The Day the Music Died

Five and a half years ago, Harmonix upended the music game genre they themselves had already upended with Guitar Hero. Rock Band brought the full band experience to the living room, and it was a blast. Through multiple titles and an enormous number of DLC releases, I got more hours of enjoyment from the Rock Band franchise than any other game I've ever played.

Today, April 2, 2013, marks the end of the line. The steady erosion of the "fake instrument" genre was slowed at times by the release of the keyboard, Pro Mode, and other innovations, but it has finally fallen to a point where Harmonix can no longer keep up their unprecedented streak of more than 250 consecutive weeks of DLC. Appropriately, the final song they released to mark "the day the music died" was Don McLean's "American Pie."

I can't say I'm surprised it has come to this. I was surely in the top 5% of Rock Band players, in terms of money spent on the game. Maybe even the top 1%. But over the last year, my own engagement has been dropping off. The regular Rock Band nights I'd host like clockwork have become an infrequent affair. I've gone for a week without firing up the game, when I used to play every single night without fail.

Still, I certainly got my money's worth out of it. And a modest amount of musical ability too. My exposure to drums through the game led me to get an actual electronic drum kit. Rock Band 3's Pro Mode served as great lessons to get the ball rolling and help me learn to play. And while I may never land a recording contract, I feel I'm not exaggerating to say that I can truly play the drums.

It's been a fun ride. And I'll be waiting to see what Harmonix comes up with next.