Rock Band was the original release, a Spiritual Successor to Guitar Hero 2. At the end of 2010, Harmonix and Viacom announced that they are parting ways, with Harmonix sold to its holding company, effectively making it independent again. Guitar Hero 3, Aerosmith, and all Hero games after that were made by Neversoft under Activision Blizzard (Except for Smash Hits, which was handled by Beenox, and Van Halen, which was handled by Underground). Let's clear up some confusion first: Harmonix made Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero 2, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s, which completed their contract, and then went on to release Rock Band in 2007 under their new parent company Viacom through MTV Games, with Electronic Arts handling distribution ( Lego Rock Band was handled by Traveller's Tales with the Rock Band 2 engine, although Harmonix took care of the note charting). Remember Guitar Hero? The hours you spent wailing away on your little plastic guitar, pretending to be a musician? Well Rock Band takes that feeling and cranks it up to eleven with the introduction of vocals, drums, keyboards, and pro modes, and it allows you to do it with up to six of your friends.
