Metareview - Rock Band 2

by Alexander Sliwinski { Sep 14th 2008 at 4:30PM }

The reviews for Rock Band 2 acknowledge that the game doesn't do anything radically new, but the improvements are enough to justify its existence. For those who don't have friends living close by, being able to play World Tour mode online will certainly be a vast improvement on the original's main method of solo gameplay. The game doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it sure does put some sweet rims on it.

Giant Bomb (5/5): "... With its large library of licensed master recordings and vastly improved approach to multiplayer play, Rock Band 2 is a terrific value at both ends. It's both a must-own for fans of the genre and a great place for new players to get started."
GamePro (5/5): "It's more Rock Band and that is not a bad thing at all. With a new setlist of songs and more features, it's a no-brainer for anyone who loved the first Rock Band."
OXM (90/100): "The game's true enhancements come in areas that are arguably more important than playing dress-up. This time, there's no guitar career or drum career; there is only the Tour. The Tour is whatever you want it to be - a solo path through the venues of the world (on any or all instruments - switch between them at will), or a shot at stardom with up to three friends, whether they're in the room or across the country (thanks to the brilliant and long overdue Xbox Live support for co-op careers)."
IGN (90/100): "Rock Band 2 improves in several areas over the original. The track list is better, the difficulty has been bumped up, it's more accessible, all previously released DLC works from the get-go, and Battle of the Bands is a brilliant online mode. But there's no getting around the fact that almost nothing was done to the main mode, World Tour. This is still the primary feature of Rock Band and yet it seems to have been neglected. It's hard to notice the newness when there's a big chunk of game that is just the same as it ever was."

Tags: ea, harmonix, metareview, mtv-games, rock-band-2

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

KeenCommander @ Sep 14th 2008 4:34PM

I hate not having a 360, RB2 looks amazing.

I guess I've finally been cured of my GH fandom.

Haggard (Free Mr.ESC!) @ Sep 14th 2008 4:39PM

I hate living in the wrong part of the world.

Ranus Studios @ Sep 14th 2008 4:35PM

I've never heard of Giant Bomb before. Huh.

brickwalker0 @ Sep 14th 2008 4:51PM

its from the dude involved in the GameSpot controversy with the Kane and Lynch review.

Erik1992 @ Sep 15th 2008 10:21AM

Giant Bomb is Jeff G, Ryan D, Vinnie C and Brad S' new site. Awesome

Jakka(Free Mr.ESC!) @ Sep 14th 2008 6:12PM

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FourPointScale

Jakka(Free Mr.ESC!) @ Sep 14th 2008 6:24PM

What? How did this get there? It was meant to be response to the comment about how RB got all 90+ even though it's more of an expansion than a sequel!

JEDIaNIN @ Sep 14th 2008 4:37PM

Is it weird to anyone that most reviews say " almost the same", "not much new" and then giving them a perfect score. ??? Sounds and smells like FANBOY

Ranus Studios @ Sep 14th 2008 4:41PM

If the original was pretty great, then why would the same thing get a lower rating? Especially if there isn't much to change.

Jerkfish @ Sep 14th 2008 4:51PM

That's good. It sounds like Harmonix took a 9/10 concept, and improved on it without throwing in stupid and useless features just for the sake of making it different.

Guess you've never heard the phrase "Don't fix was isn't broken"? RB1 was a 9/10 game, so if RB2 doesn't break that then why wouldnt it be a 9/10 as well?

Joe @ Sep 14th 2008 4:53PM

It doesn't make it a bad game.
It just means its more of the same.

You can't really deviate far from scrolling notes and pitch bars in a band game.

Thatoneguy64 @ Sep 14th 2008 4:56PM

Every game doesn't have to be new or innovative to be great.

In fact, a lot of the time games that try to "innovate" end up coming up short because they do try to do a lot of new things.

Perfecting the already present wheel is all Rock Band 2 (and a lot of games) needed to do to be great.

quasebrasileiro @ Sep 14th 2008 4:57PM

No, not if the original kicked ass.

Haggard (Free Mr.ESC!) @ Sep 14th 2008 5:15PM

@Thatoneguy64

I like the irony there, because the wheel that fills up as you get a combo is one of the few things that have changed.

theturtle363 @ Sep 14th 2008 5:18PM

a game doesn't have to do anything new to be great

TheKingpin @ Sep 14th 2008 5:20PM

You don't have to have everything innovative, but look at what World Tour is doing. I'm not going to list them, but they have a bunch of added features that Rock Band is missing, and it seems more like an expansion pack than a sequel.

Jakka(Free Mr.ESC!) @ Sep 14th 2008 6:21PM

Dude, that's not the right place to say that.Luckily the RB bias has been very weak recently.

It's all about LBP now.

brickwalker0 @ Sep 14th 2008 4:49PM

i cant believe that, according to the IGN review, the guitar bundled with it is STILL inferior to previous Guitar Hero guitars.

i am definately waiting on Guitar Hero World Tour to get the bundle, then just the game version of Rock Band 2, seeing as the best part about the game is the track list.

zuburi @ Sep 14th 2008 6:30PM

I've never thought a GH guitar was better than the RB guitar, and I play much worse when using a GH guitar. Different strokes for different folks.

Psyclerk @ Sep 14th 2008 4:51PM

There's only so much you can change in games like this. The core gameplay is the same in both RB and GH. The only differences are song lists and presentation.

From just a couple of hours with RB2, I can say it has great presentation so far. All the backwards compatible stuff is a huge boon.

J.Goodwin @ Sep 14th 2008 4:54PM

Odd that IGN and OXM have such massively divergent opinions on the specifics of the World Tour mode.

Wonder which one of them didn't play the game.

Sora @ Sep 14th 2008 6:25PM

Hint: It's IGN.

Erik Stroud @ Sep 14th 2008 5:00PM

I'm just glad to hear that the difficulty got bumped up. Th first was fun, but difficulty was too low for me to continually play.

KeenCommander @ Sep 14th 2008 5:40PM

Even at that, they should have gone higher - or, should I say, more realistic. I watched Panic Attack drums (expert) on YouTube and it's ridiculously undercharted - you can hear Portnoy is playing way more than what Rock Band has for notes.

Jakka(Free Mr.ESC!) @ Sep 14th 2008 6:23PM

Wait till Guitar Hero 4 comes out? I'm sure that expert drums in that game will be something you can truly call "a challenge".

tmacairjordan87 @ Sep 14th 2008 6:42PM

If you want a challenge play the real drum songs on expert like Battery or Painkiller.

KeenCommander @ Sep 14th 2008 7:06PM

Umm...Panic Attack is rated the hardest drum song in the game - according to the developers.

They really didn't deliver on their promise with that one, but still...it is very much a REAL drum song.

tmacairjordan87 @ Sep 14th 2008 7:58PM

Yeah I take that back I was thinking of another song when I read that.

Erik Stroud @ Sep 14th 2008 8:37PM

I am more worried about the guitar. Drums are always a challenge to me :(

jsn @ Sep 14th 2008 9:09PM

keen, unless you're gold starring it, you don't really know what you're talking about. I've yet to see anyone on the rock band forums, ie. the best drummers in the game, complaining that it is undercharted, and believe me, if it was, they would. The only thing that should be missing is left bass pedal, which is rarely ever charted and wouldn't be in a song like this.

KeenCommander @ Sep 15th 2008 12:06AM

Give them time, and if they're not - they should be. Just listen to the song, or dig up the video of the drummer playing the actual song. The difference is big, and it's obvious.

hunt3r @ Sep 14th 2008 5:05PM

I wonder when Europe will get this game and if we will get robbed again like we did when RB launched. It's sad but true, if you wan't to be a gamers go live in Japan or USA.

Peekay @ Sep 14th 2008 5:24PM

I don't regret a second of importing a US xb360 at times like these. My copy's flying into sweden any day now :p

MattJack @ Sep 14th 2008 5:24PM

Yawn. Rockband 1.5 wont get my money.

Lone Starr @ Sep 14th 2008 5:28PM

I'm going to buy it just because you said you wouldn't.

Red Leader @ Sep 14th 2008 11:07PM

I'm with Matt, everyone who buys RB2 is a tool.

ColossalHat @ Sep 15th 2008 4:04AM

Here, let me show you this stuff called math.
Rock Band 2 (game only) = $60
80 Songs of DLC = $146.40-$160

Need I say more? Or is it just that you're a fanboy who thinks that everyone must like the same game?

Waqman @ Sep 14th 2008 5:35PM

I'm gonna have to wait until October to get the game then, damn PS3 non exclusivity.

Immortal Technique PSN: johnnynumber5 @ Sep 14th 2008 5:50PM

To bad I bought the PS3 version of the original Rock Band.

Sigh ...

Guess I will have to wait about a month to get in on the RB 2 fun train.

RavenPaul @ Sep 14th 2008 5:57PM

I'll like being able to switch between instruments on Tour. I like to play and sing together, but I hate having to learn the vocals to the songs I hate. Good move.

Beatz @ Sep 14th 2008 5:58PM

Is anyone else having trouble with the new drums? Every time I hit the yellow pad the damn blue pad registers too.

Superstar90 @ Sep 14th 2008 6:29PM

I want this, yet I don't want it :l

Because if I (and everyone else) buy(s) it, then they will just release the sequel as a full packaged RB3 with updated looks and controllers. Forcing us to buy RB3 for like $100+.

But if I don't buy it, I won't be able to play it. So I will buy it :(

j.howlett @ Sep 14th 2008 8:56PM

i think you can just buy the game by itself and the only real difference is the drum kit. don't take my word as concrete proof though, it's just what i've picked up from reading the abundance of news when i'm bored.

Fonic @ Sep 14th 2008 6:33PM

The disparity between genres in terms of reviews is always amazing to me. Madden or Guitar Hero/Rock Band can come out with almost the same freaking game year after year and lap up 9 or aboves, but God forbid an RPG for instance not be absolutely groundbreaking or its docked at least 20 percent right off the bat.
Not fixing what isn't broken apparently only applies to certain series.

tmacairjordan87 @ Sep 14th 2008 6:46PM

Well, do you have a genious idea on how to revolutionize the sports genre, which runs on set rules that can't be changed? Or do you have an idea on how to do that with the music genre besides adding more instruments and songs?

RPGs should have new stuff all the time because it's 100% fantasy and fake, therefore you can put ANYTHING in those games and it will fit nicely.

It's a pretty easy idea to figure out.

Mr Khan @ Sep 14th 2008 7:03PM

Sports games are more or less tied to technology to evolve, but it really depends on what you're going for. The Madden experience is more strategic, while the game BackBreaker (which we've sadly heard little of) was trying for a more action game kinda take on it, where you see things in an over-the shoulder view of the Receiver as you charge down the field

The EA-NFL Players exclusivity agreement really hurts the whole football game innovation thing anyway.

Fonic @ Sep 14th 2008 9:50PM

Wow tmacair talk about missing my point by a mile.

And no, just because they are fantasy doesn't mean that every RPG has to be a completely new take on the genre. Again, if it isn't broken, it needn't be fixed. Though of course what is and is not broken is a matter of opinion.

Gavin @ Sep 14th 2008 6:49PM

Is the guitar more reliable? I've had to crack mine open to fix it myself on a few occasions and then actually sent it in once, and now it is fucked up once again. I am NOT buying another music game unless I know for certain that the peripherals aren't going to ass up for me in a few months. It really, really, really, really pisses me off something special.

Hafk @ Sep 14th 2008 10:38PM

I know, it may be "evil", but I really reccomend purchase of a Guitar Hero controller. Okay, maybe the Les Paul has quality problems too, but the new guitar has a much better detachable neck, given that it is actually a port, and not some half-assed "pins against board" thing like the Les Paul.

You can also buy an Explorer controller. Best buy has them for >$30 on clearence, and while they certainly aren't the best, they do atleast work and function properly.

However, if you are a PS2 owner... get an SG. I'm a Guitar Hero 1 player, and my SG has worked since day one. If they made SG controllers for all consoles, I think everyone would be happy.