Wii version of Rock Band 2 is totally gimped [update 2]
by David Hinkle 
{ Sep 26th 2008 at 1:34PM }
Update: USA Today has edited the bits about Rock Band 2 for the Wii out of the article. You can still read what was originally published below. Thanks, Louie!
Oh boy. If USA Today is to be believed, Wii owners will likely find the only title that can satiate their need for a competent music game is Guitar Hero: World Tour, as USA Today is reporting that Rock Band 2 is going to be gimped and featureless, much like the first title. So much for the hope that it wouldn't be.
In their look at the sequel, USA Today states that the "Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 2 versions of "Rock Band 2" do not offer any Internet connectivity for multiplayer gaming or downloadable music." What is that sound? It's the sound of a million Wii gamers crying out, only to be suddenly silenced. Why, if Obi Wan was alive today, he'd be totally disappointed in you, Harmonix.
In other Rock Band news, the next Track Pack (Vol. 2) has been spotted on GameStop's website here. It's retailing for $29.99 and has a listed release date of December 30th. It smells of placeholder, to us. Also, the Rock Band 2 bundle is listed with a release date of November 18th, for $189.99 (including a preorder bonus of a free t-shirt).
Gallery: Rock Band
[Via Kombo]
Get a WordPress.com Blog
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
eugaet @ Sep 26th 2008 1:41PM
Well, that settles that. Looks like I'll be getting GH:WT Wii instead.
I'm also thinking of trying to sell my RB Wii bundle. It'll help pay for GH:WT... ;)
Sean @ Sep 26th 2008 1:51PM
That's why I'm glad I purchased the version for 360, instead of for the WII.
Mr Khan @ Sep 26th 2008 1:50PM
Fail harder, Harmonix
Though as long as this version actually features something other than fucking quickplay, it'll still beat the original
ZombiePikmin @ Sep 26th 2008 2:38PM
GH:WT
Timdogg @ Sep 26th 2008 1:50PM
Ask me if I am surprised...go ahead, I dare you!
NO!
Didn't matter anyway, I knew I was getting GH:WT so I don't really care.
phr3qu3ncy441 @ Sep 26th 2008 1:56PM
man that sucks... though with the way the wii is, i'm not surprised at all... even the ghwt dlc method seems gruesome.
i guess i'll have to get rb2 and ghwt for the ps3 or x360.
Adam R @ Sep 26th 2008 2:20PM
Good job, Harmonix. You've lost your Wii crowd to GH:WT. Good job on not listening to your user base.
Maybe they'll fix this bogus mistake. They got another month and change, right? Yeah, right. I'm done holding my breath. I had my speculations when the release date was shown the same as the PS2 and costing the same. Now why is the bundle the same price as the 360/PS3 versions? Oh yeah, a tee shirt.
Dash @ Sep 26th 2008 2:14PM
How come many games that barely need online have some degree of it (Nights, Endless Ocean), while a game that is based on the multiplayer experience doesn't? I understand the DLC problems (still disapointed though), but there is no scuse for online modes (aside from "low cost, quick cash").
Are we not getting World Tour mode again, too?
jmf @ Sep 26th 2008 2:18PM
Big surprise.....pause.....not
KeegdnaB @ Sep 26th 2008 2:19PM
then I guess I'm not getting it until I get a 360 then.
Nice job guys
Louie @ Sep 26th 2008 2:20PM
Hrm. USA Today just edited that portion out of the article.
Adam R @ Sep 26th 2008 2:23PM
...huh... Refreshed the page and the passage is indeed gone. I hope this was a jumping of the gun and HMX has a different message...
Mr Khan @ Sep 26th 2008 2:28PM
You're right
Time for an update, Dave, this sort of thing could get out of hand if you don't make the shift apparent rather quickly
Louie @ Sep 26th 2008 3:14PM
This only increases the uncertainty/drama. That information is about unreleased product, and it could definitely hurt pre-release sales. Both of those are good reasons to retract it whether it's true or not. /Was/ it true, though?
If the article was initially written a while back with the assumption (without proof) that the Wii/PS2 versions would be gimped, then it's be very possible that the unsourced info made it into the final version without being removed. (Oops.)
OR
If Marc Saltzman knew what he was talking about, then it's very possible that the fully sourced info was included when it shouldn't have been. (Oops.)
Both of those are plausible, IMO. In the end, I'm returning to "I don't know" with a bit more skepticism than before.
David Hinkle @ Sep 26th 2008 4:04PM
I updated the post awhile ago.
Mr Khan @ Sep 26th 2008 4:24PM
Didn't think of it that way. Could be a bad feature that was part of an NDA agreement over the article which he put in for the purposes of journalistic integrity (so people don't buy the gimped versions hoping for the full experience) but was removed due to the NDA
Or he could've been making assumptions about those versions, which were removed for factual purposes
But Harmonix did promise the version to be more full-featured. I doubt they would lie.
D @ Sep 27th 2008 8:59PM
Glad I stopped buying my games on Wii.
Gewurztraminer says: Shinkuu Gadouken! @ Sep 28th 2008 8:15AM
leaves more for the rest of us
Steve @ Sep 26th 2008 6:45PM
Why do they even bother releasing it then? Did any poor soul actually buy RB1 for the Wii? If you were to buy this over GH:WT, that'd be the equivalent of purchasing crap instead of a candy bar... for the same price!
Seriously, I love Harmonix and all (Amplitude pwns) - but they do not make any sense.
Thread @ Sep 29th 2008 12:56PM
I received it as a gift, and if I have one criticism it's not DLC or the inability to customize your characters, it's that it's less "video gamey" than Guitar Hero, in that there's less reward for improving your skills once the songs are unlocked. (In GH I'd get new guitar designs, all I've got in RB is a high score list)
As long as the Wii RB2 gets the regularly updated challenges that the other versions are getting, I think that would address my concern. I prefer the RB guitar to the GH guitar.
Matt B @ Sep 26th 2008 2:57PM
Yeah, not surprising. Obviously Activision is the far superior company- at least on the Wii. I'm glad I held off on RB1, and now I'm glad GH:WT is coming out, because I won't be getting RB2 either. Way to screw your potential customers over, Harmonix.
fco. @ Sep 26th 2008 3:18PM
Too bad. I really liked the Rock Band 2 setlist better.
anthony @ Sep 26th 2008 3:53PM
My choice for which music game I am getting is becoming easier and easier.
DerekminyA @ Sep 26th 2008 4:01PM
If this is true, then YOU LIED, HARMONIX! I'M PERSONALLY GOING TO MAKE SURE THAT BECOME THE LAUGHING STOCK ON THE WII, AND I WILL PERSONALLY CONVINCE POTENTIAL BUYERS NOT TO BUY YOUR WII ROCK BAND 2!!! :@ IF ANYONE BOUGHT ROCK BAND 2 ON ANY CONSOLE, then SELL Rock BAND 2 BACK!! NO COMPANY SHOULD BE ALLOWED TO LIE AND GET AWAY WITH IT!!
trainwrecka @ Sep 27th 2008 11:03AM
Are you serious? Grow up man. I am 100% sure Harmonix wants to make the Wii version of RB2 100% full-featured. By leaving out DLC they lose tons of money. The problem is not Harmonix, it's Nintendo. They have no clear or true solution for downloading anything. The highly cumbersome GH:WT method is something, but far from a true solution to a big problem.
But guess what? It isn't Nintendo's problem. Sure, a small portion of gamers want a hard drive solution, but the majority of Wii owners don't. They don't even know there is a problem. Carnival Games and Wii Fit work just fine. Rock Band 1 works fine. They don't know the difference between the 360 or PS3 version. In most cases this is the first game system they have ever owned.
Nintendo should come out with a hard drive just to help developers avoid the pitfalls of pathetic rants like your's.
DerekminyA @ Sep 27th 2008 10:24PM
...you're right. :( I'm really sorry for that outburst. I apologize.
JuanGrande386 @ Sep 26th 2008 4:41PM
Not dissing the Wii I have one and love it (10/11 of my games are made by Nintedo though) but these music games are so much better on 360 and PS3. I dont know why anyone would waste their money on the crappy ps2 or wii versions. Before anyone says "cant afford the other system" the Wii is only $50 cheaper then the 60gb 360 now.
frenat @ Sep 26th 2008 5:24PM
Your argument about the 360 being only $50 more only applies to those buying now though. What about those that already have a Wii and don't have the $300? What about those that prefer the Wii due to certain games and alll of their friends having Wiis?
Dante G @ Sep 26th 2008 5:24PM
How about this: I only got the Wii and I'm not planning on buying any other console any time soon.
I bought guitar hero 3 and I liked it a lot, and even if it had had dlc I wouldn't have bought it. I was into the career mode much more than into quick play mode.
rouroniJohn @ Sep 26th 2008 6:27PM
whatever.
i knew they would pull some BS like this so
i never even considered rockband 2. GHWT all the way!
Gewurztraminer says: Shinkuu Gadouken! @ Sep 26th 2008 6:55PM
As someone who DID buy the PS2 version of Rock Band, allow me to explain why:
I had a blast with GH3 on the Wii (mono sound and all, pfft, I can't tell the difference!). I'm really looking forward to GHWT for Wii. I don't have a 360 or PS3 (although the 360 is becoming more tempting now). I saw the PS2 RB on sale for $100. This seemed like a good way to test out the whole drums & mic bit while impatiently waiting for GHWT. I figured eventually I would sell back the PS2 RB and equipment to go toward GHWT.
The lack of features hasn't bothered me much yet, but that's because I know I'll be trading in. For me, the dealbreaker for RB2 on the Wii has nothing to do with additional (i.e. "normal") features and everything to do with instrument compatibility. If I can play RB with the GH instruments on Wii, then great. Even a featureless RB2 would complement GHWT well. Otherwise, kind of a hard sell all around.
Dash @ Sep 27th 2008 11:44AM
And once again a (sort of) respectable news media writes science fiction about games.
I should have known it before bashing on Harmonix. Sorry Harmonix (but after RB 1 this could be very real).
But is Wii getting online and DLC or not? Why all the secrecy?
jasenj1 @ Sep 27th 2008 8:04PM
Just remember this ANYTIME you read the newspaper (or any other news source). Reporters regularly get stories wrong. It's been my experience that the more I personally know about a story, the more the paper gets it wrong.
Nothing to see here, just standard poor journalism.
rb2man @ Dec 10th 2008 8:50PM
TOTAL LIE!
Rock Band 2 for Wii WILL have DLC and online play! It will also have almost all the features that the PS3 and 360 versions have, like create a rocker, battle of the bands, and fully featured world tour mode.
Go here to see more:
http://www.giantbomb.com/news/rock-band-2-wii-actually-the-real-deal/381/
or just google search. It is confirmed by harmonix! Next time you write an article, be sure to not LIE COMPLETELY!