Atlantic City Competition FAQ:
** NOTE: All questions asked for the two days of Atlantic City competitions will be posted here so that all bands can have the same information, be sure to check back daily.
Q: My band competed at a local bar venue, do we have to be Total Rewards members for the finals?
A: Yes, there will be a sign up station on site at the Welcome Party where you can sign up for Total Rewards.
Q: Will we be able to turn off the lights for a few seconds at the end of our performance?
A: No, all bands will perform with the same stage lighting and set up throughout the competition.
Q: Will the instruments we play on be wireless (guitars, mic, and drums)?
A: The instruments will be RB2 wireless guitars, Ion drum kit and wired real mics real with XLR to USB conversion, there will be ample extension to allow for movement around the stage.
Q: When will we need to travel?
A: All bands will be traveling on 6/30 from their hometown to Atlantic City. The competition is on 7/1 and 7/2, all bands are invited to stay in Atlantic City for the Ringo Starr concert on 7/3 but it is not required. Bands will return to their hometowns on 7/4 unless previously arranged with travel.
Q: How will the random 6 songs be chosen for Day 2 of competition?
A: MTV Games/Harmonix will be curating the list of random songs based off suggestions from the Total Rock, Total Rewards fans taking into consideration that all 6 songs will need to be playable for all members of the bands as well as of similar length and difficulty. If 6 songs are not available of these criteria within the fan suggestions MTV Games/Harmonix will add in selections of their own to make the list as fair as possible. The final four bands that will move onto Day 2 will receive the list when the results are announced at the end of Day 1.
Q: What is the event schedule for while we’re in Atlantic City?
A: Band Check- In and Welcome Party, Wednesday, June 30, 2010, 8pm to 11pm, Mountain Bar. Semi-Finals, Thursday, July 1, 2010, Noon to 5pm, Main Stage.
Final Competition, Friday, July 2, 2010, 5pm to 8pm, Main Stage
Q: For Day 1 of the competition what order will bands perform in?
A: The order will be pre-selected prior to the competition according to a random drawing. Bands will receive their timeslot when they check in at the Welcome Party.
Q: For Day 2 of the competition how will the bands perform their two songs?
A: The order will be pre-selection prior to the competition according to a random draw for two separate rounds. All bands will perform their first song in round one and then all bands will perform their second song. There will be a short intermission in between the two rounds to allow for a costume change. Bands will find out their order when they check in for Day 2 of competition.
Q: How will Day 1 be scored?
A: In the official rules it states that each judge will award points of 1-10 in each of the following three categories: game skill (based on utilization of overdrive, command of instruments and band
synchronization), style (based on props used, band attire, hairstyle and makeup) and performance (based on attitude, stage presence, crowd interaction and dance choreography). Song difficulty and points will be considered under game skill but will be left to the judge’s final decision.
Q: How will Day 2 be scored?
A: In the official rules it states that each judge will award points of 1-10 in each of the following three (3) categories: style (based on props used, band attire, hairstyle and makeup), performance (based on attitude, stage presence, crowd interaction and dance choreography) and percent of total possible points (based on the rockband.com leader board highest posted
score (the “Percentage”)). Rockband.com hosts leader boards which track high scores as posted through Xbox live game play. Each song will be assigned the current high score from the Rockband.com leader boards as of 6/30/10 which will serve as the “total possible points”. The Percentage will be determined by taking the Finalist Team’s score and dividing it by the highest posted leader board score. For example, if a Finalist Team competes using a song that has achieved 1,000,000 as the highest posted score and such Finalist Team’s score is 800,000, they have achieved 80% of the total points which will then be converted to a score of 8. All three judges will give the same score for total possible points as it will be based entirely on the percentage. Half points will be awarded for total possible points and more than 10 points may be awarded should a band break a previously posted high score. Difficulty will not be taken into account for the total percent of points but will be taken into account in the performance score but will be left to the judge’s final decision.
Q: Can we bring our own consoles/instruments into the hotel?
A: TRTR does not endorse bands bringing their own equipment into the hotels however if your band does choose to do so it is your responsibility to be respectful of other guests with the noise levels and when you choose to practice. If the hotel does ask you to discontinue your practice you must respect that decision. Due to hotel availability on the competition weekend we’re unable to know exactly what equipment will be available in the hotel rooms, you can expect to have a standard TV in the room — the hotel cannot guarantee that the TV will be adaptable for a video game console.
Q: Are we allowed to calibrate the instruments during sound check?
A: The game will be properly calibrated prior to sound check. If during sound check there seems to be an issue, the MTV special events staff will address it. None of the bands will be allowed to calibrate the game themselves.
Q: Can we use any fog/strobe effects from Official Rock Band props?
A: No, all props must be able to be carried onto the stage, not have to be plugged in and must be able to be set up in under 60 seconds.
Q: What songs can we play?
A: You may play any song of your choice on Day 1 and Day 2 of the competition, the competition console will be fully loaded with all available songs in Rock Band with the exception of the three that don’t export from Rock Band 1 and Rock Band Network songs. DLC will be added up to releases on 6/29.
Q: Can bands play the same song?
A: Bands MAY play the same song on Day 1, but finalist bands must play different songs from each other on Day 2 of the competition. Keep in mind that a significant portion of the score comes from style and performance, originality weighs heavily in both of those score categories. We encourage each band to come prepared with 2-3 songs ready to perform. At band check in on 6/30 bands must declare what song they would like to play for Day 1 and Day 2. In the event that there is more than one band wanting to play the same song for Day 1, competition management will notify the bands and they will have the chance to switch their song at that time, after that time bands may not switch their song. On Day 2 if there are multiple bands that are playing the same song, all bands will have to choose their second choice song.
Q: At what point do we find out which random song chosen by the judges we will be playing?
A: You will find out the exact song on the stage but all of the finalist bands will see the selection of 6 songs prior to the competition when the finalists are announced on 7/1.
Q: Do we have the opportunity to plug in an additional microphone to the sound board that will play over the speakers on stage? We don’t need it the game to register it, we just want to add a few additional live (not pre-recorded) vocal effects for the audience.
A: No, all props must be able to be carried onto the stage, not have to be plugged in and must be able to be set up in under 60 seconds.
Q: How are the Stage Presence & Costume/Props be judged? Is there a point scale, etc?
A: The judges will judge the style, performance categories on a scale of 1 – 10.
Q: Will each band know their score after their performance, or will they all be announced at the end of the competition?
A: Each band will receive their score at the end of their song; the final results will be announced at the end of each competition day.
Q: Can we adjust the level of the microphone?
A: No, the microphone will be adjusted so it’s appropriate for the size of the room and all bands must perform on the same settings.
Q: Are there any costume restrictions?
A: No, have fun with it! Please be aware that per casino policy masks are not allowed on the casino floor, if you do have a mask as part of your costume you will need to put it on in the stage area and not walk around the floor with it on.
Atlantic City FAQ
Q: It mentions that wireless RB2 Guitars will be used as equipment…does that mean no Fender Wireless P-Bass?
A: Correct, there will be no Fender Wireless P-Bass, RB2 wireless guitars only.
Q: If “Band A” plays a song Day 1, can “Band B” play the same song Day 2, or is that song permanently crossed off the list for all bands for the rest of the tournament?
A: No, bands MAY play the same song on Day 1 but finalist bands must all play different songs from each other and from the Day 1. They may play a song that a band played on Day 1 providing that they themselves did not play it and no other band is playing it.
Q: Will we be allowed to adjust the ion during our short setup time? If not – how will the ion be layed out?
A: No, you will not be allowed to adjust the ion during your competition performance. The Ion will be built as standard (Rock Band 2 style), during the Welcome party Kyle will talk to the drummers and make adjustments for a happy medium. It will then remain in that configuration for the rest of the competition. The warm up stage ion will be set up in the exact same configuration to allow drummers to practice in advance.
Q: How big is the stage in AC? And will there be an audience on Day 1?
A: The stage is approximately 32 feet wide by 12 ft deep with an 8 ft by 8 ft catwalk in the front. There will be two monitors stage right and left for band viewing and the drummer will have their own monitor. The Main Stage is directly on the casino floor, we expect an audience to gather based on how well the bands are performing.
Q: What kind of XLR Microphone will be featured at the final? Is it hooked up to the Xbox via a simple XLR to USB converter, or is there a more sophisticated setup being used?
A: Shure BETA 58A’s converted from XLR to USB for use in Rock Band. They will be routed through our audio console and monitored by a professional audio technician.
Q: Will there be two monitors on EACH side of the stage, or two TOTAL?
A: There will be three monitors on the stage total. Two for the front of the band, one stage right and one stage left. The drummer will have their own monitor.
Q: Will there be any additional monitors anywhere (i.e.. for the audience, screens over the crowd, etc.) aside from the monitors for the band? If so, how big will they be and what direction will they be facing?
A: There will be additional monitors in the competition area, they will be able to be viewed by the band onstage but not ideal placement for performing to the audience.
Q: How big will the monitors for the band be? Where, exactly, on stage left and stage right will these monitors be positioned, and which direction will they be facing? (in other words, will they be in the wings facing each other, will they be at the foot of the sage facing upstage, will they be giant projector screens hanging over the crowd, etc?)
A: The stage set up will be finalized onsite at Bally’s competition. Please be assured that Total Rock Total Rewards is building the stage to be ideal for the best possible Rock Band performances. The stage right and left screens will be at the foot of the stage facing the band and will be placed appropriately so the front band members can see them.
Q: If a band member is positioned at center stage, will they be able to see these monitors? If someone is on the catwalk, will they be able to see these monitors?
A: If band members are at the center of the stage they will be able to look right and left and see the monitors providing another band member is not standing in their way. If someone is on the cat walk it is not likely that they will be able to see the monitors, this area of the stage is to be used at your own discretion.
Q: How high off the ground will the stage be? If the stage is higher than a foot or two, will there be stairs up to the stage? If so, where will these stairs be located?
A: The stage is approximately 24 inches off the ground and there are stairs at the back of the stage to the right and left.
Q: Will there be any kind of platforms, obstructions, or sizable objects on the stage? Or will it be a flat surface?
A: The stage set up will be finalized onsite at Bally’s competition. The only possible object on the stage other than audio/video equipment may be a drum riser.
Q: Will the setup for day 2 of the competition be different from the setup on day 1? If so, how?
A: We will be using the exact same set up on both days.
Q: Will the competition be streamed live from the web at all?
A: Unfortunately no, the competition will not be streamed live from the web. Competition staff will be live twittering, posting photos, blogs and videos throughout the competition so be sure to check out totalrocktotalrewards.com!
Q: So you’ll be writing down all of the top scores on all songs on the evening of Wednesday 6/30/2010, which will serve as the baseline against which all competitors’ scores will be judged, yes
A: Yes, after all of the bands declare their competition songs we will be writing down the top scores for each on 6/30 regardless of when they were released.
Q: Can you clarify that the scoring in Day 1′s game skill is or is not based on the percent of total possible points like in Day 2 scoring?
A: Day 1 “Game Skill” scoring is not based on possible points.
