Rumor: Rock Band may never come to Australia

by Griffin McElroy { Aug 17th 2008 at 4:30PM }

Australians love the rock music just as much as the inhabitants of any other country, but did you know that they've yet to receive Harmonix's rock star simulator, Rock Band? According to an unidentified retail tipster on IGN, Aussies may remain Rock Band-less indefinitely -- it seems retailers are hesitant to transport and shelve the bulky bundles, especially since the title is nearly a year old. The same tipster also disclosed that Australian stores are much more likely to sell the cheaper and newer Guitar Hero: World Tour when it drops later this year.

It's great news for Activision, but EA may be in a heap of trouble Down Under -- further speculation from IGN's tipster states that for similar reasons, Rock Band 2 may skip over the sunburned country, making the Commonwealth of Australia a strictly Guitar Hero territory. It's regrettable that they might not have the faux-rocking opportunities afforded to the rest of the gaming world -- though we're certainly jealous that they may not have to suffer the Battle of the Band Simulators that has nearly torn the rest of the planet asunder.

[Via X3F]

Tags: activision, australia, ea, guitar-hero-world-tour, harmonix, neversoft, rock-band, rock-band-2

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Jakka - The Heavy wants his sandwich back! @ Aug 17th 2008 4:52PM

You know what HMX? Fuck you, Guitar Hero 4 just won millions of customer.And I don't see them ever buying RB games again after what you did.

Sora @ Aug 17th 2008 5:03PM

Dude, read the article. It's the retailers, not Harmonix. And even if it WERE on the creator's side, it'd be EA's fault (who distributes the game), not Harmonix.

Jakka - The Heavy wants his sandwich back! @ Aug 17th 2008 7:09PM

Is it also the retailers fault that it's priced at £200 in UK? Maybe blame it on the dreaded VAT of death? Don't piss in my ear and tell me it's raining.

Jakka - The Heavy wants his sandwich back! @ Aug 17th 2008 7:14PM

Also guess what, I did read it carefully and it seems like Retailers refuse to sell Rock Band because it's over a year old.And whose fault could this be. We can't blame HMX for delaying the game to the point where retailers won't even take it anymore, can we?

Replica23 @ Aug 17th 2008 7:55PM

"And even if it WERE on the creator's side, it'd be EA's fault (who distributes the game), not Harmonix."

I tend to agree. This is an example in lack of diligence on the part of EA. To ward off piracy, importing and loss of product publishers need to show more initiative when dispensing products. This hurts gamers, retailers and EA themselves.

You're probably better off importing it anyway, seeing as the cost of admission will likely require the donation of one or more organs.

SHAZAM! @ Aug 17th 2008 8:12PM

£200? Where the hell are you getting that from.

The instruments are £130, and any clever customer can very easily get them for £100. Then the game's £40...that's nowhere near £200, not even if you go solely off the RRP.

Getting to the point at hand, if anything it's just good business not to release it over there now. It's too late. Release Rock Band 2 over there ASAP and get the original games songs up as DLC. Australia gets better instruments and the tracks they want, win win.

Superstar90 @ Aug 17th 2008 4:52PM

I would be pissed if they release RB1 after (or right before) RB2. It just seems like this is how the whole thing went.
"Did you clear Rock Band for Australia, we are trying to get it there same day as NA"
"No, I'm busy now... I'll do it tomorrow"
-1 year later-
"Did you clear Rock Band for Australia yet?"
"STOP PESTERING ME, GOD... I'LL DO IT WHEN I FEEL LIKE IT"

Now, who will really buy a year old Rock Band when the new GH4 is coming out so soon.

Zippy5150 @ Aug 17th 2008 5:03PM

Now that's no way to treat the country that gave us AC/DC.

Foetoid @ Aug 17th 2008 5:19PM

As well as:

INXS
The Angels
Wolfmother
Powderfinger
Silverchair
Regurgitator
Savage Garden
John Farnham
The Veronicas
The Rogue Traders

And i'm sure i've missed heaps.

Sheppy (of the Fidlious Clan of Wong) @ Aug 17th 2008 6:01PM

I missed em too, just wait til I reload...

Jakka - The Heavy wants his sandwich back! @ Aug 17th 2008 7:12PM

Sheepy's right, but the pure awesomeness of AC/DC makes up for the lack of other good Australian Bands.

Henry @ Aug 17th 2008 5:11PM

I dont know what this company thinks it's doing. Bunch of idiots it seems.
They only half released Rock Band here in the UK. I'm still waiting for the PS3 version!

Haggard @ Aug 17th 2008 5:51PM

Same, except I imported it off ebay about a month ago.

But the guitar's tilt thing is broken and I can't buy DLC! Gotta wait till the release for both of those things.

Seriously though, what's with the retarded anti-PS3 strategy? RB's 360 instruments weren't wireless so that both console's users would pay the same price for the game.

And now they've decided (not for the american release, a year ago, of course) that what us Europeans really need to make us feel better about the whole thing is a timed exclusive.

Thanks EA. Thanks MTV. Thanks HMX. I bought a PS3 purely to play Rock Band, and you've made me think, for the first time in five years, that you're not committed to the consumer.

Maybe I'll go beg Valve to make a rhythm game. They care.

Jakka - The Heavy wants his sandwich back! @ Aug 17th 2008 7:17PM

Haggard, wouldn't you have been a lot better off buying a 360 solely to play RB since it's like you know, cheaper?

Haggard @ Aug 17th 2008 9:51PM

Well, I used the foolish logic that I'd want to play RB online, and the 360 would therefore be more expensive over a long period of time.

Also, nearly all decent 360 games get a PC port, so I went PS3 to get the exclusives to that platform. So far I've not been impressed ^^

MR White mage Kapudels @ Aug 17th 2008 5:19PM

In

Your

Anus

mr mobius @ Aug 17th 2008 5:51PM

Rock Band still isn't completely released for the UK. Wii hasn't seen anything and neither has some other consoles. At least GH is actually out here which makes the choice so much easier.

Warzone @ Aug 17th 2008 5:53PM

Aren't these the same retailers who threatened to delist the Xbox 360 out of fanboyism or something?

Kree @ Aug 17th 2008 6:37PM

Now, see, stuff like this is why I don't walk into retail stores anymore around here. Australian retail sucks.

Aus_JD @ Aug 17th 2008 7:43PM

I work for a retailer (updating release information by the way) and no we don't suck. Care to explain why?

Kree @ Aug 19th 2008 9:33PM

I did say "retail" to imply the industry rather than "retailers". I have no beef with any of the people working in the stores.

Compared to the US the markup for games here is a big turn off, and the prices on secondhand games at places like EB are a joke.

Jimiisama @ Aug 17th 2008 6:47PM

Didn't you guys post this article a week ago?

Red Leader @ Aug 17th 2008 7:08PM

Dude, guys. I'm just gonna break the ice. Nobody really likes GH or RB. You can all stop pretending to like it to be cool. If you like the games, just buy the CDs and be done with it.

Jakka - The Heavy wants his sandwich back! @ Aug 17th 2008 7:18PM

...I like GH.

...but only because my real guitar skill comes down to playing 7 Nation Army :(

Shaq-Fu @ Aug 17th 2008 7:27PM

Dude, welcome to the 21st century. CDs are old tech, you gotta be on the cutting edge now, not the dull center

Shaq-Fu @ Aug 17th 2008 7:30PM

a regular game in Australia is like $100 dollars or so (ridonkulous), so a full RB kit would be almost $250-$300 or so.

Solid Chief @ Aug 17th 2008 7:35PM

Sucks.
EA doesn't ship it for so long..And then of course we'll reject an old game. On top of that we'd be paying more than anyone else in the world for it.

I hate EA more than the retailers. Shoulda taken their thumb out sooner to infiltrate a country that buys so much of these party style games.

;_________________________________________________________________;

iwantanimac @ Aug 17th 2008 8:19PM

I work at a games retailer in Australia, and we just got details as to Rock Band. It IS coming. It's also rather expensive.

How our stocking will work, i don't know. It may work out like Wii Fit is currently, but it IS coming.

That said, i really dont like the way EA are playing this. I wish they'd grow some balls, apologize and release RB2 with free RB1 track pack(s?) for us Aussies.

Pika132 @ Aug 17th 2008 8:21PM

Poor Yahtzee.

David @ Aug 17th 2008 8:22PM

Looks like we'll never see the Rock Band Zero Punctuation.

Unless Yahtzee decides to use GAMETRADERS ROBINA.

Pika132 @ Aug 17th 2008 8:24PM

jesus dude I said that over a minute ago get with the times

Tiptup300 @ Aug 18th 2008 1:02AM

Ninja'd me!

TheOverlord#2 can has Animals Crossing? @ Aug 18th 2008 1:25AM

And he'd have to play it at MY FRIEND GUY'S HOUSE.

Grimzentide @ Aug 17th 2008 8:33PM

I managed to pick up the rock band bundle for PS3 in the states. AU$174 for the game, guitar, microphone and drums.

If you import the game and require shipping, its closer to AU$300. Add a rock band 2 game only purchase, and it starts to be worth it.

The game is awesome, and is better than guitar hero 2 and 3. World tour may be a different story though.

TWiNKiE @ Aug 17th 2008 8:36PM

I envy you, Austrailians.

Purple Haze @ Aug 17th 2008 8:39PM

Thank god the PS 3 is region and that my friend imported it a few months ago.

Nick @ Aug 17th 2008 8:54PM

Ah, good old EA.. the very same guys that released a Medal Of Honour Wii game here in Australia, but REMOVED the multi-player component especially for us Aussies! Amongst plenty of other things.

I'm a retailer/renter of games, and I have no intention of stocking Rock Band. Cut me/us some slack guys... should we continue to take this crap from EA, or do we put our foot down at some stage and say enough is enough already. So many people that actually want it have already imported it, so we're wasting our money to put something on the shelves that is a year old and probably won't sell that well.

I hope EA lose a stack of cash, and Rock Band crashes and burns in AU. It'll teach them to treat us like poo. I also hope that you, as Aussie consumers, back the retailers in sending EA a message from down-under.

Here's a big middle-finger from one Aussie gamer/retailer to EA. Man I'm so glad they didn't get there rotten mitts on GTA!

Haggard @ Aug 17th 2008 9:56PM

On the other hand, it'll make a marketing exec in EA's underground evil lair go "Yeah Phil, told you nobody would buy RB if we released in Australia. Might as well stop releasing games there altogether."

deathwombat @ Aug 17th 2008 9:01PM

I got tired of waiting so I just imported Rock Band for the 360. I got the game from the UK and the drums from America. I didn't the guitars because I have 2 perfectly good Guitar Hero guitars. Which lead to my purchases WITH shipping being far less than what the cost of the game and drums would be when it comes out here and thanks to an American Microsoft Points selling site I've got points at much cheaper than they cost here to buy all the DLC I want. Now all I have to do is wait for RB2 to be released the UK so I can import that as well.

Stacker @ Aug 17th 2008 10:49PM

it seems it may be coming in October according to EB games. According to their website instruments will be available then.

http://www.ebgames.com.au/productSearch.cfm?category=8&platform=xbox&clear=

I've had RB pre-ordered since very early this year and I'm extremely disappointed that it hasn't been released yet. They really need to just release RB2 and give us some kind of free very large song pack as compensation for being completely dicked around for what will be nearly a year once/if it comes out.

MrSpaceCowboy @ Aug 17th 2008 11:45PM

I'm quite sure they will release it here. Better late than never right?

Anyway, I have a song request for Aussie disc content, it goes a little something like this;

"The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you see one more card
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part"

(the game needs more Tom Petty anyway...)

John @ Aug 18th 2008 1:45AM

Maybe they're getting back at ACDC for nt releasing tracks to Rock Band?

Dell @ Aug 18th 2008 2:19AM

I'm from NZ, and I hear it's like $300 for the instrument bundle, then $100 for the game.

Woah.

r0kk3rz @ Aug 18th 2008 4:52AM

yeah perhaps its time to get an economy?

ice~ @ Aug 18th 2008 7:01AM

i would feel bad for Australia, once again, but the girls there are just too dam hot. So sorry Australia, you do not have my sympathy, but you do have gorgeous girls :D

John Z @ Aug 18th 2008 7:46AM

OK. This officially sucks. Granted it does not affect me specifically (you can probably guess where I live) but I still have to say that regardless of whose fault it is, the root cause is a large beam of wood jammed firmly up someone's rear end. (Which, not coincidentally, may also be the solution.)

Seriously, this is the freaking twenty-first century. We keep talking about the whole global community, the global economy, breaking down borders and all that. And bringing a (non-handheld) game from one country to another is STILL some Herculean effort requiring incantations from one or more Great Old Ones and possibly also a virgin sacrifice. I can see a delay of maybe a few months for music licensing issues (because let's face it, the only folks in greater need of a rectal stickectomy than the games industry is the music industry) but a YEAR? This isn't just shameful, it's downright disrespectful.

It's especially frustrating for me because I do have friends in Europe, and I really wanted to play Smash Bros. Brawl against them. By the time they got it, I was already moved on to a different game. This sort of thing gets infuriating quickly, and I can certainly sympathize with the Aussies.

tl;dr: Region encoding sucks, and lazy localizers can burn in hell.