Rocksmith 2014

Did You Know?

• The game was removed from all digital storefronts on October 20, 2023 due to music license expirations, but was relisted on Steam on December 19, 2024 renamed to Rocksmith 2014 Edition REMASTERED LEARN & PLAY.
• Cherub Rock by the Smashing Pumpkins was a free DLC giveaway with pre-orders of the game.

Gameplay

To play Rocksmith 2014, the game suggests using a Hercules USB adapter that plugs into the standard 6.35mm jack found on most electric and bass guitars. Acoustic guitars might need extra gear like a pickup. Players can choose separate skill tracks for lead, rhythm, or bass guitar, and they can now set the difficulty level for any song instead of being forced to start at the easiest setting. A new Session Mode lets you jam with virtual musicians, while an improved Master Mode helps with playing from memory. New Guitarcade minigames and missions guide your practice. Over 85 lessons teach techniques like bends and slides, and a finger positioning tool plus a colorblind mode are included.

Development

Senior vice president of sales and marketing Tony Key explained the name Rocksmith 2014 was chosen over Rocksmith 2 to encourage new players to buy the game without feeling they needed to play the first installment, comparing it to foreign language learning courses. He described the game as a replacement for the original rather than a sequel. On August 26, 2016, Ubisoft announced Rocksmith 2014 Edition — Remastered, released on October 4, 2016, which included a customizable learning curve, expanded practice tools, stat tracking, and improved menus. The Remastered version was a free update to existing versions, but also released at retail for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One with six additional songs, later released as DLC for other users. A patch on December 13, 2016 added Microphone Mode, allowing USB microphones for acoustic or electric guitar players without the Real-Tone Cable, though it disables Authentic Tone capabilities and limits to a clean sound. The patch also enabled playing along with note tracks without note detection. In April 2020, Ubisoft announced no further DLC after the Opeth song pack, as focus shifted to a new project.

Downloadable content

All Rocksmith DLC songs are forward-compatible with Rocksmith 2014, but DLC released on or after October 22, 2013 works only with Rocksmith 2014. As of January 3, 2017, 835 songs and 209 song packs were available. Ubisoft San Francisco stopped DLC development in April 2020 after 383 weeks of content. Owners of the original Rocksmith can purchase a Disc Import Tool to import 52 of the 57 songs from that game, with a few exceptions due to licensing.

Reception

Rocksmith 2014 received mostly positive reviews, with Metacritic ratings of 89/100 for PC, 86/100 for PlayStation 3, and 87/100 for Xbox 360. Lee Cooper of Hardcore Gamer praised the game's general improvement over the 2011 original, stating that every facet of gameplay had been improved and issues from the original were removed or overhauled.