Rock Band 2 Critic Reviews

If you already own the first game and all the instruments, this is a must-own title; if you haven't experienced the magic, this is a great place to start.

It's both a must-own for fans of the genre and a great place for new players to get started.

It’s not radically different from its already brilliant predecessor (at least not yet), but everything is tighter and runs more smoothly, and there’s an explosive, extended encore.

If you've been playing Rock Band regularly over the last 9 months, then you'll find a lot of welcome features -- and tons of more music -- in Rock Band 2.

Rock Band 2 has a killer track list seemingly compiled from every mix tape you were proud of in college.

"Rock Band" seemed like the definitive music game experience when it came out, and Rock Band 2 has taken it even further, fixing the few things that were wrong with the first and adding a little bit extra to boot.

Perfectly constructed.

On paper, the new features of the game may not seem like much, but the resulting effort makes it one of the greatest music games available today and destroys any need, or desire, to play the original.

Rock Band 1 was innovation. Rock Band 2 is perfection. Buy it.

If the first game was a success on so many levels, the sequel brings the same success back but pushes it so high that at this point it will be hard for anyone to catch it up. I can’t finish my review without saying that if you never experienced Rock Band, you’re definitely missing something really special.

Between the steady stream of DLC and the ability to import your tracks from the first game, you are unlikely to stop playing Rock Band 2 anytime soon. The added ability to continue your World Tour band online, drum trainer, and daily challenges may sound like small additions, but they greatly enhance and extend the gameplay for what was already a must-own title; at least until the next Guitar Hero is released.

Harmonix doesn’t necessarily break any molds with Rock Band 2, but it does a damn good job of perfecting the one it created. There’s little doubt that this sequel will be the life of just about every party for at least another year.

As mentioned earlier, Rock Band 2 is Harmonix perfecting their established formula with a few gameplay improvements and the addition of some new modes.

Rock Band 2 doesn’t revolutionize the series or the genre. It lacks a super defining feature (a la Guitar Hero World Tour’s music creator) but it’s hard to complain when the core game is so good.

With 84 tracks on the disc, an additional 20 more coming before year's end and the gigantic amount of improvements to an already stellar game Rock Band 2 is a music game lover's dream come true.

Rock Band was just the opening act. Rock Band 2 is the real headliner.

And once the music ended, it was pretty clear: Rock Band 2 is another chart-topper.

Rock Band 2 is a solid sequel. Harmonix smoothed out most of the rough edges and added enough new stuff to warrant the full priced upgrade.

It's remarkable what a few adjustments can do. From instruments to user interface to gameplay options, one thing after another makes you nod appreciatively and smile while playing Rock Band 2.

The game’s still plenty of fun, offers enough challenge without being unbearable, has a couple great additions and will still bring out the inner rocker within you.