'BeatRider' to Offer a Rhythm Game With Your Music
posted by arn on May 4th, 2009 8:20 PM EDT in Upcoming Games
BeatRider is an upcoming iPhone and iPod Touch rhythm game (like DDR or Tap Tap Revenge) that actually allows you to use your own MP3s.
The app accomplishes this by allowing you to upload your music to their servers. You can then play these songs from within the game, itself. The reason for the convoluted process is that existing App Store apps can not directly access your music library. As a result, the server upload is their solution to this issue.
The announced iPhone 3.0 firmware reportedly does allow access to your iPhone's music library so this may not be an issue in the future.
The developers have posted this video which shows the game in action, and walks through the uploading process. Note, we started the video at the beginning of actual gameplay, if you would like to see the upload process, rewind the video.
Once you get past the uploading demonstration, the game itself actually looks quite nice. The game has been submitted to the App Store and is awaiting approval.
Looks decent enough, not keen on the noises when you tap the buttons, would much rather have something like Guitar Hero where the track cuts out when you miss a note.
What am I saying, bring us an official Guitar Here or Rock Band.
(breathes in) omgomgomgomgomgomg…. (I'm done)
This is plain amazing, I might dream about this tonight
That really looks impressive, imagine what a Dethklok or metallica song will be like on that :-p
Or Through The Fire and Flames
been hoping Tap Tap get's the rights to use it.
yeah i cant wait to play that song
looks insane..i dont get the music appps but i might for this one. the only thing is that it looks a little hard,,,,i hope they have easier levels
If executed good, this has potential to be an amazing game. However, Audio Surf will give it a run for its money because that's in production too.
This will have a good head start, though. Audiosurf won't be available until iPhone OS 3.0 is out.
You said it, Alec. This is going to be godly. This today, tommorrow, Audiosurf!
I would honestly pay good money for this…
So… How much is it going to cost? I assume it's going to cost something since the video ends with a shot of the iPhone Home page with BeatRider and BeatRider Lite.
That player is doing GREAT!
You better be able to get rid of those stupid sounds that play when you hit the buttons.
So, thousands of people will upload copyrighted songs to their servers, and these songs will be "fixed" and downloading again so they can be played in the game.
Maybe I'm not understanding it right but this process seems like a good way for the developer to get sued. It seems to me like some step in this process, whether it's the uploading and downloading of songs, or profiting from modifying these songs to use them in the game, will get the labels/RIAA/ASCAP/copyright holders upset.
I don't mean to be negative and it does look like a fun game, I just hope they know what they're doing with this process. Accessing the music library is one thing but the uploading/downloading seems like a red flag to me.
It seems you can only play your own songs. So you're only sharing your songs with yourself.
arn
That's exactly right, as far as I understand it. You make your own account on the game, and then login on the computer to upload tracks, then it downloads the tracks you uploaded onto the game. A nice little loophole until 3.0 is released, as complicated as it is.
I fully understood all that, but still uploading your own (copyrighted) music, having them "fix" it to play in the game and then downloading it again still seems like the kind of thing that will either prevent it from being approved, or will raise the ire of the copyright holders. For example does the company really have the right to accept these uploads and store them, even temporarily? Can the accept the files and modify them on their end without permission, and since it will happen on their "property" would they be perceived as profiting from copyrighted works they don't own?
I'm obviously no legal expert, of course, and for all I know it's all cool and legal (and when 3.0 comes out and they can use the device's library it's probably going to be a non-issue.) All the power to them because it looks like a fun game.
Flo Rida? Right Round?! Already, the app's potential is being ruined!!!
If they can get The Final Countdown (which has a ton of clashing instruments) right on this one, I'll be impressed.
YOU IMPORT YOUR OWN SONGS!!!!
That was this guy's personal playlist, musical taste aside, the game looks great…
Music is subjective, you're retarded if you think that the music you like is the only one that everyone should listen to.
Backstreet Boys?! HAHAHAHAHA
WOW! i would definately pay 10$ for this game, it cllok soo good! i am pumped for it to come out
Dude come out NOOOOOOOOOOWWWW I cannot wait anymoooore!!!!!
Does anybody what firmware this will use?
Why does each key make a drum sound? I thought this would be like guitar hero, where the notes are in sync with the guitar or the song. This feels like your just playing a drum machine along to a song..
This will be rejected because of the legal ramifications of the song upload feature. However, it will be approved when 3.0 comes and they change it to access your music library directly.
It's already been approved in another country. So I doubt you're right.
what country?
What country?! oooh c'moon i cant wait anny longer
I believe it's been approved in Japan. If you go to the website, it already has Appstore Links.
Scratch that, It's Korea and Japan. Still, looking like there is no reason this shouldn't be approved.
Hope its like the game on the old ipod which i sorely missed when I got my iphone and stopped using my ipod… Looks like fun!
iPhone OS 3.0 is not support directly access(read) music file in music library. see 'Media Player Framework Reference' in 3.0 SDK.
only support playing music and getting music info.
To generate rhythm from music… app must directly access(read) music file.
Therefore, to play rhythm game using user's music file… BeatRider's method is the only solution.
i think… AudioSurfer can't implement in iPhone OS 3.0.
Why is that that the older iPod game "Phase" was able to access your music directly? I mean you had to make a "Phase" playlist and add the songs you wanted in the game, but it was a lot simpler.
Maybe because the iPods didn't have internet access and they weren't worried about the program doing anything illegal with your music.