Review Score:

Only a short time after the original Rock Band created a new standard for rhythm-based videogames, Harmonix has again raised the bar. Rock Band 2, though quite a bit like its predecessor, is definitley a positive addition to the plethora of new rhythm/music videogames. Guitar Hero created the genre but Rock Band and Rock Band 2 have taken the baton and are running away from the competition. The general concept created in Rock Band was great, get some friends together and have fun. The idea was great, make a game where you are rewarded more for playing as a complete band rather than by yourself on a guitar. A new Instrument controller was introduced, the drums, and the microphone which some others had utilized before was integrated. The guitar was expanded upon, and could now be used as a bass as well as lead guitar. All of these things helped to make the whole band experience that much more exciting for gamers that had already yearned for more. Friends got together to play and have fun, and Im sure that there was plenty of laughter to go around. Rock Band was a hit and people began to ask what was next, what could they add to create more excitement. I myself though realized at that time that although the game was on the right track, it fell just shy in one area. The game is all about getting together with friends and playing together, this is true. The future of gaming is about getting together with friends Online and playing together.  Its Microsofts entire advertising scheme for Xbox 360, and every system has its own way to connect gamers over the internet.

Harmonix took a good game and made it great, just by adding the Online Tour Mode. It works just like the original games Tour Mode, but allows you to play online with your friends and progress your band just like you would if you were in the same room. One player is the band leader, this person chooses what the band is going to do next and each member can choose their own difficulty depending on the song or set that they are to play. On a side note another great feature to creating your band is the random name generator, it really comes up with some off-the-wall and often hysterical names. You also have the option to join a random band online and fill in at whatever instrument they need, though all you gain for this is cash since you are acually a member of their band not your own. To go along with this feature, there are battle of the bands online that you can compete against all the other Rock Bands (or band members depending on the competition) if you so choose, a word of forewarning though, unless you are incredibly good you will be very disheartened after trying this. Of course what would a new game be without new songs, the game includes 84 songs and for a small price you can download the original games songs onto your hard disk and play those as well. If you do this the game will actually work them into the tour mode, so you might wind up playing a lot of the songs that you have grown accustomed to from Rock Band. They also added a save feature so that if one member of your band fails the others will be able to kick it up a notch and bring the other person back in. This helps greatly for those parts that you just cant seem to get right. It also helps to keep the game moving along, because no one wants to get stuck on one song or set and not be able to advance beyond a specific point.

The game also allows a player to create their own rocker, you can customize their hair, piercings, tattoos, clothing and accessories. Some instruments can be purchased to give your band that authentic rock appearance. This is similar to the first game mostly but some had been added so its not a complete mirror. The Animations for your character are also semi-specific to the type of rocker that you are, when you create your character it will let you choose your personality which impacts the way that you act on stage. These animations are actually pleasant to watch and the graphics are relatively good for a game that really isn’t based a whole lot on appearance. If you have friends watching they will not be bored out of their minds, don’t worry, it is actually fun to watch them up on stage, a bit hard to do when trying to play though.

At least the drums look great

The last thing on the list is the hardware, the new controllers are wireless and are a bit more stylish that the old ones. This sadly is where the positivity ends, there have been numerous issues related to the Drums, the guitars are generally fine and the mic has little to no issues. A few problems with the drums are as follows, The battery back can come loose and the controller will turn off mid-song. The blue and yellow pads if hit too hard off center will register a hit on multiple drums occasionally. The yellow or red often will drop notes for little to no reason, and there have been reports that some sets will remain on while no buttons will actually work. The guitar will occasionally drop a note or two, but for the most part its fine.

There are very few issues with the game and some welcome additions, for the most part its merely a step in the right direction and if they can continue on the path they are on the next game should be a Rock Out… I mean Knockout.

P.S.- The drum set comes with 4 expansion ports on its back, 3 for cymbals (Yellow, Blue, and Green) which double as extra pads during regular play and as actual cymbals during free play. The fourth slot is a mystery and no one yet knows what it is for, it has been rumored its for a second bass pedal, but many have tried to plug a second pedal into the port and it does nothing.

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