Customer Reviews

Mad Catz Rock Band 3 Wireless Keyboard Bundle with Rock Band 3 Software

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I'm a Harmonix veteran. I played Guitar Hero 1 back on the PS2 at a friend's house ALL the time. Then Guitar Hero 2 came out of the Xbox 360. I instantly grabbed it and I played all day (and sometimes all night). I was hooked. I couldn't get enough of it. Then Rock Band/Rock Band 2 blew me away.

I'm a musician/artist at heart as well as an avid video gamer. The combination here is perfect. Rock Band was excellent, Rock Band 2 improved it, and Rock Band 3 perfects it.

I grabbed The Doors pack instantly on Day 1 of RB3 purchase and I've been practicing the hell out of the keys. It's a real piano, guys. The game is really re-teaching me how to play piano. It has training, "learn an instrument" for the Pro Drums/Keys/Guitar, and of course on Expert Pro Keyboard you are literally playing the legit piano music for the song. You can then take it to a real piano and play it (and impress all those women with Bohemian Rhapsody by playing it and not just singing along haha!).

Rock Band 3 is the only music game you will ever need (until Harmonix releases a new revolutionary product, which they will). Trust me.

And shut the hell up about "buy a real instrument". This game inspires that in some people, and for other people they just want to have some fun. That's okay. That argument has a flaw: Madden fans? Go buy a real football. Tiger Woods fans? Go buy real wome-err golf set. Gears of War fans? Go buy a real chainsaw.

See what I did there?

Anyway, if you're thinking about buying this, then go ahead and do it. You won't be disappointed (except wait on the Pro Guitar, I hear the current 100+ button one isn't worth the money yet. There's a full stringed, touch sensored neck, real guitar/controller hybrid coming out).

Do not buy this keyboard/game bundle!!!! Rock band 3 has been price dropped and the bundle hasn't reflected it. It is currently $50 cheaper to buy the keyboard and game separately

As someone who has had over 10 years of classical piano training I've always had a strong interest in playing music. I taught myself guitar, bass, drums and while I'm not a virtuoso at these other instruments I enjoy playing and practicing them alone and with others.

Along with actually playing real instruments I've been a hardcore rhythm gamer and fan of Harmonix's past titles including GH1, GH2, RB1, RB2, and now RB3. I've invested a lot of money into the Rock band platform over the years but over the last 12 months or so I began to lose interest. Playing along to songs using 5 colored buttons had lost its appeal on me somehow.

Before last week I hadn't played a Rock Band game for more than 6 months. ... and yet prior to getting burnt out I played the game at least 3 times a week. I'm really excited by the direction Harmonix has taken with Rock Band 3 for multiple reasons.

For one, the time spent learning these songs on "plastic instruments" now translates perfectly to real instruments. As of right now I only own the keyboard peripheral but spending time in practice mode isn't just a way of getting a higher score in the game anymore; it's a way of learning the actual piano/keyboard part for the song. It's a complete reinvention of what a music game is capable of and for that alone Rock Band 3 deserves 5 stars and my highest recommendation to any rhythm gamer who wants to become even more involved with the music they are "playing" in the game.

The setlist might seem strange to longtime fans of the genre but I guarantee that every one of the on-disc songs has at least one part that is a joy to play. Whether it's the bass line to "Antibodies" or the guitar part to "Oh My God" Harmonix made sure to pick songs that had parts that are actually FUN to play. It's easily the most fun I've had playing any set list in the Rock Band series.

In short: Rock Band 3 is an epic achievement in game design and should be played by anyone who has ever enjoyed a Harmonix title.

So many more features than Rock Band 2. So much more user friendly. Better visuals. All songs are unlocked when you pop it in the tray, but instead you unlock new venues and outfits, so you still have unlockables.

This game is perfect.

You can now hop in/out with your friends mid-song, you can change you difficulty in the middle of the song. If I want to switch instruments I just grab the new instrument, press start, and take over the profile. What more could you ask for?

The keyboard is great. It's only 2 octaves but feels like a real keyboard... and it's a lot harder than I was expecting. Pro drums is so much fun, I can concentrate on playing my part instead of trying to figure out whether I'm supposed to hit a tom or a cymbal. They also swap the hi-hat/snare pads on songs that require it (think about the mess that was everlong on ghwt; in RB3, I just move your yellow cymbal a little more to the left and fire it up).

There's really not much else more to say, just look at all the 5 star reviews or the high score on metacritic.

Been a Rock Band fan for a long while, however must admit I got a little worn out of the series after a couple years. Well...after playing 3, count me in for a couple more years! Really like the flow of the game, as there's a lot of fine tuning that's gone into it. And the Keyboard...certainly a must, who wouldn't want to learn how to play it? And despite Mad Catz's past, they seem to be getting it together here in the past 6 months. Several products I've purchased recently have felt like much better quality, and seem like they will stick with me for a long while. I'll go back to jamming on my keyboard now...

Not much to say about Rock Band 3 itself (there's hundreds of other reviews) or the keyboard, but I thought I'd throw in some useful information. When I received this item, I got the normal keyboard box, but on the back side it states rather clearly that the game is -not- included. After inquiry, the seller informed me that the game IS packaged inside the box, so if you are frustrated that the game is missing from the bundle, look inside (if you suspect that it won't be in there, carefully remove the adhesive surfaces so you can reattach them if it is actually missing). A rather poor way of shipping the bundle, but in the long run it's a very much minor issue altogether.

Rock Band 3 has some great songs but my first impression when taken out of the box was that Rock Band 3 was not as user friendly as past games. In previous Rock Band parties, it was easy to get started, but the first time we used RB3, it took some time to figure out how to navigate through the options, there are some nice new options but the RB3 menu screen is not as easy to navigate as before, and if you accidentally make a wrong turn at the menu screen, be prepared for some lengthy loading times. My biggest gripe about Rock Band 3 is that I have made a hefty investment downloading numerous song from previous rock band games and they are not compatible with the new key board, in fact, you have to repurchase songs in order to use Rock Band 3's new features.

...if they take piano lessons.

With Rock Band 3, Harmonix has decided to take a bold step into the world of pseudo-musicianship. The keyboard peripheral is an attempt to teach you how to play an actual musical instrument. In this case, a two octave keyboard. And therein lies one of it's limitations. This game can teach you how to manipulate a keyboard with one hand, but that is only getting half the job done.

The other limitation lies in the fact that Harmonix has merely extended their musical notation system to include the extra keys of the controller instead of adopting the more classical musical notation system that musicians actually use. Through repetition it will be possible to transfer this learning to a real world situation, but only for the songs you learn to play in Rock Band on Pro Mode Expert difficulty. And only if your band doesn't expect you to play the bass parts.

I think that expectations should be tempered with regard to what musicianship may be gained from this video game. However, as a video game control device, the keyboard is extremely fun to play with. If the Pro Keys mode is too intimidating, or just too frustrating, you can also play in regular mode which lets you reduce the number of viable keys down to the familiar five.

With it's working MIDI port, this is as real a musical instrument as you are going to be able to play with Rock Band until the Fender Squier is released next year. I can certainly see how this might whet the appetite of someone who might be interested in pursuing a more serious study of music, but as a means to an end, it should be remembered that this is first and foremost a video game.

Having said all of that, I have been a musician for thirty years. I have studied music classically and I have also learned that not everything can be taught in "schools". Therefore, I can not dismiss this attempt to cross the line between virtual learning and real. Who knows if this game will inspire anyone to become a "real" musician. I do know that this is the only party game I play at my house...

...and I would remind all of my musician friends who revile the age of plastic intruments, that this same scorn was evidenced when computer music came of age. There are those that embrace the future and there are those who are left behind. And the bottom line is if you enjoy music and you enjoy video games, then you should be having fun playing Rock Band.

I have a lot of minor and more major quibbles with this game, and they've all been covered by other reviewers.

But, fundamentally, the gameplay manages to add much more realistic parts without breaking the core of the game. Add the excellent and diverse setlist, and you have a no-brainer.

Since I'm reviewing the bundle, the keyboard peripheral is one of the best pieces of hardware I've ever used. Make sure to pick up a USB-to-midi cable, plug in a drum pedal, and you're ready to make some music. OK, not very much, given the short keyboard. But everything from velocity sensitivity to sustain to complex inputs works flawlessly.

Our Rock Band 3 Wireless Keyboard and Software Bundle arrived last Friday. Exporting songs from Rock Band 2 was a piece of cake, and we let it run while we played Rock band 3.

Because we don't like to sing, our band has a drummer, a bass guitarist, a lead guitarist, and now a keyboardist. We play without the All Instruments mode on because we don't want the lyrics to occupy valuable real estate on our widescreen TV.

I used to be the bass guitarist, and I'm still getting the hang of the keyboard. I'm not sure why and how earlier articles had said any key within the correct color band can be pushed during the performance if you play in Standard mode. The keyboard doesn't work this way at all in this mode. In fact, only any of 5 keys work. You can choose either the very first five keys on the left or the middle five keys. Or if you are 'adventurous', pick a key from either end as long as you match the note on your highway. Basically, ignore the color strips on the keyboard while playing in Standard mode. I have not tried the keyboard in Pro Mode yet so I can't comment on this. I am still getting used to the fact that my index finger no longer hits the green button the way it used to on a guitar neck. It's fun, and I am enjoying the experience so far.

We like the new game format and sound effect changes in the game so far. We got really tired, however, of the wacky MTV-like visuals in the first two Road Challenges. Seriously, Harmonix, we had to wonder if your designers were a little high. It was a HUGE relief to play in venues after the mind-numbing colorful madness.

Character creation is AWESOME in Rock Band 3. We love the array of options! The new loot is also hysterical. We do miss the music trivia, although this is not a game breaker.

PS. We miss our Stage Kit. :(