Review: Rock Band 2 (PS3)

Worse still, if you did buy the UK version of Rock Band, your content and exported songs will only work with the UK version of the sequel. And to rub salt in the wound, if you did import, controller standardisation (or lack thereof) prevented rival company Activision's guitar from working with it. Though that was later fixed, at the time of writing, Rock Band 2 sees Guitar Hero World Tour's drum-kit as a microphone, of all things! The good news for importers is your existing RB kit works fine with the sequel, as does your existing DLC and exported songs, so a standalone disc is all you need to import for a happy Rock Band 2 Christmas, which is exactly what Gamestyle has done.

Platform politics aside, let's get onto the subject of Rock Band 2, the sequel to the game hardly in need of one... until you consider just how many small annoyances and shortcomings the original game actually has. Rock Band 2's interface has been given an overhaul to allow for far easier searching and sorting of songs, regardless of how big your library is. Designed to grow as your collection does, new challenges have been added, based on what songs you have. Any new content purchased updates your challenges so you can go back and finish them off. Decade marathons, specific artist or album setlists, bassist challenges - you name it, there's a challenge based on it.

Once you've created a rocker, they're no longer limited to a particular profession. You can use the same character across guitar, drums or microphone. Additionally, the 'world tour', previously reserved for multiplayer sessions only, is now accessible to the loner. In fact, the whole setup is identical regardless of number of players, and you can simply add more at any time. If a tricky setlist is giving you strummer's cramp, switch out and become a singer for a while, continuing your tour where you left off. Additionally, you can open up your career to online players, randomers or friends, to join your band and fill in the gaps. You can also assign offline players' characters as stand-ins when they're not around, rather than resort to randomly generated characters. The whole feel of being 'in a band' is much enhanced now.

Sadly, many shortcomings of Rock Band haven't been addressed. The most obvious one is that the game still requires you to unlock songs in sequence before you can play them, even in quick-play. For a party-focused game, this is a terrible inclusion and is something that continues to wind us up. How ridiculous a situation is it that this new music platform, filled with your carried-over content that you're free to play as soon as you like, doesn't let you play any song on the disc that you've paid for? 'Very', is the answer. More understandably, Rock Band 2 doesn't deviate from the guitar/bass/drums/vocals 4-player limit. Again, you can't separate rhythm and lead guitar; again, you can't plug in another mic and have someone do backing vocals or duets. This is to maintain compatibility of the platform, but some songs are seriously crying out for expansions like this.

A little perspective is needed here. Three years ago, the very idea of a viable, workable band game like this would have been pie-in-the-sky fantasy, and yet here we are, with at least three of them jostling for shelf space, and we're complaining about there being no keyboard peripherals?! The formula, as it stands, is excellent; with four difficulty levels across all instruments, it's inclusive and fun for almost anyone to play along to. The simple appeal, combined with recognisable music, will surely win favour with friends and family, allowing you to play this the way it's meant to played - in a group! Whether you're better at holding drumsticks, holding your fingers on a guitar neck, or holding a high note, there's plenty to get involved with. Everyone will want to try out at least one part of the game, and feel like they're contributing. This remains perhaps the most fun you'll have in front of your TV this year or next.

The range of music in Rock Band 2 is similar to that of the original, with a variety encompassing pop rock to heavy metal across several decades. There are also more female singers represented now, addressing the balance somewhat. Gamestyle freely admits to enjoying a good singalong to Alanis Morissette's 'You Oughta Know'. Other favourites include Bon Jovi's 'Living On A Prayer', Squeeze's 'Cool For Cats', Tenacious D's 'Master Exploder' and Foo Fighter's magnificent 'Everlong' - a particularly enjoyable song to drum to. The 80-strong tracklist really is a case of more and merrier, but with so much music included, there are naturally a few songs that are not fun across all instruments (Beck and The Beastie Boys do not play well on guitar) or those that are just a bit forgettable. Generally, though, this is a great collection, even if you're only after the missing tracks from the recent incomplete downloadable albums (grumble grumble, politics again).

If party games don't interest you, Rock Band 2's three (four, technically) professions are very comprehensive, and the game's songs become more challenging than those in Rock Band 1 - not arbitrarily, there are just some really complex songs in the higher tiers. PlayStation 'trophies' also find their way into the game this time around, so you've got a few extra goals to aim for, if that's your thing. The same excellent practice modes are included, and now there's a drum trainer, which isn't so much a trainer, but more of a selection of looping common drum patterns with a speed modifier. A welcome addition, in any case.

Rock Band 2 really is the game Rock Band should have been in the first place, but it's nothing more than that. It makes some effort to be more welcoming and accessible, but doesn't go all the way with it. For example, there's a "no fail" modifier in the options menu, but why is it system-wide, not player-specific? Why can't it be activated during a session? Why can't difficulties be changed mid-song? Why can't players drop in or out without going back to a login screen? This is no longer the only band game available, and it needs to try harder to streamline the experience and avoid unnecessary irritation.

That said, with an enormous amount of extra content available to download, a staggering amount already on the disc, several comprehensive dynamic challenges and online updates, this should be a no-brainer 'upgrade' for existing fans. If you're still on the fence over whether to invest in this or that other franchise, just count yourself lucky that games of this quality and scope even exist in the first place.

Rating: 9 / 10

Words by Daniel James