Rock Band 3

[markav]

I know where it is. If they haven't wrapped by tonight I suppose I could have a little go.

[Failed]

haha! the darkside is with you

[GamerMan316]

More charges for Rock Band 3 DLC

If you want keyboard and vocal harmony parts added to your old Rock Band songs then you're going to have to buy them again.

Specifically, you'll need the Rock Band 3 version of the song charged at, presumably, the default DLC price - the Harmonix website doesn't clarify.

The only upgrade available for old Rock Band songs is to add the Pro Guitar and Bass tracks, a procedure that costs 80 Microsoft Points/£0.59/100 Wii points.

Today marks the arrival of Bon Jovi songs to Rock Band 3. Existing Rock Band songs "Livin' on a Prayer", "You Give Love a Bad Name" and "Wanted Dead or Alive" have all been updated to Rock Band 3 versions.

Each song costs roughly a quid, or it's a tenner for the full 12-song list.

Rock Band 3 may have scored 10/10 on Eurogamer when released late last month, but the game is struggling to find a audience, as low first-week sales gave way to even lower second week sales. Mind you, the Pro-style RB3 instruments are still to arrive in many shops - perhaps, like Carl Lewis, Rock Band 3 is a late starter.

[Failed]

hopefully santa will bring me RB3 with a keyboard

[dfusioness]

hope santa brings me somethin nice too x

[Failed]

a rampant rhino ?

[dfusioness]

ooh the horn could hurt though x

[markav]

hope santa brings me somethin nice too x

Hasn't Santa already been to your gaff with a 360??

[dfusioness]

nope, that was xtra cos ive been very good this year x

[GamerMan316]

Viacom to sell Rock Band developer

UPDATE: In a question and answer session Viacom said Harmonix made a loss of around "$65 million" for the financial quarter. "That loss reflects how we've been informed by the potential buyers we've been talking to," it said. The loss would have been half that number otherwise.

"Third parties have a different economic view of Harmonix. It will be worth more to them than it is to us," said the media giant. That's why it's selling.

ORIGINAL STORY

Viacom plans to sell Rock Band and Dance Central developer Harmonix.

No explanation was given in its financial report, but Rock Band 3, released last month, appears to have failed to achieve commercial success.

"Viacom also announced that it plans to sell Harmonix, which developed the Rock Band music video game franchise," said Viacom. "Accordingly, the Company reclassified the business as a discontinued operation and has recast its results from previous periods to reflect this change."

In a question and answer session this morning, Viacom commented briefly on its plan to sell.

"We expect that [sale] to be completed expeditiously. We'll announce the results when the deal is concluded. The proceeds will go into our back account and then we'll deploy it," said the company

Official UK sales figures from UKIE revealed Rock Band 3 sold just 7386 units for the week ending 30th October in the UK.

As a result, Harmonix's tour de force spent a debut week at 26th in the UK all-formats top 40. Rival Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock finished one place below in 27th.

All this despite the game being ruddy brilliant.

Earlier this year Harmonix boss Alex Rigopulos declared "I absolutely do not believe that rhythm-action gaming has reached its peak".

Viacom bought Harmonix, which used to develop Guitar Hero, four years ago for $175m. Rock Band's generated over $1 billion in revenue, but some critics suggest the music genre is dead.

[GamerMan316]

UK getting Rock Band 3 MIDI Pro-Adapter

The Rock Band 3 MIDI Pro-Adapter will be released in the UK "late next week" for around £34.99 / €39.99, Mad Catz has told Eurogamer.

Mad Catz, Harmonix's official partner when it comes to Rock Band 3 accessories, said the MIDI Pro-Adapter will be available to buy from "all leading online retailers".

The PlayStation 3 and Wii version of the adapter will be released first, then the Xbox 360 version "shortly after".

The MIDI Pro-Adapter allows Rock Band 3 owners to use the Squier by Fender Stratocaster Guitar and Controller, due out in the US in March for $279.99 (around £175 / €199). The Squier is a fully functional, full-sized electric guitar with strings that doubles as a game controller for Rock Band 3's Pro mode.

The adapter also allows gamers to use "most real" MIDI keyboards and MIDI drum sets when playing the game. It plugs directly into the console via USB, converting the MIDI messages into console controller data which the game translates into on-screen action.

There's a velocity sensitive adjustment for MIDI drums, designed to reduce cross-talk during play, a full D-Pad and standard gaming controller buttons and a removable clip, which allows gamers to attach to a belt or rest on a table top or similar flat surface.

Meanwhile, Mad Catz said it was aware some Rock Band 3 owners were having trouble buying peripherals for the stunning music game. It promised 100 per cent availability from its own online store, Gameshark.

"Incidentally, we know that some folks are still finding difficulty getting hold of some instruments and accessories," a Mad Catz spokesperson told Eurogamer this evening.

"Mad Catz would like to remind gamers that we are the official partners with Harmonix and thus our webstore carries pretty much everything in the Rock Band range from software through to legacy instruments and of course the new Rock Band 3 products."

[GamerMan316]

Harmonix goes independent
Breaks from Viacom and to "return to roots as an independent" studio

Rock Band and Dance Central developer Harmonix has confirmed that its break from former parent company Viacom is complete, and it's now an independent studio.

"We're happy to confirm the news today that the sale of the company is complete. We appreciate all of your support, comments and warm wishes in the preceding few weeks," said Harmonix on its forum.

"Viacom and MTV Networks have been an amazing home for us over the past 4 years. It's where we launched both Rock Band and Dance Central, worked with The Beatles, Green Day, AC/DC, The Who and thousands of other artists.

"We want to take a moment to thank everyone in that organization who helped make these awesome games possible,"it adds, which is far more pleasant that the sentiments of ex-shareholders of Harmonix, who have launched a lawsuit against Viacom for allegedly attempting to wriggle out of honouring performance-related bonuses.

Harmonix continues: "We're excited to be returning to our roots as an independent and privately owned studio. As for what it means for you, the DLC schedule marches on for Rock Band, we will continue our support of previously released titles and we're hard at work on some unannounced projects that we think you're going to be pumped about."

[nCogNeato]

Harmonix goes independent

...

Harmonix continues: "We're excited to be returning to our roots as an independent and privately owned studio. As for what it means for you, the DLC schedule marches on for Rock Band, we will continue our support of previously released titles and we're hard at work on some unannounced projects that we think you're going to be pumped about."

So I guess all of the "Who will buy Harmonix" speculation was for naught?

[GamerMan316]

Johnny Cash Coming To Rock Band 3 Tomorrow

Fans of The Man in Black can rejoice from tomorrow, as an eight pack of Johnny Cash tracks are making their way to Rock Band, collecting some of his best-known tracks, including "Folsom Prison Blues", "I Walk The Line" and "I Got Stripes".

The Johnny Cash Pack marks The Man in Black's Rock Band debut, but there's also a pack of old RB tracks available to download for free, offering nine tracks that cover an array of genres from punk to rock, metal and indie.

Two of the Cash tracks also offer optional Pro Bass and Pro Guitar upgrades, while the nine free tracks are just your standard vanilla Rock Band tunes. But then what did you expect for nowt?

Check out the full list of tomorrow's tracks here:

Johnny Cash Pack 01 - 1080 Microsoft Points (160 Microsoft Points each. X = 80 Microsoft Points per track for a Pro Guitar/Pro Bass upgrade)

    * "Cry, Cry, Cry"
    * "Don't Take Your Guns to Town"
    * "Five Feet High and Rising"
    * "Folsom Prison Blues"
    * "I Got Stripes"
    * "I Walk the Line" X
    * "Tennessee Flat Top Box" X
    * "The Ballad of Ira Hayes"

Rock Band Free Pack 01 - Erm...Free

    * Abnormality – "Visions"
    * Anarchy Club – "Get Clean"
    * Bang Camaro – "Night Lies"
    * Breaking Wheel – "Shoulder to the Plow"
    * Libyans – "Welcome to the Neighborhood"
    * The Main Drag – "A Jagged Gorgeous Winter"
    * Speck – "Conventional Lover"
    * The Sterns – "Supreme Girl"
    * That Handsome Devil – "Rob the Prez-O-Dent"

(All tracks are original master recordings)

Look out for them on the Xbox Live Marketplace from January 4th.

[GamerMan316]

Bowie DLC for Rock Band 3
Get Ziggy with it

David Bowie headlines the next batch of DLC for Rock Band 3, developer Harmonix has announced.

A five song track pack touches down on the Rock Band Store on 25th January, including the following numbers from the glam legend:

    * "Blue Jean"
    * "Fame"
    * "Modern Love"
    * "Young Americans"
    * "Ziggy Stardust"

As usual, individual tracks cost £0.99/€1.49/200 Wii Points/160 Microsoft Points or you can grab the lot for £4.39/€6.59/850 Wii Points/680 Microsoft Points.

Both Modern Love and Ziggy Stardust have Pro Guitar and Pro Bass expansions available for an additional £0.59/€0.79/100 Wii Points/80 Microsoft Points.