Anyone who has played, or has been forced to play, Guitar Hero will be familiar with the idea of a guitar-shaped controller. If you enjoy said controller, chances are you've known for a while now that Harmonix's new game, Rock Band, is looking to up the ante by putting the player in control of a suite of instruments: guitars, bass, drums, and (perhaps unfortunately) even a microphone. Information has been released on the game's Fender Stratocasteresque guitar controller and it's looking, well, a little unusual.

 

What will immediately stand out is the fact that five buttons have been added to the guitar at the base of the fret board. If you're looking at the five fingers on your hand now, wondering how you're supposed to be able to reach those, fear not (and also learn to play a guitar): the new buttons are reportedly included for a solo mode in the upcoming game, no doubt for when players need to shred their way to the finish. Hopefully we'll see some more details on the various other controllers soon. – Kevin Hall

Tags: controllers | fender | games | guitars | harmonix