Rock Band Coming to Wii June 22

By Geoff Duncan March 25, 2008

Rock Band Coming to Wii June 22

Harmonix has announced that a version of its popular play-along music video game Rock Band will go on sale in the U.S. and Canada on June 22 for a suggested retail price of $169.99. The Wii version of the game will include the Rock Band game, microphone, wireless guitar, and drum kit, and additional standalone instruments will be available for folks who want to build up their band one instrument at a time. The game will include 63 songs, including five bonus songs exclusive to the Wii edition.

“The Wii’s success among causal and core gamers of all ages makes it tan idea match for the cross-generational appeal of the music featured in Rock Band,” said Harmonix VP of electronic games and interactive products Bob Picunko, in a statement.

However, the WIi edition of Rock Band will not offer all the features of the game that are already available for Xbox 360 and PS3 editions. The Wii version will not include online play, or support for additional downloadable content.

The Rock Band instruments included in the Wii version of the game will also be standalone controllers, rather than shells that leverage the systems’ existing WIi Remote and Nunchuck; thus, it’s likely the Wii version of Rock Band will not be compatible with guitar controllers designed for use with the Wii version of Guitar Hero III.

The Wii version of Rock Band is being developed by Pi Studios, which also developed the PlayStation 2 version of Rock Band. That version also lacks some features found in the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 editions, including online play, world tour mode, and character customization.

Rock Band’s distribution is handled by Electronics Arts.

Harmonix has recently been sued by Gibson Guitar Corp. for patent infringement; the instrument maker claims games like Guitar Hero and Rock Band infringe on a patent it holds for simulated concert experiences using a real musical instrument and a 3D headset.

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Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

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