Rock Band 2 DLC For Wii

October 3, 2008October 3, 2008| schommerschommer| 0 Comment| 9:03 am
Categories:

Although it’s cute to say, the truth of the matter is this: Rock Band 2 for the Wii has DLC. We’re talking full online downloadable content matching the behavior of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. Why is this significant?

The Wii has been the bastard child of rhythm music playing since its inception. If you’ve got the Wii and one of the other consoles (sans PS2) you’re probably more likely to purchase for the 360 or PS3 because you can extend the game with great downloadable songs. Breathing new life into your console one dollar at a time can be a life saver if you don’t typically buy a lot of games; let’s face it, Wii gamers don’t buy a lot of games.

This news also brings on the announcement of real online play like the other consoles. The Wii will have online play matching that of the 360 and PS3; without the ability to talk to your fellow band mates we’re guessing. Is it fun to play in a band with a bunch of mutes? Better than nothing I guess.

This begs the question, how will it store all the DLC? As a Rock Band addict I must admit to having several hundred megabytes of downloadabe songs. Will this be all resident on the SD card? We also wonder, will this allow us to play Rock Band DLC on our DSi sometime in the future?

(Thanks, Kotaku)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Post

Led Zeppelin Refuses Master Tracks for Rhythm GamesLed Zeppelin Refuses Master Tracks for Rhythm Games

Rhythm Games such as Rock Band and Guitar Hero will go without original masters of Led Zeppelin because the remaining band members don’t want to see their most valuable possessions in the wrong hands.

For Activision and MTV, original master tracks are the most valuable asset they can get their hands on. Cover bands work well and many do great justice (sometimes better) to the original artist but masters are where it’s at! What if those tracks are ever “lost” while mastering them for a video game?

Page and the crew aren’t looking to take that risk, no matter what Activision and/or MTV is ready to pay for those original tracks. Led Zeppelin is a classic rock band, perhaps stuck in old ways, but they’re lively hood is in those master tracks; it’s the heart of the Led Zeppelin sound.

To Led Zeppelin it’s not worth the risk in losing those masters just go get their songs in a video game.

The band isn’t comfortable with the prospect of granting outsiders access to its master tapes, a necessary step in creating the games. “It ain’t about the money,” Mr. Mensch says. (WSJ)

Can you fault them for the mistrust? Risking everything you’ve worked on since 1968 just to get your product in a video game isn’t an easy decision. Many folks, Aerosmith included, probably see this as a great opportunity to get their songs into the youth, market themselves on a new medium and make a few bucks while doing it. There is definitely going to be some ego involved with being able to see your songs grow on a brand new rock medium, but not everyone thinks the same.

To some artists, music isn’t all about marketing and popularity. To each his own, but it’s upsetting to know we won’t be rocking out to any classic Led Zeppelin with a wailing Robert Plant and beating the drums like one of the most respected drummers in the industry: John Bonham.

Read MoreRead More

Red Steel 2 and Wii Motion PlusRed Steel 2 and Wii Motion Plus

In an “unexpected” move, Ubisoft has opted to utilize the 1:1 accuracy of the Wii Motion Plus add-on device for the Wii remote in their next Red Steel sequel, currently called Red Steel 2. It may be most gamers consider this an unexpected move because they thought the series would be dead after the first launch title.

Red Steel was plagued with motion issues, making it a very unexceptable demonstration of the Wii control scheme. Luckily other titles arrived to show off how the controls were supposed to work; Ubisoft tried to make a hit FPS title using innovative control methods but came up a bit short.

This time, they’re hoping to redeem themselves by having the additional resolution of the new controller device, risking their reputation for a second time on Nintendo’s hardware.

“What was missing was the preciseness of the sabre,” Corre said of the first game, “and with this new device, I think it will change the experience.” (1up)

Although many gamers missed the first Red Steel experience because word about the horrid controls hit the streets quickly, this might be a chance to try the series one final time before giving up on it. In Ubisoft’s defense, the US market is very finicky about their first person shooters which helps explain higher reviews in Europe for the original title.

The games controls were tweaked after E3 2006 when people found it lack luster in performance and ability to mimick the users real moves when sword fighting. Ubisoft said it was because they received the Wii controller prototypes one month before the expo.

Will Ubisoft get the Wii Motion Plus in time to put out a highly polished game showing off Nintendo’s new hardware or will this be a second strike against the franchise? Only time will tell.

Read MoreRead More

Microsoft Shoots for Number Two In Console WarMicrosoft Shoots for Number Two In Console War

Microsoft recently announced their price cuts on the Xbox 360, effective today, but what is motivating them? Microsoft’s not going to make much additional money by passing off the savings to the customer but they will, more than likely, sell a bunch of great new Xbox 360‘s to a new crowd of gamer.

Motivation? Sony.

“I’m not at a point where I can say we’re going to beat Nintendo,” says Don Mattrick, senior vice-president of Microsoft’s Interactive Entertainment Business. Indeed, Nintendo is likely to run away with the lead in the current generation of console gaming, leaving Microsoft and Sony to battle for second place. (businessweek)

Who would have thought Sony and Microsoft would be battling out this generation for second place while Nintendo breezes through with their Wii console and a handful of games with mediocre game reviews? Don’t answer that, it’s a rhetorical question. If you saw this coming and you’re not on the marketing or project planning for one of these console makers you better prep your resume!

The battle isn’t cooling, Microsoft drops their price to compete with their big competitor Sony which also brings it closer to the price tag on the Wii getting two bird with one stone. The reason Wii is winning is clearly due to its broad demographic of grandpa and grandma non-gamers along with hardcore gamers who have to collect all the consoles and younger gamers that want to fit the trend.

Microsoft’s clearly shooting for second place by installing more units into the consumers home as possible. They’ve got a great library of first person shooter titles, a few RPG’s and RTS titles and the typical contraversial titles like GTA and Saints Row with more hot blockbusters (read: Gears of War 2) arriving soon.

I see this as a great opportunity for casual game developers to get into the Xbox Live Arcade market and start making themselves (and Microsoft) some money off the new gamers that will buy their first Xbox 360 for $199 and up. Microsoft’s getting closer to the low-budget gamer crowd with their price cuts so it would be great if they can take advantage of that market with lower cost titles as well.

If you’re a game developer looking for console stick time and you want to grab the attention of a large pool of gamers, the Xbox 360 isn’t a bad start!

While Microsoft isn’t aiming at Nintendo just yet, there is no doubt Nintendo will be in their sights if they can smoke the pants off Sony in the near future (by this holiday).

Read MoreRead More