Rock Band golden

Before any album can go platinum, it has to first go gold. Harmonix and MTV Games today announced that their maiden collaboration, Rock Band for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, has "gone gold," or entered final production and manufacturing on its way to meeting its scheduled November 20 release date.

Arriving in stores just before Thanksgiving, the instrument-driven rhythm game will be available on its own for $59.99, or as part of a special-edition bundle that includes a guitar, drums, and microphone for $169.99. The Xbox 360 version of the bundle will come with a wired guitar and a USB hub, while the PS3 edition includes a wireless guitar that will also work with the forthcoming PlayStation 2 version of Rock Band (set for release December 18). Individual instruments and a wireless Xbox 360 guitar will be made available sometime after the game's release, though controllers for the rival Guitar Hero franchise will also work with the game.

While going gold is usually the end of the development team's heavy lifting, Harmonix has promised weekly additions to the Rock Band setlist in the form of downloadable content. Among the confirmed offerings are The Who's Who's Next and 18 tracks from The Grateful Dead.

For more on Rock Band, check out GameSpot's latest preview.