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Band Hero Review for Nintendo DS

Band Hero Review for Nintendo DS

Band Zero

Band Hero for DS is ostensibly yet another title in the Guitar Hero On Tour line. However, rather than solely relying on the Guitar Grip to keep you rocking on the go, Vicarious Visions and Activision have included mechanics for playing drums and singing – Band Hero for DS brings with it a new drums sleeve and utilizes the DS’s microphone.

Band Hero screenshot

While I really enjoyed the expanded ways to play, I wasn’t sold on the new instruments’ implementation. Add to that a set list that made me want to reach in my head and tear out my inner ear and an important game mode that is only unlocked by owning the Wii version, and it’s not nearly as compelling a package as it could have been. Still, I applaud the innovation and look forward to seeing how this off-shoot of On Tour will develop over the years.

Of course, just because I thought the music selection stinks doesn’t mean you will. There are 30 songs after all from artists such as Black Eyed Peas, Kings of Leon, Spin Doctors, Vampire Weekend, Pink, and many more. Also, the sound quality is still surprisingly good on the DS. The crew at Vicarious Visions have mastered music compression to give players a nice experience even through the DS’s built-in speakers, though slapping on a set of headphones is still the optimal way to experience this game. In terms of graphics, they are a bit different than what have come before, as they more closely mirror the pop-feel the game is trying to capture. The game does not suffer visually despite its cutesier look. In fact, I think the visuals are just a bit more polished than before. That being said, don’t expect true pixel art like something you’d find in a topnotch Japanese or Strategy RPG on DS. Also, the menu layout this time around is a nightmare. Well, that’s a bit strong, but options are not well arranged at all – getting around this title actually takes some getting used to.

Presentation aside, gameplay is high quality and clunky all at the same time. Naturally, using the Guitar Grip comes off without a hitch. All of the quality, portable Guitar Hero jamming that has been a hallmark of On Tour is still present in Band Hero. What’s important to discuss here are the new additions: drumming and singing. Unfortunately, both new play modes aren’t particularly well implemented. The drums utilize a silicone sleeve that snugly fits over the bottom of the DS Lite. At first the drums skin seems like a great, easy-to-use peripheral. However, once you spend a little time with it, its warts begin to show. For starters, who wants to carry yet another peripheral on the go?

Band Hero screenshot

Second, the drum pads are stacked on top of each other – this causes major brain-farts at higher difficulty levels because they don’t match up to what is scrolling down the note tracks. Finally, the drums sleeve only fits the DS Lite. If you were hoping to pick this game up for the DS, or even the DSi (foregoing the guitar portions), you’re out of luck. All of these complaints could have been ameliorated by simply doing away with the drums skin altogether and mapping button presses to the left, down, B, and A buttons. Alas, there is no option to toggle this feature, so drums are artificially handicapped by Activision’s love for peripherals.

Vocals fair no better. In fact, they’re practically broken. While I loved the idea of turning my DS Lite into a mini-karaoke machine, the microphone detection is terrible. In order to get the game to accurately register your singing, you’ll have to belt out the tunes obnoxiously loud. Now I don’t know about you, but if I were a kid on a family summer road trip and were singing as loudly as is necessary for vocals to register, my dad would’ve snatched me out the backseat bald-headed. Even now, you won’t catch me making a scene in the airport or subway. Singing in Band Hero is meant solely for the privacy of your own room. Of course, you can sing at a much more reasonable level if you bring the DS Lite up to your mouth, but then you’ll be starring at the screen cross-eyed, tearing up, and going blind because it’s much too close for comfort.

Band Hero screenshot

Another grave problem for Band Hero on DS is there is essentially only one mode of play. After creating and customizing your four band members, you’ll have the option to Play or take on Fan Requests. You remember Fan Requests from the latest editions of On Tour, don’t you? If not, these are side challenges that test your skill by having you best specific criteria. Disappointingly, most players will never get to try their hand or voice at the Fan Requests because they are only unlocked by connecting to Band Hero for Wii – that’s inexcusable.

Band Hero screenshot

Being able to access major game functionality only by buying yet another game is shameful. Fortunately, playing the game through Play mode is what most players will pick up the title for anyway, and it is a good bit of fun. However, other than a few asinine mini-games such as crowd surfing and hand slapping, all you’ll be doing is playing through songs with no real advancement or reward other than a few unlockables. Why a fully-fledged career mode wasn’t included is beyond me? The best part of Play mode is that you can hook up with friends in Co-op, or challenge a buddy in Versus.

Band Hero was a great idea that suffers from dismal execution. Multiple poor design choices have led to a game that is utterly flawed. While there is still a good deal of fun to be had if you own a DS Lite, I’m bamboozled as to why the game is so limited in scope and not more inclusive of other systems and more extensive in terms of game modes. To go from bad to worse, this game retails for $49.99 – quite a pretty penny. It’s a real shame this game doesn’t live up to its potential. I expect good things from this off-shoot IP in the future, but as it stands now, I simply can’t recommend it.

RATING OUT OF 5 RATING DESCRIPTION 3.8 Graphics
The visuals have been tweaked slightly since Modern Hits, and I like the change. 2.0 Control
The Guitar Grip is as good as ever, but the drums skin only fits DS Lite and is poorly designed, and the microphone detection is appalling. 3.5 Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
This isn’t the greatest set list to hit an Activision music title, but at least the sound quality is still great. 2.5

Play Value
The main Play mode and multiplayer are lots of fun, but there are no other modes – unless, of course, you count Fan Requests, but you can only access them by connecting to a copy of Band Hero Wii.

2.9 Overall Rating – Average
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

  • Gameplay modes include quick play, career mode, and multiplayer mode (up to 4 players can play together), and any combination of instruments can be played in multiplayer mode.
  • First ever portable full band experience (guitar, bass guitar, drums, vocals).
  • Bundle comes complete with guitar grip, all-new drum skin peripheral, and vocal support for singing.
  • Drum controller is an easy to attach and remove silicone skin with larger buttons for an improved gaming experience.
  • A wide variety of classic anthems and modern Top-40 radio hits, including 30 of today’s hottest Pop & Rock hits (70% of songs from last 9 years,) with songs chosen based on playability with multiple instruments.

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