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Harmonix to Launch 'Rock Band' - Guitar Hero Times 2

'Guitar Hero was just a step in this direction'

Apr 2, 2007 11:15 GMT  ·  By
Just the thought of rocking alongside friends is cool enough, not these guys though
   Just the thought of rocking alongside friends is cool enough, not these guys though

Just as soon as the world found out that the mysterious port on the 360's X-plorer controller connects an Effects Pedal for Guitar Hero II (nifty huh?), this came out. Harmonix, developer of the blockbuster Guitar Hero franchise, teaming up with MTV Music, Viacom and Electronic Arts announced the launch of Rock Band, an all-new platform for music fans, sometime during the holiday season of 2007.

The game is said to allow gamers to perform music from the world's biggest rock artists with their friends as a virtual band using drum, bass/lead guitar and microphone peripherals, in addition to offering deep online connectivity. So from starters, it beats the hell out of Guitar Hero. Music will span all genres of rock (no techno, sorry clubbers) and will include many of the master recordings from the biggest songs and artists of all time. Like... I haven't a clue. Rock Band will launch on both Sony's PS3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360.

And to further prove that GH and GH II were mere beta testers for Rock Band, Alex Rigopulos, co-founder and CEO of Harmonix stated: "Harmonix was founded to create new ways for everyone to experience the pleasure and satisfaction that comes from playing music. Our work on Guitar Hero was an instrumental step toward that goal. But Rock Band is Harmonix's most ambitious project to date, and it will take music gameplay to an entirely new level. MTV has given us the freedom and the resources to really swing for the fences and make the game we've always wanted to make."

So Rock Band will be something like Guitar Hero times 2? Imagine what it will do to PS3 rockers, if we're to take into consideration the dose of popularity GH and GH II are enjoying on PS2 and Xbox 360. If you were asking what's EA's role in this, the developer and publisher giant will mainly provide marketing partnership for Rock Band, managing distribution for the game in US, Europe and Australia. Still think that Effects Pedal is nifty? Well, yeah sure, it's alright, but by the time it even becomes available, Rock Star will conquer the world of music video games.