Rockband

Reusing many gameplay elements from the Guitar Hero series, Rock Band players use peripherals modeled after musical instruments to simulate the performance of rock music. Players must play these instruments in time with musical "notes" as they scroll towards them on the screen. Rock Band expands upon the Guitar Hero series, in that it offers gameplay for drums and vocals, in addition to lead and bass guitars. The game features a single-player career mode for three of the instruments (lead guitar, drums, and voice) called "Solo Tour Mode,"as well as a band career mode for 2-4 local players called "Band World Tour." The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game support both local and online players for multiplayer modes (except for Band World Tour), while the PlayStation 2 version only supports local play.
In the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game, players can create and customize their own in-game character, complete with adjustable hair, body physique, clothing, tattoos, onstage movements, and instruments. Each character is permanently locked into a specific instrument. Using cash earned within the game, the player may purchase items at the in-game "Rock Shop," with which they can customize their rock star. The game features an art maker where players can combine different clip art elements to create custom face paint, tattoos, clothing designs, instrument artwork, and band logos.

Prior to release, EA CEO John Riccitielo remarked that the company would not be able to meet the high demand for Rock Band in the 2007 holiday season, stating, "We're not going to be able to put enough inventory to meet demand in North America or Europe this calendar year or this fiscal [year]." This prompted many retailers to limit the number of preorders they sold before the game was released.
Official Xbox Magazine published the first review of Rock Band, scoring the Xbox 360 version a 9.5/10 and calling it "gaming's most intensely rewarding co-op experience." OXM also commented that the game's "payoff isn't visceral or technical; it's emotional. IGN awarded the game a 9.4/10 score and an Editor's Choice Award for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions. IGN largely praised the game, calling it "one of the must-have games of the year" and suggesting it "may just be among the best party games ever released." 1UP.com gave the next-generation versions of the game an A, stating that "Rock Band unquestionably, unequivocally rocks." GameSpot rated the next-generation versions of the game a 9.0/10, calling Rock Band "one of the best party games of all time." They also gave the game their Editor's Choice award. The Xbox 360 version of Rock Band has an average critic score of 93%, according to Metacritic, making it the 8th highest scored Xbox 360 game to date, as of April 2008. Similarly, the PlayStation 3 version of Rock Band has an average critic score of 92% on Metacritic, making it the 4th highest scored PlayStation 3 game to date, as of April 2008.
Most critics have commended the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of Rock Band for the game's group gameplay, the depth of Band World Tour mode, and the introduction of a drum peripheral. Common complaints about the game focus on the different feel of the packaged Fender Stratocaster controller, as well as the game's Solo Tour modes not being as enjoyable as the multiplayer offerings. IGN's video review lamented the lack of a single player Band World Tour mode.
The PlayStation 2 version of the game was well received, but was subject to criticism for the omission of the character customization features, as well as the stripped-down Band World Tour mode. GameSpot rated it an 8.0/10, stating that "Rock Band is still a lot of fun on the PS2--it's just nowhere near the ideal version of the experience." IGN.com rated it an 8.4/10, noting that the removed features made the game feel like a "lessened" version, but that the game still "succeeds because it's infinitely fun to play with your friends."

On May 2, 2008, Viacom announced 3 million bundled units across all three platforms were sold