'Beatles: Rock Band' is more than a game, even more than its marketing blitz

Ken Burns should be listed in the credits of "The Beatles: Rock Band," a video game arriving this week with more hype than the Fab Four received on their U.S. tour back in 1964.

More than a terrific game and pop-culture phenomenon, it's an immersive documentary that uses videos, photos and period settings to retell the band's amazing story.

As you sing, drum and strum through the 45 songs on the $60 disc, you unlock archival photos with little history lessons, gradually building a Beatles encyclopedia on your Microsoft Xbox 360, Sony PlayStation 3 or Nintendo Wii.

Instead of the wacky rocker caricatures used in earlier "Rock Band" and "Guitar Hero" games, you play along with hyperrealistic animated versions of John, Paul, George and Ringo.

They wear the exact outfits and play historically correct venues — black suits and moptops when you play "A Hard Day's Night" in the Ed Sullivan Theater, for instance.

There's no snickering at the outlandishness of the rock scene; this game's almost reverential.

Snark wouldn't work with this music but it makes you wonder if developer Harmonix had to play it straight to persuade the surviving Beatles and their heirs to authorize their first interactive video game.

Maybe they just wanted to appeal to the maximum number of Beatles fans. With these games, the entertainment industry is using dazzling technology to repackage its top-shelf content, enticing millions to buy yet another version of an LP they bought in 1965, a cassette they bought in 1975, a CD they bought in 1995 and an MP3 they bought in 2005.

The Beatles resisted downloads — they still haven't released an MP3 version of their catalog — but they're catching up now.

That's what I was thinking a few weeks ago, when game publisher Viacom started talking up the downloadable content it's selling alongside the game, charging $1.99 per song for the rest of the Beatles catalog beyond the 45 in the basic game.

But skepticism about this fall's Beatlesmarketingmania melted a bit when my daughter and her friend spent an afternoon trying to get 100 percent scores, learning Beatles songs they'd never heard and absorbing some of the upbeat vibe.

"Here Comes the Sun" sounds wonderful this way, the first six or seven times, before you grab the controller and demand they choose another song.

Seriously, there's no better way to introduce rock music of a certain age to your kids. You can play it at home or in the car but they probably won't care until they have to sing and play along.

It's also refreshing to unplug the earbuds and enjoy music socially. I wish I could really play the music with friends and family, but playing together virtually is quick and easy gratification.

No wonder the "Rock Band" franchise has had sales of more than $1 billion and is expanding to every genre, with country, tweener pop and hip-hop variations. I wouldn't be surprised if they're working on "Lawrence Welk: Baton Hero."

Meanwhile the game industry — including Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo and retailers such as Best Buy — is hoping the Beatles' appeal will help revive sales and draw not only gamers but fans who don't have a console yet.

"The Beatles: Rock Band" is forgiving to people who have never played a rhythm video game. It says you're being "messy" if you miss notes (or "fab" if you hit them) and can be set to a "no fail" mode that keeps play going even if you're awful.

It's not cheap entertainment. Consoles start at $200, the game is $60 and you'll need a set of faux instruments that cost at least $100. A bundle with the game and optional Beatles-style instrument will cost $250.

You'll want an additional microphone or two for the game's standout feature, its ability to have up to three players sing harmony. Beatles music is perfect for this, making the game fun to play with just vocals, like a supercomputing karaoke machine.

Even if the marketing's over the top, the game really is fab.

It's also a great way to reintroduce The Beatles at a time we could stand to relearn the harmonies that rose above the turbulence of the 1960s.

At least until "Halo 3: ODST" and "Modern Warfare 2" come to the consoles later this fall.

Brier Dudley's column appears Mondays. Reach him at 206-515-5687 or bdudley@seattletimes.com.