Music game that could rock the holidays

The great video guessing game has started. Which of the new music-based games will be a hit and which will be filling the wannabe bins in retail stores?

Billboard.com reported Tuesday that sales of music-based games are down 50 percent over last year, and last year was 40 percent lower than the year before. So which of this year's titles are going to buck this trend, and which will add to it?

Get ready to rumble

"Rock Band 3," which hit the shelves Tuesday is among the contenders. Publisher MTV Games and developer Harmonix took a big leap in the third edition with the addition of a 25-key keyboard controller. It opens up both increased revenue through the sale of a new peripheral and an expanded catalog of songs that includes keyboard-heavy tracks from the Doors and Dire Straits.

Gotta dance?

"Dance Central," which is due next Thursday, Nov. 4, is considered a "must have" for anyone buying Microsoft's motion-based Kinect controller for the Xbox 360 console. Microsoft is projecting worldwide Kinect sales of about 3 million units through the end of the year. Analysts expect almost anyone buying the Kinect to also pick up a copy of "Dance Central," one of the most anticipated game titles using the controller.

Play that funky music

"DJ Hero 2" The sequel has tracks by Lady Gaga, Deadmau5, Kanye West and Rihanna and has earned high scores for improving on the original title. From publisher Activision, it's still saddled with a high price tag due to the turntable controllers needed to play the game.

Hip-hop karaoke

"Def Jam Rapstar" from Konami is new. A hip-hop karaoke game, it has the benefit of the Def Jam brand and an innovative social networking element that lets users record their performances and post them to a dedicated website for peer review. New downloadable tracks are to be available every week. Billboard.com mentions a common criticism -- the lyrics that have been heavily edited to achieve a teen rating.