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I must admit that I was a long-lost drummer that returned to the sticks thanks to RockBand. The game sparked a flame that had long been extinguished within me. After a couple of weeks of playing the game, I bought a Roland set.
With all the drumming interest that RockBand and the upcoming Guitar Hero World Tour has generated, I am puzzled why Roland or Yamaha haven't attempted to enter into this market. Sure, royalites would have to be paid; however, I think there is a large consumer base that could generate some serious revenue. Think about it... do a search on youtube and you will find a lot of people hacking systems on both sides of the fence. On one side of the fence, people are hacking the toy kits so they can be used as edrums on the computer via USB. On the other side of the fence, people are using control boards to convert the midi signals from real edrum kits to play on the game.
Maybe I am wrong, but it would seem like a marketing gold mine to offer a lower end kit that can play as both a standalone edrum set and a wireless game controller. I honestly think consumers would pay to have a hybrid set of edrums. These hybrid owners would often get a case of G.A.S. and start upgrading components. I also bet that many current vdrum owners would buy a plug and play midi device that could control the game as a wireless controller if it were offered. I know I would because tearing up the game controller and soldering wires from a third party control board is just too much trouble. Even though I have a real set now, I still enjoy playing the game with family and friends.
I feel that the more edrumers there are in the world ( regardless if they are game players or serious musicians) is better for all of us. More consumers equals more revenue, which equals more R&D, which equals additional or improved product offerings. I think it is a win-win. What say you on the matter? Dumb idea or are Roland and Yamaha missing a huge opportunity.
Chris
With all the drumming interest that RockBand and the upcoming Guitar Hero World Tour has generated, I am puzzled why Roland or Yamaha haven't attempted to enter into this market. Sure, royalites would have to be paid; however, I think there is a large consumer base that could generate some serious revenue. Think about it... do a search on youtube and you will find a lot of people hacking systems on both sides of the fence. On one side of the fence, people are hacking the toy kits so they can be used as edrums on the computer via USB. On the other side of the fence, people are using control boards to convert the midi signals from real edrum kits to play on the game.
Maybe I am wrong, but it would seem like a marketing gold mine to offer a lower end kit that can play as both a standalone edrum set and a wireless game controller. I honestly think consumers would pay to have a hybrid set of edrums. These hybrid owners would often get a case of G.A.S. and start upgrading components. I also bet that many current vdrum owners would buy a plug and play midi device that could control the game as a wireless controller if it were offered. I know I would because tearing up the game controller and soldering wires from a third party control board is just too much trouble. Even though I have a real set now, I still enjoy playing the game with family and friends.
I feel that the more edrumers there are in the world ( regardless if they are game players or serious musicians) is better for all of us. More consumers equals more revenue, which equals more R&D, which equals additional or improved product offerings. I think it is a win-win. What say you on the matter? Dumb idea or are Roland and Yamaha missing a huge opportunity.
Chris
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