Rocksmith 2014 Edition, Ubisoft’s follow-up to the original 2012 title Rocksmith, was met with favorable reviews upon its release in October 2013 on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and home computers. Our own review of the 360 version noted many substantial improvements and additions in the sequel, notably more accessible gameplay and menus, drastically reduced load times, and the ability to play previously purchased DLC songs and the majority of on-disc songs from the first game.
Now, Ubisoft is about to expand the game’s potential audience further, as the company confirmed today that Rocksmith 2014 Edition will be coming to the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on November 4. Besides several visual improvements and full 1080p support to suit the more powerful consoles, the PS4 edition will fully support Remote Play via the PS Vita, which can be used to analyze and practice individual songs.
Ubisoft also confirmed that both versions will support each console’s ability to stream gameplay online, but it will unfortunately be limited to the freeform Session Mode and the Guitarcade minigames, and not performing actual songs. On a more positive note, if players already own the original version of the game, they will be able to re-download all previously purchased downloadable songs and imports from the first game, though it will have to be within the same console brand.
In other words, anyone who played the 360 version will have access to the same tracks only on Xbox One, while PS3 owners can do the same only on PS4. Those who already own the USB Real Tone cable that is able to connect most electric guitar and bass instruments to their console won’t have to worry about buying another, as it is cross-compatible with every platform that supports the game.
While I’m not immediately dying to pick up this remaster due to a lack of truly enticing new features, it will be a nice incentive for those jumping into consoles with the Xbox One or PS4 to try the game out, and considering how good I found the original release, expanding its audience is far from a bad move. Hopefully anybody who’s ever been interested in the concept of the Rocksmith games but has held off until now will check this re-release out.
We will keep you updated on the Rocksmith series as more news drops.