Unlike Band Hero for the Wii, the DS version sets out to provide the first, full band experience on the DS. Activision has already made the Guitar Hero On Tour series for the DS, and Band Hero takes that same premise while now adding microphone support and drums. So how does this first full band music game for the DS stack up? Check out the full review below to find out!

If you’ve read through our Wii review for Band Hero, then you’ll know that the Wii version didn’t really add any new features to what was already there in Guitar Hero 5. Band Hero for the DS; however, adds drum support, microphone gameplay, as well as the existing guitar/bass instruments. The game begins by asking you some questions about your character and band name. You can customize a lot of aspects of your character avatar and it features many of the options you find in the console versions of the game. Once you have your band, characters, and instruments set up; it’s time to take the band on tour. You’ll start by playing songs at smaller venues, but more stars will unlock more venues and more options such as new instruments and attire. It’s the standard progression were used to with Guitar Hero games, but Vicarious Visions also added some slick bonuses.

First of all, the game features 200 different awards that can be unlocked by completing challenges in the game. These could be challenges such as: 100 note streak, getting 5 stars on songs, or completing songs on expert. The awards can be viewed later on and are split into various categories. You can actually check out the awards you haven’t attained and work on those in the game. It’s a nice, new feature cause it allows players to play the game at their own pace without worrying about only progressing in the single-player mode. The game also features connectivity to the Wii version of the game. The normal modes such as Roadie Battle and Stage Manager are available, but there are also 2 new gameplay modes: DS Party Play and Fan Requests.

DS Party Play allows you to control the songs in the Wii’s playlist. So if your friends are playing the Wii version, you have the control to modify the set list as you wish. It’s a small item, but a nice feature in addition to the Stage Manager mode. Fan Requests from the Wii version of the game will give you 50 extra challenges and can even unlock DS characters to be played in the Wii version of the game. These challenges will allow you to get fans a lot quicker than just collecting fans from play the DS game alone.

Band Hero for the DS comes with the Guitar Hero On Tour peripheral and a new Drum ‘sleeve’ that fits over the DS Lite’s buttons. The Guitar peripheral feels pretty good, but like the other On Tour games, it can get a little cramped when playing for awhile. The game actually recommends not to use the strap on the peripheral and just to hold the DS like you would normally (in book form). While this works better than before, it still seemed like the DS wiggles too much while playing the game—especially on Expert. When you’re strumming really fast, it’s hard to keep the DS from moving and still see the notes clearly. The drum sleeve fits over the entire bottom half of the DS Lite and has 4 drum buttons: Green, Red, Yellow, and Blue. The Green and Red layover the D-pad, while the Yellow and Blue layover ABXY. The drums are a lot of fun and add a whole new challenge to the game. I found that I was able to play on Expert with the Guitar, but couldn’t get higher than Medium with the drums. With some more practice, I’m sure it would become easier. The game also features training modes for the instruments as well, so you’ll be able to pick it up as you go.

The vocals are another addition to Band Hero and utilize the DS Lite’s built-in microphone. You’ll see the lyrics for the song and ribbons coming from the right indicating when to sing, how long to hold notes, and which note to hit (looks very similar to the display on the Wii version). My experience with it was pretty good, although at times it seemed that the microphone didn’t pick up my voice at all. I even found that I had to sing right into the microphone even with the mic volume turned up on high. I didn’t have the DS headset with me, but I would think that would help. At least it would keep you from having to stick the DS 3 inches away.

Band Hero’s tracklist is one of the best so far in the series of Guitar Hero On Tour games or even the Wii GH games. It features 30 songs from artists like Weezer, Queen, Sublime, Sum 41, Presidents of the USA, The Killers, Spin Doctors, and The Rolling Stones. It’s a very diverse and high quality track lineup that puts the Wii’s version of Band Hero to shame.

Multiplayer

The multiplayer is one of the highlights of the game and allows for 4 players to wirelessly connect and play one of the instruments. You can now take your songs on the go and play with your friends any time you want. There’s no Wifi Connection support, but local wireless is where you’d probably play most of the time anyway. The experience is fluid and is definitely the best multiplayer of any music game on any portable.

Conclusion

Band Hero for the DS is the best example of a music game on any portable platform. The game features the 4 instruments and allows for 4 players to play together wirelessly. The track list is certainly one of the best, if not the best, on any music game for a handheld and the new award system adds to the replayability of the title. Even with the hiccups I had with the microphone, Band Hero for the DS fires on all cylinders in delivering a great music game on the go!

Band Hero (DS) gets a 9.2/10