Rock Band review PS3

One of the most eagerly awaited games of the year, Rock Band is everything we were hoping for, and more. It's out in April here in the UK, but we got our hands on an import copy and we have a full review of the game just for our readers in this issue of P3Zine. A few hours with Rock Band and you'll truly believe you're a god of Rock - drummer or lead guitarist, it's up to you. We've torn ourselves away from the game long enough to give Rock Band a P3Zine Gold Award - find out what treats are in store for you in our massive review now!

Click here to read our Rock Band review for the PS3 now!

Rock Band review PS3

It's not often that you can say of a game that it's worth every penny without knowing the price, but that's the position we find ourselves in with Rock Band. Despite being pencilled in for an April release, there's no concrete details of how much the full pack (with bundled guitar, drum and mic peripherals) will cost - if the US release is anything to go by, it could cost around £90. Now, to the average consumer, that might seem expensive. Not a bit of it - in fact, Rock Band is one of the best value games we've ever played, and our countless hours on the region-free US version is testimony to that. Bearing in mind that thanks to extortionate postage costs we shelled out around 150 notes for the privilege of playing this early - and we still think it provides more bang for your buck than 95% of other games should tell you everything you need to know. Rock Band is a genuine gaming masterpiece.

Open the enormous box, and what immediately strikes you is the quality of the peripherals. The Fender Strat guitar controller may not feel quite as chunkily solid as the Guitar Hero III Les Paul, but it looks more like a real guitar. The fret buttons are coloured on the side of the neck rather than the front, while an additional set of five near the bottom allow you to play the solos in a more realistic position - and without the need to strum during those particular sections. Meanwhile, there's an effects switch whose various sounds (from flanger to chorus) kick in on the aforementioned solos and whenever you tilt your Strat to unleash Overdrive for the multipliers that get you the biggest scores.