Rock Band coming to Wii on June 22nd [update 2]

by JC Fletcher { Mar 24th 2008 at 2:15PM }

Harmonix has finally made it for-really-real official: Rock Band is coming out on the Wii. They announced today that Rock Band will come out for Wii on June 22nd in the U.S. and Canada, in a Special Edition package including drums, a wireless guitar, and a mic, for $169.99. Standalone instruments will also be available.

Rock Band will feature 63 songs, which includes five "bonus songs" -- we don't know what any of the songs are or what it means for some of them to be "bonuses." Songs that are available as DLC on other platforms? Nintendo stuff? No idea. But as long as there are songs in the game for us to play fake instruments to, we kind of don't care. We are down with Waggle Rock.

[Update: thanks to a post on the Rock Band forum from a Harmonix staffer (via Joystiq), our enthusiasm has diminished somewhat. "The feature-set is a lot closer to the PS2 version of Rock Band which was also developed by Pi Studios," according to the post. Interestingly, he also said that the peripherals don't use the Wiimote, which calls Guitar Hero interoperability into question.]

[Update 2: MTV's Multiplayer blog answers the DLC question definitively: "There will be no DLC available, but the Wii version will have the five additional songs on the game disc."]

[Via Gaming Bits, thanks, Rivithed!]

Tags: ea, harmonix, music, rhythm, rock-band

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Kizzle @ Mar 24th 2008 2:24PM

Eh, not to be dismissive (as this IS a nice announcement I guess) but more too little too late from the Big N. The "too late" is fairly obvious, and the "too little" is pretty clear with what will surely be a total lack of downloadable content (one of the most massive selling points of Rock Band) and a glaring absence of voice chat. Once again the Wii will be getting a diluted, watered-down version of one of the best current gaming experiences, this is getting kind of old at this point.

jason @ Mar 24th 2008 2:36PM

We don't know yet whether or not the Wii version will be like the 360/PS3 version DLC and World Tour Mode or like the PS2 version without those, so don't assume.

JC Fletcher @ Mar 24th 2008 2:45PM

I suspect you're right, but let's not dismiss the thing until we know for sure.

Sonic_13 @ Mar 24th 2008 3:54PM

"but more too little too late from the Big N"

What? You're blaming Nintendo for this despite the fact it was up to Rock Band's publisher to finally bring it to Wii...

Additionally, Nintendo has already announced DLC will be coming to Wii in May with WiiWare. Since this game will be released over a month later, there is no technical reasons why the Wii version can't see DLC. Storage space isn't an issue either, since the game could easily store and playback songs on SD cards (other games already do it...).

ArmorForVictor @ Mar 24th 2008 3:58PM

why would you want voice chat in rock band?

Kizzle @ Mar 24th 2008 4:05PM

Sonic_13 said...

"What? You're blaming Nintendo for this despite the fact it was up to Rock Band's publisher to finally bring it to Wii..."

No, I'm blaming Nintendo for having fruity restrictions that make awesome games (on other systems) simply "good" games. I also don't *think* you can run downloaded content from an SD, so basically you'd have to transfer a song from your SD to your hard drive (IF you even have the space) each time you wanted to use it.

ArmorForVictor said...
"why would you want voice chat in rock band?"

...er, for many reasons. One of which being to pick which song you want to play next. Really didn't think this would require explanation but hey, that's the internet for ya!

ArmorForVictor @ Mar 24th 2008 4:22PM

do you really need to ask what song to play? i mean when i play online i like all the songs and really don't care what the leader picks. if you don't like a song someone picks get over it.

Shadow31 @ Mar 24th 2008 4:39PM

Kizzle, yes, you can run songs off of the SD card, because you can play Brawl levels off the SD card. It just loads it into RAM, it's the same principle and very easy. There is absolutely no restrictions by then that would make DLC any more difficult than with the other versions.

Kizzle @ Mar 24th 2008 5:33PM

Shadow31 said...
"Kizzle, yes, you can run songs off of the SD card, because you can play Brawl levels off the SD card. It just loads it into RAM, it's the same principle and very easy. There is absolutely no restrictions by then that would make DLC any more difficult than with the other versions."

See Update #2, I suppose it's a moo point :)

Sonic_13 @ Mar 24th 2008 6:31PM

"No, I'm blaming Nintendo for having fruity restrictions that make awesome games (on other systems) simply "good" games."

You may have had a legitimate argument before, but now the blame should be placed on the developers. There really isn't any reason for not having features like DLC and especially online play on Wii (although voice chat is an exception). The development tools for these services are already available to developers. Online play is (obviously) already in use, and DLC will be launching in May. Perhaps development time restrictions didn't allow for DLC, but no online is inexcusable.

Since development tools for these online tools are already available, there is just no reason for developers not to add these, especially when they are supported in other versions.

=========================

"I also don't *think* you can run downloaded content from an SD, so basically you'd have to transfer a song from your SD to your hard drive (IF you even have the space) each time you wanted to use it."

There are a bunch of games that use content that is stored on SD cards. As mentioned above, Brawl can load custom levels, screenshots, and replays from SD cards. Games like ExciteTruck and Endless Ocean can play MP3's from the SD card. Extra songs for a game like Rock Band wouldn't be much different.

Robotronic @ Mar 25th 2008 9:27PM

I really hope Wii steps it up in regards to their online capabilities; I mean, that's become one of my favorite aspects of game play over the last few years. I'd be glad to pay for it, even, if I had the chance to download content and play games online. Especially games like Rock Band, some of the recent FPS (House of the Dead, Ghost Squad, or Umbrella Chronicles), Brawl, and (if the Gods smiled upon us) Call of Duty 4. But I know Nintendo is doing something behind it's evil curtain, let's just hope it isn't another overused and under-appreciated peripheral (coughzappercough) or another gimmicky set of mini-games that we'll love for the first twenty minutes and then hock at the local game store.

GoldenPie @ Mar 24th 2008 2:34PM

And I bet the Wii version will be released before ANY version of the game is released in Europe. >_>

Chyld989 @ Mar 24th 2008 2:32PM

If they can get DLC to work through WiiWare (or some other way) where we can play the songs off of an SD card I'll definitely pick this one up. I've only got about 17 blocks free in my Wii's memory though, and while I CAN transfer stuff back and forth from card to Wii (or just redownload it), I'd really prefer not to.

joe smith @ Mar 30th 2008 10:22AM

I don't have anything to add here. I just wanted to let everyone know that Chyld989 is my new best friend. Oh yeah, and since i'm on this page, i bought the Boston DLC for Rock Band today, and you Wii owners may pretend to not care, but these packs are more than worth it.....maybe that's why you need a PS3ii (thought of it myself).

Chyld989 @ Mar 30th 2008 11:06AM

"I just wanted to let everyone know that Chyld989 is my new best friend."

Yay! I have a new best friend! ^_^

Matt B @ Mar 24th 2008 2:40PM

This is a huge announcement, and you are wrong to be dismissive. Its not too little too late. I personally don't care all that much about DLC- as the DLC that's out there pretty much sucks anyway. I'm happy to have Rock Band.

I'm so excited.

Talanos @ Mar 24th 2008 2:53PM

Cool news, but the big question is whether the guitars will be interchangeable between Rock Band and Guitar Hero.

shadowchaoscontrol @ Mar 24th 2008 3:02PM

hope so, and i hope the drums are a resonable price, too

Roger Wilco @ Mar 24th 2008 4:07PM

I certainly hope that they are. I've only played Rock Band once, but aside from the second set of buttons on the neck, is there anything functionally different from the rock band guitar and the GH one?

I'm hoping that you can use them interchangeably, because I'd love to have another guitar for the Wii, and the Rock Band one might be easier for my 10 year old niece to play.

eugaet @ Mar 24th 2008 3:01PM

So the guitar is wireless, but not the mic or drums? I was hoping for everything to be wireless since I'd hate for my Wii to take a 6ft dive because we're rocking out too hard.

Nushio (NDF - Blue) @ Mar 24th 2008 3:01PM

I'm down if "Still Alive" is in, otherwise, Rock Band Wii is "Still Dead" to me.

jughead789 @ Mar 24th 2008 3:09PM

The DLC isn't a deal breaker for me but if it's a complete PS2 port without the world tour and character creator then I think i'll have to pass, which would be a shame since i've really been looking forward to Rock Band.

shadowchaoscontrol @ Mar 24th 2008 4:51PM

i only want the world tour and character creation, DLC isn't really a big deal to me

Timdogg @ Mar 24th 2008 3:13PM

Did you just read my mind??? Scary!

Cyantre @ Mar 24th 2008 3:15PM

If I'm going to spend that much money on the game plus the instruments I would want them on a system that has DLC, which is why I bought Rock Band on the Xbox 360 when it was on sale. It's nice that it's coming to the Wii, but it's a much better experience on the Xbox 360 or probably the PS3 as well.

CalcProgrammer1 @ Mar 24th 2008 3:32PM

I have Guitar Hero 3 for both Wii and 360. After having to deal with Activision's flawed Wii disc, lower graphics, no downloadable content, no voice chat or text chat or any sort of communication whatsoever with people I play online, friend code nonsense, etc., I figure I'll buy my 3rd party games for 360 and keep just the Nintendo titles on the Wii (Brawl is incredible, but like every other Wii game, VERY lacking in communication and dumbed down with those ridiculous friend codes).

Getting a 360 completely changed my outlook on online gaming. Xbox Live is pretty incredible in terms of communicating and the online experience. Now I just need to get a new 360 cause the one I have keeps getting RROD.

JC Fletcher @ Mar 24th 2008 3:34PM

Yeah, the 360's online stuff is absolutely great. 360s just cost a lot.

Dash @ Mar 24th 2008 3:42PM

My guess? It will not be like the PS3/X360 version, but it should be better then the PS2 version.

The best evidence to support this is that it wouldn't take then this long to port the PS2 game. So I guess they took this time to figure out how to make the features work on the Wii.

Best bet: It will have the Tour mode, but won't have DLC, thus the Bonus. They tried to get Mii integration, but decided it is too weird to have a Mii walking around on the stage.

Although there are still the crazy rumors of Guitar Hero Wii having DLC, so I guess it could be possible (hell man, I have 3 DS games with DLC, how come the Wii can't have?)

Spikeydeathtrap @ Mar 24th 2008 3:44PM

Joystiq's post linked to the Rock Band forums, where a Harmonix Developer said this title will be 'closer to the PS2 experience'. Guess that means all the online stuff (world tour, DLC, etc.) will be cut right out. Which is sad, as I was hopeful for at least DLC on the Wii version. I can live with the dumbed down graphics, but without the DLC, I don't see any point in getting this; drums is a hell of a lot of fun, but there just aren't enough songs to justify the purchase in my mind.

ArmorForVictor @ Mar 24th 2008 4:01PM

dlc always has me coming back to play rock band on my ps3. i think i like the dlc songs i have bought so far more than the included songs in the game. i have gh3 also and it's just sitting there because there is no reason for me to go back and play it. even if it's like the ps2 build the drums are just really fun to play :)

Perverted @ Mar 24th 2008 4:04PM

I don't see the massive need for DLC...Unless it's free?
What I'm concerned about is it coming out in EU...and being affordable.........And non of those seem likely....

ruindpzzle @ Mar 24th 2008 7:39PM

So, no DLC? dammit man. Is GH going to ever offer DLC? I feel like I'm getting used with this crap.

I would spend some serious cash on buying songs I like to play on GH or Rock Band, I don't even care how I have to get it on there.

Tom Boucher @ Mar 24th 2008 8:21PM

No DLC no sale. was dumb enough to get Guitar Hero and have it missing that, it not being on this is criminal. There are methods to do it, and they know it.

WooDy @ Mar 24th 2008 9:32PM

no matter what version of Rock Band you talk about, for $169 you might as well buy a Nintendo DS or a PSP

Matt B @ Mar 24th 2008 9:40PM

From the Joystick post:

"Support for the GHIII guitar peripherals in Rock Band on the Wii was not possible without Activision's permission. Therefore, any questions regarding lack of compatibility with GHIII hardware should be directed to Activision."

That is bleeping crappy! NO, I am not directing my attention to Activision, I am directing my attention to YOU. The GH3 guitar uses a WiiMote, it shows up as a classic controller, there is no reason not support it. I'm not buying another guitar when I already have one. So I am not buying Rock Band then.

Matt B @ Mar 24th 2008 9:56PM

my email to Harmonix:

I am email to say that at first, I was super excited to hear that Rock Band for the Wii is coming out. I was actually all ready to pre-order. After reading the Q&A on Joystiq(http://www.joystiq.com/2008/03/24/rock-band-wii-drum-kit-pictured-nagging-questions-answered/), I am very glad I did not. I am specifically referring to this two questions and answers:

"Will Wii's Rock Band be compatible with Wii's Guitar Hero III guitar?

Harmonix and MTV Games believe in an open standard philosophy of hardware and game compatibility. We think that there should be interoperability between music instrument controllers across all music games. This is clearly in the best interest of consumers, game developers and console manufacturers and will only help to grow the music game genre as well as inspire innovation and creativity. Third-party developers and publishers are welcome to freely support the Rock Band peripherals in their games. Support for the GHIII guitar peripherals in Rock Band on the Wii was not possible without Activision's permission. Therefore, any questions regarding lack of compatibility with GHIII hardware should be directed to Activision."

I am NOT going to be contacting Activision about this. Rock Band is YOUR game. You make it work. The Guitar Hero 3 Wii controller is just a plastic "Classic Controller" shell around a Wiimote. People have had no problems getting it to work as such on a computer, and Harmonix should have no problem getting it to work on Rock Band. I am not going to spend $170(like I was ready to) and have a perfectly functioning guitar I am unable to use because of your shortsightedness. I am not going to spend another $50 getting another guitar when I already have one I can use. The guitar is already interoperable. MAKE IT WORK.

Will each instrument need to be connected to a Wii Remote?
The Harmonix development team considered a lot of options in creating the Rock Band for the Wii instruments. At this time, we felt that sticking with the current peripheral functionality was the best route."

I'm not all that upset about the Mic and Drums being wired (though it IS a pain in the ass to have wires ready to be tripped over- at least make the drums Wiimote compatible) but it is dumb to not use the Wiimote on the guitar. Activision made it really easy and awesome to be able to use the Wiimote IN the guitar, with sounds coming out of the Wiimote. It makes no sense to have another wireless technology when you already have a great one that comes with the system. For all Activision's problems, at least they were smart enough to do something cool like that.

After being so pumped up, I am really disappointed with this announcement. The lack of GH3 guitar usage is a deal breaker for me. I won't be getting Rock Band until and unless that changes. I was all ready to have a Rock Band night, because I would have gotten the mic, guitar, and drums from Rock Band, and a second guitar from GH3, but I guess I'll stick with GH3 (and GH: Aerosmith.)

Please, please reconsider this very bad decision, because I WANT to give you my money.

jasenj1 @ Mar 24th 2008 10:03PM

Totally agree on the GHIII guitar compatibility. It must be some legal, patent, or other mumbo-jumbo because the GHIII guitar is just a Classic Controller.

This and no DLC really put my purchase of RB in jeopardy. The DLC I'll partly lay in Nintendo's lap. They've REALLY botched the online stuff, IMHO. Huge stumble not having that together sooner.

*shakes head*

jsa3mm @ Mar 24th 2008 10:34PM

With the news from the two updates I now know I will not be purchasing Rock Band. I will not purchase it on xbox360, PS2, PS3, nor Wii. I really hate the fact that the game developers are the ones that sometimes make the video game system wars worse. Give every system an equal chance to prove itself or don't make the game for every system.

Mattmatt @ Mar 24th 2008 11:10PM

I'm fine with no dlc (awesomer if they added it), but no online play seems harsh. Even GH3 had online play, so why not RBWii?

Matt B @ Mar 24th 2008 11:27PM

And another thing about no GH3 compatibility: they preen about supporting interoperability, but then are making a guitar that will be incompatible with GH3? ?? That doesn't make sense.

ArmorForVictor @ Mar 24th 2008 11:36PM

to everyone talking about the issue of the gh3 and rock band compatibility - i own the ps3 version of rock band and gh3 also. they also do not work with each other and in gh3 i can use my regular controller so someone can play co-op with me. in rock band when you use a controller it will only let you use it with the microphone. you use the controller to select stuff when your using the microphone, so rock band automatically thinks your singing when you try to use your controller so you can't play guitar with it. so what i'm thinking is the wii will use the same kind of configuration and i doubt us ps3 users will get a patch for it due to activision being greedy and asking for money for compatibility of their guitars. so i think that means no guitar
compatibility for wii users either. sorry

Kyle Kowalsky @ Mar 25th 2008 7:46AM

So, just recapping, 1. No Downloadable Content
2. No Online Play
3. No Guitar Hero 3 guitar compatibility
right?

jpc168 @ Mar 25th 2008 1:46PM

i thought the reason they were waiting on the wii edition was for DLC... and then they announce it after WiiWare has been announced with the capability of DLC, yet they decided not to include DLC. wtf. either they should have released it earlier or included DLC content. it just doesnt make sense to me

Fredo @ Mar 25th 2008 6:38PM

I was really looking forward to this title but now that there will be no online play and no DLC I am gonna pass. There has to be apoint at which devs and Nintendo put a stop to bringing shoddy ports over to the Wii just to make a quick buck on those of us who have stood by the Wii this whole time. I for one dont want something that is similar to the PS2 version, I wanted a version of the game that was what came to the current gen consoles.
This port is a poor and LATE scheme to get money out of Wii users and i thinks its shameful on the side of Harmonix and anyone else who buys this port. Buying this will further ingrain the minds of these people that it is OK to give us sloppy seconds and half assed ports. I love my Wii but I dont love it when companies come to me with a product that fails to give me my moneys worth. Essentially they expect us to pay the same price for a game that doesnt give us everything other consoles receive. Thats a sh*tty deal, any business person would tell you that. And to make matters worse they dont even give something that would be comparable, a couple of "bonus songs" should make up for it? Thats a joke.
Sorry for the rant but this was upsetting after having waited so long for a damn PS2 port.

Jacob @ Mar 26th 2008 4:15PM

I will most definately get rock band for wii. Even though that it does not have DLC, they may, and probably will come out with another Rock Band in the future for Wii, that could possibly have DLC, then I would not have to scramble to the store to get the special edition bundle. Just thinking ahead and forming an theory and opinion. dont judge me. :D

epic2515 @ Mar 29th 2008 10:24AM

You know I read all the comments on this subject and now I'm on the fence about getting the rockband for the wii. It sucks, I was looking forward to getting this game. I love Guitar Hero 3, but I want some DLC's. I don't understand why would they come out with an ps2 version of the rock band for the wii, when the wii is a newer system. If that was the case I would have gotten the game a long time ago. I'm going to try my best and wait to see what they are going to do. I think being able to play online and having DLC will making the RB experience better...

epic2515 @ Mar 29th 2008 10:48AM

I think we should all complain and send something to Harmonix and nintendo and tell them we don't like what they are doing, maybe it's not to late to make it better before it comes out. We are paying the money so we should be getting our money worth!

feedback@harmonixmusic.com

http://www.nintendo.com/consumer/webform.jsp