Making the transitions between tracks and their different note configurations a bit easier is the fact that whatever instrument you're playing at a given moment is a bit louder than the rest. Basically, you need to be playing flawlessly, flipping around the tracks, and staying on the beat. Turns out, success in Rock Band Unplugged comes down to maxing out the multiplier - nail four phrases in a row and you move into "Band Groove" and get a 5x multiplier that then becomes an 11x multiplier when it's combined with overdrive. When I first started playing, I was performing admirably and getting multipliers in the 3x region, but I wasn't getting close to five or four-star performances. I'm actually a huge Rock Band fan, and I feel like Unplugged is more challenging than any version of the franchise before it. Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Under the Bridge" Siouxsie & the Banshees - "The Killing Jar"
The Offspring - "Come Out and Play (Keep 'em Separated)" Mighty Mighty Bosstones - "Where'd You Go?" This is key to getting a five-star performance. If no one's failed out, you can deploy your Overdrive energy (via X or Down) and get your multiplier doubled. Unlike the other Rock Bands, if the drums are too hard for you at one point, you can jump to another track and try to wait out the insane beat on the skins or whatever instrument has you stumped.
#ROCK BAND UNPLUGGED SERIES#
Just like every other version of Rock Band, you can save an instrument that has failed out by deploying Overdrive (white energy you've amassed by hitting a series of glowing white notes) and you're allowed to fail three times in a song before the music is cut short and you're deemed a loser. So you flub and get closer to failing on the instrument you botched, and then you start getting closer to failing on the instrument that now has notes that you're ignoring because you're trying to nail the one you just botched. Of course, flubbing means that one of the other tracks is about to get notes on it and you're going to be missing them. If you flub a note in a given phrase, the indicator moves further up the track so you can start again in a second.
When you hit every note in the phrase indicator, your multiplier increases by one and the track you were on plays by itself for a while so that you can jump to the next track that has notes falling on it. Now, as you're tapping out the tunes, you'll notice a white box around the track you're on. When you're done with one instrument, you'll use the shoulder buttons to scroll to the next one. Notes fall on a specific instrument's track, you tap them out as they cross the indicator line, and you score massive points. Yes, the bass, drums, microphone and guitar are all here, but you'll play them one at a time. Instead of playing with mini-bass guitars and tiny drumsticks, you'll control the onscreen action with the Left, Up, Triangle, and Circle buttons on your PSP. Ready for a video review in concert?! Yes, Unplugged brings all the red, green, yellow and blue notes you know and love from the home versions of the Rock Band franchise and crams them onto a tiny UMD. Well, friend, those days are behind you and I because Rock Band Unplugged is headed for the PSP.