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Harmonix Details Rock Band 3

Keyboards, real instruments, and Pro mode define the latest in the Rock Band series.

Last night, USA Today unveiled a massive amount of new information about the upcoming title, Rock Band 3.

Alex Rigopolous, CEO of Harmonix, revealed that the music game will feature 83 new songs which include Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody, and Break On Through by The Doors. More importantly, Rock Band 3 will see some massive changes through the introduction of a new instrument, the keyboard, as well as a new mode, Pro Mode.

According to Harmonix, the keyboard will be a fully functional MIDI keyboard that will also work when plugged into a computer. On all modes but Pro, players will be responsible for playing simple streams of notes across only five keys. However, on Pro Mode, streams will flow down all 25 keys, bridging the gap between game and true musical production.

The same bridge will be made for guitar, which on Pro Mode will require use of a new peripheral (sold separately) from Fender that doubles as a real guitar. There's no word on drums as of yet, but given the trend, it seems likely that a fully functional electronic drum set will also be introduced at some point before the release of the game.

Aside from the massive inclusion of Pro Mode, players will also see a variety of upgrades to the core functionality of the game. Players will now be able to drop in or out of songs, change instruments and even difficulty settings mid-song via the menu.

Originally introduced in The Beatles: Rock Band, harmony vocals will also now be a mainstay of the series.

Rock Band 3 will be available this holiday season for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii.


 

Comments

Our Take

Nick DiMola Director

06/10/2010 at 05:59 AM

Holy crap! I can't even begin to tell you how exciting it is to hear that real instruments are coming to Rock Band. Screw that plastic guitar, I can't wait to jump on this new Fender (even though I already own a real one...) and play some of the songs in the game. The same goes for the keyboard, which I've always wanted to learn how to play.

I was really skeptical about what Harmonix could possibly do to warrant yet another Rock Band mainline entry, but this definitely justifies the game's existence.

Our Take

Lukasz Balicki Staff Alumnus

06/10/2010 at 06:34 AM

This is very exciting! I was laughing when Activision was showing their latest Guitar Hero controller but wow Harmonix blows GH out of the water yet again.

Our Take

Jason Ross Senior Editor

06/10/2010 at 05:47 PM

I think it needs to be said one of the first things Chris and I will be doing is meeting with Harmonix to see Rock Band 3 in action. We've gotten our RSVP in yesterday afternoon, in anticipation of this sort of announcement, providing us what should become very early coverage of the game, hopefully.

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