My thoughts on Rock Band

I'm watching yesterdays coverage of E3 on G4, and they have been talking a lot about Rock Band. I was excited about this game when I first heard about it, but I was also a bit concerned. I love Guitar Hero, but with all the other instruments on it, I knew tha it could be hard to keep track of what was going on.

They have been showing footage from the game, and they are actually showing a demo for it after the commercial break, and I have to say they aren't helping any. it looks like Guitar hero on crack, with a karaoke revolution style lyric bar on the top of the screen.

I think the main problem I have with this game is the fact that, to get the most out of it, it is essential;y a party game. Guitar Hero is fun when playing with friends, but it is also fun by yourself, while games like Mario Party are more fun with friends. I have a feeling that, no mater how fun Rock Band is, it will truly shine as a party game. Not that this is a bad game, but I like games that are just as good in solo play.

one cool part was the fact that they were talking to Steven Van Zandt, who apparently is serving as a consultant on the game. it was funny when he said that a lot of older, classic rock songs aren't played much on radio stations and can be hard to find. apparently he doesn't know about classic rock stations, that only play classic (and sometimes modern) rock. there are 5 that I can get with varying degrees of clarity, in my truck (reception sucks in my apartment)

Harmonix is making this game, and they are the ones who invented the genre, so I will probably still get it, but at the moment I doubt that I will be getting it at launch.


Update: They just showed the demo, with Three Finger Salute (a Rock Band band made up of Harmonix employees) playing. Except for at the very end, they did very good, with the guitar player messing up right at the end. Up next is the G4 bad, Red Circle Of Death. should be interesting to see how someone who didn't make the game does.

Update 2: They didn't even last a full minute before someone (I think KEvin) crashed and burned and someone apparently tried logging onto X Box live. did pretty much confirm my theory that it is a party game.