Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Joystiq visits Harmonix to talk Rock Band DLC and incidentals

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Yesterday we spent some time at Harmonix playing Rock Band and trying to get those lingering questions answered still nagging us a week before launch. We also got some clarification to certain issues about the game and an explanation on the Canadian release drama.

If there is anything you walk away from spending a day at Harmonix and talking to them about Rock Band is how important the downloadable content (DLC) will be to the game. It was something Rock Band producer Helen McWilliams had mentioned at E3 to us as being "the big thing," but when you actually see the scope of it ... seriously, it's the big thing.

Although Harmonix PR coordinator John Drake wouldn't give the pricing of the downloadable songs, he did say, "It'll take your breath away -- in a good way." He also said that gamers will be able to purchase songs in packs or as singles. The various members of the team we spoke to during our time there know that DLC is where their financial bread will be smothered in Ben Franklin butter. During one interview a member of the hardware development team wouldn't discuss if they're actually taking a loss on the pricing of Rock Band with the expectation of making it up in the long run on the DLC. Whatever money they may -- or may not -- be losing on selling the "music platform" (as they call Rock Band) in the short term, it appears the weekly DLC will be the thing bringing longevity to the product rather than yearly sequels.

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[via] Joystiq

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