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Rock Band questions answered (some of 'em)
The folks over at Multiplayer used their "We work for MTV" powers to get some answers out of Harmonix about Rock Band. Of course, the fact that Harmonix also works for MTV probably aided them in this process. Ah yes, they even mention it in the post, so there you go. Anywho, Harmonix answered a few frequently asked questions (there should really be an acronym for that) about Rock Band that have been plaguing the community. First and foremost, there are no plans to offer other hardware configurations aside from the drums, microphone, guitar, and game bundle that has been circulating for a while now. In other words, if you'd prefer a bundle with, say, just a mic and the game, you're out of luck unless you buy them separately (which is still cheaper than the monster bundle). Also of note, the 360 bundle (with a wired guitar, remember) comes with a USB hub for all those other instruments. Finally, for those with Guitar Hero II X-plorers lying around, 3rd party guitars and peripherals should work just fine with Rock Band. We're sure it won't take long for peripheral makers to produce some less expensive versions of the various instruments, so those not looking to break the bank on the bundle may want to wait. Of course, if you're planning on nabbing Guitar Hero III, you should be able to use its guitar as well.
Shredmaster V wireless guitar controller rocks the FCC
So we've never seen this so-called Shredmaster V wireless guitar controller from China's E-Core Technology before, but from what we can tell from the FCC documents, it looks to be your standard third-party PlayStation 2 Rock Band axe. Price? Release date? Ha, couldn't tell ya; maybe a long-distance call to Shenzen City will clear things up.
Rock Band gets official pricing, ship date details
Although Rock Band was available for pre-order from a number of e-tailers earlier this summer, we're now hearing the "official word" from the suits at MTV regarding pricing. According to the MTV Multiplayer blog, both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions "will launch on November 23rd at a cost of $169.99." Bundled in will be the game, a single guitar, a mic and a drum kit. Additionally, the PlayStation 2 version -- which seemed to be on track for a 2008 release -- will reportedly make it onto store shelves just before the last ditch holiday rush, as it is now scheduled to land on December 10th for $159.99. As expected, the PS2 / PS3 packages will include wireless guitars, and while an optional cordless axe will certainly be available for the Xbox 360, its bundle will (sadly) include one with a tether. Oh, and Amazon has already updated its pages to reflect the finalized figures. [Via IGN]
Rock Band gets official price: now only $170
Who knew that one day, we'd think $170 for a game would be a steal? Originally thought to be $200 (or more!), Rock Band now has a friendlier price. The PS3 and Xbox 360 versions will be available on November 23rd, and the package will include the game, one microphone, one guitar and drum kit. (Those pinching their pennies will want to go for the PS2 version, which will retail for $10 cheaper on December 10th.) Strangely, the PS2 and PS3 controllers will be wireless, while the Xbox 360 ones will not. It may not matter to some, but multiplatform owners will most likely want to get the PS3 version for that very fact alone.
Confirmed: Rock Band $170, out Nov 23rd
It's official fellow Rock Band enthusiasts, EA has announced that Rock Band will be hitting stores shelves on November 23rd (which is a Friday) and will cost a cheaper than expected $170 for the Xbox 360 version. This is of course great news seeing that everyone and their mother was projecting the price to be in the $200 range and the fact that it's going to be $30 cheaper makes us smile from ear to ear. No other details have been confirmed, but we'll take a concrete release date and official pricing any day of the week. Rock on!
R.E.M. (orange) crushes in new Rock Band video
There is something inherently wrong with having R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe's voice paired up with a muscular, long-haired man in a sleeveless t-shirt. It just feels wrong. Regardless, that's exactly what we see in the above video that reveals the band's contribution to EA's upcoming Rock Band.IGN also previews the game, noting that we shouldn't expect as many solo-centric songs as one would find in Guitar Hero, since the game's focus is on enjoyment for an entire band. That said, IGN assures there will be tracks to appeal the budding (virtual) shredder. We tend to think there are more than enough bands out there -- Mastodon, Minus the Bear, Tool, Neil Diamond, etc. -- where every instrument part is an enjoyable challenge. The article also discusses the Fender Stratocaster-inspired guitar controller and its special effects switch.Rock Band is (still) due out sometime in November.[Via X3F]
A look at guitar in Rock Band, new REM track
While Rock Band looks to add a great deal to the Guitar Hero formula, there is a (legitimate) fear that hardcore Guitar Hero fanatics will find the game lacking. After all, it wouldn't exactly be fun for the rest of the band if the guitarist simply spent the whole song shredding while the rest of them stood silent. IGN takes a detailed look at this problem in a recent article. To sum up, Rock Band concentrates more on riffs than solos, but that doesn't mean solos aren't there. IGN concludes that they may not be as challenging as some of the most hardcore Guitar Hero tracks, but they can still have a high degree of difficulty. Furthermore, the article discusses Rock Band's version of star power, which is called overdrive. In an interesting trade off, a guitarist must use his or her overdrive in order to bring back a failed band mate. Ouch. The article also mentions the optional extras on the Rock Band Fender guitar, including the solo buttons close to the body as well as the effects switch. The effects switch can be used to turn on effects like wah wah during overdrive and solo sections. Finally, IGN reveals a new track for the game, "Orange Crush" by R.E.M. See it for the first time in the video above.
Rock Band wireless guitar for PS3 rocks the FCC
While there's no indication that they got the game to test it with, the folks at the FCC did at least get to spend a bit of time with the new wireless guitar for the PS3 version of Rock Band, which is more than enough to make us a tad envious. Somewhat interestingly, the guitar looks to come bundled with a fairly unassuming-looking dongle (check it out after the break), which would seem to be unnecessary if the guitar used Bluetooth, as some had previously speculated. Otherwise, the FCC filing looks to be about as standard as they come, complete with a snippet of the manual, a slew of test reports, and a few shots of the guitar's innards thrown in for good measure (click on through for a glimpse of that).
Rock Band's bundled guitar to be wired on Xbox 360, wireless for PS3
Now that you've gone and pre-ordered Rock Band, here's a tidbit about what will actually be included. According to Harmonix CEO Alex Rigopulos, the guitar that comes bundled in with the Xbox 360 version will not be wireless, as he reportedly states that "the cost of wireless technology on the Microsoft side is higher." Notably, the PS3 bundle will indeed include a wireless axe, and before you get too riled up, Xbox 360 users will still be able to purchase a wireless shredder separately if it's a make-or-break scenario for ya. Oh, and the drums and microphone will be wired on both platforms, but Xbox 360 buyers will purportedly get a USB hub thrown in to hook it all up.[Via GamingToday]
More Rock Band tracks: KISS, Soundgarden, RHCP
And the Rock Band tracks keep coming. EA, MTV, and Harmonix have announced three new tracks for the upcoming rock simulator. Again we see a mix of old and new tracks, in keeping with the songs that have already been revealed. Without further ado, here they are: "Detroit Rock City" by KISS "Dani California" by Red Hot Chili Peppers "Black Hole Sun" by Soundgarden Find a list of all tracks revealed thus far after the break.
Rock Band now available for pre-order
While prices and release dates for Rock Band have been floating for a while now, it looks like things may have finally settled down, with the entire kit now available for pre-order at a couple of retailers. If you're ready to go all out, you can snag a bundle for either the 360 or PS3 that includes the game, guitar, microphone, and drum set for $199, although you'll still have to wait until November 20th to actually get it. The whole lot is also available individually, with the game running $60, the microphone $30, and the drum set $80. Somewhat curiously, the 360 version of the wireless guitar is listed at $80 on both Amazon and GameStop, while the PS3 version only costs $50, although GameStop still says that the prices are "subject to change."Read- Amazon.comRead- Gamestop.com[Thanks, PacoDG]
Impromptu E3 gathering wants Rock Band, dead or alive
To anyone who might still doubt that Rock Band can instantly create a party, any time, anywhere, check out the above video of an impromptu gathering at the E3 2007's Fairmont hotel. Remember, these are highly jaded journalists and developers, coming to hang out and play a game after the formal show has ended for the day. If they're singing along, just imagine how much your friends will get into it.
Overheard@E3: Analysts like Rock Band
The Rock Band and Bethesda parties were crazy last night -- and everyone is ready to go back to work this morning. The analysts who look into their crystal ball and tell us the future seem to be liking Rock Band, the next game from Harmonix. This morning, outside the EA room at LeMerigot, a cluster of analysts were talking and one mentioned the game, "Rock Band, I was watching them play. This guy, on the drums, I mean, you have to be good."
Attend the Rock Band party vicariously through the magic of video
You've seen the pictures. You've read the psuedo sort-of liveblog. Now, check out Joystiq's exclusive video of EA/MTV/Harmonix's Rock Band Party at LA's historic Troubadour bar. Apologies for the sound and picture quality at parts -- the lighting and speakers weren't exactly specifically tuned for our pocket shaky-cam. Be prepared to turn the volume down ... to 11!
Rock Band party: Pseudo-anti live blog
This is rock n' roll! Connection is awful and we're probably going to finish this off later, but Harmonix's Rock Band party is the place to be! Energy is high, music rocks, Gamecock brings their hardcore style and it's just everything that can be rock and roll in here. Oh, and Peter Moore can RAWK! Not one pause, more on that in video form later!Helen from Harmonix (pictured above) brought down the house with Peter, far better than what we saw in the Microsoft press conference. Jay from Gamecock says he's pro Eagles of Death Metal who are playing. We also got Andy McNamara from Game Informer who says, "Queens of Stone Age (who are also playing) are riff masters." More on all of this later.%Gallery-4762%
Rock Band to have weekly DLC, Full Album downloads, and Metallica
Harmonix CEO Alex Rigopulos announced that Rock Band has some serious plans for delivering content to players. First off, Harmonix plans to release new music tracks every week. They can be released in singles, multi track bundles, or more deliciously, full albums. As an example Alex announced that The Who's Who's Next would be available for download following the game's release. As icing on the proverbial cake, selections spanning Metallica's musical career will be made available, with "Enter Sandman" playable on the retail disc. All in all, Harmonix is pushing Rock Band more as a platform than just a game, and we couldn't agree with the prospect more. We'll be back with hands on impressions and a proper tribute to Weezer as soon as we can.
Rock Band Guitar Prices PS3 vs 360
An anonymous employee from Game Crazy sent a tip and scan to Joystiq of their pricing for Harmonix's Rock Band peripherals for both the PS3 and Xbox 360. The microphone and drum kit cost $29.99 and $79.99, respectively. Unfortunately, the guitar controller has a price discrepancy between the two platforms, with the PS3's wireless guitar costing $59.99 and the 360's $79.99, a twenty dollar difference.As the story goes, Red Octane supposedly couldn't get a wireless guitar because using Microsoft's proprietary wireless technology would jack the price on the controller. Could the PS3's wireless technology be easier and cheaper to implement that would cause it to be cheaper than the 360's? Harmonix denied their being any discrepancy when asked that question, so we'll have to wait for either an announcement on pricing or some more concrete evidence from retailers.
Memo shows $20 gap in Xbox and PS3 Rock Band guitar
Nailing down a Rock Band peripheral price has been almost as difficult as explaining how Keith Richards is still alive. An employee of Game Crazy sent us a printout of the pricing list which they received on July 3. The only thing that really jumps out is the Xbox 360 guitar price being $20 more than the PS3 (more on this in a second). Much of the information is still in line with the GameStop pricing reported months ago. Officially a Harmonix representative says, "We have not released any pricing details regarding Rock Band as of yet, but stay tuned."The price discrepancy could go back to the issue from last year regarding Red Octane and their attempt to get a wireless guitar on the Xbox 360. Turns out to license Microsoft's proprietary wireless technology would have increased the cost of the wireless guitar and the company decided not to do it. Could $20 be the magic number being tacked on for the consumer? This would also assume, if the pricing is correct, that neither the drum set nor the microphone would be wireless given the lack of a price difference between the two systems. Although, we do have a statement regarding the price discrepancy as well. We were told by the Harmonix rep, "I am not aware of a price discrepancy." It looks like it's going to be a while before the actual, solid, final price of the peripherals gets nailed down. Right now, it's still all rumor and speculation -- officially.[Thanks Anonymous]
Video: Rock Band's Mississippi Queen
Update: It looks like the video has been pulled.Gametrailers has a new video up of a Pre-E3 Rock Band playtest, akin to the one our fellow 'Stiqqers attended, and shows off the menu UI, along with band member selection prior to the song. Speaking of which, today's performance is "Mississippi Queen", and despite Player 2 pausing twice during the jam session, it all went well, especially since the song featured more cowbell. The guitar players are using the Fender Stratocaster, and the drum kit is different than the one seen in the earlier video, as it is all black. Also, at the beginning, other songs in the play list that are different from the ones revealed earlier are David Bowie's "Suffragette City" and The Hives' "Main Offender". All in all some cool tidbits, and we can't wait to play "Say it Ain't So" at E3 next week. [Thanks, DarkStar]
Joystiq plays Rock Band, now with cow bell!
Of all the wonderful things we've learned about Rock Band, we were completely unprepared for the bombshell dropped in Joystiq's hands-on with the game. It is truly the best thing we have heard in a long time. Yes, that's right, the microphone not only doubles as a tambourine, it also serves as a cow bell. If you're playing Blue Oyster Cult's "Don't Fear the Reaper," you can bet your booties that you'll be applying some judicious cow bell. Of course, Joystiq's hands-on preview contains much more information, and you really should read it, but it is our job to extract the essence of all that we cover. If there be anything purer than cow bell, we haven't seen it.%Gallery-4604%
