Rock Band 4's First Major Update Detailed, Here's What It Adds

Harmonix has announced that the first "major feature update" for Rock Band 4 will land in December, adding, among other things, new social and competitive features along with "Variable Breakneck Speed." This update, which is free, will land on December 8 across PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

Variable Breakneck Speed is arguably the biggest feature of the update. It allows players to control how fast notes speed across each track independent of one another. Harmonix says this is a long-requested feature by Rock Band players. It's a first for the Rock Band franchise.

Harmonix CEO Steve Janiak added: "We already have a team hard at work building new features for the platform, some based on player feedback, along with some surprises, including a new mode that changes gameplay in a really significant way that we think people are going to love."

As announced previously, Rock Band 4 is the only Rock Band game that Harmonix plans to ship on Xbox One and PS4. Instead, Harmonix sees Rock Band 4 as more of a platform that the studio will add new features to through future updates, like the one coming in December.

"This first feature update is just the beginning; we can't wait to share more details after launch," Rock Band 4 product manager Daniel Sussman said.

The Rock Band 4 release date is set for October 6. Everyone who preorders the music game for either Xbox One or PS4 gets a handful of free DLC songs.