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Rock Band 2 coming this year

5:36 AM on 06.30.2008, Brad Nicholson 33 comments

Rock Band 2 coming this year photo
     Electronic Arts

Today, Harmonix and EA have announced to IGN that Rock Band 2 will hit this September. The only catch is that potential consumers must have an Xbox 360 to join the fun early. The other “relevant” console incarnations of the game will be releasing later on in the year.

The CEO of Harmonix, Alex Rigopulos, had this to say in a press release about the much-anticipated sequel:

As successful as the original Rock Band continues to be, we've now had the benefit of the last eight months to listen to our fans' requests and to build upon that foundation. Rock Band 2 is a second-generation band game that will elevate the music game experience to the next level.

Before you start clawing at the walls because you just bought the Jimmy Buffet pack, rest easy. The downloadable content for both Rock Band and Rock Band 2 will be entirely cross-title compatible. That means that anything released for either title will be fair game to download and enjoy. Even better, there will no need to litter your living rooms with a second drum kit. Every instrument from the original Rock Band can be utilized in Rock Band 2, although that doesn’t mean that Rock Band 2 won’t have its own newer and better stuff.

There is much more information available. Hit the jump to learn about the multiplayer experience, user-generated songs, and setlist for Rock Band 2.

IGN had the opportunity to have a sit-down with lead designer Dan Teasdale. One of the many things they combed over included enhanced online play. When asked about an online version of Band World Tour, Teasdale hinted at the possibility, but didn’t go into any specifics.

On the topic of user-created songs, Teasdale said, “If we're going to do it, we want to do it right as our goal is to create a fully-realized, fully-integrated way for people to become real musicians and release quality music through Rock Band.” While that is not necessarily a confirmation that Rock Band 2 will have a music composer of sorts, we would venture to guess that if Activision’s Guitar Hero: World Tour is going to have one, Rock Band 2 probably will as well.

As to the set list of Rock Band 2, Teasdale promises that it will not disappoint. “Rock Band 2 has the strongest playlist we've ever assembled, and I think fans will be blown away not just at the spread, but also at the caliber of acts we've attracted.” Also, look forward to more complete albums in the near future and, like GH WT, a setlist composed entirely of master tracks.

Personally, I think Rock Band 2 looks to be shaping up quite nicely. Keep checking in all day as we get updates and clarifications on all the great things coming to Rock Band 2. The game will make its debut at E3, so look for even more info in a few weeks.


Next page: More Rock Band stories




Ceallach's Avatar
Ceallach at 06/30/2008 06:39
Cool. Rock Band has probably gotten more play than any game I've ever own to be fair. I look forward to 2 greatly.

GHWT...eh, GH3 felt...off. Not as tight, a little too mechanical, more videogame than music, and those awful battles...so I have low expectations for GHWT
KaL YoshiKa's Avatar
KaL YoshiKa at 06/30/2008 06:45
It's funny reading about a sequel coming out this year...I'm guessing they'll bundle 1 & 2 for us Europeans...oh wait...Bundling is HARD apparently...
Samit Sarkar's Avatar
Samit Sarkar at 06/30/2008 06:56
I'm really pissed off that this'll be a timed exclusive for the 360, but I'm ecstatic that all the Rock Band DLC I've bought will be usable in the sequel. And that new guitar looks sexy.
Ali D's Avatar
Ali D at 06/30/2008 06:58
@ Power-gloveYeah, they're gonna include more Aussie acts which is nice, but what about a confirmed release date for the original Rock Band? There's an (as far as I know) un-confirmed release date of December this year. That means the sequel will be out in the US before the original even get's released in Australia. It fuckin' sucks.
ThisYearsPink's Avatar
ThisYearsPink at 06/30/2008 07:06
Hooray for Rock Band!
Nick Chester's Avatar
Nick Chester at 06/30/2008 07:31
@power-glove:

"Drain You"? That should have been DLC four months ago. FAIL. ;)
DJKoolaid's Avatar
DJKoolaid at 06/30/2008 07:48
Woohoo!
Anus Mcphanus's Avatar
Anus Mcphanus at 06/30/2008 08:00
Sad thing is when this comes out in the US I'll probably still be waiting for Rock Band 1 to come out on the PS3 over here in the UK :-(

I'm still hoping Rock Band 2 won't be raping my wallet as hard as the first... ah who am I kidding?
Ali D's Avatar
Ali D at 06/30/2008 08:08
@Anus McPhanus

Yeah, that's the other worrying thing about the eventual Australian release date: how much is it gonna cost us. The PAL price in Europe was already pretty bad, but Aussies get fucked hard when it comes to price, so I suppose I better start saving now.
Anus Mcphanus's Avatar
Anus Mcphanus at 06/30/2008 08:12
@Ali D:
Shit I forgot how you guys get screwed over even more than us on price :-(

Oh but some good news for us Europeans... Apparently Rock Band 2 is coming out in Europe is September as well HURRAY!!! Although it'll no doubt be a Xbox360 timed exclusive just like the US but at least it's coming out in the same month!
Necros's Avatar
Necros at 06/30/2008 08:13
Personally, I'm most interested in what they're doing with the new instruments. I need to know what I should do in regards to guitars (I was planning on selling my wired one for two wireless guitars), and it'd be nice to know what improvements they came up with for their new guitars, seeing as there was no difference between the two PS2 wired guitars for Guitar Hero.
Teta's Avatar
Teta at 06/30/2008 08:16
I am excited.
Well, i´ll have to wait, but still am excited.
loki d20's Avatar
loki d20 at 06/30/2008 08:19
Can't wait. The cross-game title compatibility is the best news about this, honestly. Can't wait to see what else they have planned. I do like what GH4 is doing with the drums, hope RB2 does enough to prevent me from impulse buying that just for some more active drum action.
BigKev's Avatar
BigKev at 06/30/2008 08:43
Fix the Wii version and then we'll talk.
Rockefellow's Avatar
Rockefellow at 06/30/2008 08:58
Timed exclusives make me sad.

And, holy fuck, that's TWO MONTHS away. Too soon, as some people have pointed out.
BlackSheep's Avatar
BlackSheep at 06/30/2008 09:19
xbox will have on a tues, ps3 will get it on thurs.

isn't that how xbox gets their stuff before sony now :P
owen-lars's Avatar
owen-lars at 06/30/2008 09:58
Microsoft probably helped them out with all the cross game song systems. Its as good as a cash incentive and i'd think MS would be the first to offer to help out.

I wonder what the ratio is between songs downloaded on the 360 vs ps3? I expect the 360 to be much better so maybe that also helped them snag the timed exclusive?
king3vbo's Avatar
king3vbo at 06/30/2008 10:14
DLC from Rock Band 1 that works in Rock Band 2 is the greatest idea ever
tsunamikitsune's Avatar
tsunamikitsune at 06/30/2008 10:36
I really didn't want a sequel to Rock Band, but as long as all DLC and instruments are compatible, I think I can deal with it.

I just hope the new set of instruments aren't drastically better than the old.
CWal37's Avatar
CWal37 at 06/30/2008 11:32
WOOOO, more Wolfmother hopefully.
Rockefellow's Avatar
Rockefellow at 06/30/2008 11:49
I just got the new EGM in the mail, and they have some stuff about GH:WT that hopefully are in, matched, or better in Rock Band... I'd hate to go back to Guitar Hero.

The most wanted of everything I read was the "90-plus songs" out of the box. The music creation tool seems pretty cool, too, but RB2 would probably have this it seems.
Mxyzptlk's Avatar
Mxyzptlk at 06/30/2008 12:14
But I just got the first game a few weeks ago!
SteamyV's Avatar
SteamyV at 06/30/2008 12:36
E3 is going to be awesome this year, simply for the GH:WT/RB2 showdown.
Knives's Avatar
Knives at 06/30/2008 13:27
So I already have over 100 songs for Rock Band 2, awesome!!
TheDreadHawk's Avatar
TheDreadHawk at 06/30/2008 13:46
This seems super freakin' awesome. HOORAH!
Bacchus's Avatar
Bacchus at 06/30/2008 13:46
very excite!
Sharpless's Avatar
Sharpless at 06/30/2008 14:42
Everyone complaining about the timed exclusivity should just be grateful that it's not an exclusive, period. If I can put up with MGS4's timed exclusivity, you can deal with this. :)
nanowerx's Avatar
nanowerx at 06/30/2008 15:21
Wow, I never expected Rock Band 2 so early...I think I just creamed my pants a little.

Thank god, I say. I'd be pissed if GH4 came out first and wooed all the people on the fence. Rock Band needs to be embraced by all.
Dexter345's Avatar
Dexter345 at 06/30/2008 15:49
Unless they come out with a drum kit that I absolutely must have, I don't really expect to get this. I'm happy with the DLC they've been putting out.
Kyle's Avatar
Kyle at 07/01/2008 00:15
I would have been perfectly happy with playing Rock Band and just getting more DLC until the end of the time.
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