Rock Band Community: Deep Thoughts (your feedback please!)

[Pyrettablaze]

It is going to be extremely hard to get the perfect community. Prior to the game being released you not only had people that liked the Rockband game but they LOVED it(as lil jimmy would say).

After that, you have people that are angry with the game mixed with people that love the game fighting each other about one thing or another and then you have those that are just completely upset because of the complete lack of Godsmack songs being added to the DLC.

[Sayburr]

In looking at the Rock Band sub-forum the most talked about subjects are DLC and Modded items... If those two items could be moved to new subforums it might clear some things up. Maybe if the DLC forum is seperate the "Where is Who's Next and the Dead" will not fall off the front page as fast and we will not have a new posting asking the same question every-other day.

The Ultimate Set-list forum is a mess, I have looked in there and posted a few times, but for the most part you see the same things being requested each day in a new post. I actually thought about going through it and making a comprehensive list, but talk about some major work to do that and I am sure if I went through the trouble it would be on page 3 in a couple of hours.

I am afraid I was not here prior to the release of the game, never thought I would be one of those people who found enjoyment in playing it. Never played guitar hero, this is my first music game. So, I regret not being here from the start because it sounds like you had some great conversations. Alas, I am afraid those days are long gone, because you now that the infux of people like me who are hopping on the Rock Band Wagon later in the cycle and with the game already developed there is not much to talk about that is new and exciting other than songs that are being released or that we hope will be released. So, what can be done about this? Let us know what you are working on... long term plans and thoughts... that would give us something to talk about. I mean, what exactly is the Stage Kit and how does it work?

Anyway, the forums are not that bad as they are concidering you have all us new people coming in and taking over, changing the culture, and rapeing the old ways.

[Etapi1000]

Nope. It's about tone - not content. You can get away with saying a lot of things in life. Yes, there are some taboo subjects, but for the most part, it's not what you say, it's how you say it.

Some things we're looking to be able to do:
-Keep information in places where people can find it (a la dev tags and that sort of thing)
-Keep internet attitude out of here. It's okay to be upset - it's not okay to be insulting to other fans.

I'm not sure why you would jump to that conclusion.

To me your initial post read as if you stirred the pot within this community you are going to be watched or banned. A person can't come here ever and express their opinion on issues with this game without being jumped on by 40 different Shiny Happy People. I have invested a lot of money into this game (yes, I understand nobody put a gun to my head, save it) and I would like to express my concerns to hopefully have them addressed by the developers. If we were to keep the status quo on everything in our lives, nothing would ever get better. This game is great, my favorite of all time. But there are many things that seem fixable and you guys never address them here.

I would have to agree with HMXJohnlok in that content is not really an issue, it is tone.

There are so many posts in the forum right now where the posters are downright rude, crude and insulting. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but put it across in a civil manner people. A good example is Omaplata's post above. He got his point made in his reply in a civil and constructive manner.

That is one of my biggest concerns right now, the other was addressed by and earlier post that the forums really need to be cleaned up and reorganized some. We have too many posts overlapping on the same topics and it would help to have a better way of straightening them out.

[HMXJohnlok]

Let us know what you are working on... long term plans and thoughts... that would give us something to talk about. I mean, what exactly is the Stage Kit and how does it work?

Hopefully we will be able to talk about some of these things more in the future. A lot of the time, however, the marketing plan doesn't exactly parallel with the demands of the community. There will be times our hands are entirely tied, but for the times where they are not, we will try to be as forthcoming as we can be.

[Tender-Surrender]

Seriously I have given up on these forums. I joined just to post about DLC. The developers obviously cannot select some of the more popular songs from bands to add to Rock Band. Which is a shame because the game is so much fun to play. But realizing posting on the ultimate setlist area is just a way to believe you are being heard by the developers.

I just come here to check and see if they announced next weeks DLC and then leave if they have or havent. I have given up on seeing the more popular bands and songs from those bands.. As someone else stated I have gone back to playing Guitar hero 2 and Guitar hero 3 for the more popular songs from real rock bands. Hopefully Harmonix will soon give a reason why some of the most coveted songs in the Guitar hero series has not made it to Rock Band.

This game has only been out for 3 months, and it is still relatively new. You cannot count out having "popular" bands in the game, when they release DLC weekly. Who is to say, besides HMX, what is in the pipeline or not.

I am going out on a limb saying this, but it is possible they have secured some of the "popular" "real rock" band's songs, and are in the process of converting them to DLC. I am pretty sure creating note tracks for songs take longer than most people seem to think. I would also think they are in the process of securing other bands that people want. Remember licensing music and all that is not always, or ever, a simple process. Some of the people on this board just think it is similar to downloading an mp3.

If your definition of "real rock" is what is in Guitar Hero II and III, then that is your opinion. I think all the Guitar Hero games and Rock Band are full of "real rock".

[bill55]

It seems like most of the arguing and negative talk revolves around DLC.

It may or may not at all be possible, but perhaps (I could be WAY wrong)....

1.) if we knew why songs were selected it would cut down on the arguing of why a certain band's song was picked over another band.

2.) if we knew why we're set on 3 songs per week.

3.) why some bands get packs and others get single tracks.


I know that info may no be available to share, but I really think a lot of the arguing around DLC selection could be cut down in a big way.

Thanks,
Bill

[Sayburr]

... for the times where [our hands] are not [tied], we will try to be as forthcoming as we can be.

Believe me, I understand that. I am a financial analyst for a health system in East Tennessee. There are things that I know that I just can't tell anyone as it is related to marketing. That is the nature of business. What I was trying to say was there just is not as much to talk about or speculate about as there was prior to the game's release.

[Joatmon]

I would like to see some form of seperation between PS3 & xbox, well, & wii too I guess, I don't like having to decipher if what I am reading regarding (insert issue here) is about PS3 or xbox, I also don't like wasting my time reading through the flames that happen because of it. On forums similar to this one with cars for example, they have them broken down by models or years of the same car so that people with very similar situations can congregate without weeding through the chaff that doesn't apply to them... Along that same line, I would like to see the Console under the persons name as well, like right under where it says member, senior member etc? You can still of course have wide open areas for all, like band discussions, dlc etc....

Also a way to pick which forums you want to read when you hit "new posts", again a way to filter out what I am not interested in, like I would want to see "announcements" & "PS3 Issues (if it existed, hint hint)", but I have no interest in "album reviews" or "xbox issues", does that make sense?

I would also like a more visual, open process of some sort for suggesting DLC and seeing what is actually on the drawing board/being considered in real time...

Basically, more efficiency in what I come here for, I hate to burst your bubble, but this site is not the ONLY thing I do all day, I want to come here for information, I DON'T want to read, whining, flaming, console issues that don't relate to what I own, and the same old thread about the same old thing named something else (dlc for example).

Otherwise, keep up the good work!

[Nitara]

This game has only been out for 3 months, and it is still relatively new. You cannot count out having "popular" bands in the game, when they release DLC weekly. Who is to say, besides HMX, what is in the pipeline or not.

I am going out on a limb saying this, but it is possible they have secured some of the "popular" "real rock" band's songs, and are in the process of converting them to DLC. I am pretty sure creating note tracks for songs take longer than most people seem to think. I would also think they are in the process of securing other bands that people want. Remember licensing music and all that is not always, or ever, a simple process. Some of the people on this board just think it is downloading an mp3.

If your definition of "real rock" is what is in Guitar Hero II and III, then that is what your opinion. I think all the Guitar Hero games and Rock Band are full of "real rock".

Look this week is a perfect example. They select the B-52's but pick one of the more obscure songs. Roam is not bad but when the could have chose any of the more popular B-52 songs they dont.

Kiss, god how I love kiss. But of multitude of Kiss songs they could have chosen, they chose Dr Love. Again not one of the more popular songs. I think Harmonix can't get the rights to the more popular songs that the Guitar Hero series has got.

I mean it is a crime that Guns and Roses is not in the game at all. Anyways I am only defending my position that Harmonix is either unable to or is not giving us the best song selections on purpose. Take your pick.

I can go on and on about what has been put up for DLC so far and even the bands I do not like, the songs that were selected for DLC were not even there most popular. There are a few exceptions but not many.

[golfstrom]

I agree ‘Your Ultimate Setlist’ could use some more organization.

And if there could be a separate 'Whining about DLC' forum (and I'm being completely serious)…because the amount of random/out-of-context whining across all the different forums is truly breathtaking; e.g. that guy who came into this thread to whine.

Perhaps HMX could post some thoughts about why each song was selected (“Toad was a really underappreciated band from the 90s”; “innovative drum and guitar on this one”; “everyone in the office made out to this song in college”) – I think that would pre-empt a lot of the criticism and sort of get HMX’s musical chops out there.