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Brilliant concept, a bit flawed

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: December 12, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Considering the $[...] pricetag, it's understandable that the judicious spender is cautious about buying this product. But I cannot assure you enough what a good buy this game is. Considering the sum of this game's parts, the cost is an understatement of its true value.

An owner of the two previous titles, I was a bit skeptical about the scope of this game. Undoubtedly, guitar hero 3 is the victor in terms of pure guitar gameplay (and by that extension bass as well), but the pre-release gameplay videos of rock band's guitar were by all means misleading. Neversoft's advantage was solely by virtue of a less discriminating set list. Rock band isn't just a "party game"; granted, the entertainment value soars when playing with a full 'band', but the solo player will still find plenty of value in rock band.

The drums are easily the most valuable part of the rock band package. As a real musician, I sincerely don't feel ashamed drumming along. The highest praise a non-guitar hero aficionado would give the previous installments would be that "it teaches rhythm". The drum part is that and so much more (I'm a bassist, so I can't definitely say this actually teaches drums, but my evidence would be my drummer friend's amazement at how accurately drum parts are represented). AT the lower levels, drumming is a fun, usually not-too-frustrating, lesson in beat. At the harder difficulties, it feels (at least to me) like a true drumming experience. My drums came in pristine condition, but I've heard of a broken or easily-broken kick pedal error: I sincerely hope that doesn't happen to many people (I've heard some awful stories about EA customer support, but I hear that customers with malfunctioning peripherals get a free EA-published game).

To my surprise, it was in fact the guitar controller that felt like the billion dollar baby that would fall apart in my hands. One thing nice about the new controller though is how authentic it looks (I have a real strat guitar in my bedroom, in the dark I honestly couldn't see a distinct difference). The strum bar clicks very little, which is a nice feature, and has a nicer grip for people who strum up and down. At the same time, people who need more strum control most likely will have a difficult transition. The tremolo arm looks completely real, but at least on my controller it wasn't very responsive. There's also an FX select, but the difference seems minute, if there is one to be found. I could be too discriminating, but switching the FX select on songs I was familiar with (and with FX settings I clearly ould identify) didn't seem to make a difference. The solo frets are an interesting feature, but generally don't keep me from just using my GH3 les paul controller instead.

Beyond saying it's a nice piece of hardware, I can't honestly judge the microphone; I'm a shy singer and didn't use it very often. Observing my friend using it, the pitch and letter accuracy seem pretty good, but the user interface could use some work. While Harmonix probably tried to make singing the easiest, I find the sensors too discriminating. People more dedicated to the vocalist route, however, probably have an entirely different perspective than I.

To sum up the core elements of gameplay: the graphics look incredibly impressive. There's a minute but still noticeable grain effect, but it's not particularly irritating (like with mass effect when its grain is turned on) and was probably intended. The character and instrument models look amazing. Some people (myself included) will probably find some discontent with the lack of detail in the overall venue appearance, but there's really nothing substantial to complain about his very impressive game.

The band world tour is an interesting new addition, but it's hard to get through the whole thing if you don't have a frequent and dedicated partner(s). Little things like an abundance of venues and character customization (as well as an assortment of other aspects that give the game a genuine rock feel) make playing with friends all the more brilliant. The instrument tutorials are more in-depth than in the previous installments and are done by real musicians, though considering that it's not real music -even the drums at that level don't exactly qualify- it's not so incredible a feature.

The song list naturally means some parts have to suffer for the sake of the others, but this is definitely overplayed. The setlist is done very well, and the downloadable content I've seen so far looks like a good start.

If you read all that and are willing to trust a 14-year-old's opinion, this is a great buy no matter who you try to cater to; I don't mean to be that tongue-in-cheek saying that basement dwellers and casual noobs will find a lot in this box.

Rock band or guitar hero... Rock band!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: December 18, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I was skeptical of this game at first. $170 is alot of money, especially since I had bought GH2 and GH3 for the 360. This game paid for itself day one.

The fact that you can have 4 people make this a blast. Singing is alot of fun, the bass parts are better than what is found in GH, the guitar is good (with the same timings as in GH2, but without artificial difficulty added in GH3, which is a great game BTW) and the drums are the meat and potatoes.

It takes about 10 minutes to get into the game. Create characters, name your band, and start rocking. The set list is very good, and the difficulty scales well. And the drums are the best part about this game, and the reason the $170 price tag is easily justified.

If you can only choose one game, go with rockband, you and your friends won't regret it.

Great game, but the peripherals may cause you some problems.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: December 31, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I have been following Harmonix games since their cult classic game Frequency. I've played every single Harmonix game since then including Amplitude, all of the Guitar Hero games and now Rock Band. Rock Band now has a tight grip on me and I don't see myself ever becoming bored of this amazing game. There is one major downside that prevented a 5 star rating, which I will discuss in a minute.

Harmonix really took a risk with this game. They are making a game that includes four peripherals. You get a guitar that is modeled after the Fender strat, you get a set of drum pads that include 4 pads and a kick pedal, you get a mic and finally you get a USB hub so you can plug everything in at the same time. The risk here is that with so many goodies, this game is above the average consumers comfort zone as far as price is concerned ($170.00 at the time of this review). That's a steep price for many but trust me when I say it's worth it!

Lets discuss each instrument before I talk about the game.

The guitar that comes with Rock Band is a bit different then the guitars that you may be used to if you play Guitar Hero. It looks different, it plays different and it has some cool new features. One of the coolest new features is the new buttons high on the neck. These allow solos to be played without strumming and also they make solos a bit more fun to execute. This guitar also has a switch that allows you to change effects such as reverb, flange, wah-wah, delay and a couple more. Some call this a gimmick, but I have great fun messing with this switch. The strum bar on this guitar is built so that it doesn't make that clicking sound like the previous guitars in the Guitar Hero games. I see a lot of people complaining about the new guitar because it feels quite a bit different. Personally I don't like the new strum bar because it feels very mushy and fragile.

The microphone that comes with this game is very simple yet elegant. This mic looks and feels just like a real mic, it doesn't feel cheap or fragile at all. This is probably the best looking/feeling mic I've seen in a video game, but that's just my opinion.

Ah, now the drums. I love the drums! You get an attractive set of four drum pads and a kick pedal. You can adjust the height of the drums and move the kick pedal wherever you like. There is some assembly required, but it's very easy to assemble and doesn't require any tools. The only issue with the drums is that the pads don't provide very much rebound and I'm constantly paranoid that I will break the kick pedal.

Before I talk about the game I want to mention why I couldn't give this game 5 stars despite being such a joy to play.

During the early releases of this game (at the time of this review) there have been so many technical issues with the instruments. Almost everyones guitar has had problems with the down strum mere hours into play, including mine. I know of a person that took their game back four times because the down strum simply stopped working! A lot of people have had problems with their drums as well, especially the wires that are soldiered on the bottom of the pad becoming disconnected. I took a look at my wires and they are very thin, cheap and just barely soldiered on. These drums should be designed to take a beating! Another major issue is the kick pedal snapping in half. I've taken great care not to press my pedal too hard and it always feels like it's going to break because it's made with very flimsy plastic. Some people may believe people are just playing the guitar too hard, but that's absolutely not the case. My original Guitar Hero guitar still works great and it's taken MUCH more abuse from friends and family over the years.

Right out of the box it's evident that they rushed this release for two reasons. First, when you open the box you see a big pink piece of paper that pretty much says "STOP! If you have problems with the instruments then please don't take them back to the store, contact this website". Second, I noticed that the back of the guitar has a slot for three batteries. The battery slot is useless because that is used for the PS3 version of the guitar so it can be wireless. The battery slot is pointless for XBox 360 owners, it's simply just sitting there, disconnected (I've opened up the guitar to verify). They simply took the same exact guitar, battery slot and all and just threw in a USB cord so it would work with the XBox. This leaves a lot of XBox 360 users confused.

This may have you wondering why I even gave the game four stars, there has been nothing but problems with the instruments. The reason is because they will have to build better instruments for this game to survive. They simply rushed this out the door and EA and Harmonix are paying dearly for that mistake. I'm sure they are doing everything they can to have these instruments built right or else they will be spending a lot of money replacing everyones gear. I imagine when I get my new instruments back they will be much better or else they will have to pay for another replacement and nobody wants to do that. I couldn't give five stars because of the initial heartache with the mechanical issues. I couldn't give less then four because later releases will be much better and three stars or less would be unfair because this game is so amazing! When everything is working right, it's the most fun you can possibly have in a video game - guaranteed (especially with multiplayer, more on that in a minute). Just be warned, if you buy this game before the 2007 holiday season there is a pretty good chance you will have issues. I imagine that early 2008 everything will be ironed out (hopefully you guys that buy this game as a gift for the holidays don't experience any issues!)

Now the game.

Really, what you're getting here is three games in one. You can do a solo career for any of the instruments, except the bass guitar. If you play solo mode then it's quite similar to Guitar Hero games. You start out in small venues playing easier songs and progress your way up through the ranks jamming in new venues and playing songs that are progressively harder to beat.

For the guitar and drums you play each note as it comes scrolling down the screen. If you're successful you can get the crowd really pumped and earn extra points. If you like singing then you must sing each note at the correct pitch to forge ahead. There is a visual indicator that lets you know if you're singing too high, or too low. If you play flawlessly then a multiplier will increase your score even more. If you play notes that are highlighted in white successfully then you can earn overdrive which nets you even more points. The overdrive mechanism is different for each instrument. For the guitar you lift your guitar vertically, much like you would to activate star power in the Guitar Hero games. For the drums you play a drum fill however you see fit but you must hit the cymbal at the end of the fill. For the microphone you just yell whatever you want!

Each instrument provides a unique solo-career mode. They are all the same in that you play songs that progressively become harder until you beat the game, but the unique feel of each instrument really makes Rock Band three games in one. Worth mentioning is that the order of songs is different for each instrument because what may be easy on the drums can be quite a bit more challenging on the guitar, or singing. The solo career for the guitar feels a lot like Guitar Hero games (especially Guitar Hero I and II), but this is not a bad thing.

Although I haven't played online I do know that you can play people in a few different games online. There is no tour mode (which i'll talk about in a minute) but you can rock with your online buddies, or play tug of war. In tug of war you each play the same instrument and whoever does better, wins! I cannot comment much about online play because I haven't played online at all, but I do know the real meat of this game is in the offline multiplayer tour mode. This is where most of the fun is at.

In the band tour mode you create a band with two to four players and rock out all over the globe. Your job is to earn money and fans and to progress further into your career as a band. At first you start out with nothing and you play a few local gigs. After awhile you earn a tour bus where you can gig around the states. Finally you earn a jet so you can travel around the world earning new fans and lots of cash to customize your characters (it's worth mentioning that the character customization is surprisingly deep). This mode is addictive, it's very easy to fall into that mode "lets just play one more 3 song set...". This can turn into a long, fun night of rockin' with your best friends and family. You will often see challenges which can net you more fans or money, such as 'if your band can play all x songs with an average of four stars then you earn twice as many fans, otherwise you get nothing'. This game really focuses on playing as a band. If one member isn't doing well they can bring the entire band down. Luckily if a band member fails then the other band members have a chance to save them if they are able to activate overdrive before it's all over. Each player can play on their own difficulty levels, however you can cap out your maximum number of fans if someone is playing on a lower difficulty level. You play your desired difficulty before each set, so once a weaker player becomes better they just increase their difficulty and you can begin to earn more fans. This endless band tour mode is easily the most solid mode in Rock Band, I believe with the right friends and/or family members this is the greatest fun you can have in a video game.

Okay, now for the sound and graphics.
The sound in this game is top notch. There are many great songs in this game and quite a few of them are done by the original artist. Amazon already provides a complete list of the songs that come with the game so I wont go through all of them, just check out the list! There has to be something you like. If there's not very much you like then don't worry, you can download new songs for about $2.00 a piece - a bargain if you ask me! There are a lot of great tunes available for download including my favorite at the time of this review "Ride The Lightning" by Metallica. They put up new songs every week. This is a great feature which is sure to keep this game fun for a very long time.

The graphics in this game are done very well. You probably wont notice the visuals too much because you'll be concentrating on your song, but what you do see is done very well. I especially like how the character animations are spot on, right down to their lip movement while singing. The graphics are a bit grainy (on purpose) giving the game a gritty, raw, hard rockin' feel.

In closing I want to say that this game is great. It's really too bad I keep having problems with the instruments that came with this game otherwise I would give Rock Band a perfect score. Already I've had problems with my guitar and my yellow drum pad suddenly stopped working. EA does a good job getting you new gear (free 2 day shipping if you have problems), however it is a bit scary because the warranty is only good for 60 days. Many people are having problems with the gear, so it's not just me. At the time of this review I am still waiting for my replacement drums to come in, I'll update this review when they come in and let you know if they are any better then the originals. If you are reading this before the holiday season of 2007 then I recommend you wait until all of the bugs are ironed out so you don't have as much heartache as I've had. Of coarse if you're impatient like me then just buy the game! With any luck you will not have any problems and if you do, hopefully they surface before the 60 day warranty is up!

Never have I played a non role-playing game for as long as I play rock band.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: December 05, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I can sit and play this game for 7-8 hours or more at a time. In fact on my days off I normally play most of the day. I Sing for the majority then when I get a little tired I break out the guitar and play tell my pinky starts to hurt (about an hour or so) then I will either go to the drums or back to singing .
Now mind you I have never played guitar hero or anything so I am a total newb when it comes to games like this. This game has that in mind. The easy is just that easy. It has songs in order of difficulty so you will gain proficiencies in the skills you need to move on to harder songs. Not to mention the practice mode that can slow songs down for you to work out that really difficult part of a song. You can also pick just parts of the song to practice so you don't have to wade to a part just to practice it.
The game has a few different Modes. Lets first talk about "solo" You can Sing, play guitar or drums in this mode. I myself being a singer went straight here. I am all ready ranked in the top 300 over all for singers and even ranked in the top 3 for the song "heroes" by David bowie. (at least last I checked, the leader board changed every 15 min or so) Songs are split up into groups of 5 by difficulty and city. Once you complete a city a new city opens up with more difficult songs. You can also do bonus set that has all the hard unlockable songs that you can get like the classic "Timmy and the lords of the underworld" from an episode of south park. I had so much fun singing that song! Well more yelling that song 8 )
Band World tour mode is the next. This is what you are going to play with your friends at a party.
You get at least two people on different instruments (supports up to 4 players including drums, base that uses the same controller as the guitar, even supports guitar hero II and III from 360 controllers, Singer, and Guitar. And you start playing and having fun. Its really interesting how the band dynamic works here. You start acting like a band even if you aren't a real band. You start to argue about what songs you want to play or who is going to play what instruments or if one person is not so good how they are holding you back. And to me that is great. It feels real. The point of this area is to get "Fans" the more fans you have the better. You can also win, Vans, Busses, even a Jet, You are limited to the amount of fans you get by the difficulty your band picks. Everyone has to pick the same difficulty to get the increase in fans.
There are also a few online multiplayer aspects that are nice but I haven't really played much with them cus the lack of people who sing is pretty prevalent. Also the Downloadable content for the 360 is amazing. I can't wait to get entire albums when they release them this month.
The Cons: When you play Solo or in Band mode the computer generates Non Human players. Some of them are really really Creep looking or ugly as sin. I would love to be able to pick who was in my band. Some kind of Lobby that will help in finding other people to play with would also be nice. Band World tour is only avail with local multiplayer. I have heard they plan on patching and letting you form bands online. As online you can only do quick play that doesn't keep your score or earn fans.
Even with the flaws this game is GREAT!

Fun.....Very Fun!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: December 12, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I'm writing this as your average female video game player, that is to say not much of one. I have a Nintendo DS that I love, and like to play Guitar Hero with my boyfriend (who is a musician, guitar, bass and drums) but suffice it to say I don't have mad skillz or anything even remotely resembling musical talent. With this, it doesn't matter. You'll find yourself drawn to it the first time you hear the strains of "Mississippi Queen" by Mountain or "Maps" by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. My boyfriend loves it, and as a musician I expected him to be much more critical than he was.

The guitar is played like GH's, other than a few minor changes in the fret buttons and the addition of some sound effect slide buttons is basically the same. However, RB's has a much better look and "feel". (You will need an extra guitar to have a 4-piece band, so if you don't already have one from GH it's a good idea to pick one up.) So far (knock on wood) we haven't had any problems with ours in the way of breakage. Hopefully we won't.

The mic is a basic mic. While shy at first (myself included!), more than a few people will find themselves getting into it after one try, especially if you've got a few friends rocking out with you. (I knew I hadn't truly lived until I saw my boyfriend wailing away to Creep and another friend getting down to Mississippi Queen). It's not really that hard- especially if you've ever done, or even seen, karaoke. Of course, it helps to be able to somewhat carry a tune, but the trick to staying in key is either go higher or lower in your own range and you can pretty much stay in the game. Even if you don't, your band buds can go into overdrive to "save" you. I thought it would be the least interesting piece of the game but once I tried it, i's a lot more fun than I expected it to be. And I'm no singer, in the shower and car notwithstanding.

The drums is where it's at though folks. Yep, they rock. At first I thought I'd feel silly but once you start, just like with the guitar, you're hooked. They're very similiar to electronic kits in size and structure, except the pads are a bit "stiff" and if you're a heavy hitter, the whole set will move backwards as you play. It IS a game though, so it's a small price to pay. (My boyfriend just sets our ottoman in back of it to stop this progression.) The pads do seem to be more responsive if you hit dead center or thereabouts, rather than around the edges. However, once you get it down you'll be playing with wild abandon and enjoying every minute of it. I know I do (and I've got a blister to prove it, LOL). Timing is key, especially with the snare and kick pedal. If you get nothing else down, master these- they can get you through pretty much any song and you'll be seeing those colored buttons in your sleep before you know it :)

As mentioned in other reviews, all players (when playing in band mode) need to be playing at the same level in order to progress, get more fans, more money, etc., so you'll inevitably end up with those "hey, you're holding us back!" discussions. It's hilarious because it's all in good fun but still challenging enough to keep you interested and motivated. This is where you start to feel those "real" rock band moments. And therin my friends, is the point. Bringing the rock band life to the masses. So to speak, anyway.

Overall, it's a fantastic party game for all age levels- even more so on a big-screen HDTV. (I can't even recommend it on anything else, you simply wouldn't have the visual room.) Graphics and all the add-ons and options are great and extremely well thought out. You can customize and download to your heart's content. This game is so much fun (and strangely addictive) that friends of ours now want an XBox360 just for this after playing our set. (And they thougth we were crazy for getting it the day it came out. heh! Now we almost can't keep them away on weekends because everybody wants to come over and play Rock Band. Which is fine, it's no fun to solo - the Band is where it's at.)

Rock on!

Not guitar friendly

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 4 / 8
Date: November 23, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I've owned this for less then 24 hours, and the thing that seems most apparent is that if you loved Guitar Hero, you may not necessarily love Rock Band. The new guitar looks a lot better then the old one I have that came with Guitar Hero 2, but its functionality isn't great. The new fret board makes it a lot easier for someone to lose their fingering because it buttons feel exactly like the rest of the frets that aren't buttons. This might be excusable, but the strum bar SUCKS. It doesn't click like the last one; it seems like it's a lot tighter, and its a lot harder to strum that fast parts. And is it just me, or are there no more hammer ons or pull-offs? I've only had this for a short time, but if there aren't any, playing this game might mess you up when playing the more superior (guitar-wise) Guitar Hero games.

That being said, the drums are fun, and the singing is okay. I also like how the game lets you "free-form," where you can play a bunch of jumbled notes on your own, but as long as you hit the last notes you get points. I know it doesn't sound fun, but it is.

Bottom line, if you love the Guitar-playing on Guitar Hero 3, just play Guitar Hero 3.

UPDATED: A few months later, I take a few things back...yeah I found the hammer-ons and strum-offs, I'm a moron...and Guitar Hero lacks a lot of what Rock Band has that makes it more fun, which is custom characters, more available songs, and the ability for people to get together and not just play the guitar. If it weren't for both of these games, I probably would have accomplished a lot more during these past few months.

The Microphone works! Just keep your controller handy...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: November 21, 2007
Author: Amazon User

Oh boy! I was lucky enough to get this on launch day. Terriffic! I am one of the few who prefer the Rock Band guitar, it's more comfortable than the GH ones. VERY NICE!

I first thought my mic was broken, I plugged it in over and over, the documentation for Rock Band is very slim, and the microphone warrants lees than two lines about setup. It turns out the singer needs to have an Xbox controller handy to register the mic and to select songs etc. You also get a little widget (two in fact) that lets you use your Xbox headset as a mic. The guitar and drums have an input jack for it--however, so far, I haven't gotten that setup to work. Which is too bad, because I'm dying to sing AND play guitar at the same time. I'm sure I'll figure it out soon.

One last thing, my six-year-old was entranced by the microphone. Just for kicks, I let him sing while I played drums. He doesn't know any of the songs, but he had a great time shouting the words that appeared on screen--in fact, on Easy mode, he can pass most songs he tries. You haven't lived until you've seen a six-year-old belting Gimme Shelter. "Ra-a-a-ape! Murder! It's just a shot away! It's just a shot awa-a-a-y!"

GREAT FUN

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 26, 2007
Author: Amazon User

ORDERED FOR MY 26 YR OLD SON, HE LOVES IT!!! OPENED ON XMAS EVE AND HAD SO MUCH FUN LAUGHING - EVERYONE CAN PLAY, MY 7 YR OLD GRANDSON EVEN GOT IN THE ACT!

far exceeds Guitar Hero

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: January 08, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Unless someone has played both games - they shouldn't compare. I have, and I will.

Both games are great. No question. If you like you music, you simply have to try this as you will get a charge. Hook either up to a game system ( in my case Xbox360) - and play it through a good sound system or headphones -- WOW-- you can play for hours. Extremely addictive.

That being said, RockBand goes well beyond the total game experience than Guitar Hero. I knew that the guitar itself would work, but was skeptical that they could pull of the drums and Microphone. But they did. It takes some patience, and some practice, but you will feel like you are really playing the music. And when you start to get the hang of it you will believe that you are playing the music and you will get pumped from the scream of the crowd -- or discouraged by the booing of the crowd if you have a bad performance.

Playing alone is great, but playing with a friend or family member is incredible. I find myself starting to love songs and bands I would have never paid attention to before. As you begin to play on the intermediate and hard levels you start to really appreciate the complexity and beauty of some of these songs. Great Stuff.

Music selection is very good. I think they did a superb job in selecting a wide range of songs that are above all, fun to play.

One word of caution would be for little kids. This game is better suited for older kids, say 8 and up. I say this because it can be a bit challenging to get the coordination and timing down. But mostly because this is an expensive game and you don't want to see it sitting around your living room if it isnt' going to be used. So if you kids are telling you they have to have it, make sure you bring them to BestBuy and have them play the demo a few times, make sure they don't get frustrated. I have 1 kid that loves it, and 1 kid that is 5 and just can't get it down.

All in all I can see this is the most innnovative and addictive game I have ever played, but that is perhaps because I really like music and am a frustrated musician -- but arent we all????

I think a real benefit of this game would be that while you aren't really playing music -- kids and adults will start to get a feel for some concepts of playing music - and who knows, it could spawn some real interest in playing a real instrument. While the game visually shows you what to do on your instrument, whether guitar, drums or Mic, you play your best when you relax and listen to the music and play by ear more than by what you see. This will be easy to see when you play a song that you know well, vs. something you barely know or have never heard- -- you will be able to play the one you know better because you rely on your musical timing and not just what you see on screen.. Tough to describe if you haven't tried before - but hopefully you can see that I am trying to illustrate that there is more here than just playing a game.

So far so good

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: March 27, 2008
Author: Amazon User

NOTE: Rating of 4/5. I have never given a game a 5 out 5. Why? B/c, I hope to one day find a perfect game. I really wish this was a 10 point scale. This would have been a 9 (or since it is a music game, I should say an eleven). Have I ever played a 5/5? City of Heroes/Villains (PC)and some other PC games.

First, let me begin with the fact that I have never played any of the Guitar Hero games or the like in the past. I did have the Teiko Drum game for the PS2. Along with the (IMO) better songs, Rock Band SE also came with a drum set so it sold me.

I have now had the game for a week and it is ready to review...I like it...a lot. The guitar, though not why I bought seems pretty cool. From the standpoint of someone who's first music game was this, I am VERY happy with my purchase. Again, the songs are pretty cool and the guitar even has a whammy bar on it. Though this may also appear in GH3, I was still surprised. I quickly set up my drum set. The set is easy to put together and, again I was not expecting this, it has a foot peddle. Sweet. The only odd thing is that the foot peddle's wire actually does not seem long enough but it is a coiled cord (like a phone for those of you old enough) and hopefully it will 'relax' over time.

The game play on the drums is really cool. I have never played drums but I always play the drums with my pens on my desk at work so this is a dream machine for me. Two things became readily apparent...the foot peddle makes your lower leg muscle VERY VERY tired. Secondly, while watching the screen, I was stunned with my initial lack of accuracy and kept hitting the side of the drums.

PLUSES: Both guitar and drums very fun. Great song list. I guess if I ever hook up my xbox online, there are more to download. Currently, I am playing 'career' mode an loving it. Everything seems sturdy though it seems some of the other reviews mention the weakness over time. We shall see.

NEGATIVES: Size. Wow does this take up a lot of room. If you are in a city with a tiny apartment, you just made a huge commitment of space. We have a bit of room but I move the drum kit to another room when we have company. I also recommend covering the drums when not in use. The surface is a bit 'tacky' and I can jsut imaging how nasty it could get over time.

IF you have have the time and space, I would get this. Also, as a child of the early 90s music scene..REM, Sound Garden, Garbage, Smashing Pumpkins make this an elite song list.

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