Rock Band | VideogameUK | Fragging and teabagging since 2008 | Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, DS and PC Reviews and Previews

Review: Green Day: Rock Band (Xbox 360)

Words by

Steven Wright

Posted on June 29, 2010

There have been quite a few band specific rhythm games over the years, yet not one of them has made me want to buy them, not even The Beatles. But if you’re like me and have grown up with the tunes of Green Day, from the early angst filled years to the politically themed American Idiot, then this could be the one for you.

The game manages to pack in a lot of the bands music, with over forty tracks that can be transported to your Rock Band database for free – a very nice touch for the future games. It does feature a lot of tracks off their new album, which I’m not a huge fan of, but thankfully there are many of their early songs as well as the huge hits of American Idiot.

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Review: Battle Beat (Xbox 360)

Words by

Steven Wright

Posted on March 2, 2010

Using your plastic peripheral to destroy legions of zombie aliens is a new experience to me. Well, I’ve used a guitar to bash zombies heads in before, but to control a squad of soldiers is definitely new. It’s just a shame that it’s so hard.

You have been tasked with defending the planet against the alien hordes. All advice and orders are given from zee Russian sounding female commander, who is actually really funny. She takes you through the basics, showing you how to control the beat and issuing you your first squad member, the laser grunt.

The first few levels are very easy giving you time to learn the beat and get used to dealing with the enemies. The way the game works is simple yet complex, with your troops lining up at the left hand side of the screen, allowing you to choose their order to match the frets on your guitar (or pad buttons and drums). The enemy marches in from the right hand side of the screen and you have to stop them before they reach your squads. You can’t just hammer the frets though, you have to watch the white dots at the bottom of the screen and hold the fret of your choice while strumming as the white dots hit the center.

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Review: Rock Band Queen DLC (Xbox 360)

Words by

Jennifer Allen

Posted on October 30, 2009

For the uninformed (and shame on you if you are), Queen are a huge rock band. A band that has spanned four decades in one form or another, they are responsible for such memorable classics as We Are the Champions, Bohemian Rhapsody and Under Pressure, as well as so many more. For me they are the ultimate rock band and I would have loved to have seen Queen Rock Band rather than Beatles Rock Band (not that I don’t love the Beatles too) but alas it was not to be. Instead my hunger for Queen based rhythm action has been sated by the song pack that has just come out for Rock Band comprising of 10 of the best Queen songs.

The song pack comprises of Another One Bites the Dust, Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Fat Bottomed Girls, I Want It All, I Want to Break Free, Killer Queen, One Vision, Somebody to Love, Tie Your Mother Down and Under Pressure. A fantastic selection for any Queen fan, I’m sure you would agree. I have to admit I was a little disappointed to see that there was no sign of A Kind of Magic or Don’t Stop Me Now, my personal favourite of Queen’s back catalogue. There is also the noticeable absence of We Are the Champions and We Will Rock You but presumably this is so that we have all the more reason to buy Lego Rock Band, which will include both songs.

Despite these minor gripes, it’s difficult to complain really as all ten tracks are so strong. It’s great to see that there isn’t one weak link here in terms of song quality. When it comes to difficulty levels, it’s a fairly mixed bunch of songs with the likes of Another One Bites The Dust being ridiculously simple while One Vision and Killer Queen being rather fearsome at times, especially on vocals, usually the simplest of instruments I find. Playing One Vision on drums completely wrecked my arms but I was still grinning at every second of it simply because it was Queen.

How much enjoyment you’ll get from the pack really does depend on how much you love Queen. It’s refreshing to see a track pack that covers all skill levels, meaning that even the weakest of Rock Band players will manage to complete all these songs on easy. But really the enjoyment comes from the music. For me, and many others, songs such as Under Pressure and I Want To Break Free make me want to break out the air guitar anyway, so the ability to play them on Rock Band is brilliant. However if you aren’t very keen on Queen’s music then get out of my sight….I mean, this isn’t for you. It’s as simple as that.

VideogameUK verdict: 9/10 (best take 5 points off if you’re not a Queen fan though!)

Review: Rock Band Country Track Pack (Wii)

Words by

Russell Maher

Posted on September 8, 2009

Review: Rock Band Country Track Pack (Wii)

When this arrived little did I know that I would be up until the wee small hours playing it!! This, the 5th track pack add-on for Rock Band, gives you 21 country songs to add to your repertoire. Even though it is an add-on it is a game in it’s own right so you can dive straight in even if you don’t already own a Rock Band title!!

This gives country music fans an alternative to all the, well, alternative, metal and classic rock tracks available for Rock Band via DLC. Most of the songs appear here for the first time in a Rock Band title before they will be available to download.

Now, I know a few of you are thinking that it’s country music and that it’s not that big here in the UK. There are plenty of fans of the genre in these isles although this track pack isn’t available via retail here. It is available from online retailers but you may need something like Freeloader to get it up and running on your Wii.

The only time I have seen country music on TV recently was during one of those Time Life adverts. You know the ones, order with your credit card and get another 5 cd’s free!! To be honest, going into this the only song I knew was the Kenny Rogers classic “The Gambler”. When playing I noticed a few of the guitar riffs and when the chorus hit to a few of the songs I realised I had heard them before. Of the track listing I think there was about 30% I was unaware of!!

Pick this up if you can. If you can’t find it at least download “The Gambler”. You really will enjoy it!!

VideogameUK verdict: 7.5/10

Mini Review: Rock Revolution (Xbox 360)

Words by

Russell Maher

Posted on September 3, 2009

With Guitar Hero and Rock Band gamers probably didn’t realise that Konami released their first guitar game, GuitarFreaks, 10 years ago. They’ve entered the current gen of console music games with Rock Revolution, which although recently released in the UK has been available in the US since November of last year.

With The Beatles: Rock Band and Guitar Hero 5 just round the corner Rock Revolution doesn’t bring anything new to the battle. Which is a shame because I found it to be a great fun game, as they all should be!!

The downside is the lack of fully licensed songs. Some of the cover versions were actually distracting during play as I know the originals so well. This might put gamers off, particularly if they are new to guitar/music games and have recently bought the latest offerings from the Guitar Hero or Rock Band brands.

Saying all that though I found the career mode enjoyable and the mix of songs seem to gel well for the most part. The challenges are also fun although some can be frustrating at times. All the fun of the game!!

This works with the controllers available for Rock Band and Guitar Hero, and what I did notice is that the drumming is slightly better with this!!

A low score for this, not for the lack of licensed tracks, but because it had the opportunity to be a hell of a lot more than it is. Hopefully a sequel, if it does arrive, will learn from it’s mistakes!!

VideogameUK verdict: 6/10