Rock University Presents: The Naked Brothers Band - The Video Game
Score: 80% ESRB: Everyone Publisher: THQ Developer: 1st Playable Productions Media: Cartridge/1 Players: 1; 2 - 4 (WiFi) Genre: Rhythm
Graphics & Sound: I'll say it upfront, until playing Rock University Presents: The Naked Brothers Band - The Video Game, I had no clue as to who The Naked Brothers were. To be honest, even after playing the game, I have no clue who they are, but at least their game isn't half bad. Since the game is based after a band, it is only natural that The Naked Brothers Band is a rhythm game. All of the music in the game is from the band, and while it wasn't something I would listen to, fans will enjoy hearing their favorites. Considering the system, the quality of the music is decent; it isn't as good as Elite Beat Agents, but I've heard much, much worse on the system. Voices are a little garbled, though not so much that you can't understand the words to the song. However, it is a little hard to hear some of the instrumental stuff. It is still easy enough to catch the beat and play along with the rhythm, though. As for the visuals, they are sort of just there. Everything is incredibly flat with little in the way of animation. There are, however, a few nice additions like the ability to update your band's look and some nice pyrotechnic effects. But, like any rhythm game, most of your attention is locked in on the scrolling play bar, so everything else isn't of much importance in the long run.
Gameplay: Rock University Presents: The Naked Brothers Band - The Video Game places you in the role of members of the band and follows them on a charity tour. The overall setup for Tour mode isn't incredibly deep, but it does a good enough job at fan service that fans of the show will overlook any nitpicky shortcomings. Venue features one song from the group and challenges you to play against a rival band. Rather than playing one instrument for each song, you instead switch between five different instruments at different parts of the song. At the end, your total score across all five instruments is tallied up and, if you manage to hit a certain score, you can move on to the next venue. Outside the main play mode, up to four friends can play via wireless multiplayer. I really like how two players can play on one card. It's a no-brainer option, but one that developers seem to ignore. The Naked Brothers Band also supports up to four players, provided you have two copies of the game. If you are more of a solo artist, you can spend time recomposing songs from The Naked Brothers Band's catalog of songs or mess around with the lights and other special effects during performances. Neither is particularly engrossing, but at the same time, they are fun diversions for when you want to take a break from playing music.
Difficulty: I didn't find Rock University Presents: The Naked Brothers Band - The Video Game incredibly hard, though I am also a bit older than the game's target audience. Even still, the game knows its audience and really goes after them, though at the same time, it isn't uncommon to see players in that same audience who are really good at Guitar Hero or Rock Band, so even they might blow through some parts of the game quickly. Each song features three difficulty levels with the big difference being the number of beats that appear on the rhythm bar. Oddly enough, Hard is the easiest of the three levels to play on. The beats match up with the songs a little better and there isn't much downtime. For me, the trickiest part of the entire game was learning how to use the various instruments. The motions make sense, but some don't feel completely natural. I mostly ran into timing issues, though only in the early parts of the game. The instructions are thorough, but also incredibly concise and easy enough for even younger players to pick-up. The motions are also displayed on the bottom screen along with the chance to practice.
Game Mechanics: Besides featuring the band, the other big draw to Rock University Presents: The Naked Brothers Band - The Video Game is the ability to make music using the DS's touch screen. The game features five instruments, including guitar, drums and piano that are played using the stylus. Each instrument has its own particular style that is easy to figure out, even for players who may not have the best sense of rhythm. For instance, while singing, you just have to keep the stylus in the vocal bar while when playing guitar, you need to match scrolling notes with strums. Good games should meet or exceed the expectations of players. While Rock University Presents: The Naked Brothers Band - The Video Game isn't a game that will make many waves when it comes to handheld rhythm games, it is good enough that it will make fans happy.
-Starscream, GameVortex Communications AKA Ricky Tucker
Tak and the Guardians of Gross Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia