Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Going Pro: Does Rock Band 3's Pro Mode Pass the Test?


I recently picked up Rock Band 3 for my Playstation 3.  Having been a huge fan of Rock Band 1 and 2, as well as the numerous Guitar Heroes that fill the shelves of GameStop, I was pretty interested in this new “Pro Mode” that they were showing off.  I admit, even though it took me a year to get down to business with the newest form of playing a plastic instrument, it was well worth the wait.

I got the Rock Band 3 bundle, and seeing as the Pro Guitar wasn’t available in-store, I decided to get the Keyboard with the game.  (I took advantage of trade-in offers and got Rock Band 3 used leading me to pay only $5 for the keyboard and game together!)  It works better because for now, I’m getting a little bored of playing songs on the plas-tar constantly.

So, I get home and pop in the game.  I decide to try Hard mode first because of my brief background with piano lessons, and it seemed pretty easy.  Expert, however, is a totally different story. Getting to the harder songs proved to be quite the challenge, but it still made me seem dulled out by the fact that it was just the five keys.

That’s when I decided to try out the talked-about “Pro Mode.” I tried to start on Medium – and then promptly failed.  I worked my way through Easy, and then within a week I was up to Hard, which I’m currently stuck on.

It’s an extremely enjoyable experience.  You’re actually learning to play songs on an instrument, and it can be brought out of the video game experience.  As an added bonus, my girlfriend absolutely loves it – especially Smashmouth’s Walking on the Sun.

Rock Band 3 doesn’t just teach you how to play the songs, but it breaks down the instrument for you as well.  There is a training session that teaches scales, chords, finger placement, and more in the Training menu.  That’s where things really take shape.

If you’re interested in trying out a new instrument and a new gameplay mode in your music rhythm games, I’d pick up Rock Band 3 in a heartbeat.  It contains hours of fun, and is a blast to play by yourself and with others.  You aren’t just playing the game either, you’re learning as well.   

2 comments:

  1. Hey there GP,

    I've stepped away from Rock Band momentarily to finish Final Fantasy XIII, but the pro mode is definitely intriguing. I'm on Xbox 360 and I'm on Hard pro keys as well. It's a great learning tool and you quickly realize how difficult it is to actually play the music. Being a guitar player, I'm waiting for the pro guitar to be on sale (cause I'm a cheap skate, lol) so that I can start working on that. lol

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  2. Hey Metallman,

    I definitely agree that the keyboard is difficult in terms of actually playing the music, and it's great as a learning tool. I played keyboard when I was younger, and it was short-lived, although I would have loved to continue. I tried picking up the guitar and mastered a few chords, but that's about it. I'd love to try the Pro Mode, but I'm iffy about having another plastic instrument lying around. This is why I'm excited for Rocksmith. Have you heard about it?

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