initial thoughts

Well, I now have the game that has been very highly anticipated in my circle of friends for the better part of this past summer.

And as with most summer blockbusters, I had prepared myself for the let down that usually follows a mega-hyped entertainment event.

I even thought about possibly waiting to purchase the game after the price drops and instead using my tooth fairy money to buy some more DLC songs. I already know most of the Beatles catalog on real guitar and have been playing and singing those songs for years. How could the game be any more fun than that?

But I took the plunge and bought into the hype and this morning a couple of buddies sat down with me to zip through a few tunes in Quickplay before heading to school.

It's different in some ways, but similar enough that I could handle playing in 'Hard Mode' right off the bat. The visuals are stunning, almost distractingly-so during gameplay. The songs are really fun. None are extremely difficult like Visions from RB2 or anything.

Before I knew it, we were late for class. We only have a couple of classes today, so we decided to skip our studies for today and start the story mode.

Let me tell you, story mode is where this game really shows its worth! It was difficult to stop for lunch, but we need our energy if we are going to make the most of this day playing hookie!

Do I think it lives up to the hype? Yep. But, of course, that depends on how high your expectations are.

Is it as fun as playing the Beatles music in real life? No way. It's totally different. Playing Rock Band is a different experience than playing music, but it very fun in its own way.

The game is more about the story than playing the songs. And it's really fun to celebrate the music and legacy of one of the greatest rock bands of all time in a completely new way!

I'd give it ****1/2 out of *****. The 1/2 point deduction being the short list of tracks. But is it such a bad thing to say that the only thing you disliked is that you want more?