The Beatles Rock Band (2009)
Play through the Beatles' career with 45 on-disc songs and downloadable albums.
The Beatles: Rock Band is a 2009 music video game developed by Harmonix, published by MTV Games and distributed by Electronic Arts, in association with Apple Corps. It is the third major console release in the Rock Band music video game series and is available on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Wii consoles.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Harmonix
- Publisher
- MTV Games
- Release year
- 2009
- Platforms
- Xbox 360
- PlayStation 3
- Wii
- Genre
- Rhythm; Music
- Song list
- Complete Beatles studio catalog
- Format
- Standalone title (not a Rock Band DLC)
Lore & Background
The game allows one to six players to simulate the performance of songs by the Beatles. The 45-song selection on the game's disc was praised by critics, though the number of tracks was considered small and the inclusion of certain lesser-known songs and exclusion of more popular ones was considered confusing. The game disc features 45 songs chosen from the 12 original UK albums, the US album Magical Mystery Tour, the 2006 remix album Love, and several non-album singles. All songs except 'The End' are playable immediately in Quickplay; in Career mode, players complete songs in a loosely historical order, and upon completion 'The End' becomes available for all other modes. Each song is played in a specific venue, most based on a historical progression of famous Beatles performances. For the Abbey Road venue, each song (except 'Hey Bulldog') has a unique 'Dreamscape.'
Reader's Guide
Players use peripherals modelled after musical instruments (guitar, drum, microphone) to match scrolling on-screen notes in time to the music to score points. The game does not include every track from the studio albums or the complete Beatles studio catalog; it omits songs like 'You Know My Name (Look Up the Number),' 'Revolution 9,' 'Wild Honey Pie,' and 'Flying,' and includes non-album singles and alternate mixes. Downloadable content was available for purchase, including singles and full albums (excluding those songs already on disc), but was removed from sale on May 5, 2016, though previously purchased content remains downloadable.
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