Game Play and Instrument Peripherals
Some elements have been added beyond the Guitar Hero mechanics. Guitar solos have been introduced, Bassists have "groove" sections, and drummers have many opportunities for freestyle play, vocals have freestyle sections as well.
The screen is clear of interface objects, but this was necessary with a scrolling karaoke bar, and two guitars and a drum note panel on the screen at once. All elements are compact and compliment the sleek look of the game. On the left is the crowd meter. You are represented by an icon, for what instrument you are playing. If you are doing poorly, the crowd meter will diminish, and you will get booted off stage.
The Fender Stratocaster guitar controller has an extra five fret buttons higher up the neck. During a solo, you can fret without having to strum. These buttons are thinner so are also great for kids and people with smaller fingers. The fret buttons are right next to each other, not spaced out like on Guitar Hero controllers - this, and the inset buttons make fretting even easier.
The Strat also has a five-way effects pick-up switch, so you can change the sound of the guitar. The controller itself is close to full sized, and only has colors for buttons on the sides, so it looks much less like a toy. What is really going to get people is the very different strum bar. For one, it does not make a click-clack noise, and two, it behaves very differently than you are likely used to.
It does not have the "give" that the Guitar Hero controllers had. Instead of being lose, it is tight and springy. When you push on it, it pushes back. When running through a line of fast Green notes for example, it is quite easy to hit every one as you sort of "juggle" the strum bar. Hammer-ons and pull-offs also work quite well. But, and this is a big but, it is quite different from how the Guitar Hero strum bar works. You can always just use your Guitar Hero controller if you wish. Note to PS3 owners: The PS3 Les Paul does not work in Rock Band.
You gain Energy (Star Power) in the same way as before - hit a designated string of notes. Tilting the Fender sets you into Overdrive, which works just like in past Harmonix guitar games, and thankfully the Fender is not as hypersensitive as the Les Paul is. However, it seems to be quite challenging to tilt the guitar up to release Energy when sitting down. It is easy to do standing up though.
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