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Rock Band

EMAIL PRINT ps3

8.9 User Score:

Universal acclaim

Based on 35 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 52 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Electronic Arts / MTV

Developer: Harmonix

Genre(s): Music, Rhythm Action

Players: 4

ESRB Rating: T (Teen)

Release Date: November 20, 2007

Summary

Play together in your living room or across the world! Rock Band offers deep online functionality, allowing players to rock together whether they’re in Rhode Island or Reykjavik. Major record labels and leading music publishers have signed on to provide unrivaled access to master recordings and legendary rock artists – from punk, metal and alternative to classic and southern rock. Rock Band ships with 45 fearsome tracks from artists like Bon Jovi and The Ramones to Black Sabbath and Stone Temple Pilots. Full support for downloadable content delivers never-ending challenges. New content will be available every week. Download full albums for play with Rock Band including the iconic rock album 'Who's Next' by The Who. Metallica has signed on to offer several tracks as digitally-distributed game levels for Rock Band as well as "Enter Sandman" for the Rock Band ship disc. Create your own rock avatar! Mold a unique rocker using Rock Band's character creator. Chose from gender, body shape, face, hair, clothes, tattoos and signature moves. Don't forget to pick your specialized rockin’ instrument. Drumming in the spotlight! Showcase a real drum solo with Rock Band's freestyle drum fill windows featured in each song. Break out your own rhythm and style as anything goes! Vocalists can bring the crowd to their feet during Rock Band’s freestyle vocal fill windows. Ad-lib your own words or shout to the crowd to raise the rock intensity of the performance. Band mates can fail out of a song for poor performance, but the band still plays on. Rescue your failing mate by busting out signature moves and blistering solos to wow the crowd with showmanship. Earn bonus points for your band during Rock Band’s Unison Phrase opportunities if everyone plays perfectly. [Harmonix]

Also On Metacritic

GAMES: Guitar Hero Guitar Hero II

Cheat Codes & Hints: Cheat Code Central GameFAQs

Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Games Radar (in-house)

The experience is well worth its $170 asking price (for a guitar/drum/mic/game bundle, which is the only way you’ll be able to buy Rock Band for months anyway) and makes for one of the most rewarding co-op events you could ask for. This is the perfectly polished, logical extension of what Guitar Hero started and where the music genre needed to go. It just rocks.

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100

Playstation: The Official Magazine (US)

It's worth every penny; the fun you'll have with friends--and even alone--is truly priceless. [Jan 2008, p.78]

100

GameSpy

Factor in reasonably priced downloadable content, and you've got the recipe for one of the year's best games, bar none.

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Console Monster

There is just no other game out there that makes all your mates want to sit and play an instrument co-operatively until their fingers bleed. Quite simply, a work of genius, and the slight discrepancies in the peripherals are forgotten in an instant.

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TotalPlayStation

Hardware issues are annoying, yes, but with a killer single player mode, great online multiplayer and the promise of dozens of individual tracks and complete albums, the game more than pays for itself out of the box.

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GamerNode

Rock Band is a must-have game. It's fun for even the most musically challenged, and it's a great game to play with friends and family. It may have a steep price tag, but you get more than your money's worth.

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IGN

Rock Band is a great game. The presentation elements are top-notch and take music games to a new level; consider the bar raised.

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Pelit (Finland)

The best party game ever. It takes the mechanics from Guitar Hero and takes it to the next level. There is just something magical in the feeling when everybody is playing well and the crowd starts to sing along. The only downside is the questionable durability of the instruments, especially the bass pedal breaks up quite easily. [Mar 2008]

ZTGameDomain

Rock Band truly raises the bar for the genre, and with continually updated downloadable content it's no one night stand.

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Play UK

Once you get to grips with the new guitars and find people to play with, Rock Band is a fantastic title that oozes quality. [Issue#162, p.84]

Game Informer

Rock Band is the best music game ever made... It’s immensely fun and consistently rewarding. Nearly endless replay is bolstered by the promise of a musical catalogue that will have already dramatically expanded by the time you read this.

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GameTrailers

It’s a tool set that will be revitalized every time a new song pack is released, and with all the improvements over the Guitar Hero formula, one that will eventually become the de facto standard in music and rhythm games. For those who can foot the bill, Rock Band delivers a gaming experience that’s simply like no other.

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Electronic Gaming Monthly

"Guitar Hero" is still the way to go for lone wolves, but if you have the space, the manpower, and the means($170), Rock Band unquestionably, unequivocally rocks. [Jan 2008, p.92]

Worth Playing

Essentially, the game punishes you for not giving up. You're better off starting from scratch with a new band. It's a relatively minor quibble, but as a potential passion and motivator of budding real-world musicians, Rock Band should be more tolerant of those players who refuse to give in to the tough songs even on the higher difficulty settings.

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Games Master UK

As addictive as "Guitar Hero" with four sections to master. Few games offer as much fun. [Feb 2008, p.74]

PSX Extreme

The audio comes through with great clarity, and I highly urge people to play this game on a proper surround sound setup. Blasting away with Dolby Digital enabled was like heaven to my ears, and playing the game will become a little easier, as you'll be able to hear each song clearer.

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Gamer 2.0

When it comes down to it, Rock Band is a definite must buy game. If you’ve got friends to play with, it’s an amazing multiplayer game that is as much fun to play as it is to watch.

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Gaming Age

For the bundle price of 170 dollars you do get plenty of bang for your buck and I can't give Harmonix credit enough for doing what was once only hopeful dream.

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GameZone

Rock Band is about as much fun as one can have making music in a video game. Sure there are a few flaws that prevent this game from a flawless concert, but to pull all these elements together is a remarkable achievement.

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GameDaily

The online mode could use some work, and we wish the controllers were wireless, but even that new tangle of wires in our living room can't keep us from living this virtual rock 'n' roll fantasy.

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Cheat Code Central

Rock Band has one thing going for it: the necessity to having friends to play and the willingness to work together. It may not be enough for everyone to drop 170 bucks on the game and equipment, but I can say if you even remotely have thought about this game, it is worth it.

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Yahoo! Games

It's light years past any other music game, yet is accessible enough to make anyone feel like a living room superstar. KISS was dead wrong: God didn't give rock 'n' roll to you. Harmonix did.

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GameSpot

Rock Band does a superb job of bringing out the wannabe rock star in all of us, and creates one of the best party-game experiences of all time.

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games(TM)

Hopefully the innovation and effort that have been put into every area of this title will shine through, and the fact that the setup is worth every penny will become apparent to all. [Feb 2008, p.120]

Playstation Official Magazine UK

An absolute rock monster. [Jan 2008, p.94]

1UP

Actually feeling like a rock star -- for most people under 40, the next best thing to a superhero or a T-Rex -- is transcendently entertaining. Guitar Hero is still the way to go for lone wolves, but if you have the space, the manpower, and the means, Rock Band unquestionably, unequivocally rocks.

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GameCritics

Rock Band is admittedly a financial investment, but for the gamer with at least one friend who enjoys music, I think it's worth it.

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VideoGamer

Problems are present, such as the inclusion of a few foreign tracks in mystery set lists during the World Tour (not the easiest of songs to jump into without having any prior experience) and we still prefer the guitars included with Guitar Hero, but these aren't enough to hurt what is a unique gaming experience.

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3DJuegos

If you can afford the high price, Rock Band is the best musical gaming experience at this moment.

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The New York Times

Touring in single-player mode is disappointingly pared down, as though the designers couldn’t imagine anyone would play the game alone. This was disappointing, as my friends can’t come over every day to play.

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PSM3 Magazine UK

Overall perhaps the best party game ever - if a little less cohesive than "Guitar Hero." Still, vital.

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Gameplanet

Rock Band is more than a simple video game, it's a highly interactive social experience. There's enough depth and fun here to keep you and your friends entertained for months. A must-have for the festive season!

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Game Revolution

Getting people to work as one towards a common goal is rare, but Rock Band makes it common. There really is no room anymore for the cliché that a gamer is just some unkempt teenage sweating in some lonely basement filled with loose cables and empty water bottles.

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Eurogamer

Karaoke and guitar specialists certainly won't want to throw out their SingStars and Guitar Heroes, but with the peripheral set-up now established and regular infusions of downloadable content, the future's bright for Rock Band - and the present's pretty rocking too.

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PS3bloggen.se

Even though it took a year longer for Rock Band to reach Europe, this music game manages to make up for lost time in only a few minutes. With its hefty instruments and a strong setting, this game really manages to capture the rock image setting. There are a few nagging problems, such as having to unlock all songs manually and locking the roles for the band members, together with the fact that the sequel is just around the corner, but as a whole, Rock Band is one of the most impressive experiences around.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 8.9 (out of 10) based on 52 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Tom Tom gave it a9:
"Tsk, tsk. So I'm going to pay ~$170 bucks, just so that I can *pretend* to be a band, along with four other geeks? Yeah, right. That game should be called 'Geek Band', not 'Rock Band'." -- Those were pretty much my thoughts when I first heard about Rock Band, and I consequently kept far away from the geek wave that was celebrating Rock Band. In fact, I stayed away from the game for over a year, until curiosity finally got the best of me. The result: holy crap, was I wrong!! It did not take long, and I had a few buddies who were anxiously rocking away with me. This game is a blast! My only gripe is the fact that you have to assign a leader within the band. Sometimes this can lead to confusion regarding the controller assignment, but this is minor and does not take away from the experience.

Curt O gave it a4:
The game is ok for beginners to learn. The Instruments suck to high heaven. I am a rofessional drummer of 30 + years and when my 11 yr old grandson at 90 #'s breaks the foot pedal on the drums when he is playing sitting down barefooted you know the quality of the plastic foot pedal is crap. I was watching him when he was playing and he was not pounding it or anything like that.. You would think for the money you pay at least the foot pedal would withstand being pressed better. Other than that I can see where this would be good for a beginner and timing issues. Outside of that it has a long way before you learn more about that stringed instruments. Sony do a better job on the plastic parts and it might be worth it. Hell raise the price 25 dollars and build better equipment!!!!!!

Roberto R gave it a9:
Utterly engaging, great party game. Makes you want to keep getting better and better. And it was the only game that got my anti-game girlfriend playing. That says a lot.

Bryan S gave it a10:
It takes the fun of Guitar Hero and raises it exponentially. Not only does it offer awesome fun for your whole group (and even to an individual), but Harmonix has done a great job of making sure new, RELEVANT songs are released every week that keep people entertained!

Dann A gave it a10:
Most addictive game I've ever played. It takes everything that was great about "Guitar Hero" and ups it a notch, and everything that wasn't great about "Guitar Hero" and fixes it. The downloadable content sends the replay value through the roof. After four months of owning it and the PS3, I've bought only two other games because I don't have free time for anything BUT "Rock Band."

Natalie P gave it a9:
This game is excellent for family and friend entertainment. I hope in the near future they add kid songs like Jonas Brothers, Hannah Montana etc. So the kids can get in on the singing as well.

King JMY gave it a10:
This game CRUSHES Guitar Hero in every aspect. Though the guitar parts are easy for a guitar hero veteran, the drums and vocals can keep you challenged. For those talking about graphics, I don't think they should be a big deal in a game like this -- but that being said, the graphics are very good. If you watch closely, the drummers actually hit the right drums, the guitar players play the right strings, and most amazingly of all, the singer's lips are in synch with the words. The downloadable songs are awesome, and come at a decent price tag (about $2.00 each song). Most importantly, the mutliplayer in this game is incredible. You and your friends can create a band and tour the world -- a very fun experience. My girlfriend, her brother and I played this game for two days straight and we could not get enough. Well worth the price tag.

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