Rock band
Rock Band is a video game series belonging to the music game genre . The game series comes from the developer Harmonix Music Systems, who already created the successful Guitar Hero series.
Gameplay
Rock Band uses many of the elements from the Guitar Hero series . Here, too, the peripheral devices are modeled on real instruments with which playing music is simulated. The player uses the instruments to press vertically running colored notes on the screen in time and in time. You can choose from guitar, bass, drums and microphone. Multi-colored buttons are attached to the guitar neck, while the drum kit is equipped with colored striking surfaces and a pedal.
Rock Band uses a combination of Guitar Hero and SingStar elements. In order to play a tone on the guitar or the bass, the player must hold down the color that is currently scrolling on the screen and press the tone with a switch. On the drums, the playing surface with the corresponding color is simply played with the sticks. In the upper part of the screen, the vocal notes run horizontally, which the player must hit by singing into the microphone.
In the cooperative play mode, each instrument can be occupied by a real player or the computer. Either online or offline, players can get together and form a virtual band. Each player can choose his own level of difficulty, which is adapted to his own ability. You can choose from Easy, Medium, Hard and Expert. The points earned by all players are added to a total number of points for the band.
Unlike the Wii version of the game, Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 players can create the character they play. The possibilities are extensive: hair, body, clothing and tattoos can be customized.
Development history
After the former publisher RedOctane and thus the rights to the Guitar Hero series were sold to Activision , and the developer studio Neversoft continued to run this series, Harmonix Music Systems decided to create a new game that retained the concept, but expanded it further. The first announcement of the game took place on April 1st, 2007, whereby the cooperation of the developer studio with MTV , as well as the game concept were announced.
Main series
Rock band
| Rock band | |||
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| Rock band logo | |||
| Studio | Harmonix Music Systems | ||
| Publisher | MTV Games Electronic Arts (Distribution) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Xbox 360 November 20, 2007 December 22, 2007 May 21, 2008 May 22, 2008 May 23, 2008 PlayStation 3 November 20, 2007 December 22, 2007 September 25, 2008 PlayStation 2 December 18, 2007 January 2, 2008 August 29, 2008 Wii June 22, 2008 August 29, 2008      |
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| platform | PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , PlayStation 2 , Wii | ||
| genre | Music game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Guitar controller, drum controller, microphone, gamepad | ||
| medium | DVD-ROM , Wii Optical Disc, Blu-ray Disc | ||
| language | English, German, French | ||
| Age rating |
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The game was released in North America in late 2007 and has won over critics around the world. Since its appearance, more than three million copies of the game have been sold in North America alone. The game was released in Europe in the second quarter of 2008, but initially exclusively for the Xbox 360. 45 songs can be played on the disc. In addition, the European version contains 9 exclusive songs. Over 2000 songs are already available for download online.
criticism
Criticism from the media and players arose when the game was offered in Europe on the release date plus all instruments (guitar, drums, microphone) at a price of 240 euros. Compared to the US , European players should pay almost double the price. In response to the criticism, the developer referred to the high transport costs to Europe.
In contrast to Guitar Hero, Rock Band cannot be played with the regular controller, but only with the special guitar or drum controls or the Singstar microphone. That makes the band experience more difficult, because you need these special controllers for all players.
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The European version contains nine more songs from Germany, France and Great Britain :
- Beetlebum - Blur
- Countdown to Insanity - H-Blockx
- Here comes Alex - Die Toten Hosen
- Hysteria - muse
- Les Wampas - Manu Chao
- Monsoon - Tokio Hotel
- New Wave - Pleymo
- Perfect wave - July
- Rock 'n' Roll Star - Oasis
In addition to these titles, there are 13 bonus songs in the game, but mostly from lesser-known up-and-coming bands. With the versions for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 it is also possible to download additional songs for a fee (at different prices). So far, more than 300 other songs have been released. Rock Band benefits from the collaboration with MTV and major record companies, which is reflected in the original songs by well-known artists such as 30 Seconds to Mars , Blink-182 , AC / DC , The Grateful Dead , Serj Tankian , System of a Down , etc. .
Rock band 2
| Rock band 2 | |||
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| Studio | Harmonix Music Systems | ||
| Publisher | MTV Games Electronic Arts (Distribution) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Xbox 360 September 14, 2008 November 21, 2008 PlayStation 3 October 19, 2008 March 27, 2009 PlayStation 2 December 18, 2008 August 29, 2008 Wii December 18, 2008 October 8, 2009 |
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| platform | PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , PlayStation 2 , Wii | ||
| genre | Music game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Guitar controller, drum controller, microphone, gamepad | ||
| medium | DVD-ROM , Wii Optical Disc, Blu-ray Disc | ||
| language | English, German, French | ||
| Age rating |
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Rock Band 2 is the successor to the successful Harmonix music game. The track list includes more than 100 songs, 84 of which are on disk and over twenty can be downloaded for free.
Particularly noteworthy is the possibility of copying the complete soundtrack of the predecessor from the disc to the hard drive for a small fee and playing it with the Rock Band 2 software (Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii). In addition, Rock Band 2 is compatible with all songs that have been released for download for Rock Band 1. Furthermore, new songs are offered weekly. This gives the player a large pool of music.
The new features include the ability to train drum fills and beats using the drum trainer.
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Rock band 3
| Rock band 3 | |||
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| Studio | Harmonix Music Systems | ||
| Publisher | MTV Games Electronic Arts (Distribution) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Xbox 360 October 26, 2010 October 29, 2010 PlayStation 3 October 26, 2010 October 29, 2010 Wii October 26, 2010 October 29, 2010 |
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| platform | PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , Wii , Nintendo DS | ||
| genre | Music game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Guitar controller, drum controller, keyboard controller, microphone, gamepad | ||
| medium | DVD-ROM , Wii Optical Disc, Blu-ray Disc , cartridge | ||
| language | English, German, French | ||
| Age rating |
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Rock Band 3 is the successor to the successful Harmonix music game. The game was announced on June 11, 2010 and was released on October 28 in the US and three days later in Europe.
For the release of Rock Band 3, 2,000 songs (including Rock Band 1, Rock Band 2, Rock Band 3, Lego: Rock Band, Green Day: Rock Band as well as DLC and RBN) were already available. In Rock Band 3, a keyboard controller and pro instruments are supported for the first time.
Offshoot
Rock Band: Song Pack 1
| Rock Band: Song Pack 1 | |||
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| Studio | Harmonix Music Systems | ||
| Publisher | MTV Games Electronic Arts (Distribution) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
PlayStation 2 , Wii July 15, 2008 September 26, 2008 |
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| platform | PlayStation 2 , Wii | ||
| genre | Music game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Guitar controller, drum controller, microphone, gamepad | ||
| medium | DVD-ROM , Wii Optical Disc | ||
| language | German | ||
| Age rating |
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Rock Band: Song Pack 2
| Rock Band: Song Pack 2 | |||
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| Studio | Harmonix Music Systems | ||
| Publisher | MTV Games Electronic Arts (Distribution) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 , PlayStation 2 , Wii November 17th, 2008 April 17th, 2009 |
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| platform | PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , PlayStation 2 , Wii | ||
| genre | Music game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Guitar controller, drum controller, microphone, gamepad | ||
| medium | DVD-ROM , Wii Optical Disc, Blu-ray Disc | ||
| language | German | ||
| Age rating |
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AC / DC Live: Rock Band
| AC / DC Live: Rock Band | |||
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| Studio | Harmonix Music Systems | ||
| Publisher | MTV Games Electronic Arts (Distribution) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Xbox 360 November 2, 2008 December 19, 2008 PlayStation 3 November 2, 2008 December 19, 2008 PlayStation 2 November 2, 2008 January 23, 2009 Wii November 16, 2008 March 6, 2009 |
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| platform | PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , PlayStation 2 , Wii | ||
| genre | Music game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Guitar controller, drum controller, microphone, gamepad | ||
| medium | DVD-ROM , Wii Optical Disc, Blu-ray Disc | ||
| language | German | ||
| Age rating |
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AC / DC Live is an expansion of the Rock Band series . Alone or with other players, the player can play the AC / DC live concert from 1991 in Donington Park or simply reenact his favorite hits from the world-famous band. You can choose from the complete set list for the performance. With the supplied code, all songs can be integrated into Rock Band 1 or 2.
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The Beatles: Rock Band
| The Beatles: Rock Band | |||
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| Studio | Harmonix Music Systems | ||
| Publisher | MTV Games Electronic Arts (Distribution) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 , Wii September 9, 2009 September 9, 2009 |
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| platform | PlayStation 3 , Xbox 360 , Wii | ||
| genre | Music game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Guitar controller, drum controller, microphone, gamepad | ||
| medium | DVD-ROM , Wii Optical Disc, Blu-ray Disc | ||
| language | English , German , French | ||
| Age rating |
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The Beatles: Rock Band is primarily aimed at fans of the Beatles . The game contains 45 of the band's hits and other titles for online download. A special feature of the game is the available peripherals, which are optically based on the instruments of the band at that time.
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All You Need Is Love is an exclusive downloadable title for the Xbox 360 version of the game on Xbox Live .
Green Day: rock band
| Green Day: rock band | |||
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| Studio | Harmonix Music Systems | ||
| Publisher | MTV Games Electronic Arts (Distribution) |
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| Erstveröffent- lichung |
Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 , Wii June 8, 2010 June 11, 2010 |
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| platform | Xbox 360 , PlayStation 3 , Wii | ||
| genre | Music game | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Guitar controller, drum controller, microphone, gamepad | ||
| medium | DVD-ROM , Wii Optical Disc, Blu-ray Disc | ||
| language | English German | ||
| Age rating |
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Green Day: Rock Band is another band-related offshoot of the series. The game contains 47 tracks, including all songs from the albums Dookie and American Idiot as well as 12 songs from 21st Century Breakdown - the missing six tracks from the album are available as additional DLC .
Dookie (1994)
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Insomniac (1995)
Nimrod (1997)
Warning (2000)
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American Idiot (2004)
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21st Century Breakdown (2009)
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