Rock Band 3 will, as expected, let you do something you’ve never been able to do in a home music game before: play the keyboard.
Yes, the fifth wheel of the rock world makes its long-overdue debut in Harmonix’s Rock Band 3, a report on USA Today showcasing not only the new controller in action, but a revamped tracklist designed to make the most of it.
The keyboard is a “25-key, fully functioning MIDI” version of the real thing, and is one of two key improvements made to the game, the other being the introduction of a new “Rock Band Pro” mode for expert players, which replaces coloured tabs with real musical symbols in an effort to get players on the track to playing real instruments.
To complement Pro mode, there are two new guitar controllers in development that feature actual strings, one a full-sized replica of a Fender Stratocaster, the other a Fender Mustang Pro. “You can go from plucking single notes to power chords and bar chords, we have crazy stuff like tapping and slides,” Harmonix’s Sylvain Dubrofsky says. “If you ever had any aspirations of connecting with the music in a deeper way … you are really going to like Rock Band 3.”
A partial tracklist has also been revealed, and is predictably keyboard-heavy.
2000s
Combat Baby — Metric
Dead End Friends — Them Crooked Vultures
Get Free — The Vines
Lasso — Phoenix
Me Enamora — Juanes
Oh My God — Ida Maria
Portions of Foxes — Rilo Kiley
The Hardest Button to Button — The White Stripes
1990s
Been Caught Stealing — Jane’s Addiction
In the Meantime — Spacehog
Plush — Stone Temple Pilots
Walkin’ on the Sun — Smash Mouth
1980s
Crazy Train — Ozzy Osbourne
Here I Go Again — Whitesnake
I Love Rock and Roll — Joan Jett
Just Like Heaven — The Cure
Rainbow in the Dark — Dio
The Power of Love — Huey Lewis and the News
Sister Christian — Night Ranger
1960s-1970s
Bohemian Rhapsody — Queen
Break On Through — The Doors
Crosstown Traffic — Jimi Hendrix
There are plenty of other minor tweaks and adjustments being made to the series’ successful formula, which you can check out at the USA Today report below.
‘Rock Band 3′: Keyboards are the key [USA Today]
Gino Rodrigo
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 4:36 PM(spews in amazement)
(calls local game shop for full kit preorder)
Frightening. Please oh please, EA, MTV Games – RELEASE THE DAMN THING HERE.
Braaains
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 4:37 PMRock Band 3?!? You mean there was a Rock Band 2? :P
Paul Down
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 4:40 PMAce, I could see keyboarding being pretty fun stuff.
Xavier Ekkel
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 4:45 PMLooks brilliant.
Although.. the tracklist is very foggy to me. I only know Bohemian Rhapsody.
Any word on an Australian release?
Goraxium
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 8:37 PMAges ago when RB3 was announced on Kotaku, they mentioned a world-wide release. As to whether or not that comes to pass will be left up to Harmonix. One would like to think they’ll actually try and push through with this though, considering they’re obviously pushing for a wider gaming community with the implementation of keyboards/keytars.
Old_Skool_Gamer
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 4:47 PMAw man, I go and get all excited about Power Gig and now I see this. Decisions, Decisions. I guess I’ll have to wait till E3 to see RB3 in action.
Some pretty good songs in the setlist. Now they’ve got keyboards I hope they bring out some Jerry Lee Lewis or Little Richard tracks as DLC or as on disc content.
Old_Skool_Gamer
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 4:59 PMHere’s a video I found of the keyboards in action. It looks like it can be used as a keytar or a normal keyboard.
http://gamrfeed.vgchartz.com/story/80363/rock-band-3-sees-the-light-of-usa-today-new-keyboard-peripheral/
welbot
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 7:02 PMIt should be really interesting to see how they integrate the keyboard in to some songs. Especially where the doors are concerned. Considering Ray Mankzarek used to play the bass lines on a Fender Rhodes Bass keyboard, which funnily enough, looks almost like the keyboard supplied with the game! I soooo hope they include When the Music’s Over! That has such a kickass keyboard solo near the end!!
Neil Williams
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 5:12 PMNot overly impressed with the current track list. And why would you finally manage to get a Dio song in one of these, only to choose Rainbow in the Dark? What a waste.
OT
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 5:14 PMvery poor track list guitar hero 6 is way better
Myst
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 6:22 PMFully agree with ya’ man.
The GH6 has only had <1/2 of its songs revealed, and theres at least over 12 songs that I really am looking forward to music (metal; Slipknot, A7X, Dragonforce, Megadeth and Bad Sabbath).
Hopefully they'll kick up the pace [HMX] with some more metal. RB2 had a great tracklist, wasn't much of a fan of RB1's tracklist though.
Yeah, we Aussies could get a taste of RB2 without importing. :(
Also, I think you guys shouldn't worry about whether it'll be released in Australia, I'm quite sure it will since TB:RB and Green Day: RB have had international releases.
Peter Richards
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 5:22 PMOh man, I think this might be the nail in Power Gig’s coffin.
Gog
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 8:42 PMPower Gig was dead to me as soon as I heard about the “Airstrike” drumkit…pffft. Air drumming? So much Fail.
Qumulys
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 6:01 PMAwwww, I was hoping for ‘Final Countdown’!
MunKy
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 7:24 PM“Final Countdown” was in Lego Rock Band – you can buy it cheap and import all songs into RB…
Blackwater
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 7:51 PMI have that on my hard drive for rock band. Lets hope its compatible with the RB3 keyboard.
Steve M
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 7:16 PMThis is interesting. The new Guitar Hero is moving even further into “casual” territory and the new Rock Band will take the genre closer to the real thing than ever before.
Adrian Verna
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 8:02 PMI don’t like the idea of making people play real guitar through a video game. I mean, if they wanted to learn, why not properly. A video game will never be as good as a proper teacher giving instructions and feedback based on your playing.
Goraxium
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 8:34 PMSo it basically teaches you how to play the drums and keyboard for real, but doesn’t do squat for the people that want to learn how to play the guitar… Surely they could have modified the buttons to have a set of pressure sensors in the top and bottom or something…
Old_Skool_Gamer
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 9:58 PMI don’t mean to sound rude or anything, but if you read the article you would have seen this.
“To complement Pro mode, there are two new guitar controllers in development that feature actual strings, one a full-sized replica of a Fender Stratocaster, the other a Fender Mustang Pro. You can go from plucking single notes to power chords and bar chords, we have crazy stuff like tapping and slides,”
RB3 sounds awesome, but I hate to think how much the bundle for these “new and improved” instrument controllers is gonna cost.
Goraxium
Friday, June 11, 2010 at 4:27 PMI completely missed that bit (that’ll teach me to read stuff when I’m tired).
I think another question would be if you could use the new guitars to play without the game (like the Power Gig ones)…
Woodrow
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 8:53 PMgive me an 80′s add on disc and i’ll come in my pants.. come on, who doesn’t want to rock some Spandau Ballet, Men At Work, Hall and Oates etc etc
Flame
Friday, June 11, 2010 at 8:36 AMI hear ya, Woodrow. I almost never hear anything good said about the Guitar Hero 80s game, but it was brilliant to get people around and go nuts with.
Michael Woodpeckers
Thursday, June 10, 2010 at 9:28 PMKeen as to play this.
Stephen Whatman
Friday, June 11, 2010 at 3:05 AMOh my god. OH MY GOD.
As someone who actually plays guitar, I have to say, this is the coolest thing ever. This is a great way to learn to play an instrument, and I’m /definately/ going to get this because, well, the tracklist is great, too.
This is…amazing. I cannot wait to drop the Iceman for an hour or two each day, to supplement it with this.
dzc12
Friday, June 11, 2010 at 9:24 AMOh shit… Just like heaven… Oh shit… -explodes with angst laden excitement-
Robert Paggiaro
Friday, June 11, 2010 at 10:38 AMWhoa… More Dream Theater please!?
Adam Redsell
Friday, June 11, 2010 at 12:58 PMA Wolfmother track pack would be ideal for a keyboard peripheral. “Mind’s Eye” in particular.