Official Rock Band Thread (It's out, bitches)

Meh.

Anyone else getting less and less excited with every new Rock Band song announcement. I mean, there are only 12 licensed songs left to reveal, and so far, there's nothing that stands up to the best from GH3.
 
[quote name='evanft']Meh.

Anyone else getting less and less excited with every new Rock Band song announcement. I mean, there are only 12 licensed songs left to reveal, and so far, there's nothing that stands up to the best from GH3.[/QUOTE]

Agreed.
 
[quote name='evanft']Meh.

Anyone else getting less and less excited with every new Rock Band song announcement. I mean, there are only 12 licensed songs left to reveal, and so far, there's nothing that stands up to the best from GH3.[/quote]

One man's trash is another mans treasure. I think the Rock Band playlist is fantastic so far. I would buy the game for Say It Ain't So alone.
 
[quote name='InuFaye']They are just saving the best for last.[/QUOTE]

So the game is gonna be 33 easy, somewhat boring tracks and then 12 great ones? Good balance. Oh, wait, that's fucking retarded.
 
I gotta agree with evan. While I like the actual songs in Rock Band more than Guitar Hero III, they just seem way too easy to be any fun to play. If anything, I'd just try to get the game/drum.
 
[quote name='Richlough']Reports are saying :

Soundgarden , Black Hole Sun

Not Jesus Christ Posse .[it's an inside joke][/quote]
YES! This was the one band that was left on my list of "must haves" for a guitar hero/rock band game. And Black Hole Sun is my favorite Soundgarden song. Chris Cornell is my personal favorite vocalist of any band out there.
 
[quote name='Greetard']I gotta agree with evan. While I like the actual songs in Rock Band more than Guitar Hero III, they just seem way too easy to be any fun to play. If anything, I'd just try to get the game/drum.[/quote]

There really isnt any way to tell how "easy" a song is going to be until we see them in game (somewhat for drums, more significantly for guitar/bass). The notes and their corresponding buttons in game have a totally arbitrary relationship so it's pretty up to the game designers to decide how difficult the note layout is going to be.
 
[quote name='Greetard']I gotta agree with evan. While I like the actual songs in Rock Band more than Guitar Hero III, they just seem way too easy to be any fun to play. If anything, I'd just try to get the game/drum.[/QUOTE]

Yeah. Assuming the PS2 version comes out here, there better fucking be a drum/game bundle.

[quote name='SpecTrE3353']There really isnt any way to tell how "easy" a song is going to be until we see them in game (somewhat for drums, more significantly for guitar/bass). The notes and their corresponding buttons in game have a totally arbitrary relationship so it's pretty up to the game designers to decide how difficult the note layout is going to be.[/QUOTE]

Uhhhhh...no. Unless you're playing the game on easy or medium, the button combinations line up with the song in terms of rhythm, progression, speed, etc. Most of the song announced so far are basically lots o'chords and then some little solo section. The only way to make those difficult would be to randomly make some of the chords 3 buttons, like they did with Guitar Hero 80s. We all know how well that little plan worked out.
 
[quote name='evanft']Meh.

Anyone else getting less and less excited with every new Rock Band song announcement. I mean, there are only 12 licensed songs left to reveal, and so far, there's nothing that stands up to the best from GH3.[/quote]
Definetly...

I wouldn't mind though if they were to announce Guns N Roses: Appetite for Destruction as a downloadable album. I think that would make up for nearly every less then stellar song out the box.
 
Black Hole Sun instead of Jesus Christ Pose? Boo. I understand why they'd select the former, but don't fuckin' tease me like that.

Oh, hey, guess what? We're gonna include every great metal band ever in Rock Band! Oh, no, we really meant we're going to have a "Bee Gees" DLC album.

grrr.
 
[quote name='bardockkun']Definetly...

I wouldn't mind though if they were to announce Guns N Roses: Appetite for Destruction as a downloadable album. I think that would make up for nearly every less then stellar song out the box.[/QUOTE]

I'd love for that to happen as well .
 
[quote name='SpecTrE3353']There really isnt any way to tell how "easy" a song is going to be until we see them in game (somewhat for drums, more significantly for guitar/bass). The notes and their corresponding buttons in game have a totally arbitrary relationship so it's pretty up to the game designers to decide how difficult the note layout is going to be.[/QUOTE]

Have you seen any of the game footage? There's gotta be videos of at least 12-13 songs out there, and the only one that looks like it requires any skill with the guitar peripheral on expert mode is Wanted Dead or Alive. Minimal skill.
 
No doubt the songs in Rock Band are going to be easier than those in Guitar Hero 3. GH3 has to appeal to the GH fanbase, who expect the challenge to be kicked up another notch. They only have to focus on songs that are fun to play on guitar.

Rock Band has to focus on songs that are fun for the whole band to play. In particular, they have to be good karaoke songs, because not a lot of people are going to be interested in screaming out some crazy metal song which is 3/4 guitar solo. Harmonix is trying to appeal to a broad audience...and I think especially would like to get non-gamers in on the action who may at first be too intimidated by the guitar controller to play GH, but find the karaoke elements and comradarie of being part of the band to be appealing.

Also, one thing I noticed while playing Rock Band is the buttons aren't as "fast" as those on the GH controllers. I think it would be difficult to nail some of the harder parts of GH2 with that controller.
 
Game Informer Story

When Harmonix announced that it was forging its own separate path from Activision following the success of the developer’s Guitar Hero series, it was clear that they would face a few big challenges—the biggest of which was escaping from their own game’s shadow. Although their new game, Rock Band, was an ambitious follow-up to Guitar Hero, fans of that series couldn’t help but draw comparisons between the two. While Rock Band added new gameplay layers by allowing would-be musicians to play drums and sing, some saw those additions as garnish to the familiar guitar gameplay they were accustomed to. After spending several hours with Rock Band, it’s clear that those comparisons are as misguided as they are inevitable.

We spent several hours playing through the solo guitar part of Rock Band’s career mode, getting about a third of the way through it. Players who are pretty good at Guitar Hero will notice one thing almost immediately—the lead guitar sections are considerably easier than those in Guitar Hero games. While the first few song tiers are obviously geared toward getting players situated with the game, even the songs that appeared much later on posed little challenge. We’re far from guitar gods—though we’re pretty good—and even on the expert difficulty we cruised through songs, getting four- and five-star ratings on the first try. We only hit one point where we had to enter power mode, and we probably could have squeaked by without it.

With that out of the way, here’s the important part—which cannot be stressed enough—Rock Band is not Guitar Hero. If you plan on getting Rock Band just for the solo guitar parts, you’ll probably be a little disappointed on the outset. That’s because the song selection caters to the four different instruments. Guitar Hero has trained a lot of players into thinking that guitars are the only instrument in the mix, and that if your fingers aren’t twisted into pretzels by the end of a song something’s wrong. In Rock Band, some of the guitar parts are going to be kind of boring. That’s because the bass player is grooving along, taking the spotlight. Other parts might focus on tricky drum sections or showing off the vocalist’s chops.

That’s not to say that the guitar is a let-down—it’s far from it. Because of the difference in overall objectives, we got a better sense that we were actually playing the guitar in some sections of Rock Band than we have in Guitar Hero. We didn’t find ourselves tapping out a keyboard section on our plastic guitar controller, just so we’d have something to play.

Guitar Hero games definitely don’t start expert players off easy. While those games do offer a tiered structure that gets harder, even the early songs feature plenty of three-note chords and plenty of knuckle-crunching hammer-ons and pull-offs. From what we played in Rock Band, we only encountered a few three-note chords, and very, very few hammer-ons and pull-offs.

The Rock Band guitar controller is a pretty slick piece of hardware, with lots of little chrome-finished details. It looks more like a guitar than the Guitar Hero controller, though it doesn’t really affect gameplay. Players will probably fall into two camps—those who prefer the Guitar Hero controllers versus those who’d rather play Rock Band with its specially designed controller. Fortunately, Harmonix said their game will support either peripheral, so it’s not that big of an issue. The buttons are a bit bigger and more closely spaced in Rock Band, which took some time getting used to. During a few sections—particularly when alternating between chords on extreme ends of the fretboard—we lost our bearings and missed notes.

One thing Rock Band has going for it is Harmonix’s ambitious download strategy. While the current song list contained on disc is geared toward band-oriented gameplay, the company has plans to release songs and entire albums directed toward guitar parts. So shredders who feel like their best licks are going unused in the standard career path can take consolation knowing that—if Harmonix delivers on their promises—they’ll be able to show off their moves in earnest eventually. In the meantime, the song selections and guitar gameplay are a great counterpart to Guitar Hero’s digit-spraining action. And even if you don’t get blisters after a gig, you’ll still feel like a rock star

Just for fun, we captured video of The Strokes’ “Reptilia,” one of the master tracks featured in both Rock Band and Guitar Hero III. Playing the two clips side by side illustrates how Harmonix and Neversoft tabbed out the same song differently, with Harmonix switching between lead and rhythm guitar parts and Neversoft choosing to stick with the lead. With both titles sharing some of the same songs, it’s inevitable that people are going to scrutinize the differences between the individual note charts and do side-by-side comparisons.
Click to expand...

Looks like my prediction of RB being incredibly easy on guitar was true.
 
They all look extrordinarily easy.
Click to expand...

Could be because:

1. You're looking at the easy parts.
2. Harmonix will start out "fresh", as if GH never existed.
3. Expert was more work than fun anyway.
 
[quote name='Nohbdy']
3. Expert was more work than fun anyway.[/quote]
BLASPHAMY! HE'S A WITCH!!!! BURN HIM!!!! BURN HIM!!!!!
 
He's on my ignore list for a reason. Frankly, if deleting medium and easy would allow them to get another, say, 5-10 songs in the game, I'd be all for it.
 
It's a shame the songs are easier like that...

But it is nice to know I can use my GH2 guitar for bass in Rock Band, and the slick Rock Band controller in GH3.
 
I'm honestly less excited for the game now. I mean sure I'll be getting it, but I was hoping for something that'll further continue the challenge left by Guitar Hero, not take a step backwards in difficulty. Hopefully they make up for everything with the drums, but my expectations are a bit less now...
 
Yeah, I actually think they should have just made the game "Drum Hero" and rearranged, added, and subtracted from the song list accordingly. I mean, OK Go? WTF?
 
GS: As we understand it, bandmates won't be able to hear the vocalist sing when playing online. Are there plans to add that functionality in the future?
DS: When playing online with others, your bandmates cannot hear you sing; they can only watch your pitch and score on the screen to ensure you're keeping up to par. I can't speak to future plans in this area at this time.
Click to expand...
http://www.gamespot.com/xbox360/puzzle/rockband/news.html?sid=6178927&tag=topslot%3Btitle%3B3&page=1

thats gonna be kinda weird...
 
[quote name='evanft']Videos at the GI story. There's one with 9 songs on expert. They all look extrordinarily easy.

I deleted the videos section from the main post cause it was pointless.[/QUOTE]

Wow. Neversoft's take on the song is definitely more difficult than Harmonix's, but their note-to-note chart pales in comparison. I thought GHIII had this battle all wrapped up, but if the other shared songs are like this, it's going to be a tough call.
 
[quote name='FriskyTanuki']Wait, Rock Band is not Guitar Hero?! When did this happen?[/quote]

I won't go into the huge, long discussion as to how Rock Band is Guitar Hero. But I can justify that statement if I wanted.
 
[quote name='Greetard']Wow. Neversoft's take on the song is definitely more difficult than Harmonix's, but their note-to-note chart pales in comparison. I thought GHIII had this battle all wrapped up, but if the other shared songs are like this, it's going to be a tough call.[/QUOTE]

WTF? They look almost exactly the same, except Neversoft's sticks with the lead guitar.

[quote name='FriskyTanuki']Wait, Rock Band is not Guitar Hero?! When did this happen?[/QUOTE]

Uhhh, yes, it is. It's GH with drums and vocals.
 
[quote name='evanft']Uhhh, yes, it is. It's GH with drums and vocals.[/quote]

I would think that balancing a game around 4 instruments rather than 1 or 2 would constitute a considerable difference. If it was "GH with drums and vocals." it would consist of songs that were picked solely by their guitar parts which doesn't seem to be the case so far.

I did play one song in Rock Band at PAX when I was there ("Epic" by Faith No More on Expert) and it actually was a bit boring. I did not get to experience playing with a full group though, just with 1 other guitarist. My friend (delerium266 on CAG) got a chance to play with the full band and seemed pretty impressed. I definitely think this is the type of game that will require a decent group of friends to enjoy... I'm not really sure if that is a good or bad thing yet.
 
[quote name='evanft']Uhhh, yes, it is. It's GH with drums and vocals.[/quote]
:whistle2:k Strange. Everybody's bitching that it's not GH, but you say it is.
 
[quote name='FriskyTanuki']:whistle2:k Strange. Everybody's bitching that it's not as good as GH[/QUOTE]

Fixed

Edit: Personally I think it's too early to argue that point, but that's what people are talking about.
 
[quote name='evanft']WTF? They look almost exactly the same, except Neversoft's sticks with the lead guitar.
[/QUOTE]

No, dude. Look at the up and down chord progressions from both after 00:16. Harmonix's looks more natural and true to form, for a button-pressing-in-the-vain-of-guitar game, that is.
 
[quote name='Backlash']Fixed

Edit: Personally I think it's too early to argue that point, but that's what people are talking about.[/quote]
Sounds like it's all about difficulty, but equating it to meaning that it can't be fun.
 
[quote name='FriskyTanuki']Sounds like it's all about difficulty, but equating it to meaning that it can't be fun.[/QUOTE]

More difficult != more fun (necessarily), but it's certainly part of the equation.

Go back and play through GH or GH2 on medium and see if it's any fun (it isn't, to me). On the other hand, I enjoy playing GH2 on hard but not really on expert.
 
[quote name='Backlash']More difficult != more fun (necessarily), but it's certainly part of the equation.

Go back and play through GH or GH2 on medium and see if it's any fun (it isn't, to me). On the other hand, I enjoy playing GH2 on hard but not really on expert.[/quote]
Medium a lot of fun since it's easy to enjoy the music and have fun. On hard, it becomes less about fun and more about just surviving the difficulty. Co-op's the only place where hard's not so bad. Higher difficulty =/= more fun to me, so Rock Band will most likely be a better game than GHIII.
 
[quote name='FriskyTanuki']Medium a lot of fun since it's easy to enjoy the music and have fun. On hard, it becomes less about fun and more about just surviving the difficulty. Co-op's the only place where hard's not so bad. Higher difficulty =/= more fun to me, so Rock Band will most likely be a better game than GHIII.[/quote]
This seems like it would depend completely on each individual person. I don't think more difficult = more fun, but I do think that when the difficulty is too easy, it can be less fun. For instance, I get 100% on most every easy or medium song by now, so those difficulties aren't fun anymore. That said, I don't think that Rock Band will be too easy like some people are saying. Sure, it might not be as hard as GH3, but it will still be hard enough to be fun (especially on expert).
 
There's definitely a harder difficulty = more fun kinda thing for me, as well. Medium hasn't been any fun at all since GH1. I haven't gotten the easy, medium, or hard achievements on GHII, just the expert ones. :lol:
 
So, I just got an EMail from Amazon.com today...
Anyone know if there's truth to this business with Rock Band being delayed to August 2008? I assume since they've had playable versions of this around that it's just amazon being stupid, but I couldn't find anything on any of the game news sites that I frequent.
 
[quote name='Orion_of_Chaos']So, I just got an EMail from Amazon.com today...
Anyone know if there's truth to this business with Rock Band being delayed to August 2008? I assume since they've had playable versions of this around that it's just amazon being stupid, but I couldn't find anything on any of the game news sites that I frequent.[/quote]

Nah, we are good:

http://www.gamealmighty.com/story-individual/story/Rock_Band_Delayed/
 
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