14 DAY TRIAL // The latest Rock Band title, based around the career of the punk rock band Green Day, is set to be launched next week for the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360, and we already know that a new full installment in the music simulation series is in the works at developer Harmonix and partner MTV Games.
But with the overall market for such experiences being the fastest shrinking one in gaming, companies and their publishing partner, Electronic Arts, must be thinking about occupying new, related niches. The latest rumor is that Harmonix is actively working on a dancing simulator that will be linked with the launch of Microsoft's motion tracking Project Natal peripheral for the Xbox 360.
The rumor comes from Game Informer who heard from an inside source about the new spinoff. The information gains some more momentum when added to the fact that Harmonix has been known to license quite a few dance music tracks that are not at all suited to be played in Rock Band and have never been offered on its official store. A dance title may put them to good use and the fact that it could be integrated with Rock Band and its brand recognition might lead to good sales, as long as the mechanics are solid and the songs well chosen.
Project Natal is a good choice for such a dance title because of the freedom it offers, with no controller needed to send signals to the Xbox 360, which can then translate them into movement and evaluate the performance of the gamer. It's not clear whether the PlayStation Move, the motion tracking solution that Sony will offer for its home console, can offer the same capabilities.
The rumored Harmonix move might have something to do with the success of the recently launched Just Dance for the Nintendo Wii, which has managed to move about 3 million copies.