Is going all out! And damn, I'm excited.

Quote: The next Rock Band may actually live up to its promise and teach you how to play music—or at the very least, learn how to play selected songs from the Rock Band 3 soundtrack. Thanks to Rock Band 3's new Pro mode for guitar, drums and, yes, keyboard, every single note on the game's song list will be tracked. Developer Harmonix showed this beyond-expert level mode at a pre-E3 event along with its new keyboard controller and the new 102 button, six string Fender Mustang created by peripheral maker Mad Catz.

Full details of the new features below:

http://kotaku.com/5560679/rock-band...itar-controller

Wow, lol

That would be epic hard

I can't wait for the plastic music peripheral game genre to die already.

A week ago, the music game genre looked like it was dying on its ass but Harmonix looks to have taken it up a notch once again. Rock Band 3 has turned from a who cares to a will-buy-if-the price-doesn't-kill-me title.

It will cost more than a real guitar and 6 months worth of lessons...

Midi keyboards, Drums & Guitars.

The setlist so far.

Quote: Metric - Combat Baby Them Crooked Vultures - Dead End Friends The Vines - Get Free Phoenix - Lasso Juanes - Me Enamora Ida Maria - Oh My God Rilo Kiley - Portions for Foxes The Whites Stripes - The Hardest Button to Button Jane's Addiction - Been Caught Stealing Spacehog - In the Meantime Stone Temple Pilots - Plush Smash Mouth - Walkin' on the Sun Ozzy Osborne - Crazy Train Whitesnake - Here I Go Again Joan Jett - I Love Rock and Roll The Cure - Just Like Heaven Dio - Rainbow in the Dark Huey Lewis and the News - The Power of Love Night Ranger - Sister Christian Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody The Doors - Break on Through Jimi Hendrix - Crosstown Traffic

> The keyboard controller has a MIDI output

> A MIDI-Pro adapter will be available for $39.99 that effectively turns any MIDI-based keyboard or drum set into a controller for the game

>Pro mode isn't a difficulty above Expert; instead, it's a modifier that can be used on Easy, Medium, Hard, and Expert. This effectively makes for eight full difficulty settings per song for guitar, bass, and drums.

>The smaller semi-pro guitar controller ($149) has 17 frets and six "strings" for a total of 102 buttons. The big Squier (price TBA)? Just a regular Fender with a MIDI out and "fret-sensing technology for your fingers."

>The Rock Band 2 kits and cymbals will work fully in Pro mode. The mysterious black jack? "That will be by default a second kick pedal jack…or you can switch it to be a hi-hat, which functions in the free-play drum modes or the drum fills." If you have only one or two cymbals, you can still play Pro but won't get the point bonuses for hitting the correct cymbal.

>"The vast majority of the entire Rock Band catalog supports cymbals in gameplay."

>"Everything that we’ve done with keys and guitar is a brand-new form of track and gameplay. That’s all restricted to RB3-specific content and forthcoming DLC."

>"We have new gameplay that we use for trills, tremolo picking, and rolls. Essentially, if the part is really fast and loose our authors can mark it and a special graphic appears on the track. Players can then hit all the notes as long as they play fast enough rather than having to beat-match these really awkward parts."

>"You can now sort by the length of songs, what you've previously rated them, and what game they're from. You can even mark tracks so that they don't pop up in random sets and ruin your parties. For the first time, you're going to be able to create set lists, save them and pick'em later. If you want to go that extra mile, you can share the playlists with your friends online and turn it into a battle. ."

>"The game tosses in more than 700 challenges to tackle like mastering the bass and becoming a "Rock Band Headliner."

Yeah really sick of these games now... honestly may as-well just buy a real instrument and learn to play lol

That's basically the point of Pro mode.
Here is a gif someone made of Dio - Rainbow in the Dark in Pro Guitar mode.

Dio...

We have lost one of rocks true kings.

for the overload.

PlasticAxe: Pro Mode and Drum Functionality

PlasticAxe: RB3's Peripherals

PlasticAxe: Things we didn't know about RB3

IGN's look at RB3

Joystiq's look at RB3

G4's look at RB3

Kotaku's look at the Pro Mode guitar

RB3 DS Cover

Giant Bomb's look at RB3

Picture of Instrument Selection Screen (Vocalist doesn't require a controller to play?)

Gamespot interview about RB3

RB3 Box Art

Gamespot interview about RBPro

Shack News' look at RB3

Rainbow In The Dark guitar solo in Pro Mode

Is it just me or have the last bunch of these games had mostly terrible music on them?

Not at all rockband are always releasing new tracks and i just got the deftones pack and an ozzy osbourne pack coming next week cant wait, also just got a mic stand so can sing and play gat at same time etc its another level LOOOL

Video of you singing and playing at the same time please.

EvaUnit02 wrote: I can't wait for the plastic music peripheral game genre to die already.

When people say this is, is it from an outsider's perspective or as someone who actually the plays the games?

Because if its the former i'm not sure how exactly it effects you, if people enjoy playing them whats the problem?

EvaUnit02 wrote: I can't wait for the plastic music peripheral game genre to die already.

ExterminatorJef wrote: Is it just me or have the last bunch of these games had mostly terrible music on them?

Heh everyone always has differing opinions about the playlists, but seriously, Spacehog, Hendrix, Ozzy, Dio, STP, The Doors, Queen, The Cure, and yes Huey Lewis... the playlist is off to a great start for me.

Urk, and retailers around the world go "Oh for ****S SAKE, more giant boxes"
Be interested to see what the build quality of the new peripherals is like, one would hope that the pro-instruments will be bullet-proof with that many buttons

Yeah. HMX have got out of the peripherals business and have instead partnered with Madcatz. I haven't had any problems with my stuff yet, the Cymbals I got work great with my beatles drumkit. The 'Pro' guitars are Squire model Fenders. They are going to be ridiculously priced in NZ (if we even get them). like $200-400. I won't be getting either of those, and I don't think I need to upgrade my drumkit (since I have the Cymbals already) but I will pick up the keyboard.

So you can use an existing electric guitar if you have one, or is it midi instruments?

Uzi wrote: So you can use an existing electric guitar if you have one, or is it midi instruments?

Presumably only guitars with MIDI-out will work (As that's what the pro instrument essentially is)

Ah k cheers, I presume Power Gig is the same thing?

Awsome cant wait bathtub where did you get your cymbals ordered them from overseas????

lol@the buttons.

the top one is for the ps3, and the bottom one is for the wii, I think. Yeah that's the reason you would hope they have bloody excellent quality control.

slipstream yeah, I bought a few sets through Amazon.

When i think of quality control i REALLY dont think of madcatz
Everything i have ever bought with their branding was junk.