Pads & Panels

MTV and Harmonix announced a new initiative last month that is set to let artists and labels promote and sell their music through the Rock Band downloadable service.

The program, called Rock Band Network, will allow artists and labels to author their music as gameplay files that can be sold as playable tracks for Rock Band through a new Rock Band Network Music Store, according to the release. The initiative was reportedly designed to to give both established and upcoming artists a new opportunity for promotion and revenue. (more…)

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Title: Rock Band Unplugged

Platform: PSP

ESRB Rating: T

Publisher: MTV Games

Developer: Harmonix

Rating:

Review by: Bill Jones

It is a shame this needs to be called “Rock Band” to sell. It is hard not to have the initial reaction – How could this be Rock Band? – upon initially hearing the idea of a Rock Band on PlayStation Portable. It is single player, defeating the full-band experience that is Rock Band. It doesn’t have microphone support, so no one is actually singing, and there is no Guitar Hero: On Tour-type peripheral, so gamers are stuck playing their instruments with the standard PSP button layout.

It has the Rock Band look, tour layout, set lists, character creation, store and it is filled with a health variety of popular rock songs, but those looking for the proper Rock Band experience in Unplugged will be sorely disappointed. Those looking for an almost-unique, popular music rhythm game, however, will find a solid game in Rock Band: Unplugged. (more…)

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Warner Bros., TT Games, The Lego Group, Harmonix and MTV Games announced this week that two popular franchises will be merged in the creation of Lego Rock Band, which is expected to be released for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii and DS this holiday season.

The game is to combine the gameplay of Rock Band with aesthitics of Lego for a “family-friendly music experience.” The developers have already announced five songs, and they are… (more…)

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