With the increasing popularity of rhythm games starting way back when with Dance Dance Revolution and in Japan with BeatMania and Guitar Freaks, it was only a matter of time before the ultimate rhythm game would be released and take over as (in all likely-hood) the #1 party game of all time. Right around Christmas 2007, Rock Band was released for the Xbox360 and Play Station 3. It was an instant hit. Rock Band, much like the now famous Guitar Hero games, touts the ability for everyone to “become a guitar legend” and play some of the most popular songs of all time — as well as a plethora of songs by independent artists. Where Rock Band differs is obvious: It allows up to 4 players to team up and play in their own “band”.

Picking your instrument of choice can be difficult at first, but the best way to learn is to simply sit down and play it with no experience at all. Starting off on the easier level (there are 4 difficulty levels: Easy, Medium, Hard, and Expert) will provide fewer “notes” at a slower pace than the higher difficulties and allows you to get accustomed to how the controllers work. When you reach the point that you are scoring 97% or higher of all notes hit on most of the songs, it’s time to move up in difficulty. The learning process is even faster if you can sit down and play through the single player “tour” and unlock the songs as you go. This of course also makes the songs available to the other members of your band who have not played the game before, and will thus keep the excitement going strong.

As you increase in difficulty level, it is important to practice the songs in a band setting in order to get better scores, thus making more “money” to buy those cool outfits or custom instruments, and in turn gaining more and more “fans”, allowing you to unlock new areas in the game for your band to tour in. The difficulty of each instrument depends on the person who is playing it. The guitar instruments start you off only having to use 3 of the note buttons on the guitar, adding a fourth button in the medium difficulty. In hard, the fifth button is (sparingly) used and the speed at which the notes fly by increases. In expert, the fifth button is more common and the notes tend to go by at increasingly faster speeds. For the singer’s portion, the game gets increasingly less lenient when it comes to being too high or too low pitched for the particular lyric you are singing. With the drums, the combinations and patterns become increasingly complex and come at you at faster and faster speeds. On a side note, the drums automatically start you off having to play 5 notes (4 for the snare drums, cymbals, and high-hats, and 1 for the bass drum), making the drum quite possibly the most difficult to play, especially for someone with no ability to keep a beat going.

Here are some tips for playing the various instruments that may be helpful for you. When playing the guitar, make sure to experiment with the hammer-ons and pull-offs used in the game (best practiced in practice mode). Another point of interest is the guitar that comes with Rock Band has a second set of 5 keys closer to the strummer that are intended for use when playing the solo portions of songs. These keys can also be used during the rest of the song and are sometimes easier to use for people with smaller hands, and do not require you to strum when playing the notes of a solo (solo sections are on a background of blue). When using the drum kit, it is absolutely imperative that you be sitting down in a comfortable chair without arm rests. It is also best if you always end with the pedal fully depressed at the end of a note and to keep it depressed when you have a space in between when it is not being used as keeping your foot angled upward will quickly tire your leg out, often leading to a burning sensation in your calf. It is best to wear loose clothing as you will often work up a sweat when playing on the higher difficulties. For the singer, try your best to remain standing when playing, as sitting down will often make it more difficult to reach and sustain the higher pitched notes due to your diaphragm not being able fully rise and fall. This affects the amount of breath held in your lungs and thus, your ability to hold a note. Lastly for the singer, keep about 3-4 inches between your mouth and the microphone to keep your pitch from being distorted by an overabundance of vibrations on the microphone itself. Lastly keep a drink nearby, as you will most definitely have lost your voice by the end of the night.

All in all, Rock Band can definitely keep the party exciting well into the following afternoon. It is best played at parties where there is a decent amount of people and plenty of your favorite booze. That way, if you are afraid that you may sing horribly or miss too many notes and cause the band to fail as a whole, you can blame it on the alcohol.