The arrival of "Rock Band" on the Wii was if nothing else weird: the inaugural entry in the series was released on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in November of 2007, and PlayStation 2 gamers had to wait a whole month to get their hands on it. However, if you were a Wii gamer, you had to wait all the way until June of 2008 to be able to play "Rock Band" on your system. As a largely Wii gamer at the time, waiting for the game felt like torture. For the most part, though, it was worth it.
"Rock Band" saw Harmonix take what worked from "Guitar Hero" and expand it to a larger band format. This was a great idea, as it allowed for even more multiplayer fun than before. "Guitar Hero" had the fun multiplayer gameplay, sure, but you were really limited to just being able to play with two players. With "Rock Band," you can play with four players, as beyond guitar and bass, there was the addition of drums and vocals. It was an excellent idea for parties, and the game itself also had a varied and excellent soundtrack that made it worth returning to over and over again. The graphics, while not the most important part of the series, were very good, and the game was definitely a strong step forward for the rhythm genre.
As a general negative that applies to the first "Rock Band" at large, I think the peripherals for this one were not great, specifically the drums. They just felt so weak and incapable of withstanding much abuse or maintaining durability for a while. As for the guitar, I was never crazy about the "Rock Band" guitars, especially the one for the first game: the buttons didn't feel as comfortable as the "Guitar Hero" guitars, nor did the strum bar. It was nice that later "Rock Band" games allowed you to use "Guitar Hero" controllers, and that later "Rock Band" drum kits were improved. Other than that, most of the reason my score isn't higher is because of the Wii version in particular: despite being released a full seven months after the original release, this version feels very barebones, lacking the online features, customization options, and downloadable content of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions. I can't recommend getting the Wii version of it unless the Wii happens to be the only console that you own.
Overall, "Rock Band" is an awesome game that still stands as one of my personal favorite rhythm games, though I do have to say that if you're going to play it, you'd be best off finding it for the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. The Wii version is so barebones in comparison that, while it's still an enjoyable game and more than sufficient for Wii-only players, there's no reason to choose it over its better counterparts.
Final rating: 8 out of 10 "Great"