Simpler Rock Band Versions Sell More
While the gameplay of rhythm games hasn’t changed from its basic format they keep things fresh by adding new songs and souping up the overall package. Rock Band took the social idea of Guitar Hero and made it even more social by adding multiple instruments and even the ability to play online with friends. You can even customize your characters and band as you play, going for whatever look or style you want to have.
Despite that the Wii and PS2 versions of the game lack online play, customization options and downloadable content they still managed to do quite well. According to data published by the NPD these hobbled versions of Rock Band sold more copies than either the full fledged versions or the sequel on the other consoles last year. Rock Band for Wii was the 29th best-selling game of the year with the PS2 version just behind at 31st. The two together sold over a million copies.
This doesn’t reflect any diminishing of the series’ popularity though as the original on Xbox 360 sold just under 800,000 units. Had the sequel, Rock Band 2, been released earlier in the year than September it probably would have had a serious chance of beating that million figure sales mark since it was only out for three months and sold 600,000 copies.