| Jam Sessions | |
| Developer: | Plato |
| Publisher: | Plato (Japan) Ubisoft (International) |
| Director: | Seth Delackner Seiichi Okumiya |
| Genre: | Music |
| Modes: | Single player |
| Platforms: | Nintendo DS |
Jam Sessions is a guitar simulation software title and music game for the Nintendo DS that was originally based on the Japan-only title Sing & Play DS Guitar M-06 (Hiite Utaeru DS Guitar M-06) originally developed by Plato and released months earlier. It was later brought to North America, Europe and Australia, courtesy of Ubisoft.
Jam Sessions makes use of the DS touch screen to simulate strumming on a real guitar, while the D-pad is used for selecting chords. The game allows players to play through a list of songs in order to unlock other features such as upgraded strings and new backgrounds, while Free Play allows the player to simply strum away, playing out songs or practicing without being judged. Tutorial and Warm Up modes teach players how to play the game and get accustomed to the controls and the concepts behind playing guitar.
What makes Jam Sessions different from other rhythm games, such as Guitar Hero, is that it is considered to be a tool instead of a game. In addition, the player (while using headphones or an external speaker) can also use the DS microphone to sing along. Andy Myers of Nintendo Power and his band, Hidari Mae demonstrated this ability by writing and recording a song using Jam Sessions for guitar alongside traditional instruments.
The DS can also be plugged into an amplifier via the headphone jack to output a more natural sound. A Jam Sessions "Performance Bundle" was set to be released on January 4, 2008 and was going to include a portable amplifier in addition to the game. The bundle has since disappeared from Ubisoft's web page.
In addition to publishing and translating the game for western players, Ubisoft have also modified and expanded certain aspects of the original title. These include:
The chords and lyrics to the following list of songs appear in the game for players to perform. Some songs also feature an audio demo of the song.
The following songs are available on the European version:
Copies of Jam Sessions sold at Best Buy also include the chords and lyrics of the following songs available by default:
These Best Buy "exclusive" songs can be unlocked in other copies by inputting a variation of the Konami Code.[1]
In the Europe version, the following songs can be unlocked by pressing up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right in free play mode. If playing in left-handed mode the code is X, X, B, B, Y, A, Y, A.
The game is infamous for its Australian ad campaign, which consisted of two viral internet advertisements that had content at odds with the otherwise G-rated game. The first features a child named Hudson swearing at his mother over being given sponge cake, while the other showed another boy named Jacob making out with his aunt against her will after receiving Jam Sessions for his birthday.