The Beatles: Rock Band Primer Guide

It goes without saying that the Beatles were a phenomenon. Neither before nor since has a musical act garnered as much love and attention that the Beatles have. So it's not exactly surprising that one of the biggest music games in town has devoted their latest installment entirely to The Beatles. In what was clearly a labor of love, The Beatles: Rock Band goes far beyond most branded music games and plays out almost like an interactive documentary. With that said, the core is still Rock Band, and you're still striving to be the best rock star you can be.

Here's what you'll find in GameSpot's The Beatles: Rock Band Primer Guide:

• Music Lessons: If you're new to Rock Band, or just looking for some quick tips, attend our Music Lesson section.
• Song & Arena List: Check out what songs are featured in the Beatles Rock Band, as well as the famous locales where you'll be performing them.
• Xbox 360 Achievements: Learn how to obtain this game's every achievement.
• PS3 Trophies: Want some of those sweet PS3 trophies? Here you go!

Music Lessons

Here's the gist: you are The Beatles. Assuming the role of any of the Fab Four, you'll be playing the parts of either guitar, bass, drums, or singer. If you've played one of the previous versions of Rock Band, you should already know the basics. But for those new to the series, this section's for you.

Objective

At its core, the goal is to complete each song and earn a high score. The fundamentals for most of the instruments (vocals aside) are very similar in that each player is presented with a "note highway," where a seemingly endless string of colored notes race toward the bottom of the screen. Each note corresponds to either a fret button on the guitar and bass or a pad on the drums. You need to perform the appropriate note the moment those notes slide past the colored fret buttons at the bottom. The longer you go without missing a note, the higher the combo and the more points you'll earn.

Beatlemania

For previous Rock Band players, Beatlemania is just a rebranded version of "Overdrive." Here's how it works: throughout each song are sections of notes that glow white (or yellow for vocals)--as you hit these notes, the Beatlemania bar will begin to fill. Once the meter is at least half filled, Beatlemania can be activated at almost any time. With it activated, not only does it double the point value of each note hit thereafter, but the penalty for missing a note is also significantly reduced. In addition, if playing multiplayer, activating Beatlemania is the only way in which to revive a fallen teammate.

Now Beatlemania only lasts a short while (the more energy stored in the meter, the longer it persists), so it's important you activate it at the right time. In general, it should be saved for fast portions of the song with plenty of notes, to gain the most substantial score boost. Likewise, try to avoid activating it during sections with long, sustained notes, as this simply burns through your Beatlemania without netting you much in the way of points.

But how do you actually activate Beatlemania? It depends on the instrument. In the case of both guitar and bass, it can be activated at any time (assuming the meter is at least half-full) by either tilting the guitar straight up, or tapping the select button. The process is a bit different for drums, however. Instead of being able to activate it at any time, you must wait until a glowing green note appears--hitting it (by tapping the green pad) will activate Beatlemania. However, if you wish to save Beatlemania for later, skipping that note bears no penalty.

Guitar

Ah yes, the guitar, the one instrument that is not only integral to most bands, but it's also what jump-started the whole music game craze. It's generally the most popular of the Rock Band instruments, so you may have to fight your friends in order to play it.

You'll find five colored fret buttons on the guitar, in addition to the strum and whammy bars. Each fret button corresponds to the same-colored bar on the screen, at the base of the 'note highway.' In order to actually hit the notes coming your way, you'll have to tap the strum bar while holding down the required fret buttons. On the higher difficulties, this may become problematic as you have five frets, but only four fingers. To hit these notes, be sure to slide your hand either up or down by a fret to get your fingers in the proper position. It can be confusing, but practice will soon make it second nature.

Hammer-Ons & Pull-Offs

Hammer-ons and pull-offs are important skills to learn, as it allows you to play a series of notes simply by tapping or releasing the respective fret buttons, without having to tap the strum bar except for the initial strum. This becomes crucial on the higher difficulties. A hammer-on or pull-off opportunity can be identified when you see a series of notes that shrink in size after the initial note which begins the sequence. In the case of a Hammer-On, the notes will start at the low end of the scale (green fret) and work their way to the the high-end (orange fret), whereas the opposite is true for pull-offs.

To perform a hammer-on, strum the first note of the sequence, then simply tap the respective fret for the following (smaller) notes, without further strumming. For a pull-off, you'll actually lift your fingers off each subsequent fret in the sequence (from pinky finger to pointer), again without touching the strum bar for the notes beyond the first. It can be tricky to get the hang of it, so you may want to practice in the game's training mode, which offers a tutorial specifically for hammer-on and pull-offs.

Bass

As far as gameplay is concerned, bass is near identical to guitar, except that the note sequences tend to be simpler and more repetitive. As such, bass may actually be preferential for newcomers to Rock Band. Because the basics are the same, please check the "guitar" section above for advice.

Drums

With few exceptions, drumming isn't the most respected band position, and even the Beatle's Ringo Starr wasn't immune to this bum rap (whether this descriptor is fair or not is beyond the scope of this guide). Despite this, drumming is perhaps the trickiest and most intricate instrument of Rock Band and demands ones full attention.

The basics are similar to playing guitar--that is, drum the pad that matches the color of the notes shown on-screen. Unlike guitar, however, you only have four colored notes, each corresponding to one of the drum pads. However, there is one key difference--the addition of an orange line that spans the width of the note highway. This signifies it's time to hit the bass pedal. Unfortunately, for many would-be drummers, trying to manage the drum kit and bass pedal together is like trying to pat ones head while rubbing their stomach--it's not easy to do. If you find yourself having trouble, practice, practice, and practice some more. Try to focus on the rhythm of the song and not so much on your exact motions.

Vocals

Rock Band introduced the ability to sing while your friends drum and rock out on guitar, but now The Beatles allows for up to three to sing at once, in harmony. Unlike guitar, bass, and drums, singing works quite differently in the way it's presented. The wide bar at the top of the screen displays everything you need to know; specifically, what pitch you should be singing in and the lyrics.

The arrow on the left shows your current pitch: sing high and it raises, sing low and it drops. Your goal is to sing in pitch, as represented by the blue line--if the arrow's above or below it, adjust your pitch accordingly.

Song & Venue List

The Beatles composed a ridiculous amount of songs for a single group, with their complete catalog consisting of more than 300. Of course, The Beatles: Rock Band doesn't include anywhere near that amount on the disc itself, but it does contain a respectable 45, with more available for download. Here is the complete list of songs that appears on the disc proper, in addition to the venues you'll be playing them in.

Xbox 360 Achievements

Note that there are Spoilers on this list.

Secret Achievements

PlayStation 3 Trophies

Secret Trophies