As you may or may not know, Mad Catz is the new publisher for Rock Band 3, and is giving it a re-release this holiday season. Since there are many reviews out there from the original release last year, there’s really no reason to add another evaluation of the main game element. However, what never got a lot of attention is the Pro or ‘Learn to Play’ mode of Rock Band 3, and that is what I will concentrate on here.

When I first played Rock Band (or even Guitar Hero for that matter), I was awful. I do think this had more to do with the fact I am a professional guitar player, and expected the five button controller to act or feel more like a real guitar. As most pro guitar players will tell you, the original controllers don’t come close to the feel of a real guitar, but all that has been changed with the Mustang Pro Guitar.

This controller gives the player the feel of playing the real thing, and helps make learning how to play easy using a video game. What’s really cool about the Mustang is when you are going through Rock Band 3 and learning the songs, you are actually learning real chord shapes, real skill shapes, real songs, real licks, and so forth.

There is definitely a group of guitar players out there who think this is ‘just a toy’ and would rather play a real guitar; what they are missing is that this is an easy and effective way to learn actual songs. It’s extremely easy to transfer what you’ve learned from the Mustang to a real guitar. Additionally, the Pro mode drives home the need for repetition in your practice sessions.

Without a doubt, those looking to learn to play guitar will be able to learn songs using the Rock Band 3 software and Mustang guitar. Beyond that, there are a number of items that need to be learned, such as how to hold the guitar, where to place your fingers, etc. This area may be the most frustrating for those trying to use Rock Band 3 to learn songs, as these aspects are not fundamental to most people. This may make the Pro mode a bit intimidating at first, but like any other game or instrument, practice is where it’s at and if you are willing to put the time in there is a big payoff.

Again, while this may be easier than learning from a real guitar, it is still a daunting task. It’s important to have the right expectations set before setting out, as the thought that Rock Band 3’s Pro mode will teach you a song in a matter of minutes isn’t quite accurate.

I should point out some of the specs for the Mustang guitar, as looking at it may be overwhelming. The Mustang has 102 buttons, made up from a 17 fret fretboard each containing six buttons. It has versions for Xbox 360, PS3, and Wii, and it is safe to say it is one of the most complex controllers ever assembled. One of the most pleasantly surprising aspects of the controller is its responsiveness—the accuracy is very good.