The new year is almost here and the time for reflection appears to be upon us. We had a good year at RockBand.com. We launched a whole new version of the site featuring a new 'Zine section, improved forum design, an in-depth Music section, and a custom merch booth.
The 'Zine features exclusive interviews with artists, behind the scenes info about the games, DLC announcements and 52 Weeks - your guide to becomming a rock star.
The new Music section gives you the story behind each Rock Band song, plus gameplay tips to get you through those extra tricky parts.
The merch booth features a photo creator that lets you take pictures of your Rock Band 2 characters to put on merchandise like t-shirts, keychains, and stickers, or (free!) downloadable desktop wallpapers. You can also pose your character for a Bandmate - a custom-printed, 6-inch, 3-D figurine wearing the clothes and using the instrument you picked in-game.
We had some big DLC announcements this year, including full album downloads from No Doubt, the Foo Fighters, Motley Crue, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and more. We also had DLC 3-packs from the Offspring, Jimmy Buffett and Disturbed (on the same day!), Nine Inch Nails, and more.
Of course, we can't forget the September release of Rock Band 2, the sequel to the first full-band music gaming experience. Rock Band 2 has an extended feature list plus more than 80 songs on disc. It also gives you the ability to play all your Rock Band DLC and just about every track from the original Rock Band. We're very proud that Rock Band 2 won two Spike TV Video Game Awards - Best Music Game and Best Soundtrack - and two G4 TV X-Play Awards - Best Downloadble Content and Best Music Game.
Our writer Brett Milano talked with some really interesting people this year. In case you missed it, check out his interviews with:
- Yngwie Malmsteen
- Paul Westerberg of The Replacements
- Phil Ehart and Rich Williams of Kansas
- Carl Newman of the New Pornographers
- Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue
- Mike Portnoy of Dream Theater
- Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson of Rush (video interview!
- Glenn Tipton and Rob Halford of Judas Priest
- Jimmy Buffett
- Fred Schneider of the B-52's
To see these and other interviews, check out the Interviews archive on The 'Zine.
We also gave you a glimpse at the work that goes into the game behind the scenes in our new Sketchbook series featuring concept artwork from Rock Band and Rock Band 2. Look at the work that went into some of your favorite art from the games including:
- The Beast of Burden Impossible Vocal Challenge Outfit
- The Nudie Suit Ultimate Rock Outfit
- The Cthulu Guitar
- Prison Tattoos
- and the amazing John Dee guitar case that was auctioned for Child's Play
We also gave away awesome prizes in our weekly contest series, including a Mad Catz Precision Bass, a Mad Catz M.I.C., a Rock Band 2 bundle, a custom-printed Bandmate figurine, a signed Rock Band 2 drum kit, and lots of shwag packs.
Stay tuned to RockBand.com in 2009 for more exciting DLC announcements, exclusive interviews, contests and more.
