UK Rock Band 23rd May - Ridiculous Prices
Marc Cutsforth
date posted: 08-Apr-08
As the headline suggests, EA has at long last announced the release date for the Harmonix-developed rock fest that is Rock Band. It will hit the shelves 23rd May, five painful months after the US release. Set to compete with Guitar Hero for the attention of us Brits, Rock Band is surely going to be a huge hit. Well, provided there isn't a huge backlash over the ridiculous prices.
Currently there is no option to buy the Rock Band game and every instrument in one, big set, leaving customers with a variety of ways to obtain the full package. These prices are listed below:
- Instrument Pack - £129.99
- Rock Band Game - £49.99
- Wireless Guitar - £59.99
- Drum Kit - £69.99
- Individual Songs - 160 MS Points / £1.36
- Three Song Pack - 440 MS Points / £3.74
- Six Song Pack - 800 MS Points / £6.80
Let's compare prices. In the USA customers pay $169.99, or approximately £86 for the
Rock Band game AND every instrument. In comparison, UK customers must buy the game separately from the instrument pack, bringing the cheapest, full-package option to an absurd £179.98. That's more than
double what US gamers pay, and well over the UK's usual price increase!
Interestingly, it remains an Xbox 360-exclusive in Europe until EA decides to release the Wii, PS2 and PS3 versions. These have been given a time frame of summer.
Considering how ridiculously expensive the package seems, the prospect of rocking out now seems much less attractive, and we can be sure that EA will be questioned over this ridiculous price scam.