Sony announced today at the Leipzig Games Convention 2008 that over 2.2 million SingStar songs have been downloaded via the aptly-titled SingStore, which launched less than a year ago. Additionally, the company also unveiled SingStar Singalong with Disney, for PlayStation 2, which as you might have guessed is a collection of Disney songs you can sing along to. Singalong with Disney is coming this Fall "exclusively for PAL territories," and don't forget it'll be compatible with SingStar PS3.

Source – SingStar Singalong With Disney on PlayStation 2
Source – Over 2.2m songs downloaded via SingStore

An associate producer for Konami's Rock Revolution confirmed that the game would be delayed until early 2009 during the company's Leipzig press conference, IGN reports. We've contacted Konami to find out if the representative meant that the title will be available for Europe in 2009 (this is a European press event after all), or if the game has actually been delayed from its original Fall '08 release in North America as well. We'll update as soon as we get the official skinny from Konami.

[Via Wii Fanboy]

Update: We just got word from MTV Multiplayer that makes this news decidedly less cool. Turns out there will be no song exporting; rather, you can pop in your PS2 disc into your PS3 while playing the new-gen version of SingStar and play the songs on that disc. It only works while the disc remains in the console, although disc-swapping works on any PS3, regardless of its current state of backwards-compatibility.

Tearing a page straight out of the Rock Band 2 playbook, Sony announced a new service – to be made available through a firmware update – that will allow folks to essentially rip the tracks from PS2 versions of SingStar onto the PS3. IGN gives us a play-by-play of the service: "Just throw in the PS2 disc and you can grab the tracks!" Epic! We're curious about the details: What's to prevent you from borrowing or renting games? Will this work on all PS2 versions of SingStar? Will this work on all PS3s (even those without PS2 backwards compatibility)? Is this enough to compete with Lips' play-your-own-music functionality? More as we know it.

Well, this should make the patented Joystiq Instrument Compatibility Matrix a bit easier to memorize. Straight from our special Leipzig correspondent Jem Alexander, Activision says that If you play Guitar Hero World Tour on PS2, PS3 or 360, your instrument is going to work. Whether it be from Rock Band, Rock Band 2 or whatever, it works with Guitar Hero World Tour.

Now, what does this mean for the Wii version of the game? We have absolutely no idea. But hey, what are you complaining about: It's got Miis in it! Isn't that enough?

We've just heard from our man at the Leipzig Games Convention Jem Alexander, and he's got some exciting news for fans of pint-sized rocking: Miis will be used in Guitar Hero World Tour's Wii version of the game. He didn't say how, so we're hoping that they'll play Oompa-Loompa-like minature roadies who rush onto stage and fix broken strings for the full size rockers. But we doubt it.

Oh, Jem also passed along that all versions of the game would include exclusive European tracks, which is secret code for "you'll have to buy them later through DLC."

British power metal squealers DragonForce will debut a new and inevitably over-the-top single in a Guitar Hero III track pack later this week. Taken from their new album, Ultra Beatdown, "Heroes of Our Time" will no doubt challenge serious shredders with a never-ending string of shifting notes and finger-knot solos when it arrives on Xbox Live Marketplace and the PlayStation Store on August 21.

The DragonForce Track Pack will also provide two other overwrought songs, namely "Revolution Deathsquad" and "Operation Ground and Pound," from the album dubbed Inhuman Rampage. Expect this one to go for the usual 500 MS Points ($6.25).

[Via press release]

Clarifying its stance on rhythm game compatibility issues, Microsoft's Gamerscore Blog announced today that all the instruments for Rock Band 2, Guitar Hero: World Tour and Rock Revolution will be "cross-compatible" on Xbox 360.

Sony announced yesterday that PlayStation 3 would feature full cross-compatibility among the three games as well. Guess that leaves only Nintendo to make it official.

Update: The Instrument Compatibility Matrix has been updated
[Thanks, Mike]

With Sony shedding some new light on the sea of plastic instrument compatibility nonsense, we thought it was time to update our compatibility charts for the Guitar Hero and Rock Band series, as well as newcomer Rock Revolution. Introducing the Instrument Compatibility Matrix, version 3.0. We'll keep updating this page as new information percolates out, hoping one day to fill in every square with a green "yes." Until that time, check out our chart skills.

Update: Now with more green care of Microsoft's compatibility commitment.

It's about time someone stepped in and took an active role in fixing this nonsense. SCEA Director of Publisher Relations Michael Shorrock has announced on PlayStation.Blog that Sony has reached an agreement with Activision, Neversoft, Harmonix and Konami to ensure that all the instrument peripherals for Rock Band 2, Guitar Hero: World Tour and Rock Revolution will work across all games for PlayStation 3.

In case you're too stunned to comprehend what should've been no-brainer functionality from the start, your PS3 Rock Band 2 drum set should now be guaranteed to work with GH:WT and RR, and likewise for every game's guitar and drum peripherals. Said Shorrock, "We're still working hard to ensure compatibility between the Guitar Hero and Rock Band titles currently on the market, and we hope to have an announcement on that shortly."

We're excited, but at the same time, we're a bit dismayed it took this long to sort out. To be clear, instrument compatibility has not been confirmed for Xbox 360 (although we do know GH:WT instruments work with RB2) or Wii versions of the music games. Microsoft, Nintendo, we're looking to you to make this universal compatibility, erm, more universal.

Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure combines a block-matching, DS puzzle game--think Panel de Pon/Planet Puzzle League--with a side-scrolling platformer. This puzzling mash-up keeps the blocks on the bottom screen, Hatsworth jumping up top, and you toggling between each to maintain progress. We recently played this stylish title, due at the beginning of 2009. With so many small things to get right, we're uncertain that the puzzle-platformer will work, but we're impressed by its potential.

Australians love the rock music just as much as the inhabitants of any other country, but did you know that they've yet to receive Harmonix's rock star simulator, Rock Band? According to an unidentified retail tipster on IGN, Aussies may remain Rock Band-less indefinitely -- it seems retailers are hesitant to transport and shelve the bulky bundles, especially since the title is nearly a year old. The same tipster also disclosed that Australian stores are much more likely to sell the cheaper and newer Guitar Hero: World Tour when it drops later this year.

It's great news for Activision, but EA may be in a heap of trouble Down Under -- further speculation from IGN's tipster states that for similar reasons, Rock Band 2 may skip over the sunburned country, making the Commonwealth of Australia a strictly Guitar Hero territory. It's regrettable that they might not have the faux-rocking opportunities afforded to the rest of the gaming world -- though we're certainly jealous that they may not have to suffer the Battle of the Band Simulators that has nearly torn the rest of the planet asunder.

[Via X3F]

While not as funny as Circuit City's "$10,000" Madden PSP bundle, Amazon has listed every Rock Band 2 game, bundle, peripheral and the Rock Band Track Pack as coming to Nintendo 64. While we were quick to assume this meant an overindulgent revival of the best Nintendo console ever, we quickly came back to reality after we noticed the box shots were showing the correct consoles (Xbox 360, PS3, etc.). Revival averted.

[Thanks, Justin!]

Get ready to whip it good (even though that song's not in there), as Devo and Duran Duran bring a new wave of music to Rock Band's store next week. Prices return to normal this week (everything's back to $2), except for the song "Get Your Rock On" from the American Mall soundtrack.

Individual songs

• "Girl U Want" - Devo (160 / $2)
• "Through Being Cool" - Devo (160 / $2)
• "Girls on Film" - Duran Duran (160 / $2)
• "Rio" - Duran Duran (160 / $2)
• "Get Your Rock On" - The Janitors (80 / $1)

Videos for the tracks can be found after the break. The songs will be available for download next Tuesday and Thursday for Xbox 360 and PS3, respectively.

ShackNews ran a piece today, pretty much reiterating our details from a couple weeks back, about the status of various Rock Band 2 release dates. Many retailers are still listing the release date for the standalone disc and individual instruments for Rock Band 2 on Xbox 360 as Sept. 14. All other console versions, along with the Xbox 360 "Special Edition" bundle with all the instruments included, are currently listed with an Oct. 19 release.

A Harmonix rep responded today to Joystiq's inquiry on the subject saying, "We have not confirmed this information yet."

Well, looking at the dates here, it's about time someone did.

Even more metal is making its way next week to Rock Band as DLC. All songs will be offered at $1 apiece for a month, then the price will double. You may commence the banging of heads ... now.

Roadrunner pack (480 / $6 for one month, then it jumps to 800 / $10)

• "Runnin' Wild" - Airbourne (80 / $1 for one month, then it jumps to 160 / $2, same applies to all other songs)
• "Clouds Over California" - DevilDriver (80 / $1)
• "Constant Motion" - Dream Theater (80 / $1)
• "My Curse" - Killswitch Engage (80 / $1)
• "Aesthetics Of Hate" - Machine Head (80 / $1)
• "Sleepwalker" - Megadeth (80 / $1)

Videos for the tracks can be found after the break. The songs will be available for download next Tuesday and Thursday for Xbox 360 and PS3, respectively.