Ultimate Band

$50, Wii*, Nintendo DS

Teaches: Music, rhythm

CTR Rating: 87.5%

CTR Review

Think "Rock Band" or "Guitar Hero" without the instruments, and you have the idea of this well crafted and innovative music simulation, designed to work with the Wii's motion-based controls instead of plug-in instruments. Our testers found it to be easier to play than Guitar Hero, and liked the more diverse selection of music, but some complained that it can "tire you out rather quickly." A version for the Nintendo DS comes with an option that can turn the DS into a fifth controller, so players can use their DS touch screen as a DJ turntable. Note that you'll need four complete sets of controllers if you want to have a four-player band (each player needs both a Wii Remote and a Nunchuk).As with many of these types of games, this is a test of your ability to match hand and arm motions with a song's rhythm. You can play guitar, drums and bass. The music list is more diverse and family friendly than the typical Guitar Hero titles. We tried the Easy level for all the instruments and found the entire experience to be easy for a novice; although the drums are easier to learn than the guitar. There's a well designed "show and tell" type of tutorial that is recommend for the other instruments.In the Wii version, you live the life of a rock star by advancing your career and popularity from playing in a neighborhood garage to performing in front of an international audience, unlocking new songs and equipment along the way. The DS version includes a recording studio where players can play along with the current songs using the drums, lead guitar, bass guitar, or rhythm guitar, or create their own original songs using the DS touchscreen and stylus. The DS version also includes game sharing features through DGamer (Disney's new game sharing system). The title is produced by Disney's Fall Line Studio and by Radial Music, a London-based studio.