On Weds night, World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King launched in London's famous Oxford Street, and we were there to interview Blizzard and the fans.

Just who is this Beatles game for?

That's the question that's been running through my brain ever since news of the announcement that Harmonix and Apple Corps Ltd would be combining efforts on a Beatles-themed project came to light. Several outlets were reporting at the outset that the game would be a dedicated Rock Band expansion devoted to the Fab Four but that turned out not to be the case. Instead, we'll have a "full, new music game built from the ground up," according to Harmonix co-founder Alex Rigopolous.

The licensing of The Beatles' music has had a... ahem... long and winding road; these days, the vast majority of the group's catalog is owned by Sony and Michael Jackson (the King of Pop purchased the publishing rights to around 200 songs in 1985), with royalties still being paid out to John Lennon's estate and to Paul McCartney. In 2006, the Cirque du Soleil production, "Love", was unveiled in Las Vegas, which combined some of the group's most famous songs with the visual wizardry of the long-running show company.

So, Apple Corps Ltd's long-standing dispute with Apple over licensing of the music to the latter's iTunes service notwithstanding, the company has been willing to extend use the Beatles' music, as long as it's in the right context. But what does that mean for Harmonix's just-announced game?

To me, it comes back to my original question: Who is the intended audience? While I think you'd be hard-pressed to find someone who actively dislikes The Beatles, I'm not sure if they are as relevant to the hardcore game-buying demographic as they might have been, say, ten years ago. I consider myself a moderate fan of the group--they lost me somewhere around The Yellow Submarine--but I have a hard time believing that the typical 18 year-old as totally psyched about this announcement as, say, your typical 48 year-old.

But, then, what 48 year-old is going to play (much less buy) a game like this, unless Harmonix radically simplifies the gameplay? Rigopolous has stated that this game will use Rock Band instruments but, as it stands now, further details are few and far between. I can only imagine the look of bewilderment my mom or dad would have if I sat them down in front of a set of Rock Band drums and told them to hold it down for me while I rocked some Rush. And it's tough to see how a Beatles game that uses the pricey Rock Band peripherals could be considered casual enough to draw in tons of new fans, Lennon and McCartney be damned.

So I'm left puzzled. If the Beatles game is a dumbed down Rock Band experience aimed at a casual crowd, it will likely turn off the hardcore Rock Band fans, a good chunk of whom won't have much of a connection to the music in the first place. And while the older set might relish in a perfectly marketed casual gaming chunk of 60's nostalgia for Xbox 360 and PS3, can it really be called "casual" if you've got to spend a bunch of cash for the accessories you need to play it?

Rigopolous has already stated the game will use explore the Beatles iconic psychedelic imagery--such as that found in the film The Yellow Submarine. My best bet? The Beatles game will be a sort of gaming equivalent to director Julie Taymor's film Across the Universe, a re-imagining/visual exploration of the Beatles catalog. I imagine the musical gameplay aspects (i.e. playing along with Beatles tunes) will be either entirely optional or, perhaps more likely, will give the player multiple options for interaction (everything from straight karaoke, to playing along with Rock Band instruments, or following note patterns with a standard controller). Ensuring a large (and customizable) spectrum of interaction seems like a must-have feature when dealing with what could potentially be one of the widest demographic spreads we've ever seen in a videogame.

So what do you think? Are you excited about the Harmonix/Beatles game? Do you think a Beatles game with Rock Band-esque gameplay can be a hit with both young and old gamers? What does this game need to do in order to be a gameplay success?

I will be doing one last blog entry about the sights of Tokyo after I have returned to the States. However, some thoughts are fresh on my mind regarding the games themselves, and I wanted to share them with you. Mind you, these are my own opinions and not those of the crew, necessarily. But these are the games that I personally saw that made the right impressions.

Most Surprisingly Attractive Game:

Monster Hunter 3 (Wii)

When I first saw Monster Hunter 3 in action on the show floor, I actually thought it was a 360 or PS3 game. I didn't get any hands-on time with it (I wasn't scheduled to cover it, and on the open days, the Japanese public mobbed Capcom's booth, which was inconveniently right next to Square's). But let me tell you--from a visual perspective, this game is impressive. You'll be doing a lot of underwater battles, and both the water and the monster models are fantastic. Quality animations are just icing on the cake, or in this case, on the dorsal fin. I am thrilled that Monster Hunter 3 may finally be doing what few games have done: actually use the full potential of the Wii hardware.

Best Trailer:

Final Fantasy Versus XIII (PS3)

Oh, good old Square Enix and their constant teasers. Of the three games in the FF XIII series, however, Versus has me most intrigued. I like the idea of a FF game set in an alternate version of our own world; I like how lonely the trailer made the world look; and I like the look of the hero, and the way he interacts with his buddies. The trailer makes the game look like the ultimate post-apocalyptic road trip. Of course, this is all conjecture, and we have yet to see gameplay. But at least the trailer did its job: I want to see more.

Machine You Most Want to Own, if TGS is any Indication:

Tie: Sony PSP / Nintendo DS

If the games I saw were any indication, you're gonna want one--or both. Dissidia Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, Resistance: Retribution, and many others hold incredible potential, while the DS is still a quality home for developers doing something different. I am admittedly annoyed at some developers for avoiding the touchscreen, most notable Square: Valkyrie Profile and Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days disappointed me, because they don't need to be on the DS as opposed to any other platform, and fail to use its strengths. In my mind, the touchscreen is more than just a minimap or stats screen; if that's all you can come up with, then put your game on another machine, and stop pretending that the touchscreen doesn't exist.

Thankfully, a number of developers are creating terrific-looking things for the DS, and games like Tales of Hearts and Gardening Mama keep the spirit of the machine alive. Oh, and my favorite DS game at TGS? Riz-Zoawd, an anime take on the Wizard of Oz. It looks fantastic, and like most games that end up being superb (and like many that don't), it seems ready to take a chance.

Most Fun I Had with Any Game:

Dissidia Final Fantasy (PSP)

I had zero expectation for this fan-service fighting title. I thought, "Great: Square's version of Smash Brothers, only with limited two-player combat, and with spiked hair." So color me surprised: it was fun and flashy, and its attack system has surprising depth, which means that two talented players can keep going for a good bit of time. "Floaty" is rarely a compliment, but I like the semi-weightless feel of the combat, and while the jury is out on just how much value this package will have, it's loaded with potential. Oh--and it's also really, really pretty.

Personal Game of the Show:

Muramasa: The Demon Blade (Wii)

The developers of Odin Sphere know what they do best: create fun action games with exquisite hand-drawn backgrounds. Theoretically, Muramasa is an action RPG, but I didn't see Odin Sphere as an RPG (just as I never saw Folklore as one, and am flabbergasted when it's called one). We didn't really see any of Muramasa's RPG elements anyway, but we definitely saw some amazing side-scrolling action, and it is fun and absolutely beautiful. Take Odin Sphere, mix in some Okami, and pour on the demonic madness, and you get Muramasa, my personal game of TGS 2008. I mean, how can you not want to play this?

Of course, my opinions are all colored by the limitations of what I saw. Other editors saw equally fantastic stuff, and I didn't even approach most of the Western-developed games, since titles like Fable 2, Fallout 3, Far Cry 2, and others are not only really close to release, but are easily found at various preview events in the USA. This is Tokyo, and some of these games may not even make it to North America. Why would I spend time looking at Mirror's Edge, for which we already have a good amount of coverage, when this might be my only chance to see Gomibako in action?

So tell me: what game did we see at TGS 2008 has you the most excited?

From a press release about Shaun White Snowboarding having exclusive content when you buy it from Target:

"I've had a blast working with the Ubisoft developers, and we've created a game that's really different from any other action sports game," said White. "I think it really captures my style, and I can't wait to see what Target guests think of the extra features we've made just for them."

Target "guests"? Shaun White is keepin' it real.

I can't help but be reminded of similarly fabricated PR quotes from Aerosmith and Korn. How do these things make it into the final press release? Do these companies just like asserting their alpha dog pack leader position by forcing the stars people actually like to recite corporate terminology?

Does nobody look at this and say, "You know, our campaign might resonate with Shaun White fans more if it doesn't instantly make them think their favorite snowboarder is an absolute sellout. Maybe we shouldn't beat people over the head with the fact that we've turned him into a spineless corporate puppet and he is now more brand than person."

Sigh.

Well, I had intended to post periodic updates of the Warhammer Online experience, but honestly, my schedule has been so hectic, it's impossible to keep up. The fall season is upon us, and I will be part of the TGS crew, so I haven't been able to focus on the small things as much as I would have liked.

The Warhammer Online review goes up tonight, but playing that game--and a lot of other MMOs over the years--has made me question (again) where the genre goes from here, particularly when a juggernaut like World of Warcraft totally dominates the market. To add an ironic aside: WoW doesn't really do much that hadn't already been done in other games, and it's always interesting that Warhammer Online--and other games--get accused of being WoW clones, when in actuality, Blizzard's own awesome game used already-existing standards, polished them to a degree previously unseen in MMOs, and made them accessible to almost everyone.

Regardless, Blizzard has proven you don't need to massively retool gameplay conventions that work well to make a highly successful game. You could argue the same in almost any genre, really; most first-person shooters and real-time strategy games simply play with proven concepts. And I certainly don't believe a game has to be innovative to be good--but I do have a personal MMO wishlist that may tell you what conventions I think are worth sticking with, and which ones need to be rethought.

1) Play with combat.

Age of Conan is the newest example of a game that revamps traditional MMOG combat, but other games have played with the standards. Vanguard lets bards create their own buffs by attaching song pieces together; Everquest II had heroic opportunities; and of course, games like Neocron and Planetside went the FPS route but had other significant problems that held them back. I don't want to see AoC's system copied, but I do want developers to think about how they can breathe life into combat. How about rare but effective cinematic quicktime events? (Think about how awesome it would be to trigger an event like this; other players would watch as you launched onto a dragon like an acrobat and brought it to the ground.) Whatever it is, it should keep us engaged and active, and should entail more than just clicking on icons or pounding on hotkeys.

2) Play with crafting.

Vanguard sets the standard for MMO crafting--but its relative lack of success means few of its original features are bound to be copied. All too often, this aspect is either tacked on (oh Warhammer, how I wish it wasn't true), or unbalanced (all too often in an MMO, the items you make aren't even as good as you can get at a regular vendor; what's the point?) Crafting should be about more than just the end product--it should match that product with an activity engaging enough to make crafting an item enjoyable. Make a good system (Vanguard, because the act of crafting is cool; Pirates of the Burning Sea, because it ties in with a giant economic web), or leave it out and create another gameplay mechanic to keep us busy in the downtime (gambling minigames, anyone?)

3) Play with AI.

Rooting, pulling, and so on are standard acts in an MMO, and they require predictable NPC behavior. Here's what you usually see: a monster that has a radius that, if you cross it, will draw aggro--and the monster will then attack you. What happens if we make monsters with real artifical intelligence? What if they were less predictable, acting on their own devices, rather than in a highly strict manner? The concept means a lot of other mechanics would need to be rethought (class roles, escape opportunities, and so on)--but perhaps that's a good thing. Make entire monster societies, and let them battle each other independently of players, and do it in a non-scripted way. City of Heroes and Tabula Rasa made some progress with genre AI. Let's see more of it.

4) Play with location.

I'm an explorer. I want to see something new. After all, this is a virtual world. A developer should ask: why would players want to live in our universe? It isn't just about how much there is to do, but how much there is to see. I'm not just talking about graphics (though art design is inextricably tied to this suggestion); I am talking about surprises. World of Warcraft hides a lot of cool things in the nooks and crannies, for example. Give me awesome places to stumble upon, reasons to leave the beaten path. I recognize that most developers want their world to have visual consistency. But the real world doesn't have that, and I'd like to wander about another world that has secrets to share. If I wander into an alley in San Francisco, I'm bound to find something weird. Why shouldn't the same happen when I wander into one in an MMO? And don't just make it a visual thing--hide a vendor there that sells unique items; stick an NPC there that has a story to tell. Fill your world with unpredictability, and it gives us a reason to return.

5) Play with story.

Some developers are headed in the right direction. Turbine (Asheron's Call; Dungeons & Dragons Online; LOTR Online) is consistently good at delivering story, as is Funcom (Anarchy Online; Age of Conan); and Everquest II's abundance of voice acting makes quests more involving and fleshes out the lore better as a result. But even the most expertly written quest is pointless if the player ignores the dialogue, or if it has no character. Make voice acting a standard (but allow people to turn it off if they want); improve animations and design NPCs so that they look different from each other (I don't look like my coworker Lark Anderson in the least, so I certainly don't see why every goblin has to look alike). These may not seem directly related to story, but they give the world's inhabitants personality, which goes a long way towards making you care about their tales. Guild Wars, Asheron's Call 2 and others gave us cutscenes. Give us more--and make them good. And--God forbid--give us branching paths, a single-player standby, and one that would be difficult to implement well in an MMO environment. But do it.

Or scrap it all and do something crazy. Of course, this is my own personal wishlist; a good business plan doesn't always include a lot of chances and innovations. What would you like to see in an MMOG? What things are you happy with, and what needs improvement?

WARNING: The following article contains NO adult content and is approved for all ages.

I was thrilled when Harmonix announced that the Red Hot Chili Peppers' album Blood, Sugar, Sex, Magik would be released in its entirety as downloadable content for Rock Band 2. I spent two hours trying to download it the first day it became available, but due to issues with Xbox Live (Harmonix said the problems were on Microsoft's end), I was unable to complete the download. No biggie, I just got up early the next morning, finished downloading the album, and played a few songs. "Under the Bridge" was an absolute joy and well worth the wait. "Sir Psycho Sexy," on the other hand, is censored to the point that the vocals are incoherent.

"Sir Psycho Sexy" is a dirty song, to be sure--nobody's going to argue that it isn't. Mr. Sir Psycho is a big fan of the ladies, and the song documents his sexual prowess. At least it did before Harmonix got its hands on it. In one case, 58% of the vocals for an entire verse have been completely removed. Does this affect gameplay? You bet it does. Imagine singing the verse below (each set of dashes is a word that's no longer there). Not only do you have no clue what's going on in the song, but you just sit there while the deleted lines go by, hoping that there's a line that isn't filthy coming up so you might actually get to sing something.

I got stopped by a lady cop

In my automobile

--- ---- --- --- --- ----- ---- ---

--- ---- --- ----- -- --- - ----

That cop she was all dressed in blue

Was she pretty? Boy I'm tellin' you

--- ----- -- ---- ---- --- --- ----- -----

- ---- ----- -- --- ---- -- ----

Like a ram getting ready to jam

She whimpered just a little when she felt my hand

-- --- ------ -- ---- ----

- ----- ---- --- ------- --- ------- --- -------

Proppin' her up on the black and white

-------- --- ------ --- ----- -----

- ------- --- ---- -- ---- ---- ---

------ - ------ --- ----- ---- ---

Do I think it's appropriate that children play an uncensored version of this song? No. Do I have a problem with the occasional swear word being removed? Not at all. But I do have a problem when I haven't been warned that the song has been excessively censored before I purchase it, and I believe Harmonix went way too far when it comes to the material removed from this particular song. You can't tell me phrases like "I said what's up?" or "Turned a cherry pie right into jam" are too salacious for the sensitive ears of our youth, especially when they're used with no context, as they would be here.

Rock Band 2's box displays a Teen rating, but it also warns users that online interactions aren't rated by the ESRB. On top of that, there are plenty of age checks in place on the Xbox 360, so why can't adults enjoy adult music with adult language? Everyone throws the statistic about the average gamer being older than 30, so why are we being treated like children?

Maybe I'm overreacting and this censorship isn't a big deal to most people. If you believe this is a nonissue, I'd like to hear your thoughts and opinions. If you agree that this is a problem, I'd love to hear from you as well.

Have you ver wished progress from a previoius game carried over into the game's sequel? I have. Earlier this year I harbored a bit of resentment for Ubisoft. I had gotten into Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas on the Xbox 360, thanks in large part to GameSpot's tournament. When I spent hours of time, effort, and enjoyment into playing that game, I was really getting my hopes up for how the ranks and experience would carry over into the sequel--the aptly named Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas 2. At first I was very excited to unlock items and ranks in the new game thanks to high ranks in the first title. My disappointment came when I found my achievement for attaining (and instantly bypassing) Private First Class did not unlock.

Many heard my disappointment in our first exploit segment of On the Spot, while others read about my frustration in this blog. In time Ubisoft fixed the problem. Continued play and additional downloadable content made ranking up in Vegas 2 much, much easier (almost to the point of being far too easy). Even though Ubisoft still hasn't fixed the Special Operations achievement problem in Vegas, I reflected on what they did right: they helped loyal franchise players carry over previous experience into the new game.

This year has been littered with sequels and re-releases that failed to support a loyal community with some carry-over components. While still great (or, technically good) games, Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise, Lost Planet: Colonies, any of the Lego games, and nearly all of the EA sports games failed to carry over unlocked rewards, experience, items, or pinatas earned in previous iterations of the franchises.

I loved and played the heck out of Lost Planet when it first debuted on Xbox 360. I was legitimately excited to play Colonies when it came out, but Capcom bifurcated their LP community by not only negating the ability to play Lost Planet players, but also leaving would-be Colonists in the cold to play the game to completion again. Sure, sure they allowed cross-platform play (between 360 and PC), but my levels, outfits, and overall experience with the original didn't make the transition. Friends of mine didn't want to invest the time and money into ranking up again. Without the devoted cadre of cohorts to play with online, going it alone seemed more laborious than inviting. To this day, I still have yet to crack open a copy of Colonies.

I did, however, invest time into Madden 07. The Community team has a handful of copies left over from a would-be tournament from years ago and I made the mistaken assumption that the points would be as effortless as other entries in the franchise have been. Imagine my surprise. What I found was a devious achievement for importing an NCAA 07 draft class into your NFL draft. I resisted for months, but finally caved weeks ago. I neither like [American] football, nor particularly care for college sports. To this day, I can proudly say I never watched a live sporting event while attending a reputable sports institution of higher learning. So why did I cave and play NCAA 07? Was it the ten achievement points? Maybe in part, but I say it was actually a support for a developer that rewarded players who played other games in the publisher's football family.

EA didn't reward Need for Speed Carbon players that had completed Most Wanted. It only punished players of ProStreet that enjoyed the earlier games more. Activision didn't give Call of Duty 4 players benefits, perks, or added possibilities if they completed Call of Duty 2 or 3 on the same platform. Traveler's Tales forced players to replay Episodes I-VI in their entirety in Lego Star Wars The Complete Saga even if said players had achieved 100% completion in each of the previous entries.

"So what," you may be thinking. The "what" in question is your time and mine. When we pick up a game we are not only investing our money in entertainment, but also our time. Our time carries a higher price than the value of our respective currencies. One could argue by buying Lost Planet Colonies or by playing Lego Star Wars TCS we are asking to play the same recycled content again. Don't we also look for was some recognition that we have already been there and done that before? The GameSpot reviews clearly call out that players who already own the original release(s) have little reason to invest in the new iteration.

LucasArts could have allowed us to start TCS with all of the red-brick extras unlocked or allowed completionists to play the game in Free Play mode from the get-go. Capcom could've at least carried over online ranks (not the experience), ensured cross-title play (between owners of different Lost Planet versions, or automatically unlocked achievements for the difficulties and collectible tasks previously completed.

I recognize these features require additional work and testing. We have all seen what happens when they don't turn out right or are bent to devious degrees. What I'd like for us all to see is the opportunity to get more credit for being on board with franchises. If the same content is going to be shoveled out again and again, give us a reward for playing it twice. Arguably one of the only good things to come out of Fable II Pub Games was the ability to carry over your winnings and your losses into the full Fable II game world. Say what you will about Pub Games or Molyneux's promises, but he delivered a compelling reward for people who pay for the same content twice. Why then don't more developers and publishers integrate their titles better to create cohesive, rewarding experiences that carry over across their franchises and projects? It could be development time. It could be lack of financial resources. But what troubles me is a clear lack of industry interest in rewarding the die-hard community for loyalty. Many

What do you think? Am I ranting about something so esoteric only a niche audience can appreciate, or do you feel the frustration as well? Share your thoughts and comments here and write your favorite franchise's producers to get more carry over.