This was definitely one of the show stealers. Everyone expected Rock Band 2 to steal most of the thunder on the Showcase Pavilion floor, but it did far more than that. There were two demos of the game set up in the same area, both with songs from the original Rock Band as well as the new version. I found myself being pulled to this demo more often than not, and it was a fantastic time waster while waiting to go to another interview.
Visually, it’s the same interface. There will still be four player support like the last game, (Guitar, Bass, Drums, Vocals) so don’t expect anything changed with what worked so well the first time. The guitar controllers still have the same size and feel, but have been changed visually. Now, they sport a wooden finish to them to make it look more like acoustic guitars. This isn’t a major change, but some players will appreciate the new look.
Overall, the graphics have been cleaned up, with the band members looking sharper than ever. This was one of the universal complaints that I found from the first game, even though most people focus on the interface itself.
On the flip side, there haven’t been many changes made overall. This can be both good and bad, and it just depends on the way you look at it. While Rock Band did a fantastic job the first time through, some people may be disappointed in the fact that nothing has drastically changed…or at least we haven’t heard of anything changed from Harmonix.
