Bon Jovi's new "Greatest Hits" album will be released November 9. If you'd rather play along with your own feather-haired avatar than merely listen to "It's My Life" on repeat, you'll be able to do so through Rock Band, as the album will be released as DLC soon after the Rock Band 3 launch.
"Bon Jovi for us is one of our most requested artists," MTV's Paul DeGooyer told MCV. "We've had a couple of songs on disc" -- as we can attest, with "Livin' On a Prayer" an unusually frequent song in our random selections -- "but we've never done a vertical campaign like this with them."
Harmonix confirmed the Bon Jovi DLC in a forum post, with one caveat: "Don't expect a huge multi disc album release though, as the Surgeon General has determined that anything more than 12 tracks of Bon Jovi in a single pack could contain potentially dangerous levels of swoon when downloaded by women, and result in deadly amounts of 'good hair envy' in men." So it won't be the full two-disc "Ultimate Collection" version of the album.
Harmonix and MTV Games have announced that the total sum of the on-disc and downloadable songs for the Rock Band franchise has surpassed 2,000 tracks. Though these songs have been contributed by over 800 recording artists and bands, Jimi Hendrix's "Are You Experienced" was the song responsible for pushing the series' catalog past the massive milestone. We find that somewhat appropriate, as if you were to play all of the Rock Band franchise's 2,000 songs, you'd be pretty experienced at playing Rock Band.
The game's creators also appear to be experienced at making oodles of money from song downloads, as the press release announcement reveals that players have downloaded over 75 million tracks from the Rock Band Store and Rock Band Network. We'd bet dollars to donuts that at least 65 million of those downloads were of Kenny Rogers' "The Gambler." Dollars to donuts, we say!
#ps3
Folks noticed that Rock Band 3's PS3 keyboard bundle had disappeared from U.S. retail sites, and asked Harmonix why. It seems contract terms in the region prohibit its sale. And now they must wangle a fix for those who preordered. More »
Recently, fans began noticing that the PS3 Rock Band 3 keyboard bundle had disappeared from US retailer listings. The $130 bundle is still available for pre-order on Xbox and WIi, and both the keyboard and game are available separately on PS3. Just ... no bundle. And that means that Rock Band 3 and the keyboard, together, are effectively ten dollars more expensive on PS3.
Harmonix addressed this baffling omission today, announcing that due to "the agreement terms for the region," the PS3 keyboard bundle will not be available in the US, though the game and keyboard will be available separately. "This does not affect European customers as the Rock Band 3 keyboard/software PS3 bundles will still be available in Europe," the announcement states. We've contacted the developer to find out what exactly this agreement entails. If Harmonix sings, we'll let you know.
#original
With the arrival of fall comes the arrival of expensive shopping decisions. You can shell out for games, but what about game hardware? Do you need the Kinect? The Move? One of the new video game guitars? Or even a new console? More »
As evidenced by their music videos, OK Go's one of the more creative bands out there -- that's why we weren't surprised to hear about a competition the quartet is holding in conjunction with Rock Band 3. The rules of the contest are simple: Remix OK Go's newest single "White Knuckles" using all of your musical prowess. Dave Fridmann, the band's producer, will highlight his favorite remixes every week on OK Go's website, until the contest's winner is decided Oct. 29 -- at which point it will be transformed into a Rock Band Network track. Like magic!
The creator of the winning track will also receive a 360, a Rock Band 3 full band bundle and a signed copy of OK Go's upcoming album, "Of the Blue Colour of the Sky." Would it be too much to ask that they sign the 360 and all the instruments, too? We mean, we know creating intricate internet music videos probably keeps them busy, but remixing a song for use in a video game's gotta be hard work, too.
Harmonix has confirmed that budding musicians will need to pay an extra dollar to upgrade Rock Band 3 DLC with Pro Mode support for guitar parts. "Typical" DLC songs will continue to be sold for $2 (and those tracks include keyboard and drum Pro Mode support, as well as vocal harmonies), but enabling Pro Mode for guitar will cost another dollar, MTV Games' Paul DeGooyer told IGN. He also noted that not all songs will have a Pro Mode guitar add-on, since there are certain guitar parts that "wouldn't rise to the level that they would need to have Pro Mode authoring."
Additionally, DeGooyer further explained the song importing process from previous Rock Band games. RB3 will recognize any existing tracks from RB1 and Lego Rock Band that may already be on your hard drive (or you can pay the $5 and $10 fees, respectively, to purchase keys to rip them), while RB2 tracks can be exported into the RB3 song library for a nominal fee -- DeGooyer said it will be more than $5, though.
Harmonix is also planning to add keyboard parts and Pro Mode support to old songs, and there will be a charge to purchase those updates, as well. Most likely, said DeGooyer, customers who've previously purchased a song will just get a discount on an updated version (instead of having to by the new version at full price). In the abstract, all these added fees might sound expensive, but they're still probably cheaper than real guitar lessons.
#harmonix
Rock Band 3 makes playing guitar almost like the real thing, thanks to the game's "Pro Mode" option, which tracks each strum note for note. Going Pro in Harmonix's next big music game will cost players a premium. More »
Harmonix had previously hinted that DLC for Rock Band 3's "Pro" mode would a bit more expensive than the vanilla offerings because it required "a lot more work to do." Speaking with IGN, MTV Games' Paul DeGooyer clarified exactly how the pricing will differ for the upcoming sequel. He explained that "all DLC released for Rock Band 3 will be fully Rock Band 3-compatible, which means it'll come with Pro Mode for keyboard and drums, harmony mode, etc." However, Pro Mode for guitar will be sold separately. "If you're not interested in Pro Mode for guitar, you can still get the DLC that should conform to our current DLC pricing, and you get Pro Mode for all your other instruments."
The cost of Pro guitar will be $1, the interview reveals. "The alternative would be of course to include it (in the regular download) and up the price for everybody, which I don't think is really fair," DeGooyer argued. Additionally, he reveals that not all DLC tracks will even offer Pro notes for guitar, saying certain bands' "guitar parts wouldn't rise to the level that they would need to have pro mode authoring associated with them." Ouch.
There are plans to retrofit earlier DLC with Pro tracks, however DeGooyer was unable to clarify how the process would work. Apparently, the studio is having trouble making a system that "recognizes people who have already purchased" DLC in order to "be able to supply the updated file at a discount."
Here’s where the exporting of songs from previous Rock Band games to Rock Band 3 stands on the Wii.
- Rock Band 2 full export is very likely
- GD / Lego - likely
- RB1 - unlikely
We’ll wait for an official statement to make final call on the situation, but that’s how things are looking right now. [...]
The rumor of Bob Marley's "Legend" coming to Rock Band next week is true, reports MTV Multiplayer. The one notable song missing from the DLC album release is "Get up, Stand up." You won't be stuck waiting in vain for this uplifting track, however, it's actually on the Rock Band 3 setlist.
People, get ready, the complete "Legend" DLC details are posted after the break.
#preview
At last, your shame will end. At last, you will be able to tell your guitar-playing friends that you too can play guitar, well sorta, thanks to Rock Band 3's pro guitar mode. Plus, you will have learned guitar better. More »
We've previewed Rock Band 3's general new features, the Pro mode and the keyboard trainer, but where the rubber meets the road is the guitar trainer. This is where Harmonix can expand the scope of instrument-based rhythm games: If you can connect a real guitar to your console and actually play a game to learn how to play guitar, then learning to jam isn't just trivial, it's fun.
Though I only got to play along with the pro guitar trainer for a short time, every indication is that Harmonix has done exactly that. The guitar trainer is astounding -- paired up with the real guitar controller from Fender or the 102-button controller, Harmonix applies its steady knowledge of gaming reward and replay not just to earning career mode money or having fun with your friends, but to actually learning and applying a knowledge of chords and guitar notes.
#impressions
The latest version of Rock Band to come to the DS doesn't just deliver a stripped down, button-tapping version of the popular console game, it also seems to find some inspiration from a classic 80s arcade game. More »
Don't call it a keytar! If you've been waiting for a chance to see Rock Band 3's new keyboard in action, Harmonix delivers just that in its latest trailer for October's music/rhythm release. We're certainly enticed by its addition to regular gameplay, but that Pro mode? Well, we'll leave it to ... someone else.
#clips
In this video Rock Band 3 senior designer Sylvain Dubrofsky walks us through just how the keyboard play is going to work in Harmonix upcoming rhythm game. More »
Maybe you had trouble picturing our description of Rock Band 3 for the DS -- that it looks and plays almost exactly like Rock Band Unplugged for the PSP. Don't worry though, because we're saving you all that mental taxation by posting and actual trailer right here. Alll you have to do is watch!
A recent PAX interview by RockBandAide with Harmonix's John Drake reveals aton of minutiae for hardcore fans, and confirms that Rock Band 3 will allow you to export the RB2 tracks for a fee -- as you could with RB1. Drake states that the the export feature will work for all three consoles, though there are always "a couple songs that get complicated" when it comes to re-licensing. Official pricing and details regarding the export should be available shortly.
Drake also states that while regular DLC will keep the regular price ($2 per song), content made for Rock Band 3's Pro Mode will "probably" be more expensive. Harmonix has "a lot more work to do" on those tracks, and doesn't wish to increase the cost of the regular DLC to subsidize the Pro DLC that's aimed at a smaller group of players.
“When you make a setlist, that’s something that you can choose to push to Facebook. You’ll need to link your game to the RockBand.com website. From there you can control the syndication to your Facebook feed, or Twitter feed. And you can throttle it, too. I’m sure you don’t want to spam your friends.” - [...]
