Rock Band 4

[Rev]

I don't think any other game has managed it (Rocksmith is probably the closest example). It'd be a lovely surprise if they did manage it, though.

It'd only take a Harmonix Account or something. But yeah, it's...Ambitious.

[Blunt]

Pro Drums is the only Pro mode they're continuing support for. At least for now.

Thanks (and to Rev as well) ! Stoked about this, Pro Drums is the only mode I'm really interested in.

Shame that keyboard won't be supported at all though. I've only ever used mine once I think.

[Rev]

Keytar+Midi2USB cable+Camera Connection Kit+iPad+Synthesisers=Win.

Not really anything to do with Rock Band, obviously. But fun.

[Stig]

The instruments might be tied to the specific platform (Xbox or PlayStation) but I hope they find a way of getting the DLC across. I'd imagine lots of people will have played this on 360 last gen but will now be looking at the PS4 version. (Sounds like legacy DLC will be drip-fed, so you'll need to download it again anyway, so if they use some sort of account-based system that tracks what you owned on previous gen consoles then I'm sure they can manage to do this).

Anyway. I literally could not be more excited. This is fantastic news.

This is my situation. I've bought loads of songs on the 360 and have a massively library, spending probably over £200 over time. I'm not willing to start that all over again on the PS4. I hope there's a way you can tie your XBL account to a Harmonix account so you can then use that Harmonix account to download purchased songs to the PS4.

RB3 is pretty much the only reason I've kept my 360 so if I can switch it all over to next gen, that'll be great.

[Fry Crayola]

Quoting for just-in-case.

I'm sure it's entirely possible logistically, but I'm not holding my breath. It sounds too good to be true.

Yeah. I should probably settle for getting a cat.

[MojoChin]

Am I the only one wondering what on earth they could possibly add to the mix? They aren't supporting a Pro mode (bar drums) and removing keyboards. They talk a bit about social media aspects, so Twitch streaming, seeing all the members of your online band, etc. But what will make this much better than RB3?

I WANT to be wowed, but there is nothing there yet that screams innovative.

I'll still be Day 1, mind.

[Bojangle]

Well, Rock Band 3 was nigh on perfect (imo) and wholly deserving of that Edge 10. In my eyes it doesn't need to deviate from that all that much. They are hinting there's new stuff in there that they can't talk about yet, and I imagine this is down to them wanting to keep it on lock down until the last possible moment so Activision don't appear and go "Oh yeah, we're doing that too, AND we're releasing sooner!"

[Salsa Party Animal]

Sound great

[Thread Astaire]

I am cry with happiness.

[toythatkills]

I'm pretty gutted this isn't coming to Xbox 360, to be honest, it really dulls the impact of what should be an awesome announcement. The cynic in me wants to suggest it's a ploy to get people to buy all their plastic shit again because none of the old stuff will work on next-gen systems, but I'm sure that's not the reason really. It does remain true that the old stuff won't work, though, so it's going to be a massive investment in something I could already own.

Then there's the songs, and while I wouldn't expect stuff to transfer from 360 to PS4, it sounds like a lot of stuff won't transfer at all or won't be there for some time after launch. A year after launch we'll still be asking when the Boston pack's going to be available, or something. The problem is the tracks they don't have the license for any more. The way the transfer seems to work is that they launch the songs in batches on the PS4 store and if you bought something on PS3, you can download it for free. But the stuff they haven't licensed any more is never going to come to the PS4 store, and I'm sure there's a ton of other stuff that they'll lose the license for in the crossover period.

If they'd just released the thing on Xbox 360 and PS3 all this could have been avoided, so I'm just going to keep my fingers crossed for that to eventually happen, and stick to Rock Band 3 in the mean time. I'm glad this is happening, though, gaming is so much better with Rock Band in it. Hopefully the genre can survive the inevitable 17 iterations of Guitar Hero that Activision are furiously planning for 2016.

"Has anyone suggested 'Guitar Hero: One Direction'?"
"GIVE YOURSELF A PROMOTION."

[p1nseeker]

Why are you saying your current instruments wont work? The press release specifically says that they will work.

[DarhkFox]

I wish they released this on the pc. Seems silly to skip the wii u too.

I'll just have to keep my 360 version. I wonder of the new songs will be released on that too.

[toythatkills]

Why are you saying your current instruments wont work? The press release specifically says that they will work.

Oh, I missed that! I just assumed they wouldn't because PS3 accessories don't work on PS4, like how no one's steering wheels are compatible and stuff. Ignore that point, then!

(Though my 360 instruments won't work on my PS4, so it's at least personally true, not that I'd expect them to.)

[Camel]

When they say they're going to bring out new instruments, they mean in the US, right?

[Rev]

Some people should read the last couple of pages of the Rock Band thread, then report back.

[toythatkills]

Actually...

Q: Will my old hardware work?

A: We’re already working closely with Mad Catz, Sony, and Microsoft on solutions for letting you use legacy hardware on new consoles. This is a challenge on both the software side and hardware side, but something we’d love to happen. We’ll have more information on this in the coming months.

That doesn't sound confirmed to me.

[Mike1812]

From The Verge regarding dlc:

Not cross platform?

Not cross platform. I wouldn't put the stake through that, but that's the one that would take a lot of support from Microsoft and Sony, and frankly that's a political rat's nest. I don't see it. And we have our hands full just getting everything up first. So building a library is kind of the first step and respecting the entitlements that people have

I'm out. Unless I get a bone.

[Mitchell]

I've just thought how wonderous this would be in VR.

Imagine being on stage in front of 80,000 people, looking down at your guitar, seeing your hands playing the notes...the roar of the crowd...

[Wiper]

Awesome/terrible news.

On the one hand, I can't wait for more Rock Band. Absolutely pumped by that prospect.

On the other, I was kind of set on getting a PS4 this year when Persona 5 rolled around, but my owning 360 Rock Band and a good few hundred pounds' worth of songs for it makes getting the PS4 version of Rock Band somewhat less appealing. Unless I come into unexpected money (and figure out a storage solution...) I can't see me getting a PS4 and a Bone, but equally I'd feel a bit shit buying the PS4 version and missing out on/having to shell out for all my old DLC.

Argh! I guess I'll just be waiting to see what release brings.

Also, sad to see the loss of keyboard (and I have sympathy for those who enjoyed pro guitar), but I can live with that.

[mr twig]

Oh great. All those unbearable pricks who insist on dragging this shit out at perfectly fine, chatty parties will be back to root us in our seats while they explain why it's really fun.

Singstar maybe, the first Guitar Hero at a push, but all this mad gear is just too much.

Ha, absolutely the perfect time and place to air such sentiments. Excellent work.

[wretcherd]

When they say they're going to bring out new instruments, they mean in the US, right?

Get j.m.ratkos on the blower, stat!

[Mitchell]

Awesome/terrible news.

On the one hand, I can't wait for more Rock Band. Absolutely pumped by that prospect.

On the other, I was kind of set on getting a PS4 this year when Persona 5 rolled around, but my owning 360 Rock Band and a good few hundred pounds' worth of songs for it makes getting the PS4 version of Rock Band somewhat less appealing. Unless I come into unexpected money (and figure out a storage solution...) I can't see me getting a PS4 and a Bone, but equally I'd feel a bit shit buying the PS4 version and missing out on/having to shell out for all my old DLC.

Argh! I guess I'll just be waiting to see what release brings.

Get Persona 5 on PS3...much cheaper.

[SqueakyG]

I still haven't bought into the current generation yet. Last generation I got massively hooked on Guitar Hero / Rock Band on the 360 -- in fact I still have my 360 plugged in, mostly so I can play the big library of songs (sometimes in Blitz) if the mood takes me.

Problem is, when I finally choose a current-gen console, I'm probably going to choose PS4. It just looks... better... with more of the games I want to play.

I don't mind buying a new plastic guitar -- my old ones are getting faulty. But it'll be a real shame if I only have 50 songs to play with it rather than 500. What a dilemma.

(And I bet The Beatles Rock Band will be lost forever, only played by people who keep a last-gen console hooked up...)

[Wiper]

Get Persona 5 on PS3...much cheaper.

I couldn't, I'd just feel like I was missing out on the better version

(unless the PS4 version turns out to be broken in some way, of course)

[Fry Crayola]

I'm in the same boat as SqueakyG, in that I haven't got either console yet. I do have a larger PS4 catalogue, thanks to PS+, which would tend to swing me in that direction.

However, I reckon the hit would be offset quite a bit by the savings made from not having to rebuy even just the instruments, never mind the tracks. If the original Band-in-a-Box is anything to go by, the game on PS4 would cost the guts of £200, giving me a drum kit that's worse than the Ion kit I have, and dropping me to one guitar. For an extra £100, I'd have an immediate full setup with better drums, as well as the gradual inclusion of my existing DLC.

And given I don't actually own either platform, we're talking about maybe £300 (Xbox One and copy of game) versus £450 (PS4, instruments, game)...

[Garwoofoo]

(And I bet The Beatles Rock Band will be lost forever, only played by people who keep a last-gen console hooked up...)

The Beatles: Rock Band is such a work of art. I've been playing it this week in fact and it's not aged a day. It might be my favourite game from the whole of the last generation of consoles and it's the sort of thing you could genuinely show someone who knew nothing about games and they'd get why it was good.

If they ever did a Beatles Rock Band 2 with the complete track listing and keyboard support I think I'd die of happiness. It's never going to happen of course, it's a miracle the game ever got made in the first place.

[schmojo]

Hmm... Rock Band 3 removed head-to-head/Pro Face-Off, which was really annoying and leads me to need to play RB2 when you want to compete rather than cooperate.

Also, I didn't like the squishyness of the RB guitar, and my Les Paul is knackered, despite re-soldering.

Also, all my DLC is on 360.

Also, I don't actually have a PS4 or Xbox One. Maybe I'm not who they're aiming for this time.

[Liquid Myth]

Hmm... Rock Band 3 removed head-to-head/Pro Face-Off, which was really annoying and leads me to need to play RB2 when you want to compete rather than cooperate.

Also, I didn't like the squishyness of the RB guitar, and my Les Paul is knackered, despite re-soldering.

Also, all my DLC is on 360.

Also, I don't actually have a PS4 or Xbox One. Maybe I'm not who they're aiming for this time.

I imagine that the sample group for Harmonix's research consisted of more than a single petulant baby.

[Qazimod]

Get Persona 5 on PS3...much cheaper.

That was my thinking until I realised that I didn't have a PS3 or PS4, and there were a bunch of future PS4 releases I wanted to play too.

In less than 24 hours after the announcement I've already nearly convinced myself that I wouldn't mind getting another guitar bundle. I just hope it's an improvement over the RB1 Strat; I really didn't like its strum bar (it didn't have a satisfying "clunk" to reassure you that the strum had registered) or fret buttons (there wasn't enough distinction between buttons to know where my fingers were.) The Mustang is great though

[NEG]

Day 1

And I'm okay with the Xbone ending up as the Rock Band box if DLC isn't cross-platform. In fact I can see Microsoft betting/influencing for it for extra sales as I knew fuck all anyone that invested into the PS3 versions.

It's a good point to remember that we won't get all our owned stuff from the off, though.