Rock Band (Special Edition) (Xbox 360, 2007)

I knew months before it's release that it was going to be a BIG seller and boy was it. We got one of these bundles ourselves for Christmas and wow. If you think Guitar Hero is great, then you have to try Rock Band.

It has both great single and multiplayer modes. If you have Internet access then you can connect instantly to other "band members" across the world and jam out on dozens of songs. The only bad point I've found on online multiplayer is the inability to chat with your remote band members or to hear the remote vocalist sing. Those two features in my opinion would have completed the package.
The only other con is the fact that the game supports two guitars (guitar and bass), drums and vocals, but comes with only one guitar and standalone guitars for Rock Band as of 2/2008 are still not available for purchase to complete the band.

You can at any time tackle single player tours and earn "cash" to buy new clothes, hair cuts, tattoos, etc... for your profile. There are even numerous downloadable songs that you can purchase online to play.

A truly great game if you even slightly enjoy music simulation games. The price may seem a bit high for "just a video game", but for what you get and the hundreds of hours of game play, it is definitely worth the $170 or so.

Each component of the game is good on its own, but it's when you put those things together into a collective whole that the game truly shines.

Gameplay: 10
Graphics: 10
Sound: 10
Value: 10
Overall: 10

Full Song/Track List

Rolling Stones "Gimme Shelter"
Aerosmith "Train Kept a Rollin'"
The Who "Won't Get Fooled Again"
Boston "Foreplay/Long Time"
Mountain "Mississippi Queen"
The Police "Next to You"
David Bowie "Suffragette City"
Black Sabbath "Paranoid"
Blue Oyster Cult "Don't Fear the Reaper"
The Ramones "Blitzkrieg Bop"
Deep Purple "Highway Star"
KISS "Detroit Rock City"
Molly Hatchet "Flirtin' With Disaster"
The Outlaws "Green Grass & High Tides"
Sweet "Ballroom Blitz"
Rush "Tom Sawyer"
Bon Jovi "Wanted Dead or Alive"
The Clash "Should I Stay or Should I Go"
Faith No More "Epic"
Pixies "Wave of Mutilation"
R.E.M. "Orange Crush"
Iron Maiden "Run to the Hills"
Foo Fighters "Learn to Fly"
Metallica "Enter Sandman"
Nirvana "In Bloom"
Stone Temple Pilots "Vasoline"
Weezer "Say It Ain't So"
Smashing Pumpkins "Cherub Rock"
Radiohead "Creep"
Beastie Boys "Sabotage"
Hole "Celebrity Skin"
Garbage "I Think I'm Paranoid"
Soundgarden "Black Hole Sun"
The Hives "Main Offender"
Queens of the Stone Age "Go With the Flow"
The Strokes "Reptilia"
OK Go "Here It Goes Again"
Nine Inch Nails "The Hand That Feeds"
Yeah Yeah Yeahs "Maps"
Red Hot Chili Peppers "Dani California"
Coheed & Cambria "Welcome Home"
Fallout Boy "Dead on Arrival"
The Killers "When You Were Young"
Anarchy Club "Blood Doll"
Bang Camaro "Pleasure (Pleasure)"
Crooked X "Nightmare"
Death of the Cool "Can't Let Go"
Flyleaf "I'm So Sick"
Freezepop "Brainpower"
Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives "I Get By"
The Acro-Bats "Day Late, Dollar Short"
The Konks "29 Finger

Gameplay: 9.5
Truly groundbreaking in both premise and execution, Rock Band is as close as you can get to really being on stage. With unique gameplay mechanics for each instrument (vocals, guitar, bass, and drums), Rock Band offers up several different ways to play, but the real meat of the game comes from the four player co-op modes, particularly the co-op World Tour.

Graphics: 8.5
The game has a great presentation with clean menus, and a smooth framerate. The activity going on in the background is a step above what you see on Guitar Hero III, with cool effects and more animated crowds and venues.

Sound: 9.0
While the few cover versions throughout the tracklist sound a bit off, they are few and far between in Rock Band, as the game boasts an impressive number of original master recordings, which sound as good now as when they first hit the airwaves.

Difficulty: Medium

Concept: 9.5
Rock Band turns the genre on its head, offering a highly polished rhythm game that stands as the quintessential testament to all of the progress that the genre has made over the past few years and allowing you to rock as never before.

Multiplayer: 9.5
Allowing you rock out with 3 friends across several different instruments is a fantastic notion for the rhythm-game genre, and Rock Band carries it in brand new directions. There are even some competitive modes in the mix to let you duke it out with a friend. The only downer is the lack of an online multiplayer World Tour.

Overall: 9.3
Rock Band is the next step in the rhythm game genre and the party game genre, effectively melding the two into an innovative package. While the build quality of the bundled peripherals feels a little flimsy and the whole thing is a bit pricey for many gamers’ budgets, the game is a wholehearted recommendation for any fan of music-based games.

"Makes you want to have a real band"
Rock Band is certainly my game of the year, and for many reasons, but the simple fact of the matter is that no other music game allows you to rock out with this many people in the comfort of your home (or dorm) and have so much fun. In fact, few games offer so engrossing, addictive, an experience.

The Band World Tour mode, where you'll be spending most of your time, allows you and your friends (I hope you have friends who want to play - shouldn't be TOO difficult to find them) not just to play a few songs, but to really feel like you've created a band. You don't just have a band name - you back it up with a logo (created by combining pieces of art done by professional artists, which is pretty sweet), and you really form a band personality by customizing your individual characters. I probably have more than my share of fun customizing my characters, picking the right clothing combinations, hair, and so forth - but there are a lot of options to choose from, with every piece of clothing coming in quite a few colors, which gives you a lot of options overall. That's something you really do more when you're the only person playing the game, since your bandmates are going to want to play music, not watch you pick out a pants color.

The word "immersive" is cliche but also an uncannily accurate way to describe this game. When you're sitting there rocking out on your instrument of choice, it's really easy to get into the game. The game rewards you in little ways, like the "Authentic Strummer" bonus for the bassist if he only strums upward (like with real bass). Bashing on the drums is a blast (and really hard!), and guitar gets a lot of attention (as it should) but bass and vocals are just as fun. Depending on the personalities of your friend group, it may turn out that everyone has an instrument of choice, but people will still want to branch out regularly. Being able to get additional energy while in overdrive is a great, too - as is being able to save a failing band member. The game does a great job of making you feel like when you're doing well, you're REALLY doing well. Activating star power in tandem with your bandmates to get a massive bandwide multiplier going is a great, great feeling.

The problems? Well, there are a couple: the peripherals each have their problems. The bass pedal on our drums broke, and the guitar's strum bar, while feeling really easy and natural to strum, isn't so good for fast sequences of sequential notes. And the effects switch is kind of right in the way of the whammy bar, so you'll probably smash it and then distract yourself by trying to switch it back. But the guitar looks really great, and once you get used to it, you'll really like it. The microphone looks pretty similar to a recording mic but the lack of buttons is annoying because you have to keep a controller handy. (Personally, I think you should at least be able to say "OK", "Back", "Up", and "Down" into it for basic menu control.) Oh yeah, and the drum pads can be kind of loud sometimes, so people might get mad at you for playing late at night.

Another problem is in the readability of the notes. It's not that they're rectangular - you get used to that - but the fretboards are translucent and the background sometimes makes it hard to see the notes. Adding to this is the neat pattern you get when you go into Star Po-- I mean, Overdrive, and you'll definitely be seeing phantom notes

Pros: Taking the genre to a whole new level
Cons: A bit on the expensive side to truly play this game

Please Note that I was able to play this game before the official release during a demo session.

Graphics - 9/10
For what the game is, you are not buying this game to play for the graphics – though EA and Harmonix was to put a lot stuff onto one screen, and it works well. The words and the activators are clear and bright. Great graphics for what it is (the game).

Sound – 10/10
The track list for this game, along with the original recordings and downloadable content, is a must have. You will get lost in involvement when playing this game. This is one of the best soundtracks in a game to date. The best addition is the sound of the instruments when you mess up – they just cut out.

Gameplay – 9/10
Though taking on new instruments Rock Band has taken this game this game down a new road, going to a new town and just nailed it. The drums, along with the fender are awesome. What is really impressive, but under published is the singing. This is a fun, yet interesting addition, to this platform.

Replay Value - 10/10
When you see the achievement list, it will make you achievement “gatherers” play this game again and again to get the full 1000/1000. Plus with the addition of online multiplayer, content downloads, and competitive play – it will hard not to play this game over and over. This is worth your $169.99 for the bundle this holiday season. Can you deny The Who - Who's Next? album after the first week available for download?

Overall - 10/10
This game is going to change the way developers take the gamer in the future. As an avid gamer, and a twenty-something, this game just pulled me in. The soundtrack, gameplay, singing, and peripherals all gel perfectly.

The new wired “Fender” guitar is heavier, durable, and a real close replica to an original Fender (3/4ths the size). Playing this, you feel as if you have a real Strat in your hands. Playing guitar for the last seven years, this instrument feels natural, and it is easy to orientate yourself to it. I must say that this is a nice controller, and I did not want to put it down. The buttons take getting used to, but that is because I am used to the buttons on Guitar Hero's peripherals.

The drums are well built, sturdy, and I have to say – just plain fun! The color coded drum heads, and kick pedal, feel good while playing them. Playing cross-handed style naturally, they set up the game to accommodate real drum playing style. This is the closest simulator I have felt. I would agree with the developers in saying that playing the drums on expert level would make you a better “real” drummer on a novice/intermediate level.

Singing – well… That is just plain fun. I must comment that the pitch recognizing, along with the tracks, makes this game the "all in one package".

I highly RECOMMEND that you get the bundle not only to save money, but to experience this game in entirety with your friends."

A few things you might want think about before purchasing a X Box 360 Rock band bundle, there is NOT a shortage of this item in many area's throughout the US as rumored to be. Many stores here in Iowa still have bundles to sell. There's also a widespread problem with the strum bar on the Rockband guitar. Retailers will not accept defective hardware or software, but the EA website has been very good in replacing the defective items. Many can be simply repaired by removing the back of the guitar & adjusting the 2 tension screws by the strum bar. Also spraying compressed air around the strum bar will do the trick. Just remember, removing the back of the guitar, may void the warranty, so I'd highly suggest going to the EA website for a replacement.
Compatability wise, the GH II & III guitars will work with Rock band, but the Rock band guitar will not work with either GH II or III, so instead of buying an extra Rock band guitar for playing bass, the GH II & III guitars work just fine. One problem may arise, if you purchase only the Rockband software, if planning on buying the Microphone, Drums or Guitar, they're not available until Feb. '08, with you ending up paying another $80.00 buying the hardware seperately. If you're planning on just playing Guitar, the GH II & III guitars are compatible with "SOLO," "CO-OP" or "LIVE"(online).
Another of the hot selling points is being able to download new material, not just being stuck playing the same songs over & over. As of yet, there's not many downloads available & if they are the cost is $6.99 for a block of 3. The same as GH III, having available downloads, GH III seems to have many more available & they are NOT compatible or interchangable with Rock band.
On the upside, Rock band is one of the best video games available, great graphics, surround sound, co-op playing with 3 other bandmates at home or online. As of now, I've played with people from 3 different countries & 22 states, making new friends as you play & scheduling your next practice/playing session.
It's a great game for the whole family, in my situation my 11 year old daughter & 14 year old son play along with me, their 50 year old Father or with many of their friends here or online. Each can play at their own skill level, be it easy, medium, hard or expert.
My advice would be call around to find the bundle that fits your gaming system, X Box 360, Wii or PS 2. They're out there to be sold, there may be some shortages in certain area's of the US, but it's the best $180.00 odd dollars I've spent for the whole family to enjoy.