Pop quiz, nerds. Name that great music game from Harmonix where players target glowing note capsules to win points and unlock songs of increasing difficulty.
If you said either Frequency or Amplitude, prepare for a very welcome shock: the little game that kicked off the Guitar Hero and Rock Band gigafranchises looks like it might be getting a sequel on the PS3, according to an ars technica interview with Harmonix CEO Alex Rigopolus:
Ars Technica: Has there been a conversation about bringing that game to the
PlayStation Network? You’ve proven the formula, and you can say “From
the people who brought you Rock Band.”
Rigopulos: Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!
Ars Technica: It seems like it would be a mutually beneficial thing to do.
Rigopulos:
I would love to. That game is still close to my heart. I love it. I’d
love to do a sequel to Amplitude, actually. It’s an issue of
prioritization. It’s challenging enough to keep the Rock Band train on
the tracks. (Editors note: earlier that day, Rigopulos had announced that there would be no new Rock Band sequel in 2009, in order for Harmonix to focus fully on the Beatles title.) We’ve grown from about 80 or 90 people a couple years ago
to more than 300 now, and managing that kind of growth takes focus.
For the unaware, Amplitude and Frequency were Harmonix’s original music games, and were both released for the PS2 in the early part of the decade. Think Guitar Hero, but instead of playing a guitar, you’re flying a shiny, laser-equipped spacecraft inside of what looks like a giant computer. To survive, the ship must keep a song “alive” by playing and switching between different tracks, such as drums, vocals, and guitar. It makes no sense in context, either, but they’re still two of the best games ever made for the system.
Will it get the Wipeout HD treatment and appear on the PSN as a download, or are we looking at a full-fledged release? Either way, it’s great news that this overlooked treasure of a franchise isn’t dead.