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Rocking PAX West

Most of the Harmonix team is safely back in Boston after what we can safely say was one of the most energetic and epic PAX West events. We’ve got tons to recap about, plus pictures and videos from our Rock Band Rivals booth on the show floor!


Rock Band Rivals - Rivals Mode


Rivals Mode Revealed


Friday started off strong with our recent reveal of Rivals Mode, an asynchronous online experience based on fierce competition and rivalry. At the show, we were able to create day-long Weekly Challenges that ended with a clear winner by 5pm PT. While we competed against each other at with rivaling stages at PAX West, you too can join a Crew of up to 10 players and contribute experience points towards your Crew’s weekly success. Check out all of the details about Rivals Mode in our announcement video!


Rock Band Rivals - Rivals Mode Feature Revealed



PAX West Gameplay Stats


We’ve got some cool data to share about the Rock Band performances at PAX West!


Top Ten Most Played Songs


  1. Evanescence - “Bring Me To Life” (12)
  2. Coheed and Cambria - “Welcome Home” (11)
  3. Semisonic - “Closing Time” (10)
  4. Sia - “Chandelier” (9)
  5. Queen - “Bohemian Rhapsody” (9)
  6. Paramore - “Misery Business” (9)
  7. Kansas - “Carry On My Wayward Son” (9)
  8. Smash Mouth - “All Star” (9)
  9. The Killers - “Mr. Brightside” (9)
  10. The Darkness – “I Believe In A Thing Called Love” (8)


Total Experience Points Earned Across All Stages

  • Friday: 160,585
  • Saturday: 156,390
  • Sunday: 164,340
  • Monday: 159,580
  • Entire Show: 640,895


Total People who Played Rock Band Throughout PAX = 2,754


The Digital v. Analog Rivalry


The show floor was packed all three days, with each stage racking up Total Crew experience points for their Digital and Analog Crews. The Weekly Challenge at PAX included all songs in our Rock Band catalog to ensure that all players were contributing their points to the leaderboards. Not all songs will be included in every Weekly Challenge for Rivals players at home, but you can expect to see tons of interesting themes in the coming weeks.


While things started off fairly equal, it was clear that in the afternoon, Analog had a strong lead over the competition. Day One’s victory went to Team Analog, and Sid was our first winner of the Fender® Jaguar® guitar. Team Digital quickly course corrected their efforts for Day Two, and won the day’s challenge within 1,000 points of the opposing team. Our first Digital winner was Araceli, who got our second Fender Jaguar guitar.


The competition was wearing each team down, but new performers and enthusiastic rockers help turn the tide in favor of Team Digital. Our third winner of the weekend was Brian on the Digital side. Team Analog knew that there was just one day left to make the comeback play, and show the crowd who could truly shine. With motivation, perseverance, and a whole lot of experience points, Analog pulled ahead in the final hours, and Team Analog member Katie took home the prize.


Fender Jaguar Guitar Winners


As we’ve learned from the lessons at PAX West, neither Analog nor Digital ideals can truly trump one another, and our rivalry has ceased…for now. You can bet that Team Analog and Team Digital will be back in action come October 18th, along with tons of other Rivals Crews competing for the glory that is the Bloodstone Tier. Keep your competitive side at the ready, and we’ll be sure to do the same.


Performances of the Weekend


We rocked with tons of cool cats over the course of four days – here’s some of our personal highlights.


Washington Convention Center
Flying in to the show!


Alyssa tagging the wall
HMXer Alyssa gets the backstage party started by tagging the wall.


Team Digital Represent
Team Digital getting ready for action and bringing the sass in our greenroom.


Skye and the Jag
Team Digital member, Skye, shows off our sexy Fender Jaguar guitar to the crowd.


Shark Band
It’s not Rock Band, it’s Shark Band.


Guy Fieri at Rock Band
Guy Fieri serenading the crowd.


Deadpool and T-Rex
There’s a first time for everything, especially seeing Deadpool and a T-Rex get their rock on together.


Companion Cube
A Companion Cube let us borrow their face for a pic.


Nick and Melissa
Getting everyone ready to rock is a specialty of Nick and Melissa’s.


Digital Rocker
Team Digital bringing the energy!


Resident Evil Cosplay
This amazing cosplayer received a Team Analog 7” vinyl from our MC, Denis!


American Man
Bringing the red, white, and blue to our Digital stage.


Thank you to everyone who came by our booth, tagged our walls, performed on our stages, and participated in our Fender Jaguar raffle! PAX would have been infinitely worse without you.


For those who weren’t able to be at PAX this year, have no fear. We’re showing off new Rock Band DLC on our Twitch stream this Monday, September 12th starting at 5pm ET. We’ll also be doing a live demo of Rivals Mode and showing off some of the new Music Library Enhancements, so you definitely don’t want to miss this stream!


PAX, you’ve been great - until next time!