Multi-platinum selling and Grammy Award winning group Green Day, along
with Harmonix, the leading developer of music-based games, MTV Games, a
part of Viacom’s MTV Networks , and Warner
Bros./Reprise Records today announced at the 2009 Spike Video Game
Awards that they are collaborating on the standalone title Green Day:
Rock Band.
“We’ve worked with the Rock Band team in the past
year to enable our fans to play tracks from 21st Century Breakdown, and
we’re excited to now be working on a game, spanning our entire career,”
said Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong. “We want people to fire this up,
choose their favorite Green Day tracks, and play along with us as Rock
Band avatars so they can feel what it’s like to perform on stage as
Green Day."
The game is an extension and expression of Green
Day’s most-defining albums and key moments throughout their career to
date. It will feature likenesses of Green Day members Billie Joe
Armstrong, Mike Dirnt, and Tré Cool, as well as select venues and art
specific to the band’s history. The title will be available globally in
2010 for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from
Microsoft, PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and Wii™ system
from Nintendo. In addition, the track list will be fully exportable,
giving players the opportunity to play the songs in Rock Band and Rock
Band 2 on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation3.
"Green Day’s music
and explosive live performances transcend age barriers," says Tom
Whalley, Chairman/CEO, Warner Bros. Records. "By partnering with the
band and Harmonix, Warner Bros./Reprise is thrilled to help create a
Rock Band experience devoted exclusively to their impressive catalog.
This game will appeal to fans of all ages, including those who love
their recent best-selling albums and those who’ve loved Green Day
throughout their long, incredible career."
“It’s very exciting
to work closely with Green Day to create an experience that captures
the incomparable sound, look and feel of the band,” said Paul DeGooyer,
SVP of Electronic Games and Music for MTV Networks Music Group. “’Green
Day: Rock Band’ is yet another example of how music fans can connect
with some of the greatest music ever recorded via the Rock Band
platform.”
“This game will feel like a natural extension of
Green Day and their music that will deepen the fans’ connection to the
band and their history,” said Alex Rigopulos, CEO and co-founder of
Harmonix Music Systems. “Fans will be able to enjoy some of the
greatest songs from the Green Day catalogue in this standalone game or
via Rock Band due to full export capability. We are thrilled to work
with Green Day to revisit key moments from their career, including
their likenesses, content and imagery, through our innovative form of
musical interaction.”
This latest Rock Band title aims to
encapsulate the spirit and energy of a band that has sold more than 50
million records worldwide and been hailed as one of the best live acts
touring today. Green Day has won critical acclaim and numerous
accolades, including Grammy Awards for Best Alternative Album for
Dookie, Best Rock Album for American Idiot and Record of the Year for
their smash hit "Boulevard of Broken Dreams." Earlier this year, Green
Day released their eighth studio album, 21st Century Breakdown, on
Warner Music Group’s Reprise Records. The album debuted at No. 1 on the
Billboard Top 200 chart, as well as on the Rock, Active Rock and
Alternative charts, fueled by the alternative radio No. 1 single “Know
Your Enemy.”
In addition to the game announcement, Green Day
will bring three more tracks from 21st Century Breakdown to the Rock
Band Music Store as downloadable content on Tuesday, December 15th. The
three pack of songs will include, "Christian’s Inferno," "Last of the
American Girls," and "¡Viva La Gloria!," all from 21st Century
Breakdown. These songs, as well as Green Day tracks previously released
on the Rock Band platform, will be supported in Green Day: Rock Band.
The
Rock Band platform stands next to none with more than 1,000 songs
available from more than 390 artists. With more choices for fans than
any other music-based videogame, Rock Band is, without question, the
industry leader in providing the best selection of interactive musical
content, songs and artists. Rock Band offers content in a unique way,
through on-disc gameplay, game export, downloadable content, and soon
with the Rock Band Network, which allows bands and labels to author
their songs into downloadable playable Rock Band tracks. The Rock Band
platform allows fans to interact with their favorite music in a unique
and hands-on way, as well as giving artists the ability to reach fans
through a whole new channel.
