Universal Music Group behind Queen Rock Tour video game

Universal Music Group has teamed with Hollywood Records and Gameloft to create the new Queen Rock Tour video game on mobile.

For Android and iOS devices, it allows players to score points playing along with CGIs of Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon and Roger Taylor, to 20 Queen classics.

These include ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, ‘We Will Rock You’, ‘Radio Ga Ga’, ‘I Want to Break Free’ and ‘We Are The Champions’ in 10 different venues around the world.

The video game marks the 50^th anniversary of the best-known lineup getting together, with the set marketed as the safe option in these coronavirus days: “no masks, no social distancing, just the good old fashioned live experience.”

“Be a lockdown rock star!” enthused May at the game’s launch. “No turning back!”

Andrew Kronfeld, executive vice president, marketing at Universal Music Group said: “Today, Queen are globally recognized as one of the most iconic and important bands in history.

“Decades after their first live shows together and following on from the huge worldwide box office success of the Bohemian Rhapsody biopic, their popularity continues to grow every year.

“We hope the launch of Rock Tour will introduce their inimitable rock legacy and catalogue to a new generation of fans, through this unique new gaming experience.”

Cedric Ratajczak, creative director at Gameloft for brands – now owned by Universal Music parent Vivendi, said a lot of time and effort went into the details of Queen’s history and artistry, “and aim at setting new standards for how band-focused music games could be executed on mobile today.”

He added, “Our ambition was to push the boundaries of music and gaming with a fun and rewarding experience that would put players in Queen shoes at pivotal points in their career and make them perform in real-time Queen’s live music unlike ever before.

“The creative challenge was to modernize the traditional rhythm-game genre with innovative and mobile-friendly twists inheriting from hyper-casual gaming, and with a unique and happy visual style that offers a timeless look to the band, appealing to the new generation of players.”

Queen’s move into video games comes after a surge of popularity for the band after 2018’s movie Bohemian Rhapsody, which generated a global gross of US$1 billion to a production budget of $52 million.

In Australia it topped the box office, turning over $5.7 million in its second weekend. Through four weekends of international release, Australia was the fourth biggest market.

Australian tours continue to sell out, while Greatest Hits and Live Around The World continue to appear on the ARIA Albums Chart.