The Disney films are synonymous with music. Chances are most
fans can remember at least one song from every animated film that they've ever
seen. I shouldn't have to mention that Disney "Frozen" has been at
the top of the Billboard charts over the past 13 weeks. Disney films however do
not have a great track record in the video game arena, especially not titles
that were predominantly music-oriented.
Music is a big part of gaming. The soundtracks for some of
the biggest action-adventure and role-playing games have featured many
memorable songs. The US
mainstream may not be familiar with the names of Japanese composers Nobuo
Uematsu, Hideki Naganuma or Norihiko Hibino, game players from the west however
certainly revere their work. To be fair, some of the biggest names from the USA
have been associated with gaming. Hollywood heavyweights
Michael Giacchino and Harry Gregson-Williams have actually scored several game
soundtracks as well.
There are music-based games that take up several genres and
have been among the hottest selling titles on more than one occasion. No series
has been more influential to the industry than the Bemani series by Konami.
Bemani was the abbreviated name for Beatmania, the breakout hit from the Konami
Games & Music Division. Japanese arcade players would line up to play a
virtual DJ using a turntable and sampling buttons on an arcade cabinet. The
title only found moderate success abroad. The follow-up title broke out of the
Japanese arcade scene to become an international sensation. Dance Dance
Revolution featured a light up floor for audiences to dance on. The series
became so popular that it would be referenced everywhere in pop culture including
cartoons, movies and television. Even the film "Wreck-it-Ralph
"
featured a cameo from one of the virtual dancers. Konami continued to crank out
new Bemani experiences including Guitar Freaks and Drum Mania, which allowed
players to rock out on electronic guitars and drums. Konami tried a bold design
with the game Para Para Paradise
. Instead of stepping on a floor or playing on
a plastic instrument audiences were challenged to dance and wave their arms in
rhythm with the music. The arcade cabinet had sensors to track the hands and
feet of the players and make sure they were matching the choreography of the
game characters.
The Bemani titles spread throughout the West and inspired
the Guitar Hero
and Rock Band
console game hits. Most recently Disney Interactive
partnered up with Harmonix, the creators of the Guitar Hero and Rock Band
franchises to produce a game inspired by Fantasia
. The game Fantasia: Music
Evolved debuted at the 2013 E3 in Los Angeles
to small groups of visitors. The game had players interact with virtual
environments and "play" through different songs using hand gestures.
Because it was in a very early stage of development only Harmonix employees
could demo the game but a few press members were invited to as well. Thanks to advances
in technology the game did not require a bulky cabinet or any sort or sensor
array. Instead it used the remote-control sized Microsoft Kinect with an Xbox
360
. The game was interesting and the music selection diverse, featuring songs
from the animated film as well as pop hits. It was still a little rough around
the edges but showed potential. Audiences did not see much else on the game
until the D23 EXPO in Anaheim a few
months later.
At the D23 EXPO, the Walt Disney Archives had prepared an
exhibit next to the Harmonix display to help younger convention visitors become
familiar with the classical masterpiece. Disney pulled out all of the stops and
presented a behind-the-scenes look at the game as well as a live onstage
demonstration. Followed up by a performance from the world class musicians that
made up the Disney Chamber Ensemble. The presentation went well and the game
looked as if it had progressed somewhat from the E3 version. The audience
however did not seem very enthusiastic with the title. It looked more like a
tech demo for interactive environments and gesture-based audio editing
applications than a game. Fantasia was regarded as one of the greatest animated
masterpieces of all time but very little of the film and its sequel were
actually featured in the game. The appearance of Yen Sid seemed to be a
carryover from unused Epic Mickey
assets rather than something that was put
deliberately into the game. This was a title that did not seem to have a clear
direction or even market. Music rhythm games had run their cycle years ago and
there was little that could get players excited with them again. A big name
like Disney Interactive and Harmonix would not be enough to drive sales.
Whether this will be an expensive flop or a sleeper hit has yet to be
seen. I'm betting on the former. Fantasia: Music Evolved is scheduled for
release in 2014 for the Xbox 360 with Kinect and Xbox One
.