Rock Band 3 Review

The music genre hasn’t changed a lot over the course of the last five years. Rock Band 3 attempts a few changes that could make this game stand out from the crowd. First, it adds a new instrument (the keyboard), but it also adds a “real” guitar. That’s right, instead of just pressing down on five buttons, you can choose to purchase the new guitar peripheral and actually learn how to play. That said, all of the past peripherals work with this as well.

The set list (see below) is one of the strongest in a Rock Band game to date. With classic rock favorites like Yes’s “Roundabout” , Chicago’s “25 or 6 to 4”, and Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train”, old-timers are sure to be pleased. Younger players will love stuff like Avenged Sevenfold’s “The Beast and the Harlot”, Stone Temple Pilot’s “Plush”, and Queens of the Stone Age’s “No One Knows”. Really, there is stuff for everyone on here.

Below is a full list of all 83 songs (ordered by Band, Song):

2000s

Amy Winehouse, Rehab
At the Drive-In, One Armed Scissor
Avenged Sevenfold, The Beast and the Harlot
Dover, King George
The Bronx, False Alarm
The Flaming Lips, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. 1
HIM (His Infernal Majesty), Killing Loneliness
Hypernova, Viva La Resistance
Ida Maria, Oh My God
Juanes, Me Enamora
Metric, Combat Baby
Paramore, Misery Business
Phoenix, Lasso
Poni Hoax, Antibodies
Pretty Girls Make Graves, Something Bigger, Something Brighter
Queens of the Stone Age, No One Knows
The Raveonettes, Last Dance
Rilo Kiley, Portions for Foxes
Riverboat Gamblers, Don’t Bury Me…I’m Still Not Dead
Slipknot, Before I Forget
The Sounds, Living in America
Tegan and Sara, The Con
Them Crooked Vultures, Dead End Friends
Tokio Hotel, Humanoid
The Vines, Get Free
The White Stripes, The Hardest Button to Button

1990s

Faith No More, Midlife Crisis
Filter, Hey Man, Nice Shot
Jane’s Addiction, Been Caught Stealing
Maná, Oye Mi Amor
Marilyn Manson, The Beautiful People
The Muffs, Outer Space
Phish, Llama
Primus, Jerry Was a Racecar Driver
Rammstein, Du Hast
Smash Mouth, Walkin’ On The Sun
Spacehog, In the Meantime
Stone Temple Pilots, Plush
Swingin’ Utters, This Bastard’s Life

1980s

Anthrax, Caught in a Mosh
Big Country, In a Big Country
The Cure, Just Like Heaven
Def Leppard, Foolin’
Devo, Whip It
Dio, Rainbow in the Dark
Dire Straits, Walk of Life
Echo and the Bunnymen, The Killing Moon
Huey Lewis and the News, The Power of Love
INXS, Need You Tonight
J. Geils Band, Centerfold
Joan Jett, I Love Rock N’ Roll
Night Ranger, Sister Christian
Ozzy Osbourne, Crazy Train
The Police, Don’t Stand So Close to Me
Roxette, The Look
The Smiths, Stop Me if You Think You’ve Heard This One Before
Tears for Fears, Everybody Wants to Rule the World
Whitesnake, Here I Go Again

1970s

The B-52’s, Rock Lobster
Blondie, Heart of Glass
Bob Marley, Get Up, Stand Up
Chicago, 25 or 6 to 4
Deep Purple, Smoke on the Water
Doobie Brothers, China Grove
Elton John, Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting
Foreigner, Cold As Ice
Golden Earring, Radar Love
John Lennon, Imagine
Lynyrd Skynyrd, Free Bird
Queen, Bohemian Rhapsody
Ramones, I Wanna Be Sedated
Steve Miller Band, Fly Like an Eagle
T. Rex, 20th Century Boy
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, I Need to Know
War, Low Rider
Warren Zevon, Werewolves of London
Yes, Roundabout

1960s

Beach Boys, Good Vibrations (Live)
David Bowie, Space Oddity
The Doors, Break on Through (To the Other Side)
James Brown, I Feel Good
The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Crosstown Traffic
The Who, I Can See for Miles

While I was a big fan of The Beatles: Rock Band, I do not think there is any doubt that Rock Band 3 is the best game in the proper Rock Band franchise (i.e. 1, 2 and 3). You get 83 songs, as well as all of the downloads that you previously purchased from past Rock Band games. The new guitar, which I unfortunately did not get a chance to play with, is an excellent idea for gamers looking to learn to play the guitar. With over 100 buttons, it is as real-to-life as you will get with a video game.