I got your joystick right HERE!

You know what time it is?  It's Konami Time!  The company behind the familiar pre-2000 jingle is looking to expand their image past aging Snakes and whipping vampires in a big way, as indicated by this week's Gamer's Night 08.  Actually that's a half-truth, as they've still got the Metal Gears and Castlevania series on the way, but a few surprises helped give the whole affair the excitement tingles it needed, and just might help launch Konami into an entirely different direction.  Call it whatever you want, just don't call it a comeback!

The company that helped bring faux-guitar strumming (tapping?) into the next-century with their seminal Guitar Freaks series (not released in the US) is gearing up to take over the rhythm-based world with their newest creation, the multiple-instrument leaning Rock Revolution. But unlike every single one of its competitors, don't look for a guitar-centered experience this time around, as Konami has clearly aligned themselves with helping create the best drumming experience they could. Watch for a massive 6-drum pad monster to debut shortly, complete with foot pedal. There's support for both standard and bass guitar as well, although no plans to include a microphone at this time.

From the uber-cool press release comes this amazing bit of info:

"Rock Revolution will be the most innovative and realistic rock game to hit the market, that will provide a quality drum peripheral and music that players will appreciate," said Anthony Crouts, Vice President of Marketing for Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. "As the originator of music-based games, we are dedicated to bringing fans a truly preeminent music experience. With Rock Revolution, we put the emphasis on the drum kit, delivering an experience unlike any other."

Unlike EA and armonix's "wait and see approach", Konami's got the itch that every major console needs to scratch as the game will make its debut on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii and DS platforms. No word yet if the ever-popular PlayStation 2 will get some loving, but considering how viable Sony's resilient powerhouse is, I wouldn't be surprised. Reports have all versions of the game featuring a full career mode and dozens of songs (at least 40) to jam out to, from a variety of genres and mixed with popular tunes from past and present. But don't get any notions of karaoke dreams just yet, as none of the home consoles will feature vocal support...strangely the portable DS version is rumored to, so you'd better warn the bus drivers and cabbies early on.

Not much else is known at this time, although I'd really digging the cell-shaded look and feel so far, which reminds me of my own beloved Crackdown experience all over again. That's nothing official, just fond memories welling up. Fight...the...tears! Eight playable characters have been announced, as well as a spate of differing backdrops and locales, which should give the whole experience some much-needed variety and spunk. A rhythm-based game lives and breathes on the breadth of its variety, and if you consider how fleshed out and varied its competitors are (looking at you, Rock Band and Guitar Hero), Konami's certainly got their work ahead of them. But competition is always a good thing, so let's all hope for the best.

So will the rest of the world welcome Konami back onto the playground they helped create? With the competition fast and fierce, they've got a long and winding road ahead of them and that's the truth. Whether Rock Revolution is the comeback tour the company needs or quick cash-in reunion remains to be seen, but until then feast your eyes on some stills that kills. Enjoy!

Rocking your heart out, thanks to Kotaku and Wired Blogs!