"We're not competing with Guitar Hero," claims Rock Band 2 developer

By Ellie Gibson Published 4 November, 2008

Harmonix has different focus, apparently.

Harmonix, developer of new guitar, drums and microphone-compatible music game Rock Band 2, has said it's not in direct competition with Guitar Hero: World Tour.

You might think that sounds strange, considering Guitar Hero: World Tour is a new music game compatible with guitar, drums and microphones. Which is being released on the same day as Rock Band 2.

Lead designer Dan Teasdale would disagree, however. "I don't think we're competing," he told Eurogamer.

"At least from a design perspective, we're going after two completely different audiences. Rock Band is about an authentic band gameplay experience. We want people to have fun at parties, and we want to reach a wide audience."

Harmonix, of course, was responsible for producing the first Guitar Hero title. Development duties went to Neversoft after the franchise was snapped up by Activision. According to Teasdale, Harmonix's focus has since shifted.

"We developed the original Guitar Hero as a more technical experience. There's nothing wrong with that, it's a valid experience; it's just not what we're going for," he said.

"I don't sit around going, "How do we beat Guitar Hero?" I don't need to. My team's got more than enough great ideas."

And besides, Teasdale continued, there are plenty of other genres in which similar titles are popular. "Call of Duty and Halo are both great franchises you can enjoy," he observed. "It's the same with Guitar Hero and Rock Band."

The Xbox 360 version of Rock Band 2 is out on 14th November. So is Guitar Hero: World Tour. For more from Teasdale and fellow Harmonix type John Drake, read the full interview published today.

Picture of Ellie.

About Ellie Gibson

Since joining Eurogamer in the mid 2000s, Ellie has written about subjects as diverse as the fall of Gizmondo, the rise of Hollyoaks actresses in Red Alert games and the noise a bear makes under NSFW circumstances.

Read more articles from Ellie by visiting the Ellie Gibson archive page.

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Comments (17) Latest comment 3 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Toothball #1 3 years ago

    This is much happier than the usual talk from Activision. I do like Harmonix.

  • keyboardmonkey #2 3 years ago

    Call of Duty and Halo are both great franchises you can enjoy.

    Might i just add: and can probably go out and afford to buy both!

    RockBand and GHWT however at the current prices i don't think i will be rushing out anytime soon to buy both on the same day.

    Apart from that i would love RockBand 2 , are you listening santa, i said RockBand2

  • DFawkes #3 3 years ago

    Firstly, I can see the interview, right there on the front page. This isn't news, it's just a bot og that.

    Secondly, anyone I know who intends on buying a band game is wondering which to get. It is the same audience, doing pretty much the same thing, no matter how he tries to kid himself. But, from those same people, most agree they'll get one with the whole set of instruments, and the other disc-only. So it's win win.

  • Tweakmonkey #4 3 years ago

    What a joker. The products are almost identical.

  • Blackthorned #5 3 years ago

    That's silly talk - does he really believe that? Is this the official line so they can both charge the same silly prices for a 'different' experience!

  • kangarootoo #6 3 years ago

    They are both having to find ways to differentiate their products. Of course they will say this kind of thing, because they want to sell their game even if they sell to people who also byt GH. But its clearly not true, not one bit.

  • dr_lha #7 3 years ago

    I don't think you can call Guitar Hero adding drums and vocals as them seeking to "differentiate the product" from Rock Band.

  • Doctor_What #8 3 years ago

    Well, he's obviously wrong: Call of Duty and Halo aren't great franchises ;)

  • aphexstwin #9 3 years ago

    of course he doesnt have to worry about beating ghwt.

    microsoft will make sure ghwt will sell more in this country.

    anyone fancy throwing me a bung ($50m should do it) to secure my jaws in the future

  • kangarootoo #10 3 years ago

    I suppose it is a matter of context. GH and RB might differ in some parts of their design approach, and on that basis they might describe them as differing products. I might simply suggest that putting Cooking Mama alongside Gears of War might make the point a little better.

  • Rodafowa #11 3 years ago

    Also clearly they are going after different markets, since they cant be arsed to keep to a timely release schedule outside of the US

    RB2 is coming out in the UK 2 months after its release in the States. That seems pretty timely to me.

    and thoroughly enjoy gouging the customers for crazy cash

    GHWT is £150 all-in from Play.com on launch day. RB was £140 all-in from Play.com on launch day. If Harmonix are gouging, then what in the name of Hendrix's sacred testicles are Activision doing?

    and then proceed to take the piss with downloadable content, mocking the fact.

    Yes, I'd like the DLC to be priced a little lower, too. But on the other hand not only is RB's DLC cheaper for 4 instruments than Guitar Hero III's was for two but also Harmonix have kept up a regular-as-clockwork release scedule of new stuff of vastly varying genres (and admittedly vastly varying quality). Oh, and they're automatically allowing you to carry over your downloaded RB songs to RB2 and even transfer almost all Rock Band's on-disk music for use in the sequel.

    Taking the piss? No man, you're thinking of Namco's attitude to DLC. Harmonix are one of the very, very few developers doing it really, really well. Jesus Christ.
    Edited by 1 at 04/11/08 @ 14:16

  • Jayboyband #12 3 years ago

    This is a pretty ridiculous claim!! If Rock Band isn't competing why have they changed their original 360 release date of 21st November to the 14th to conveniently tie in with the release date of GH World Tour????? Rock Band wishes it were GH full stop! I’ll be on world tour all the way, and I won’t be waiting for Santa to bring my copy…. 10 days and counting!

  • sneetch #13 3 years ago

    "These are not the droids you're looking for," claims Rock Band 2 developer

  • Oh-Bollox #14 3 years ago

    Are they not competing in the same way that the 360 and PS3 are not competing with the Wii?

    Is there anyone left in the games industry who is not totally full of shit? Is it disgraceful to compete now? Is it better to say "We're not competing." and then when you've been outsold and your lip's got a tremble on, you can say "Well we weren't competing anyway, so there!" than admit that yes, you are competing? Does not admitting it really reduce the shame that much?

  • Nithron #15 3 years ago

    I reckon all the human chieftains were sitting around saying this exact same thing about the neanderthals six months before they wiped them all out.

  • HuntingBear #16 3 years ago

    He's right, they're not competing with GHWT - at least not in this country on any console other than the 360. Bastards! I want RB2! Preferably with working instruments. Can't even import it cos altho the game is region free the dlc isn't. How about asking them to justify that, eh EG? Maybe slap them in the face a bit, give us bitter PS3 owners a little satisfaction.

  • darc #17 3 years ago

    Might have been true at one time, but between World Tour peripherals and the availability of expansions and DLC, the two products have met smack in the middle. Anyway, RB has my business now, because they were more flexible about supporting the competitor's peripherals in the last generation.