When GameSpot reviews editor Jeff Gerstmann was suddenly fired from his position, parent-company CNET lost nearly half-a-dozen staff members surrounding the controversy. One of those staff members, expert drummer Alex Navarro, announced he has landed at Harmonix, joining their community team, during the May 20th episode of the Giant Bomb Podcast.
"The concept of leaping headfirst into something like this, for a company I admire and respect as much as Harmonix, is straight up boner-inducing," Navarro eloquently wrote on his personal blog.
So what does this mean for Rock Band fans? Navarro will help administer the Rock Band forums as well as help writing other content where needed. Navarro also hints at a more dedicated Rock Band developer blog which we hope is akin to the work done by Luke Smith at Bungie.
The most important thing? Maybe we can finally get some Hard-Fi love in Rock Band.
The tale of a spouse who pays more attention to a hobby than a significant other is an old one. Just what that hobby is has changed over the years. Be it watching sports, spending too much time at the office, or playing too many video games, it's a tale as old as time. It's amazing then, that in Rachel Shukert's case, video games actually saved a marriage. The particular game in question is Rock Band, which pulled her husband away from solitary first person shooters and brought the two together on the rise to virtual stardom. It's really a touching story with a sound moral: all marital problems can be solved with Rock Band. Just try not to fight over who gets to play which instrument.
Posted May 28th 2008 3:30PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News
Beginning June 20th in Pomona, California, the Vans Warped Tour will trek across the United States and Canada, bringing bands like Paramore, Gym Class Heroes and The All-American Rejects to a city near you. And for those who'll be attending (check out dates and locations here), you'll be happy to know that you'll be able to take a break from the concert fun at Microsoft sponsored Rock Band game stations that'll be on site. Who knows, you may even get to rock out on a stage decked out with the yet to be officially announced Stage Kit. If you do, grab the $100 peripheral and run as fast as you can to Fanboy Towers ... we'll protect you.
As promised, Harmonix just released yet another complete album of Rock Band DLC, and this time we're treated to The Cars' self titled album "The Cars". W00t!
Available for purchase off the XBLM are nine new Rock Band DLC tracks from The Cars, each available for 160 Microsoft points apiece or bundled together as an album for 1200 points. Which, if you're interested, makes an album purchase a savings of 240 points over purchasing each track individually. Check the break for a list of all nine new Rock Band DLC tracks.
If you recall, this past February a new (and still unannounced) Rock Band peripheral called the Stage Kit was spotted over on Gamestop's website. Back then, we were only given images of what the light and smoke peripheral's box looked like, but it was enough to warrant Stage Kit / WALL•E / police spot light comparisons. Now, Gamestop has since updated their Stage Kit pre-order page with a new picture of the peripherals including what looks to be a 360 controller / strobe light hybrid. Gamestop also pegged the (GASP!) $100 peripheral for an August 15th release, so gather what info you can from that.
In an interview with G4's X-Play, Mark Mothersbaugh, member of the 80's red hat wearing group Devo, confirmed that Devo will in fact be releasing three tracks to the Rock Band DLC library. Though, Mothersbaugh kept his cards close and didn't reveal which Devo tracks they'll be releasing, when they'll hit the XBLM or for how much. But one thing that's nearly certain is that one of their Rock Band releases will be the uber hit "Whip It". Because if they put out a three pack of DLC and don't include "Whip It", then we and thousands of fanboys will have to perform a Devo Rock Band DLC boycott. And yes, Devo, that is a threat.
The next newly announced piece of DLC for all the rockers out there will be hitting the Rock Band store on the 27th and is going to be the self-titled Cars album. The nine track album should satisfy fans requests and will arrive in exactly a week's time to let the good times roll. The pricing follows Rock Band norms, 160pts each, or 1200 for the whole album. The full track listing can be found after the break.
As was promised, new European Rock Band downloadable content is available for purchase off the Xbox Live Marketplace for your ... uh, purchasing pleasure? These seven new tracks are already included on the newly released European edition of Rock Band, so this DLC is targeted for those in North America who feel left out. Each chunck of DLC will cost you 160 Microsoft point and some hard drive space, so check out the complete list of today's new DLC after the break and download away.
It's a very special European edition of Rock Band DLC Friday today as our friends overseas will soon be experiencing all that Rock Band has to offer (and an expensive offer at that). So, Harmonix being the cool cats they are, has decided to offer up the tracks that were previously exclusive to Europe's edition of Rock Band. Without further wait, check the break for a complete list of all nine European songs that'll hit the XBLM next Tuesday, May 20th for 160 Microsoft points each. And yes, there will be Muse and Wes Wampas. Be happy.
Posted May 15th 2008 3:15PM by Dustin Burg
Filed under: News
Team Joystiq has learned through a few anonymous tips that EA with the help of Listen Research are conducting surveys for Rock Band 2. And with any pre-release video game survey, we get some insight to where the dev team is headed.
The survey questions are said to target various topics including Rock Band 2 pricing, how many expansions one would be willing to buy and the likelihood of purchasing Rock Band over a game like Guitar Hero IV. But most noteworthy is rumor that some of the surveys mention certain feature additions including the World Tour being online with a music video creator and the ability to hire a staff. Also, a Battle of the Bands mode is mentioned where players go head to head against other rival bands in daily or weekly battles. Finally, some surveys are rumored to talk about a new drum trainer mode being added to the sequel, something we really, really, really need.
Brand new Rock Band downloadable content just became available on the Xbox Live Marketplace this morning as three rockin' tracks get added to the ever growing DLC library. Rockin' tracks from Sonic Youth, The Clash and Blondie to be exact with each costing a cool 160 Microsoft points. Check the break for a complete breakdown of today's Rock Band DLC. Also, we wanted to say that we're glad to see master tracks becoming the norm in Rock Band DLC offerings. The days of cover song DLC are all but gone ... three cheers for that!
In news that isn't timely but is still very important because of the "holy crap!" reaction it gets, we bring you video of IBitePrettyHard drumming to Rock Band's "The Perfect Drug" DLC at 100% perfect, no faults and completely flawless. A 1,893 note streak? In-freakin-credible! Note that this video is not to be confused with the other expertly drummed "The Perfect Drug" video we posted about this past February, because it wasn't 100% perfect. Also, this new video shows not only the notes being played but the player's drum movements, which is rather interesting. Man, if only we had an ounce of Rock Band talent ...
Not to be outdone by its more innovative brother Rock Band, Activision Publishing CEO Mike Griffith revealed the Guitar Hero franchise has recently surpassed 15 million individual song downloads. The announcement was made during a recent earnings call where Activision also revealed future plans of the Tony Hawk, Call of Duty and James Bond licenses.
Viacom, owner of Harmonix, recently announced Rock Band has reached the 10 million song download mark.
It's notable that the Guitar Hero announcement seems to relate to both Guitar Hero II (Xbox 360) and Guitar Hero III (Xbox 360 and PS3) downloads while the Rock Band announcement appears to be a combination of Xbox 360 and PS3 online sales. While Harmonix and Activision continue their urinating contest over numbers, we'll just assume both are doing well in the content sales department for future reference.
There's no better way to end the week than with a hefty helping of confirmed Rock Band downloadable content for next week. It's one of those small things that makes life all the more enjoyable and brighter. Anyway, let's get to it. Next Tuesday, May 13th Harmonix will be adding "Hanging on the Telephone" by Blondie, "Train in Vain" by The Clash and "Kool Thing" by Sonic Youth to the Rock Band DLC library. Each track will be 160 Microsoft points and only available individually, which means no money saving three pack for you. So ... yippy for Blondie?
Whoops. With all the Rock Bandnews and rumors we reported on earlier today, we totally forgot to mention today's new Rock Band downloadable content. Color us embarrassed. This week (as was revealed last Friday) we're being treated to three new tracks from Fall Out Boy, Angels & Airwaves and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs all available for purchase off the XBLM seperatly or grouped together for savings as a "Scene Pack". Check the break for a complete breakdown of today's DLC and start making a Rock Band scene already!
When GameSpot reviews editor Jeff Gerstmann was suddenly fired from his position, parent-company CNET lost nearly half-a-dozen staff members surrounding the controversy. One of those staff members, expert drummer Alex Navarro, announced he has landed at Harmonix, joining their community team, during the May 20th episode of the Giant Bomb Podcast.
The tale of a spouse who pays more attention to a hobby than a significant other is an old one. Just what that hobby is has changed over the years. Be it watching sports, spending too much time at the office, or playing too many video games, it's a tale as old as time. It's amazing then, that in Rachel Shukert's case, video games actually saved a marriage. The particular game in question is 
As 
If you recall, 
The next newly announced piece of DLC for all the rockers out there will be hitting the 
Team Joystiq has learned through a few anonymous tips that EA with the help of Listen Research are conducting surveys for Rock Band 2. And with any pre-release video game survey, we get some insight to where the dev team is headed.
Brand new Rock Band downloadable content just became available on the 
