Rock Band 3 To Include MIDI Keyboard

xbeefsupreme writes with news that Harmonix has officially demonstrated Rock Band 3's 25-key MIDI keyboard. From USA Today: "During the game, green, red, blue, yellow or orange keys flow on a 'stream' representing the notes to be played on five corresponding keyboard keys. In a new authentic Pro mode meant to help players segue to actual instruments, all 25 keys are used; the streams shifts left and right to cover the correct keys. The keyboard also works as a MIDI keyboard that can be connected to a computer. 'This is a real instrument and a real device,' says senior designer Sylvain Dubrofsky." The game will also support more advanced "real" guitar controllers, which have six actual strings you can strum. Hit the link below to see the keyboard in use.

Re:theories on how guitars with strings will work

[Pojut]

If it's anything like PowerGig [arstechnica.com], there will be a little bumper that you can raise up against the strings while using it as a guitar controller. That will go a long way to keeping it in tune. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a tuner built into the guitar accessible through the game as well.

i like the drum kit from band hero

[Michael Kristopeit]

i have the 5 pad drum kit with cymbals for the wii... i noticed that it supports standard MIDI as well, and even though i have a korg triton pro, and a roland 909, it's still more fun to slam sticks on the pads than push the buttons or key in a program on the host devices.

so the drum kit serves for people that don't have a digital drum kit, but i don't know anyone that would use a MIDI keyboard that doesn't already own one that is better than the one demoed for this game.

most play-along keyboards adjust the tempo to wait for the player... i'm assuming the game works like other guitar hero games and the song will just keep on going for the rest of the players... it will be much harder for the keyboard player to get their hands back in the right position after slipping up. i guess that's why it's "pro mode"... don't slip up.

Re:new authentic Pro mode

[sznupi]

OTOH some could go "hey, I like this, wanna more" route? And I imagine some other group, of "hardcore" players, might eventually get a muscle memory association between sound and its key; however clumsy that would almost always end up, perhaps good enough to play some simple song they could just hum previously ? ;)

What I'd like to see

[Yvan256]

I'd like to see Accordion Hero with "Weird Al" Yankovic as the game host.

Re:Question

[Anonymous Coward]

You'd be better off playing Synthesia [synthesiagame.com].

Re:new authentic Pro mode

[HTH NE1]

If they pull out a saxophone hero too, I'll need to pick up something else just so I can stop being associated with this.

I've been intending to pull out my sax and play it to the vocal track for awhile now, but microphone mounts for the bell of a saxophone (where I've asked around here) are more expensive that I'd like (and seem to always include their own real microphone, adding to the price). The game doesn't care if you even sing the right lyrics (I like singing Nine Inch Nails' "Mr. Self Destruct" to the tune of Molly Hatchet's "Flirtin' With Disaster") so it should be possible to sing with a sax for many if not most songs that don't slide the pitch everywhere. I play by ear to the radio a lot anyway.