Billy Joel joins 'Rock Band 3' out of spite

Billy Joel is one of my favorite musical artists. Only the Good Die Young, Piano Man, Vienna...he's written so many classics. In fact, if I was on a desert island and could only listen to one artist for the rest of my life, I very well might choose Billy Joel.

It is for that reason that I am ecstatic about his presence on the new Rock Band 3 game, being released this Tuesday, October 26. He won't be featured on the actual game disc, but his music will be available in the Rock Band online music store. And I'll be first in the virtual line to buy each and every song.

I'm especially excited about this because I'll be able to use my full-sized MIDI keyboard to play along with Mr. Joel, and be able to learn his guitar riffs on their exciting new pro guitar.

Better than the news of Billy Joel being on Rock Band, however, are his reasons behind the decision.

In the past, Billy has rejected Harmonix and has wanted nothing to do with musical video games. That all changed after a joke during a recent episode of The Office. In the episode, members of the office play a fictitious game, Rock Band: Billy Joel. In his review of the episode for Entertainment Weekly, Darren Franich, in reference to the Billy Joel edition of Rock Band wrote: "God forbid that should ever happen!"

After reading that, Billy Joel told USA Today that he "called my people and said, 'Get me on that Rock Band game.' Then I wrote the critic, saying that every time I get a check, I'll give him a little nod."

You've gotta love Billy Joel. If that isn't some of the cleverest spite I've ever heard of, then I don't know what spite is...

Read the full tale from Mr. Joel himself over at USA Today.

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'Epic Mickey' Featurette: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit

Every Disney buff knows the story of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, the forgotten Disney character that predates even Mickey Mouse. What you may not know, however, is that he has a pivotal role in the upcoming video game Epic Mickey, bringing about a kind of "sibling rivalry" with Mickey.

To learn all about one of my favorite characters, Oswald, and to see just how he will be portrayed in the upcoming Warren Spector video game, watch the above video. Great stuff. I am so glad that, after almost 80 years on the shelf, Oswald is finally getting work again.

He deserves it.

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'Epic Mickey' Video

Above you will find the recently released video that provides the set-up for the upcoming video game, Epic Mickey.

The game is a part of a campaign by Disney to re-brand Mickey from his perfect, clean personality to one of mischief. It is being developed solely for the Wii console, and is expected to come out later this year.

I am very excited for this game. Although I don't think it will be as good as Kingdom Hearts (Square Enix+Disney was a dream come true), I still think it will be great. I can't decide if the graphics are too cartoon-y for me or not--I guess I'll just have to wait and see some gameplay footage before I make up my mind. Also, I don't quite agree with Disney's decision to re-brand their iconic character, but I guess we should be glad they aren't scrapping Mickey altogether.

Stay tuned for a review of Epic Mickey later this holiday season.

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My Thoughts on 'Prince of Persia'

When I first heard that the movie giant Jerry Bruckheimer was taking the video game Prince of Persia and turning it into a movie, I thought that he had reached a new low. After all, the best movies are completely original, next come sequels, then comic book adaptations, novel adaptations, and, at the bottom of the list, we find video game adaptations.

However, I was pleasantly surprised by Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. I was expecting an exceedingly weak plot, cheesy one-liners, and a lot of Jake Gyllenhaal staring into the camera. While the film was filled to the brim with those last two, its plot wasn't that disappointing. Sure, it was predictable, but at least it wasn't boring. Its story wouldn't have made a passable novel, but the plot is what it should be: a neutral canvas that they could throw action sequences, funny jokes, and great effects onto.


Although, there were a few scenes when the plot felt very forced. The most obvious example of this was the scene when Dasdan first discovers the dagger's powers and he blatantly states, almost immediately, "Oh, pressing the jewel on the hilt of the dagger turns back time by one minute and only the holder of the dagger is aware that anything has happened!" These moments of the film ruin the illusion that films are supposed to create, and are the result of just plain laziness on the writer's part.


The action sequences were very entertaining and suspenseful. Jake Gyllenhaal must have had numerous stunt doubles for all of the rooftop jumping, diving off of buildings, and other impressive acrobatics he performed during every other scene. That aspect of Prince of Persia, as well as Mr. Gyllenhaal's comedic acting were both positives for me.

Probably my favorite aspect of the film would have to be Alfred Molina. He was the best actor in the film (I was slightly disappointed by Ben Kingsley's weak performance), and his character, Sheik Amar, was really funny.


Overall, Prince of Persia: Sands of Time did exactly what it set out to do: combine big actors, big action, big laughs, and big marketing to create a summer hit that would make Disney (and Mr. Bruckheimer) millions at the box office. While parts of the plot felt forced, I'd consider the story average, but the action was great, and Alfred Molina was the best. I'd recommend going out and seeing it this weekend. Don't analyze it too critically; just be entertained.

I give Prince of Persia: Sands of Time a solid 7 out of 10 stars.

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'Toy Story Mania!' Coming to Wii in 3D

Disney Interactive Studios has announced their upcoming game for the Wii, Toy Story Mania!. It will, of course, feature the familiar characters from Toy Story, but it will also be in 3D!

The game will have the same premise and mood as the ride of the same name which can be found at Disney's California Adventure Park, as well as in Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World.

As put in Disney Interactive Studios' announcement:

In Toy Story Mania!, players experience the fast-paced, zany fun of the Toy Story Mania! theme park attraction, which is an interactive experience requiring 3D glasses and involving rapid or quick-firing shooting galleries. In addition to galleries adapted from the attraction, the game includes new and original galleries and a series of mini games, all hosted by beloved characters from the movies. The thematically-connected levels are designed for up to four players of all ages with competitive and co-operative multiplayer options. Toy Story Mania! also includes bonus 3D features, transforming the game experience with eye-popping visuals.

The game's release will coincide with Toy Story's re-release in 3D on October 2.

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Tuesday Link Roundup

Disney fans are quite overwhelmed with news today due to the announcement of D23, as well as other news which has arisen from either Pixar, Disney's shareholder's meeting, or who knows where else. Here is a comprehensive list of the day's important, Disney-filled news:

• The official synopsis of Partly Cloudy, the short preceding Pixar's newest feature Up, has been released by Pixar. Read it on Upcoming Pixar here.
• The release date for Disney's upcoming feature The Princess and the Frog has been brought back from Christmas Day to December 11 in order to avoid competition with an Alvin and the Chipmunks sequel. AWN has a great article talking about these reasons behind pulling the release date of The Princess and the Frog, which is Disney's first movie in about 10 years which centers around a princess and is 2D, both of these attributes, as you know, are very similar to classic Disney films.
• Bob Iger announced today something that is making theme park execs shake in their boots, if they haven't shaken 'em off already.
  
• The big news of the day is D23. Read my coverage of this new "Official Club for Disney Fans", or visit the official site.
• Bob Iger also announced the names of Disney's two new cruise liners. They are "Fantasy" and "Dream". Read all about it at The Disney Blog.
• Other news covered today by myself includes my review of the new Pinocchio DVD and Blu-ray Discs, and the launch of Up: The Video Game's site.

That was the first 'Link Roundup' for Disney, etc.! I hope you enjoyed it, and I'll be sure to do more of them when the day's Disney news gets unbearably cumbersome to read and comprehend.

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'Up: The Video Game' Website Launched

Briefly: Today, THQ launched a preview site for Up: The Video Game. It doesn't provide any further details about the movie, but offers a free, downloadable demo of the game which features the long-awaited score by Michael Giacchino. The news release featuring all further details regarding the game, which will come out in May, can be found here.

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Rock Band 2: The Sequel

Harmonix recently announced the next edition of Rock Band. It looks awesome. You can either get the whole new set of upgraded and improved instruments, or you can use your Rock Band 1 instruments. Also, they will be allowing third-party accessories and instruments to be made and sold. They want Rock Band's instruments to be like a real instruments: everyone likes different feels and styles of instrument.

Another great thing about Rock Band 2, is that you will be able to use all of your Rock Band 1 songs with the Rock Band 2 game, and vice versa. Oh, yeah, and Xbox 360 owners get to enjoy it as early as September of this year. Where Wii, PS2 and PS3 owners need to wait until "later in the year". There will be tons of more details and goodies to pour over after E3, where more will be announced. For now, here's a really good interview via IGN. You can also see the sweet new guitar pictured below. It will hopefully be wireless, and is said to be quieter and it feels like a real guitar.

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Guitar Hero wants to be Rock Band when he grows up.

Today at "D", with the help of Brody Jenner, Paula Abdul, and Tony Hawk, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick showed off Guitar Hero World Tour for the first time. There are drums, a microphone, and two guitars... Sound familiar? I hope so, that is exactly what Rock Band is! AND, the new Guitar Hero is gonna cost more than Harmonix's music game, its gonna cost $190! See if you can tell in what way Activision isn't ripping off Harmonix for overall concept...

Rock Band:

Guitar Hero World Tour:


Rock Band:



Guitar Hero World Tour:

Rock Band:

Guitar Hero World Tour:



Think what you will, but it seems like Activision may be trying to be a bit too much like Harmonix...

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