubus Green tickY -
"Beverly Hills" Weezer Green tickY -
"Break on Through (To the Other Side)" The Doors Green tickY -
"Call Me" Blondie -[5] Green tickY
"Club Foot" Kasabian Green tickY -
"Complicated" Avril Lavigne Green tickY -
"Crushcrushcrush" Paramore Green tickY -
"Dashboard" Modest Mouse Green tickY -
"Debaser" Pixies Green tickY -
"Fell in Love With a Girl" White StripesThe White Stripes Green tickY -
"First Date" Blink-182 Green tickY Green tickY
"Get the Party Started" Pink Green tickY -
"Girl's Not Grey" AFI Green tickY -
"Hanging on the Telephone" Blondie Green tickY -
"Helena" My Chemical Romance Green tickY -
"Hold On" Jonas Brothers Green tickY Green tickY
"I Want You To Want Me" Cheap Trick Green tickY -
"In Too Deep" Sum 41 Green tickY -
"Jenny Was a Friend of Mine" The Killers -[5] Green tickY
"Just" Radiohead Green tickY -
"Just What I Needed" The Cars Green tickY Green tickY
"Move Along" The All-American Rejects Green tickY Green tickY
"My Generation" Green Day Green tickY Green tickY
"Natural Disaster Plain White T's Green tickY -[7]
"Nine in the Afternoon" Panic! at the Disco -[5] Green tickY
"Our Time Now" Plain White T's Green tickY Green tickY[7]
"Rock Lobster" The B-52's Green tickY Green tickY
"Somebody Told Me" The Killers Green tickY -
"Song 2" Blur Green tickY -
"Steady, As She Goes" The Raconteurs Green tickY Green tickY
"Stumble and Fall" Razorlight Green tickY -
"The Take Over, the Breaks Over" Fall Out Boy Green tickY Green tickY
"Unconditional" The Bravery Green tickY -
"When Did Your Heart Go Missing?" Rooney Green tickY -
"Whip It" Devo Green tickY Green tickY
"Won't Go Home Without You" Maroon 5 Green tickY -

Reception

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1UP.com gave the game a D grade, believing the Remote-based controls felt "disconnected" and that the soundtrack was "anemic", with "generic, sometimes embarrassing vocalists".[14] GameSpot was more positive, scoring it a 6.0/10 and praising the game's family-friendly presentation and use of both male and female vocals being recorded for each song, yet were less impressed by its "finicky" controls and unreliable gesture recognition.[12]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Jeff Cork (February 27, 2008). "Ultimate Band First Look, Exclusive Info". Game Informer. Archived from the original on March 1, 2008. Retrieved March 1, 2008.
  2. ^ a b c "Ultimate Band - official press release". February 28, 2008. Archived from the original on January 3, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c Craig Harris (September 23, 2008). "Ultimate Band Hands-on". IGN. News Corporation. Archived from the original on January 3, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  4. ^ Mike Fahey (February 28, 2008). "Disney Forms Ultimate Band". Kotaku Australia. Archived from the original on May 16, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  5. ^ a b c d e Staff, I. G. N. (November 10, 2008). "Laying Down Tracks on Ultimate Band for the Nintendo DS". IGN. Retrieved 2024-04-18.
  6. ^ Brian Crecente (June 23, 2008). "Hands On With Ultimate Band: Disney's Peripheral-Free Band Game". Kotaku. Univision Communications. Archived from the original on October 8, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  7. ^ a b Steve Traiman (November 28, 2008). "Plain White T's Morph Into 'Ultimate Band'". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 8, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
  8. ^ "Ultimate Band". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on January 3, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  9. ^ "Ultimate Band Wii". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on January 13, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  10. ^ "Ultimate Band DS". Metacritic. Archived from the original on January 15, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  11. ^ Eric Bratcher (December 10, 2008). "Ultimate Band review". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on January 3, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  12. ^ a b Austin Light (December 3, 2008). "Ultimate Band Review". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on January 3, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  13. ^ Jack DeVries (January 7, 2009). "Ultimate Band Review". IGN. News Corporation. Archived from the original on October 3, 2015. Retrieved January 6, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  14. ^ "1UP.com Review". Retrieved December 3, 2008.
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