Rock Band (Xbox 360)

Sound

The game boasts almost 60 tracks from most rock genres spanning the last 30+ years. There is something for everyone here, from classics by the Rolling Stones to the more recent wacky Ok Go. While playing through the all the different instruments I’d notice if a song was say particularly awful with bass it would be either pretty good vocally or really good on the drums, I think the developers did this to feel that if you are playing with friends then you get to experience the best of each song for the original instrument it was intended for.

The thing that got me though and really did make me feel like ‘a star’ was when you sing, if you’re doing particularly well the audience will start to sing along with you, and I can tell you I’ve been to enough gigs to know how that feels but to have it done for you just felt amazing. The same can be said if you’re having a really good session on the drums, the audience go mad with cheers and it all just sounds so realistic, as if you’re really there. On the flip side it also gets painful if you’re about to be booed off, the booing gets very loud and generally makes it even harder to get your rhythm back and save the performance.

In multiplayer too if your playing with friends though you can’t actually hear the lead singer sing (for better or worse) you can hear when a member of your group misses a string of notes, this can if say your very reliant on the drum beat while your playing guitar can really make you loose your rhythm which can be annoying. I suppose it shows you how working as a team can get the best performance which does actually work, the only thing the game can’t seem to fix is the arguments over who’s going to play lead guitar or drums!

Graphics

Stylistically the game borrows heavily from different generations of rock; from the menus to the title itself reflects the content of the game. As for the actual graphics, there’s nothing truly special about them but they do the job, all the performers on stage have a wide array of movements and interactions with their instruments, it’s amusing to purposely fail a song to watch the lead singer take a huff and throw the mic down on the stage. Every city you play in has its own stage design, some are big and colourful, and others are very small and dark highlighting the audience who are all rendered and animated very smoothly, from the swaying of a slow song to the absolute mayhem of a rocking tune. I found the crowd at times to act just like a real audience which I thought was a nice touch.

Longevity

The single player campaign will most diffidently set you back several hours at least, longer if you do every difficulty mode with every instrument with the added bonus of earning money to pimp out your pseudo rock star.

Now onto the requisite for all games these days, the multiplayer, in a game like this the multiplayer is indeed an important role, the ‘local multiplayer’ I found to be a good laugh, watching friends tapping the drums gently afraid incase they break them only to watch me hammer them to death without a second thought, or racing to bring a friend back with an overdrive before the crowd boo you off stage. It all adds to the fun. But the main feature here is the online multiplayer that allows you and 3 of your friends to form an online band and tour the world, personally I didn’t find this mode as fun as the local multiplayer but that’s me. Other online modes include Tug of War and Duel where you and a friend battle it out with a chosen instrument each to see who can rack up the highest score on a certain song. These multiplayer aspects help prolong the games already long life making that 180 or so pounds you spent just that much more worth it.

Downloadable content has been all the rage this gaming generation and this game is no different, every week new songs, albums and packs are released to beef out the already meaty track list into a Mecca for any rock fan aching for new songs to play on a regular basis.

So, should you buy rock band? Fancy something a little different to Guitar Hero? Want a game you can play with all your friends and have a good old laugh over? If you said yes to either question then sure go out and buy it that is of course if you can afford it.