Rock Band Turns 5 Years Old! Stories From The Community

[Riffrockrat]

I've probably mentioned this a bajillion times by now, but I have only been playing Rock Band (and music game, in general) since July of 2011. In that time, though, it has not only become my most played console game, it has become virtually my exclusive console game. While I have, on a couple occasions played games I already owned, I have not, as far as I recall, played a single new game, AAA or otherwise, since I first started playing Rock Band 3. It really was the perfect storm for me, because I loved games and I loved music, put them together and it is the ideal interactive experience for me.

When I first decided to get into music games (as an early birthday present to myself), it was either Guitar Hero or Rock Band (obviously). Admittedly there are elements of Guitar Hero (the more fantastical and video-game-y elements) and songs I would like in the Rock Band series. That said, looking at the available soundtrack and DLC for the Rock Band series and reading the reviews, both player and professional, it was the clear choice for me. And I'm very glad I made that decision. You have done an amazing job thus far, Harmonix, I wish you the best of luck for the future. You will always have a devoted fan in me.

[firedoom666]

well I don't have any big emotional story like some of the other posts but Rock Band has been a major part of my life for the past 5 years. I have been part of many other communities like Smash Bros, Pokemon and My Little Pony but nothing ranks up to the love I have for Rock Band and its community

I remember the first time I ever saw Rock Band, I was at a Best Buy with two of my brothers and there was a playable kiosk of Rock Band there. Now my brothers and I were already good at music games we all played Guitar Hero and DDR and Karaoke Revolution before that. The three of us all picked up an instrument and started playing. I remember how awesome it was to play and after a few songs we started getting a crowd of people watching us. It felt great with the audience cheering after we finished a song. We must of stayed in that Best Buy playing Rock Band for forty-five minutes.

That same year during Christmas Eve at my grandma's house we opened all of our gifts then my older brother, Dan, told us to look in the garage. In the garage we had a huge box with a blanket on it. Under it was the PS3 Rock Band Bundle and the game for the PS2 (PS3 instruments worked with the PS2) When we got home my brothers and I spent most of the night playing it.

I remember the disappointment I had when I found out that Rock Band 2 was not getting released on the PS2. I remember watching videos for all the songs on youtube since I knew I was not gonna play it. That Friday when my Dad was driving me to his house he told me that my stepbrother bought a new game called Rock Band 2. I was ecstatic I actually had a reason to want to go to my Dad's house. My younger brother and I did not stop playing Rock Band 2 until we unlocked Shooting Star, It was amazing

Over the next couple of months I saved up my money to buy an Xbox and Rock Band 2 bundle for my Mom's house. A little while later I bought my first DLC song with some leftover MSP points (I think it was Clouds Over California) and then I was hooked.

after that I had many ups and downs with my Rock Band life. I remember my Junior year of High School my FBLA State Leadership conference had a Rock Band Battle of the bands. The great rush when we qualified as the number one seed. The shame when our singer failed Drain You in the first round in the tournament. After that I brought Rock Band to every overnight School Trip. During my Senior year of High School I remember bringing it to parties, or when we knew a teacher was going to be absent I would get the substitute to let us play in class. the FBLA Arizona Southern Region Conference my band got a close 2nd place in the Rock Band tournament. Near the end of the school year I even made a Rock Band video for my school's film festival.

Then at the end of our high school days we had one more chance to win. The 2010 FBLA State Leadership conference had another Rock Band Battle of the bands. We made it to the final two... the finale of the tournament happened right before the Awards Ceremony. So there I was with my three best friends playing Conventional Lover in front of a crowd of 500 people. AND WE WON!!! all we got was a $10 iTunes giftcard (which I used to get Rock Band for the iOS) but it felt amazing!

fast forward to the fall of 2011... One of my friends (who is a year younger) is going to a out of town college in three days, another of my friends is going to Chicago for his Mormon Mission in 5 days... so this was our last huzzah and we spend it playing Rock Band until 5 AM. I get tear thinking about that party. It was the most fun I had with Rock Band ever.

[rkbdgurl]

Actually Firedoom, I thought it was quite a nice emotional story. and fwiw you included a movie! I'm still giggling. thanks for sharing.

[Iceman71421]

Great thread idea. I have enjoyed reading a lot of these!

I started playing rhythm games my first year in college (2006). A friend of mine introduced me to GH2. I was extremely skeptical at first because I had been playing the bass for most of my teen years and was getting pretty good. I was kind of snobbish on music and my music taste at the time so I was very hesitant about trying it and gave him a hard time. Finally played it and loved it, I think I went out and bought it the next day or after.

When RB 1 was announced we were so stoked and a bunch of us all pre ordered the box set. We had a nice group of college / home friends back then and we went from place to place on weekends often to hang out. RB and GH were a huge part of that. We all progressed pretty quickly because we always wanted to outdo each other the next time we got together. I remember the first time we tried the endless setlist full band all on expert. We were drinking throughout the set and we got to the last few songs and couldnt pass them. We were so mad but just laughed after the initial anger wore off. We ended up beating it the next day on another try.

When RB2 came out that was even more popular around friends / college buddies and we played so much of it. Great party game for sure. It was fun to see people at parties at first be so skeptical and say that they knew they wouldnt enjoy then a few days later want to play again or say they had ended up buying it.

It goes on and on, I have had most all of them rhythm games and accessories at some point. Ive probably gone through 3 or 4 drum sets, probably about 10 kick pedals, guitars, mics. Bought so much DLC so Harmonix youve got a wad of my money. It has been great fun though and I wouldnt take back any of it. On another note, RB got me into starting to play the real drums and I have gotten really good at that, so as a lot of people have said it can lead you onto other paths outside of video games. OVerall A+ an amazing ride.

[Apples]

Five years is a long time, and it tends to blur together. Back when all of this started I was just a random guy with too much free time at work poking around on a bare message board. After a random email conversation with the community team, they welcomed me and treated me warmly as their own. And that was the beginning of a great adventure. A great adventure filled with success and triumph, controversy, intrigue, and a broad swath of memorable moments.

While the game's success is unquestioned, the thing that sticks out most for me is the people I met along the way. There were interesting forum regulars of all walks of life, who gave me perspective I would have never considered. I got to Rub elbows with game developers, some of the most amazing people I will ever know. And even new friends locally who I would have never otherwise met. So whatever may come of games in and out of my life (and there have been many over the years), this one will always have a special place that no other can reach, for which I am extremely thankful.

[vexx0820]

We've had RB1/2/3 long enough I can't remember when it arrived. I play with it at least 2 or 3 times a week - its just relaxing, a nice way to de-stress.

And once every month or so, there's a DLC I actually care about

[Munnchy]

There are a few great memories I have, some involve GH, but the majority are rock band based, I promise!

My favourite memory has to be playing RB2 at my mates house. One of my friends was a little sceptical, but after putting it on, and playing "Don't stop believing", he soon warmed up. Great times

[bandaddy]

My favorite memory is when I used to have money. You know, before RB1 came out and I spent thousands on plastic instruments, electronic drum kits, DLC, etc.
Ahh, those were the days.

[RuseBalaxin]

My introduction to Rock Band was a really awesome experience. I had already begun playing Guitar Hero 3 and got super-hooked on the whole music genre but before that I didn't know anything about rhythm games. I spent a solid 4 months on Guitar Hero 3 and when Rock Band was announced my best friend (who still jams with me to this day) went out and purchased the kit for his PS3.

Everything had this sleek, professional quality to it, I loved that the most.
I fell in love with the guitar which was practically soundless as you strummed. The instruments felt so authentic, for the first time I was overcome with the feeling of actually being in a band. When I tried out the drums, which was pretty early on, it was like trying to rub my stomach and pat my head for the first time, lol.

My favorite aspect of the core Rock Band experience is without a doubt singing. I'm a natural-born singer and Harmonix just nailed it. I could follow along the lines with ease, raising and lowering my octaves almost effortlessly. Granted I wasn't a pro right off the bat but the game mechanics were so well integrated, so much cleaner and more responsive than Guitar Hero's World Tour vocal parts.

I didn't have the money to get the Rock Band kit myself though, so I settled for purchasing Guitar Hero and bought World Tour on its release day. I completely skipped over Rock Band 2 and played very little of that title even though my friend had it. Fast-forward to The Beatles Rock Band, I finally had enough money to get the whole kit. The amount of sheer restlessness I endured while waiting for The Beatles was insane and a week before its release I went out camping with a good friend of mine just so I could get away from it all.

The Beatles RB was a milestone, it brought my family and I together in a whole new way and it was amazing just to watch both my parents sing harmonies together. I can recall, they sung "Eight Days a Week," smiling the whole time which almost moved me to tears... we all really bonded with the music in a big way and no other "game" has ever done that before. I have to thank Harmonix for that.

By the time Rock Band 3 was released I was the only one of my friends still excited and ready to go. The setlist itself remains to this day one of the best I've seen from this genre. To fill the gap while I waited I picked up Green Day Rock Band after hearing how many great songs I knew.

I pre-ordered Rock Band 3 soon as I had the money but only got my hands
on a key-tar a whole year after the fact. I've poured over $1,000 dollars into Rock Band but not a day goes by that I'm not loving every minute of it!

[ZigZag2005]

I think I can best illustrate the depths of my addiction with just two pictures...

Before Rock Band

After 5 years of Rock Band