Rock Band Rules

[mykalberta]

Amazon.ca has Rockband on backorder - 169.99 - free shipping.

[Gugstanley]

Wish you guys could come down to purchase Rockband. I went in to Gamestop the other day and they had to have 50 of them.

Anyway I am off to download the new songs. My band is getting back together this weekend. We have some damn hot groupies!!!

Just

[McG]

browna. if you are still wondering...go to metacritic.com and have a look at what they are saying about the game.

if you like gh, this game pwns imo. you get 3 careers, i like the music better than gh3, you can make groups...and did i mention the drums.

its a great game.

[browna]

Yeah, feeling like junk right now, the wife too, and with a combination of a busy week ahead, there it still sits in the box.

I've looked at metacritic..great site to help me wade through the crap and endless pop up ads one gets from googling reviews.

Looking forward to cracking it soon though and getting some people over to play.

[Gugstanley]

If they ever get the internet version working we can get a cp band together.

[SarichFan]

Is the stand alone game worth purchasing? I just want to use the Guitar for more songs and play around with that, I don't really have plans for a Rock Band party at all. But I wouldn't mind picking up the Drums seperately in the future and I have no interest in kareoke...

I heard the Guitar tables are easier in Rock Band where Guitar Hero can be pure evil... is that true?

[MarchHare]

I bought the stand-alone game since I already had two fake plastic guitars. You don't need the special included microphone to do the singing parts either -- the regular Xbox Live headset works just fine.

So really all I'm missing is the drums, since we can do three players with guitar, bass, and vocals. Don't underestimate the singing either -- it's not really my thing, but when you have some friends over, it really adds to the experience if you have someone singing.

I've played all the songs on Expert guitar. Difficulty-wise, I'd say it's similar to Guitar Hero 3 on hard, with the exception of a few of the most challenging songs like Highway Star, Flirtin' With Disaster, and Green Grass and High Tides, which are just as tough as anything in GH short of Through the Fire and Flames. I could only beat those songs in multiplayer with the help of a competent bass player saving me with their star power (Rock Band, unlike GH, allows every player to activate star power independantly and at different times, but using it affects every member of the band, not just the person who activated it).

Other than those three, though, I got four or five stars on just about every song the first time I played it on Expert. By comparison, in GH3 I gave up trying to beat Lou and I could only just barely beat Raining Blood and One on Hard.


I'd rank the difficulty like this (hardest to easiest):

GH3 Expert
GH3 Hard / GH2 Expert (tie)
RB Expert
GH2 Hard
RB Hard

An experienced GH player shouldn't have any trouble at all beating everything in Rock Band on Hard and most songs on Expert.

[SarichFan]

I think it'd be cool to pick up drums in a few months when they come available aswell because I've only been playing fake guitar for less than a week now.. The more songs the better but Rock Band's character customization looks pretty sweet.

Also, is it just me or are there alot of songs on Rock Band that are also on GHIII?

[Russic]

i agree with MarchHare, expert guitar is about as difficult as gh3 on hard. Keep in mind a lot of the songs aren't selected with the guitar in mind (as they obviously are with the guitar hero series). This means there are a handful of songs that are very repetitive or just not as mind-blowing. This isn't a bad thing if you're playing multiplayer, but in single player mode it could become an issue for you if you aren't really into it.

I don't think I'd recommend it if you aren't going to be playing with others.

[burnin_vernon]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

You don't need the special included microphone to do the singing parts either -- the regular Xbox Live headset works just fine.

Really? Am i doing something wrong? I only tried the headset once but it didn't register my voice at all.. i would love to use it, though, so I can sing and play guitar at the same time

[burnin_vernon]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

I'd rank the difficulty like this (hardest to easiest):

GH3 Expert
GH3 Hard / GH2 Expert (tie)
RB Expert
GH2 Hard
RB Hard

An experienced GH player shouldn't have any trouble at all beating everything in Rock Band on Hard and most songs on Expert.

Ya that's pretty accurate. On GH3 (hard) I can't get past "One" yet. On Rock Band, "highway Star" and "Flirting with disaster" (expert) are killing me. I cannot beat the solos and am having trouble finding the patience to play through the few minutes of the easy parts to keep re-trying them.

[MarchHare]

Originally Posted by burnin_vernon

Really? Am i doing something wrong? I only tried the headset once but it didn't register my voice at all.. i would love to use it, though, so I can sing and play guitar at the same time

Yes, really. My wife frequently sings and plays bass at the same time, using the regular wired Xbox Live headset that was included with the console. The only downside is that it needs to be plugged into a controller, which limits the singer's movements and is a minor annoyance.

Not to make you feel stupid, but did you make sure the mic wasn't muted when you were using it?

[burnin_vernon]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

Yes, really. My wife frequently sings and plays bass at the same time, using the regular wired Xbox Live headset that was included with the console. The only downside is that it needs to be plugged into a controller, which limits the singer's movements and is a minor annoyance.

Not to make you feel stupid, but did you make sure the mic wasn't muted when you were using it?

Haha, that's very possible; i have never used the thing before... But when i put it practically inside my mouth it registered a bit of noise but that's it. I'm going to try it right now

Ok, so it kinda works for me. However, it is much quieter than the rock band mic and I can barely hear me over the speakers.

Not a huge deal but the problem I have is that there is a slight delay from my voice to the speaker, which screws up the accuracy. I tried a song that I can normally do quite easily but with the headset I barely got 3 stars.

Do you have this problem?

[MarchHare]

Originally Posted by burnin_vernon

Haha, that's very possible; i have never used the thing before... But when i put it practically inside my mouth it registered a bit of noise but that's it. I'm going to try it right now

Ok, so it kinda works for me. However, it is much quieter than the rock band mic and I can barely hear me over the speakers.

Not a huge deal but the problem I have is that there is a slight delay from my voice to the speaker, which screws up the accuracy. I tried a song that I can normally do quite easily but with the headset I barely got 3 stars.

Do you have this problem?

Well, I've never actually played with the Rock Band mic since I didn't buy the bundle, but the Xbox Live headset works fine for us. We usually hold it a few inches away from the mouth, and the sensitivity is fine (you can adjust it in the game too -- something you might want to try). My wife can get five stars on Hard for many of the songs.

Are you using the wireless headset or the wired one that was included with your console? We tried the wireless one, and we were having the same problems as you -- low sensitivity and a slight delay which caused accuracy problems. Switching to the corded headset solved that issue.

[McG]

BV, there is also an adjustment that you can make with the controller to change the volume of you or of the game. i don't know if it will make enough of a difference for you but it might be worth a try. its in the manual under the vocals section.

[McG]

Originally Posted by SarichFan

I think it'd be cool to pick up drums in a few months when they come available aswell because I've only been playing fake guitar for less than a week now.. The more songs the better but Rock Band's character customization looks pretty sweet.

Also, is it just me or are there alot of songs on Rock Band that are also on GHIII?

there are overlaps for sure.

i would look at the songs actually to determine if you are thinking of buying just the game. it the music isn't for you...i wouldn't buy rock band.

[Ro]

What are everyone's thoughts about Rock Band's DLC?

First of all, for a game that has only been out a couple months, there are a ton of songs to add- as opposed to GH which has only a handful.

My faves:

My Sharona has some awesome guitar sections.

Fortunate Son is a fun one to belt out, as is Buddy Holly.

The Police pack is great fun too.

Meh, not so much:

The David Bowie songs are alright. but the vocals are a bit "talky" at times.

And I'm just not that big of a Metallica fan. I prefer the catchier pop stuff or classic rock or 80's hair metal instead.

--

I was also checking out the Rock Band forums for some hints on some possible new additions, and there are a ton of suggestions there. Some of the ones I'd like to see:

Don't Stop Believin' - Journey
Are You Gonna Go My Way - Lenny Kravitz
The Middle -Jimmy Eat World
Kickstart My Heart - Motley Crue
Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Anything by CKY, Sum 41, Blink 182, Zebrahead, NOFX, Goldfinger, Sublime

--

And finally, for those who weren't aware, Interstate Love Song by STP was released this week and is a must buy, and FINALLY we get some AC/DC next week:

"Die, All Right!"[14] The Hives January 8, 2008 $1.99 (160 MSP) "Interstate Love Song"[14] Stone Temple Pilots January 8, 2008 $1.99 (160 MSP) "The Number of the Beast" [14] Iron Maiden January 8, 2008 $1.99 (160 MSP) London Calling]]" [14] The Clash January 15, 2008 $1.99 (160 MSP) You Shook Me All Night Long]]" [14] AC/DC January 15, 2008 $1.99 (160 MSP) Toxicity]]" [14] System Of A Down January 15, 2008 $1.99 (160 MSP)

http://www.rockband.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20974

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...adable_content

[McG]

i am impressed with the downloadable content so far.

i really want to see an 80s pack! but big props for the my sharona and limelight so far!

[Gugstanley]

I love the downloads and would like to see more 80's stuff.
Here are the new downloads for this week

"Action" made famous by Sweet (cover)

"Last Train to Clarksville" made famous by the Monkees (cover)

"All the Small Things" by Blink 182

[Russic]

Originally Posted by Ro

I was also checking out the Rock Band forums for some hints on some possible new additions, and there are a ton of suggestions there. Some of the ones I'd like to see:

Don't Stop Believin' - Journey
Are You Gonna Go My Way - Lenny Kravitz
The Middle -Jimmy Eat World
Kickstart My Heart - Motley Crue
Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Anything by CKY, Sum 41, Blink 182, Zebrahead, NOFX, Goldfinger, Sublime

If journey found it's way into the download content I'd freak out in a great way. Nothing exemplifies a good night of drinking like belting out some journey.

edit: the downloads for this week will be:

"Action" made famous by Sweet (cover)
"Last Train to Clarksville" made famous by The Monkees (cover)
"All the Small Things" by Blink 182