Developer Harmonix has announced an expansion pack for the PlayStation 2 and Wii editions of its multi-instrument music title Rock Band.

Due out on July 15 and priced at $29.99, Rock Band Track Pack Volume 1 contains 20 new tracks, all of which have been released as downloadable content for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions.

The expansion disc solves the issue of lacking storage capacity on the PlayStation 2 and Wii, which prevented the release of additional songs as downloadable content. It should be noted that the disc only contains a small portion of the numerous downloadable tracks that have been made available for the other editions.

To break it down, PS2 and Wii owners will be paying roughly $1.50 for each song, which is comparable to the average cost of $2.00 for an individual song download on X360 or PS3. However, some downloadable songs are bundled together or priced separately at a slightly lower cost.

The track list is as follows... Read more

The five bonus songs contained within the Wii version of Harmonix's Rock Band have been revealed to be tracks previously released as downloadable content for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 iterations, reports Joystiq.

According to the site, which recently went hands-on with the Wii edition of the multi-instrument music title, the five tracks accompanying the 45 main songs and 13 bonus tracks of the previously-released editions:

• "Dirty Little Secret" - The All American Rejects
• "Don't Look Back in Anger" - Oasis
• "Roam" - The B-52's
• "Rockaway Beach" - The Ramones
• "Roxanne" - The Police

The above, along with many others, are currently available for purchase and download within the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 editions of the game. Had the songs been new, it is likely they would have eventually appeared as downloadable content, much like the forthcoming European bonus tracks.

Both the Wii and PlayStation 2 versions of Rock Band lack the online play of other editions and do not support downloadable content due to the systems' lack of storage capacity. Co-developed by Harmonix and Pi Studios, the Wii edition of Rock Band arrives in North America on June 22.

Rock Band developer Harmonix said that the absence of downloadable content on the Wii version of Rock Band is due to a lack of viable storage space, CVG reports.

The developer had confirmed that the Wii version of its rhythm party opus would not support downloadable content when the port was announced late last month.

"Come on Nintendo, we need a hard drive," said Rock Band design director Rob Kay. "That's what we want. The whole problem is there's nowhere to store it."

The Wii currently offers 512 megabytes of internal flash memory for storage, expandable via SD flash cards. Rock Band downloadable tracks range roughly between 20 and 40 megabytes per song.

"If the platform could do it, we'd jump on it," added Kay. "It's something that we championed to Nintendo, that we'd like to do it. Who knows what will happen down the line, I don't know what's coming down the line, but that's the reason there's no DLC in Wii Rock Band."

Despite pending litigation, MTV-owned developer Harmonix has announced that its music-based multi-instrument title Rock Band will hit the Wii on June 22 in North America.

The Wii version will come with a total of 63 songs, five of which are bonus songs. A full list of the 63 tracks was not provided, though the initial 58 are expected to mirror the 45 main songs and 13 bonus tracks of the previously-released PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 editions.

A Special Edition bundle--containing a wireless guitar, drum kit, and microphone--will sell for $169.99. Stand alone instruments and software will also be available at release, allowing Special Edition buyers to pick up the extra guitar needed for a four-person band.

The Wii edition of Rock Band will not include online multiplayer or support for downloadable content, a Harmonix representative confirmed to Shacknews.

Such online functionality was a highly-touted feature of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 releases, having sold over six million song downloads since the two... Read more