Smithers! License that song!

Rock Band: Beatles and Guitar Hero 5 are two games I will just never play. I tried the first Guitar Hero for one round and decided that I was above it. There's nothing interesting or fun about it for me, and while that's not a sentiment millions of other gamers will share, you'll still never hear me talk about them much. There is the occasion when a really good song slips into these games, and when Trogdor was included in Guitar Hero 2, I almost pissed myself in glee. Yet, the tracks keep coming in sequels, expansions, and DLC's, and it's hard to see the genre of rhythm games dying out in the immediate future.

This is when the friendly competition between gaming and movies swings violently towards the former. Games have a built in solution to every licensing problem known to man. I don't know the explicit details, but basically for every game/expansion/DLC sold, the artists involved get their cut. It's a nice (and expensive for enthusiasts) a la carte system that only exists on one platform, rather than movies and TV. Those are released with a song licensed for use in that medium, then for a companion soundtrack, and then a third time for home video release, and maybe even a fourth if it is a movie being aired on TV.

The idea of licensing has become more complicated recently, especially when you add in the switch to digital media. If you take a look at certain DVD or Blu-Ray TV box sets, you can sometimes see a disclaimer on the back of the box saying that "Music in differs from broadcast version." Games have generally been able to dodge this issue for the most part, because the music in-game usually stays there and doesn't go anywhere else. Down the line, this could be a problem. Take Burnout 3, for example. If the business model hadn't changed to fit the digital age, then if this game were re-released in, say, 2020, then the license for the music would have to be renewed. Newer, cheaper music from unknown bands might be available, changing the purity of the original game experience. This is what happens on home movie releases routinely.

However, I thought about the movie Highlander today. I can only imagine that there was a lot less BS involved to get Queen on board for the soundtrack back then, and these days I often wonder if we'll ever see such an experiment happen again, at least in the movies.

Games, however, are an entirely different beast. We've seen a few collaborations so far; take Halo 2's contribution from Incubus, for example. Yet, there hasn't been a band except in those rhythm games that have had a soundtrack entirely by one artist. Games are evolving, no doubt, and I think that we will see the Queen/Highlander experiment get at least one shot on a console. Take Muse, for example. Listen to enough of their tracks, and the comparison to Queen is just sitting there waiting to be realized. Not that they are equals. They could be someday, but for now, the music has that sound of influence. With their already eclectic range that translates well into a game that must constantly shift music intensity with the pace changes in a plot, a band like Muse translates perfectly. Get a Highlander game into development that promises to be good, and the inspired addition of a group like Muse could really push the game over the top in the originality department.

That would be on my wish list for games I'd like to see made, but something similar is bound to happen one of these days. Band + game is about as simple an equation as you can get, and with the foundations already laid out for digital releases of games, the gaming industry is pre-built to avoid the problems the movie industry has with music licensing. You're seeing it in the current rhythm games now, and it's only going to take a band and a development house to hook up with an idea for you to see a single-band soundtrack soon.

Also, my bias is on Highlander because I'd much rather see Highlander become a good game than to have another bad movie in its vault. Seriously, the guy who directed the last two Fast and the Furious movies is going to be directing the reboot, most likely ruining any chances that Highlander will return to glory...ever.

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