The full album releases for Rock Band started off slow, but have gotten better. Even with the technical delays of Rush’s Moving Pictures, it’s still a good time. For the sequel, Harmonix is already detailing some full albums that will get DLC releases.
Foo Fighters — “The Colour and the Shape”
Red Hot Chili Peppers — “Blood Sugar Sex Magik”
Jane’s Addiction — “Nothing’s Shocking”
Megadeth — “Peace Sells… But Who’s Buying”
Stevie Ray Vaughn — “Texas Flood”
No Doubt — Compilation album made specifically for Rock Band 2
Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m a big fan of all of these bands. And these are some of their best albums. It’s safe to say I’ll be buying all of them. I’m wondering if Guitar Hero Wold Tour will be able to match the quality and quantity (and price) of DLC in Rock Band?
Harmonix has a pretty good philosophy here, in my opinion. Put the customer first and let everyone get a piece of whatever music they choose.
We prefer not to sign exclusive deals with artists because while it seems like the competitive “business” thing to do, in the long run, it’s really not good for anyone. We think we should be working to get more music out to more people.
This move has lost them Aerosmith and potentially Metallica, but overall, I think it’s the right way to do things. What do you think?
Have you calibrated your TV to work best with the Rock Band inputs from your instruments? It seems the latest patch is causing some big issues with that. Sure, you get some fixes and the new in-game store, but if gameplay breaks, everything suffers.
Our friend sskitzzo put together a video showing what happens to the calibration on the Xbox 360 version of the game both pre and post patch. He notes that after the patch, he was getting horrible scores until we spent some time setting up the calibration. Not cool.
You know what Rock Band needs? Boston. Not the city, you dumb asses, the band. Turns out, Harmonix thinks to too. On Tuesday on the Xbox Live Marketplace and Thursday on the PlayStation Store, you’ll have six classic Boston tracks to choose from. Each song will run you $1.99 (160 MS Points) or you can pick up the six pack for $9.99 (800 MS Points). Here’s the tracks, all master:
“More Than a Feeling”
“Peace of Mind”
“Smokin’”
“Rock & Roll Band”
“Something About You”
“Hitch a Ride”
I’m pretty sure I’ll be buying this whole pack next week. Great tunes. Now where is that Shooting Star by Bad Company we all know is coming…
Since Monday is Presidents Day in the US and most people are off work, Harmonix announced this week’s DLC for Rock Band a bit early. Here’s the new tunes for the week:
Sex Type Thing – Stone Temple Pilots
El Scorcho – Weezer
Why Do You Love Me – Garbage
Songs are priced at the normal 160 MS Points ($1.99). I think this will be two weeks in a row I don’t pick up any Rock Band tracks.
If you’ve been clamoring to get your hands on some extra Rock Band instruments, your wait is nearly over. Harmonix announced that standalone rocking tools will be available starting in February.
The drum kit will be available for all systems on February 12th for $79.99. Guitar players will have to wait a bit longer until April 1st, when you’ll be able to spend $59.99 for a wireless Fender Strat. No official word on when the mic will be available on it’s own.
I still with Harmonix and Activision would get their crap together over letting instruments from their games intermingle. It would really help PlayStation owners who have both games.
Do you love Rock Band? Do you suck at drumming? If you answered yes, it behooves to keep reading. Thats right, behooves. Harmonix has released a very complete drummer’s guide for all of you that are trying to master gaming’s latest craze. Wired magazine obtained a very complete FAQ of sorts that will allow you to become the best you can. Check this out. Remember, the noblest spirit embiggins the smallest man.
Are you a PS3 user who wants to complete your Rock Band but can’t because there’s no guitars on the market? Nyko is looking to help you out by releasing a dual game wireless guitar, the “Front Man”, in March. The guitar will have a switch on the dongle to select Guitar Hero mode or Rock Band mode, so you can use whichever is best for you.
I hope Activision and Harmonix come to a happy medium before then with this whole guitar fiasco. And looking at the picture of the dongle for the Front Man makes me cringe… that thing is huge.
Anyone who is unhappy with the musical instruments that comes with the beloved Rock Band game can rejoice. Sometime in the first half of this year, Mad Catz will release every peripheral for every console that Rock Band can be played on. This includes wired and wireless guitars, professional quality drum set, and top notch microphone. Here is a direct quote from Darren Richardson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz, courtesy of Gameargus.
This agreement with MTV Games represents a natural opportunity for Mad Catz to combine our core competencies of producing and distributing high-quality accessories with the entertaining experience of Rock Band’s interactive controllers,”
You have to love third parties throwing their hat in the mix. It always benefits the gamer because we are given a choice as opposed to settling for what is already there.
And it begins. It was a matter of time until the two competing music games butt heads. It seems that Activision has drawn first blood. There was a patch in the works that would allow the PS3 guitars to be used in the Rock Band game even though they were developed for GH3. The patch was created and is pending release, but Activision has objected to its release. This is a direct quote from the Harmonix Team’s letter to the public:
“As is the case with the Microsoft Xbox360, we believe that Sony PLAYSTATION 3 users should be able to use the peripheral of their choice with Rock Band. We sincerely hope that Activision will reverse its decision and allow release of the compatibility patch and further, that Activision will allow Guitar Hero III to support Rock Band guitar controllers as well. We welcome all third party developers who wish to support our controllers and will provide any required support in order for them to do so.”
Third party controllers and compatible peripherals are nothing new and only help the consumer not hurt it. Granted, this is only one side of the story, but it seems that Activision will be the bad guy on this one.
Anyone who is unhappy with the musical instruments that comes with the beloved Rock Band game can rejoice. Sometime in the first half of this year, Mad Catz will release every peripheral for every console that Rock Band can be played on. This includes wired and wireless guitars, professional quality drum set, and top notch microphone. Here is a direct quote from Darren Richardson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz, courtesy of 
Recent Comments