Rock Band Track Packs (called Song Packs in Europe and Australia)^[1] are a series of supplemental media discs for the Rock Band series of music video games. The packs are developed by Harmonix and Demiurge Studios (earlier packs were developed with Pi Studios), and distributed by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. Harmonix has announced they will release additional discs, containing new songs not in past releases, and have not previously been made available through downloadable content. The track packs are fully functional stand alone games and do not require separate Rock Band titles to play;^[2] however, on consoles that support downloadable content, the songs from these packs can be integrated with other Rock Band titles.

Rock Band Track Pack Vol. 1[edit]

Rock Band Track Pack Vol. 1 (Rock Band Song Pack 1) was released for the Wii and PlayStation 2 on July 15, 2008. The addition was announced on May 5, 2008.^[3] This disc contains 20 songs previously released as downloadable content for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 .^[2][4] As there are only 20 songs, all tracks have been re-arranged into 'Stages' instead of Tiers, with four 'Stages' in total. The following songs are featured on this track pack:^[4]

AC/DC Live: Rock Band Track Pack[edit]

AC/DC Live: Rock Band Track Pack (AC/DC Live: Rock Band) was announced on September 29, 2008, and was released for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 on November 2. The Wii version was released on November 16, 2008. The pack contains all 18 tracks from AC/DC's Live at Donington DVD. The game, through pre-existing licensing deals that AC/DC has with the retail chains,^[6] was only available at Wal-Mart and Sam's Club.^[7] This exclusivity agreement was only applicable in the United States, and ended on November 4, 2009 when GameStop began selling new copies of the game for $20.^[8] Each copy of the track pack includes a code that can be redeemed online to allow Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 owners to download the content to their console for use in other Rock Band titles. The game can also be played as a standalone title, including a number of Achievements for Xbox 360 owners, but otherwise does not feature many of the gameplay elements of the full Rock Band titles, such as character creation or customization, online play, or a World Tour mode.^[6] The track pack retails for $30 for the PS2 version and $40 for other consoles.^[5][7] Harmonix has confirmed that the songs will remain exclusive to the disc release, citing AC/DC's preference to sell their music as full albums instead of singles. They have not ruled out releasing the content in the future should the band's views change.^[9]

Rock Band Track Pack Vol. 2[edit]

Rock Band Track Pack Vol. 2 (Rock Band Song Pack 2) is an expansion disc for the Rock Band series featuring 20 master recordings previously released as downloadable content on the Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Network Store. Unlike the first expansion, Vol. 2 is available on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 as well as the Wii and PlayStation 2. Much like the AC/DC Live pack, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions also include a code to download the songs to a hard drive for use in other Rock Band games.^[11][12][13]The following songs are included on the game disc:^[11]

Rock Band Track Pack: Classic Rock[edit]

Rock Band Track Pack: Classic Rock is an expansion disc for the Rock Band series featuring 20 master recordings previously released as downloadable content on the Xbox Live Marketplace and PlayStation Network Store. The pack is available for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, and PlayStation 2. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions also include a code to export the songs to a hard drive for use in other Rock Band games.^[14] The Track Pack can also be played as a standalone game for all systems in the same manner as the AC/DC Live and Track Pack Vol. 2,^[14] and is also the first Rock Band Track Pack on Wii and on PS2 to be fully compatible with all Guitar Hero instruments.

The following songs are included on the disc:^[14]

Rock Band Country Track Pack[edit]

Harmonix released a fifth track pack for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, and PlayStation 2. The disc features 21 songs, and for the first time includes songs never before seen in the Rock Band series. These songs were exclusive to Rock Band Country Track Pack for a limited time before being released to the Rock Band Music Store by late 2009 and early 2010. The Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions also include a code to export the songs to a hard drive for use in other Rock Band games. The Track Pack can also be played as a standalone game for all systems in the same manner as the AC/DC Track Pack and Track Pack Vol. 2.^[15]

The setlist includes the following songs:^[15]

^a Songs were first released to Rock Band through this disc.

Rock Band Metal Track Pack[edit]

Rock Band Metal Track Pack for the Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation 3 was released on September 22, 2009. The track pack contains 20 songs, featuring a mix of new songs as well as those previously released as downloadable content. The songs debuting in this track pack were made available through the Rock Band Music Store on January 26, 2010. As with previous track packs, Metal Track Pack allows users to download the songs off the disc for use in Rock Band and Rock Band 2. This was the last Rock Band game for the PlayStation 2.^[16]

The following songs are contained on the disc:^[16]

^b Songs were first available via this Track Pack.

Rock Band Country Track Pack 2[edit]

Rock Band Country Track Pack 2 contains 21 tracks, and was released for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii on February 1, 2011.^[17] Unlike previously released Track Packs, the Country Track Pack 2 is based on the game engine of Rock Band 2, and all songs on the disc were exclusive to the Track Pack before being released as downloadable content on November 8, 2011. The retail disc export is compatible with Rock Band, Rock Band 2, and Rock Band 3 while the standalone DLC is only compatible with Rock Band 3. Both the retail disc export and standalone 'RB3 Versions' feature Pro Drum tracks and Harmony Vocals where appropriate while the 'RB3 Versions' additionally have Keyboard and Pro Keyboard tracks added where appropriate. A Pro Guitar upgrade is available for the 'RB3 Version' of 'Ride' by Trace Adkins.^[18] The 'RB3 version' versions of this entire track pack are available as a bundle download in the online Rock Band store, under the name 'Country Mega Pack.'

The setlist includes the following songs:

External links[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^'Rock Band Song Pack 1'. Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
2. ^ ^abHatfield, Daemon (2008-05-13). 'Rock Band Track Pack Details'. IGN. Archived from the original on 2008-07-25. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
3. ^Hatfield, Daemon (2008-05-05). 'New Details Emerge on Rock Band Track Pack Volume 1'. IGN. Archived from the original on 2008-05-09. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
4. ^ ^abBaptiste, Sean (2008-05-05). 'Track Pack coming to Wii and PS2'. Harmonix. Archived from the original on 2008-07-07. Retrieved 2008-05-05.
5. ^ ^abcMike Fahey (2008-09-30). 'Rock Band's AC/DC Live Track Pack: The Details'. Kotaku. Archived from the original on 2008-10-01. Retrieved 2008-09-30.
6. ^ ^abGeddes, Ryan (2008-10-15). 'AC/DC Live Rock Band Hands-on'. IGN. Archived from the original on 2008-10-19. Retrieved 2008-10-16.
7. ^ ^abBreckon, Nick; Faylor, Chris (2008-09-29). 'First Rock Band Spin-off Revealed: AC/DC Live Coming As $30 Wal-Mart Exclusive'. Shacknews. Archived from the original on 2008-09-30. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
8. ^'AC/DC Rock Band No Longer Wal-Mart Exclusive, Also Cheaper'. Kotaku. Archived from the original on 2009-11-01. Retrieved 2009-10-29.
9. ^Klepek, Patrick (2008-10-20). 'Why 'AC/DC Live: Rock Band Track Pack' Is Wal-Mart Only And Not DLC (For Now)'. MTV. Archived from the original on 2008-10-23. Retrieved 2008-10-20.
10. ^'IGN: Rock Band: Track Pack Volume 2 (Rock Band Track Pack 2)'. IGN.com. Archived from the original on 2008-10-23. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
11. ^ ^ab'Gamestop.com - Buy Rock Band Track Pack Volume 2 - 360'. Gamestop.com. Archived from the original on 2008-10-21. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
12. ^'Rock Band Track Pack 2: Xbox 360 Achievements'. Achieve360Points.com. Archived from the original on 2008-10-17. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
13. ^'Amazon.com: Rock Band Track Pack: Vol. 2: Video Games'. Amazon.com. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
14. ^ ^abcdSean Baptiste (2009-03-23). 'Rock Band Track Pack: Classic Rock'. Harmonix. Archived from the original on 2009-03-26.
15. ^ ^abc'Rock Band Country Track Pack - Full Set List and Details'. Harmonix. 2009-06-15. Archived from the original on 2009-06-19.
16. ^ ^abc'Rock Band Metal Track Pack ships today'. Harmonix. 2009-09-22. Archived from the original on 2009-09-27. Retrieved 2009-09-23.
17. ^'Country Track Pack 2 in Stores February 1st!'. Harmonix. 2011-01-12. Archived from the original on 2011-01-15. Retrieved 2011-01-12.
18. ^'DLC for 11/8 [UPDATE['. RockBandAide. Archived from the original on 8 November 2011. Retrieved 9 November 2011.

Rock Band 4 is the fourth main installment in the rhythm game series, Rock Band, developed by Harmonix. The game was released in October 2015, following a five-year hiatus from the release of Rock Band 3. Following the over-saturation of the rhythm game market in 2009, weak sales of Rock Band 3 led Harmonix to put the series on hiatus, though the company continued to provide downloadable content through 2013. The release of Rock Band 4 was prompted by several factors, including the market penetration of the eighth generation consoles PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, a stronger internal vision for what Rock Band 4 should be within Harmonix, and continued support from fans of the series.

Rock Band 4 ships with 65 songs on the disc, spanning rock music and other genres from the 1960s to the 2010s. Though the game includes new features such as freestyle guitar solos and improved drum fills, Harmonix has worked to assure that at least 1,700 of the songs in its downloadable content library from past Rock Band games are compatible with Rock Band 4 and that players who have already bought songs on the previous iterations do not have to repurchase the songs in the newer game as long as they stay within the same console library. Harmonix plans to continue to develop additional downloadable content for the game.

• 2Downloadable content

Main soundtrack[edit]

Rock Band 4 is shipped with 65 songs on disc. ^{[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9]}

Rigopulos said of the main soundtrack that 'The budget that we’ve allocated for the title supports a top-tier soundtrack'.^[10] Harmonix allowed for fans to request songs to be included in the game, and tried to include the most-requested songs.^[11]

Downloadable content[edit]

In addition to developing new songs for purchase following the release of Rock Band 4, Harmonix was also working to ensure that as much of its existing library of downloadable songs would be compatible with the game upon its release as possible; 1,500 songs were available at launch.^[9] Nearly all existing Rock Band DLC, including disc exports from previous games (excluding The Beatles: Rock Band), Track Packs, and Rock Band Blitz, will be transitioned to Rock Band 4 within the same console family at no cost to the player (i.e. PlayStation 4 can only import songs purchased on PlayStation 3, and Xbox One can only import songs purchased on Xbox 360). 'If you bought a Rock Band song, it should be yours in Rock Band 4,' said Sussman. 'Everything that you have already exported will come over.'^[12] At release, only individual songs were available for redownloading within Rock Band 4, with Harmonix working with Sony and Microsoft to offer support for existing song bundles and the various disc exports following the game's release. The Rock Band 3 disc export was available starting in early December 2015 for a small fee.^[13][14][15]Rock Band 1 songs were available in January 2016, and Rock Band 2 and Lego Rock Band songs followed in February 2016. Once all official DLC is ported over, Harmonix will explore the logistics of porting Rock Band Network songs into Rock Band 4.

Most of the existing songs are updated with features new to Rock Band 4, specifically the use of Freestyle Guitar Solos for songs with guitar solos, and Freestyle Vocals. For songs previously released that would have vocal harmonies but did not have these harmonies presented in the Rock Band games, typically those prior to Rock Band 3's release, Harmonix has worked with fans to include such harmonies created by the fans in the Rock Band 4 version of these tracks. Other new features of Rock Band 4, such as new drum fills to trigger Overdrive, are automatically supported in any song by the game.

Pre-order songs[edit]

Depending on the nature of the sale, a number of songs were available as free bonuses to those that pre-ordered the game through various vendors; these songs were otherwise available at cost to other players.

A pre-order from Amazon included 4 exclusive songs for the Band-in-a-Box Bundle and Guitar Bundle pre-orders, on top of the original 30 free songs for those bundles.^[16] They included:

PlayStation Network Plus members who pre-ordered via the PlayStation Store included:^[17]

Pre-ordering a digital copy on Xbox One via Xbox Live included:^[18]

Pre-orders for the Band-in-a-Box and Guitar Bundles of the game shipped with 30 downloadable songs for free download; many of these include tracks by Harmonix employee-affiliated musical groups that had previously appeared in the first two Rock Band games.^[19]

Rivals expansion songs[edit]

Pre-orders for the October 2016 Rivals expansion received these songs free upon the expansion's release, while the songs were later offered on the storefront for individual purchase.^[20]

Two additional songs to the above ten are available for those that pre-order the expansion through Amazon.com.^[21]

For users that have purchased the 'Rivals' expansion, various updates brought more free songs; a December 2016 update brought twelve free songs from local Boston bands who had also been part of the Rockumentary footage; with the January 2017 Online Quickplay update, one additional free song was added to the 'Rivals' expansion.^[22]

Reception[edit]

The game's on-disc soundtrack was generally considered weaker than previous installments, describing it as primarily featuring 'B-list' musicians, 'lesser-known' songs by notable acts (such as Rush's 'A Passage to Bangkok') that had already been featured in Rock Band, and lacking a number of major acts that had historically made appearances in the franchise.^[23] Many reviewers were underwhelmed by the soundtrack but did acknowledge several 'seriously inspired choices', such as The Protomen.^[24]

References[edit]

1. ^McCafferty, Ryan (2015-05-15). 'ROCK BAND 4'S FIRST 6 SONGS REVEALED – IGN FIRST'. IGN. Retrieved 2015-05-15.
2. ^'ROCK BAND 4 ANNOUNCED SONGS'. Harmonix. Retrieved 2015-06-15.
3. ^Futter, Mike (2015-07-13). 'Harmonix Announces Slate Of Rock Band 4 Tracks, Including Ozzy, Foo Fighters, And Aerosmith'. Game Informer. Retrieved 2015-07-13.
4. ^Copeland, Wesley (2015-08-03). 'LOADS OF NEW SONGS ANNOUNCED FOR ROCK BAND 4'. IGN. Retrieved 2015-08-03.
5. ^Dornbush, Jonathon (2015-08-17). 'Exclusive: Rock Band 4 adds Van Halen hit to set list with more to come post-launch'. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2015-08-17.
6. ^Makuch, Eddie (2015-08-24). 'Rock Band 4 Set List Adds 10 New Songs'. GameSpot. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
7. ^Makuch, Eddie (2015-09-14). 'The Complete Rock Band 4 Soundtrack'. GameSpot. Retrieved 2015-09-14.
8. ^Hillier, Brenna (2015-09-27). 'There will be two U2 songs in Rock Band 4'. VG247. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
9. ^ ^abSnider, Mike (September 28, 2015). ''Rock Band 4' gets U2 as music video game rivalry reboots'. USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved September 28, 2015.
10. ^McCafferty, Ryan (6 March 2015). 'Rock Band 4 Boss: Expect a 'top-tier' soundtrack'. IGN. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
11. ^Nunneley, Stehpan (2015-03-12). 'Harmonix taking Rock Band 4 song requests'. VG247. Retrieved 2015-03-12.
12. ^Pavlacka, Adam (2015-03-05). 'Rock Band 4 First Impressions'. WorthPlaying. Retrieved 2015-03-05.
13. ^Butterworth, Scott (October 8, 2015). 'Everything You Need to Know About Rock Band 4'. GameSpot. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
14. ^Sussman, Daniel (October 21, 2015). 'EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT PREVIOUS GAME SOUNDTRACKS IN ROCK BAND 4'. Harmonix. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
15. ^Pereira, Chris (December 15, 2015). 'You Can Now Import Rock Band 3's Soundtrack Into Rock Band 4'. GameSpot. Retrieved December 15, 2015.
16. ^'Rock Band 4 Amazon Exclusive'. Amazon. 2015-06-23.
17. ^'Get These 10 Bonus Songs With PS4 Rock Band 4 Preorder Through PSN With PS Plus'. Gamespot. August 11, 2015.
18. ^'Rock Band 4 Digital Pre-Order'. Microsoft. Retrieved September 23, 2015.
19. ^'Promotion Details'. Amazon.com. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
20. ^Buttersworth, Scott (July 19, 2016). 'Rock Band 4 Expansion Includes Asynchronous Competition, Live-Action Cutscenes'. GameSpot. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
21. ^Makedonski, Brett (July 19, 2016). 'Rock Band Rivals' best feature is a VH1 Behind the Music-style mockumentary'. Destructoid. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
22. ^ ^ab'Online Quickplay is Out Now for Rock Band Rivals!'. Harmonix Music Systems. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
23. ^McCaffrey, Ryan (October 5, 2015). 'Rock Band 4 Review'. IGN.com. IGN Entertainment. Retrieved October 5, 2015.
24. ^Butterworth, Scott (October 5, 2015). 'Rock Band 4 Review'. GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved October 5, 2015.

External links[edit]