The Squier Pro Guitar (technically, the name is Squier by Fender Stratocaster Guitar and Controller) for Rock Band 3 is a very interesting piece of tech, playing the dual role of a real guitar and a Rock Band guitar. As someone who hasn't ever really played guitar, I decided to go through the game's lessons and try to learn all I could in the span of a week.

The lessons walk you through the basics, and as long as you're patient, you'll be learning scales and chords in no time at all. You can even "learn" songs, these lesson parts walk you through a few repeated sections of songs so you have an idea of what to expect when you play it. Also helpful is the fact that each song has varying difficulty, so you can play a "dumbed down" version of the real song on Easy, and slowly work your way up to playing the actual song on Guitar in Expert mode.

As far as I can discern, the guitar can read when you strum, and where your fingers are on the fret board. Placing your fingers on the fret board is the most important aspect of using the instrument. That means it gets really frustrating when the game seems to read where you have your fingers placed incorrectly. I'll fully admit that part of the issue likely lies in my own clumsiness with the instrument, but there were times when I would have my finger in the correct position and the game would think that it isn't. That, fortunately, wasn't a persistent issue, and as I said, likely resided with my poor guitar-playing skills.

When it works, it's very rewarding, much like playing the real thing, which, more or less, you are doing. The lame part of this all is that the game still seems to react like you're just playing Rock Band; as in, the music you make is still the original track playing in the same way it would when you are playing with a regular plastic instrument. It's totally awesome that you're actually playing the song, but it's a little disheartening when you still hear the original band's track. However, if you hook up an amp to the guitar while you play in the game, you'll be playing the song.

Much like I said about the keyboard when I reviewed Rock Band 3 last fall, the Pro Guitar feels like a brand new Rock Band instrument. It's truly the shot in the arm the franchise needed, as it reinvents the way the game is played. If you love Rock Band, and you want to learn guitar, I would definitely point you in the direction of this guitar, even if it might be a little costly. If it weren't for the fact that I don't have the time to dedicate to this instrument, I would buy it in a heartbeat.