The developers behind hit rhythm game franchise Rock Band have announced that the third game in the series will bring with it some of the most realistic, complex controllers that have ever been seen.
The first controller is a mixture between a keyboard and a guitar, which has two octaves of black and white keys to hit. The mode that makes full use of all of the keys is appropriately called ‘Pro’ mode and the unit will function with the standard five button set-up for those who want to remain true to the roots of the series.
The second controller is set to cost over £100 by itself and it is a Fender Mustang that has been designed specifically to work with the Rock Band software, with seventeen frets and six strings providing 102 ‘buttons’ in total.
Although this is still strictly a video game controller rather than a guitar, Fender has gone one step further and created the Rock Band 3 Squire Stratocaster, which will work when plugged into any guitar amp, but will also allow you to rock out in real time on the game.
The introduction of these ‘instruments’ will silence the nay-sayers who have criticised Rock Band and Guitar Hero for wasting the time of music fans who could be learning to play the famous songs on real equipment. The remaining question is whether the use of these controllers will actually become widespread amongst players given the price of entry.
