Last night I was a rock star, albeit only on the “medium” difficulty. I took the stage with game journalists and other lucky people who received tickets for a special E3 Rock band 2 party. We proceeded to jam to songs from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Police, and other legendary rock bands. The pre-show jitters were put to rest as the colored notes began to race down the plasmas screens towards our feet. We were just the opening act for a (somewhat well know) band called, “The Who.”
Two Rock Band 2 “mini-stages” were setup with stage lights, three plasmas and an on looking crowd of 20-30 people watching us rock-out. Some even sang along. The setup made this the ultimate Rock Band experience for everyone involved. In all I played four songs: Blondie “One Way or Another,” Red Hot Chili Pepeprs “Give it Away,” The Police “Message in a Bottle,” and Cheap Trick “Hello There” (I think that was the last one, I could be mistaken due to the fact that there was an open bar).
The venue was the Orpheum in downtown Los Angeles. EA and Harmonix (the developers of Rock Band 2) were the hosts. The E3 event was put together to promote Rock Band 2, allow the media to get their hands on the sequel and to treat the attendees to a private concert from one of the greatest rock bands in history. The Who was an obvious choice due to their involvement in Rock Band 2. Their performance was very personal thanks to the small venue and a crowd of 400-500 people. It was a real treat to see the rock legends perform.
For the last song my “band” played we had a six-year-old drummer. He had the time of his life even though he hit less than half of the notes. If we were playing Rock Band 1 the band would have failed the song, making the song end prematurely. A new “No Fail Mode” is featured in Rock Band 2. This mode does exactly what it says; no one can fail. Now Rock Band is even less intimidating to the newcomers. Last night was a perfect example of why this option is important and makes the game better. The most important perk of this feature is that the six-year-old drummer didn’t make the whole band fail the song, which could have embarrassed him. This will be a welcomed addition for all who own Rock Band 2 and want to play with their grandparents or young children.
A diverse and high-quality track list is what convinced me to buy the original Rock Band nine-months ago. After Rock Band 2’s setlist was released last week I am even more excited for this iteration because all of the songs are master tracks (not covers) and quite simply, the setlist itself is outstanding. You will find the likes of The Who, Journey, Devo, Modest Mouse, and many other bands that have made they mark in rock music history at one time or another. Personally I can not wait to play Beck “E-Pro,” Presidents of the USA “Lump,” and Rage Against the Machine “Testify.” Thanks to the fact that the songs are from the early 70’s to the present, there really is something for everyone on this track list.
Rock Band now sits with other elite franchises such as Halo, Metal Gear Solid and Grand Theft Auto. Harmonix has made sure to improve an already great game without making drastic gameplay changes. Rock Band 2 has the best setlist ever assembled for a video game, more gameplay options and a slicker interface. Plan on pre-ordering as Rock Band 2 will be even harder to find than its predecessor.
- Pictures are from Joystiq.com and the MTV Multiplayer Blog
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