Frankie_Says_Relax
10-29-2010, 10:48 AM
Picked up Rock Band 3 yesterday with the Keyboard controller.
The game itself feels like the final coat of polish on what was already the most successfully executed band rhythm game. I can't imagine another iteration in the next few years, especially with declining interest in the genre. All they need to do from here on out is continue to release music.
There's not much drastically different about the game itself. There's all the familiar modes, quick play, tour (now called road challenges), character creation, online multiplayer, etc.
There are some "tweaks" to the actual gameplay in terms of "streak" multipliers (extra reward points for not screwing up "sections" of a song ... the note chunks between small breaks) and it appears that they've thrown the orange key into use on Medium guitar and bass songs during "solo" parts ... which should help those who are having trouble with the transition from Medium to Hard ease into learning how to stretch or move to that key off of the "comfortable" four keys.
http://360.kombo.com/images/content/news/Rock_Band_3_Keyboard.png
The biggest addition to this year's model IMO is the Keyboard controller.
The thing is beautifully designed and can function as a 25 key Keytar with a guitar strap, lay flat on a tabletop or lab, or most authentically be set up with an official keyboard stand.
http://www.newenglandmusicsupply.com/images/uploads/MadCatz/RB398161-4.jpg
The keys have great action (they have a resistance similar to most pressure sensitive keyboards on the market) and there's a "slider" touch pad (like a digital whammy bar) and overdrive deploy on the neck of the keyboard (or to the left if you're playing it flat).
It's a real Midi keyboard that can plug into a Midi controller, and you'll be able to buy a Midi controller in the future that you can plug a real keyboard into for play on Rock Band 3.
A neat feature of the wireless USB dongle is that it has a 2 USB hub for plugging in additional instruments or microphones, which is nice for PS3s that don't have 4 USB ports.
I can't speak much to the "Pro" keyboard modes that use the entire span of the keyboard as I've only been playing on easy, medium and hard which use five ivory keys to correspond with the on-screen Green, Red, Yellow, Blue and Orange tracks.
I've got to say, and this is the most important thing for me personally ... for the first time in a long time (probably since playing Guitar Hero for the FIRST TIME) I'm feeling that rhythm game "magic".
THE FOLLOWING WAS WRONG YOU CAN USE THE KEYS TO PLAY GUITAR OR BASS IN ANY SONG -> Unfortunately, and also logically you can't just play keyboard on any song in place of a guitar. The song needs to HAVE a keyboard part/track in it. Out of my entire library of Rock Band songs (152 songs), I believe when sorted by instrument, 66 had keyboard tracks, which isn't bad for day one content.
As much as I love Rock Band, the series (and the genre in general) had gotten a bit stale. The few new additions to the setup in Rock Band 3 reek of Harmonix taking some serious time and evaluating how they could both evolve the series as well as breathe some new life into it without compromising the overall quality.
Of course, Keyboards aren't the only new addition. There's the much publicized modes where you can use a specially designed real guitar, as well as a controller that has actual buttons for each and every string position. I didn't get those and I doubt that I ever will. It's amazing that they've invested the R&D in making those, and I'm sure those will be equally frustrating and rewarding to learn and use (as well as a spectacle to watch).
Of course these are some pretty basic impressions overall, and even though I can't find much negative to say, I'm likely selling everything just a bit short in terms of what the game offers up via complexity.
But to me this is still about playing a game ... I'm not looking to become a keyboard virtuoso by playing with the keyboard in Rock Band any more than I wanted to learn real guitar from playing Guitar Hero ... and as far as being a game with a fun, well made gameplay experience - I'm very VERY satisfied with Rock Band 3 and with the keyboard controller.
The game itself feels like the final coat of polish on what was already the most successfully executed band rhythm game. I can't imagine another iteration in the next few years, especially with declining interest in the genre. All they need to do from here on out is continue to release music.
There's not much drastically different about the game itself. There's all the familiar modes, quick play, tour (now called road challenges), character creation, online multiplayer, etc.
There are some "tweaks" to the actual gameplay in terms of "streak" multipliers (extra reward points for not screwing up "sections" of a song ... the note chunks between small breaks) and it appears that they've thrown the orange key into use on Medium guitar and bass songs during "solo" parts ... which should help those who are having trouble with the transition from Medium to Hard ease into learning how to stretch or move to that key off of the "comfortable" four keys.
http://360.kombo.com/images/content/news/Rock_Band_3_Keyboard.png
The biggest addition to this year's model IMO is the Keyboard controller.
The thing is beautifully designed and can function as a 25 key Keytar with a guitar strap, lay flat on a tabletop or lab, or most authentically be set up with an official keyboard stand.
http://www.newenglandmusicsupply.com/images/uploads/MadCatz/RB398161-4.jpg
The keys have great action (they have a resistance similar to most pressure sensitive keyboards on the market) and there's a "slider" touch pad (like a digital whammy bar) and overdrive deploy on the neck of the keyboard (or to the left if you're playing it flat).
It's a real Midi keyboard that can plug into a Midi controller, and you'll be able to buy a Midi controller in the future that you can plug a real keyboard into for play on Rock Band 3.
A neat feature of the wireless USB dongle is that it has a 2 USB hub for plugging in additional instruments or microphones, which is nice for PS3s that don't have 4 USB ports.
I can't speak much to the "Pro" keyboard modes that use the entire span of the keyboard as I've only been playing on easy, medium and hard which use five ivory keys to correspond with the on-screen Green, Red, Yellow, Blue and Orange tracks.
I've got to say, and this is the most important thing for me personally ... for the first time in a long time (probably since playing Guitar Hero for the FIRST TIME) I'm feeling that rhythm game "magic".
THE FOLLOWING WAS WRONG YOU CAN USE THE KEYS TO PLAY GUITAR OR BASS IN ANY SONG -> Unfortunately, and also logically you can't just play keyboard on any song in place of a guitar. The song needs to HAVE a keyboard part/track in it. Out of my entire library of Rock Band songs (152 songs), I believe when sorted by instrument, 66 had keyboard tracks, which isn't bad for day one content.
As much as I love Rock Band, the series (and the genre in general) had gotten a bit stale. The few new additions to the setup in Rock Band 3 reek of Harmonix taking some serious time and evaluating how they could both evolve the series as well as breathe some new life into it without compromising the overall quality.
Of course, Keyboards aren't the only new addition. There's the much publicized modes where you can use a specially designed real guitar, as well as a controller that has actual buttons for each and every string position. I didn't get those and I doubt that I ever will. It's amazing that they've invested the R&D in making those, and I'm sure those will be equally frustrating and rewarding to learn and use (as well as a spectacle to watch).
Of course these are some pretty basic impressions overall, and even though I can't find much negative to say, I'm likely selling everything just a bit short in terms of what the game offers up via complexity.
But to me this is still about playing a game ... I'm not looking to become a keyboard virtuoso by playing with the keyboard in Rock Band any more than I wanted to learn real guitar from playing Guitar Hero ... and as far as being a game with a fun, well made gameplay experience - I'm very VERY satisfied with Rock Band 3 and with the keyboard controller.