Harmonix Explains Why Air Drumming Sucks

One of Nintendo's big games showcased during last week's E3 was none other than Wii Music, which replicates dozens of musical instruments through the Wii remote and nunchuk. During the Nintendo press conference, the air drumming aspect in particular was highlighted, but will this feature appeal to real drum enthusiasts?

During our exclusive interview with Harmonix chief Alex Rigopulos, we couldn't help but get his take on the drumming aspect of Wii Music. Although he initially refrained from commenting directly on Wii Music because he hadn't seen enough of the game yet, Rigopulos did share with us his general feeling on using the Wii remote and nunchuk to perform air drumming. Bottom line: he's not feeling it – literally.

"...in the early days of the Wii when it was first announced, we contemplated using the Wiimote for a drumming interface. We backed away from it because we found that the tactile element of actually hitting a surface when you're drumming is a fairly critical part to the visceral feel of actually playing drums. So when you're air drumming, it was a critical element you're missing in the experience. So that's one of the reasons we backed away from it and decided to build a custom drum peripheral," he explained.

For a game like Rock Band, we have no doubt that Rigopulos made the right decision. Wii Music, on the other hand, we'd venture to guess will sell very well, air drumming and all, and customers won't regret not having that tactile feel. And if they do, they could always buy Rock Band 2 or Guitar Hero: World Tour for a more genuine drumming experience.