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As nice as it is to not have essay deadlines hanging over me, and to live with a wife and son instead of five fellow beer-swilling housemates, there are elements of my life ten years ago that I miss. One of those things isRock Band, but I didn’t realize quite how much I missed it until I started playing Fortnite Festival. It awakened something in me that had been dormant for a decade, but since you need a controller to play it, that something remained unfulfilled.
With the arrival of a Rock Band-like game, the return of instrument controllers to go along with it was inevitable. What I didn’t realize is just how quick the turnaround on that was going to be.PDP teased a new guitar controllerweeks after Fortnite Festival launched, and less than four months later, it’s already here.PDP’s Riffmasterclaims to be the next evolution in guitar controllers, and I’ve had the chance to take one for a strum.
Getting Set Up
Although I was hit with a wave of nostalgia when the Riffmaster arrived, it was evident before I’d even turned it on that, while everything you miss from the past is still there, this is a higher quality product than the guitars of old. I still remember the controller I got bundled with a copy of Guitar Hero: World Tour, which was effectively a guitar-shaped piece of plastic that I didn’t treat with much respect. If Hendrix can set his guitar alight and smash it on stage, I can chuck my far cheaper replica in a corner and not worry about dents or scratches.
The Riffmaster feels like more than that.While still lightweight- I’m all for immersion, but really don’t need something that weighs as much as a real guitar hanging around my neck while I play video games - PDP’s new controller feels high-end, like I should be carefully placing it onto a guitar stand once I’m finished with it. I won’t actually go that far, but the thought has crossed my mind.
Despite that higher-quality feel, when I used it for the first time, I was transported back to the height of my Rock Band career. The guitar was ready to go right out of the box, too. Just unfold the neck - more on that in a second - andplug the accompanying USB stick into the front of your console. Turn on the Riffmaster by holding thePlayStation/Xboxbutton like you would any other controller and you’re ready to go. The only other bit of setup needed is attaching the strap, if you want to use it.
New And Improved Features
Perhaps the best upgrade the Riffmaster brings to the table comes in the form of its buttons. By the time my World Tour career was over, the buttons on my old, mistreated guitar barely worked, some needing to be pressed incredibly hard just to register an input. That doesn’t feel like it’s going to be a problem here.The neck is made of a denser plastic, it’s easier to feel your button inputs are registering without them making any unwanted background noise, and there will bedifferent faceplate designs in the future. That means even if you do get carried away and scratch one, you can give your guitar a makeover and make it look good as new for your next concert. PDP has also employed a very simple way to make the controllereasy to use whether you’re left or right-handed. The buttons are the same width as the guitar’s neck and are rectangular, meaning a left-handed player can use the controller with ease.
On the back of the Riffmaster’s neck, right at the top, ismy favorite feature of all - an analog stick. No one seemed to be able to figure out how to remove the awkwardness from navigating menus in between songs years ago, but a decade later, PDP has nailed it. The analog stick is perfectly placed so it immediately feels natural to use. Well, more natural than reaching over and using the d-pad, although that is still an option if you’re after a truly nostalgic experience.
Back to that foldable neck. Since the guitar controllers that came before were basically just solid lumps of plastic, transporting them wasn’t really an option. You had to carry them down the street as is or leave them at home. If an all-new Rock Band era really is upon us and other instruments are coming, the Riffmaster will be a lot easier to get from your house to wherever the band is getting back together thanks to the fact that the instruments fold away between uses. It’s not perfect, since you still have to carry around a pretty sizable bit of kit - it’s still supposed to be a guitar, after all - but having the most awkward part tucked away like a tail makes the controller a whole lot easier to take with you on the go.
One element of nostalgia I’m glad the Riffmaster hasn’t brought to 2024 is battery use. The controller has a built-in rechargeable battery, which means you don’t need that pack of double-A batteries on hand like you used to. It also boasts 36 hours of battery life, which feels like an accurate estimate after having used it quite a bit, and a 30-foot cable is included so you can keep playing while it charges.
How Much Does It Cost?
The only real downside of the Riffmaster is the price.At $129.99, even with the nostalgia that it will stir up in so many, asking people to pay that much for this is going to be a tall order. It’s not that the guitar isn’t worth the price tag. The old controllers retailed for somewhere in the region of $70, and when you take into consideration how much time has passed and how much better the Riffmaster is than those old models, $130 seems fair. It’s more about whether people will be willing to pay that price, and I’m not convinced they will.
The Riffmaster is currentlyonly compatible with Rock Band 4. However, it will also be compatible with Fortnite Festival onceEpic’s promised instrument controller support updateis rolled out.
Whether you’re a Rock Band veteran itching to get back to it or you’re a Fortnite Festival fan who wants the experience to feel more real, the Riffmaster is absolutely worth grabbing, provided you’re not put off by the price. It’s everything the guitar controllers of old used to be, made better by quality-of-life improvements you didn’t realize you needed. The analog stick, the ease of switching between playing left or right-handed, and the foldable neck are all things I wish guitar controller creators had thought of 15 years ago.
AsLego Fortnitetakes off and Fortnite Festival starts being left behind, this controller is just what it needs to make the game feel unique and keep people coming back. For now, it’s perfect for playing Rock Band 4, and even though updates for the game have now ended, the base game is available for less than $10 if you don’t have it already. Get shredding.
PDP Riffmaster Wireless Guitar Controller
PDP’s Riffmaster has revived the guitar controller. Its wireless offering comes in PlayStation and Xbox versions and is compatible with Rock Band 4 with Fortnite Festival functionality coming in the future. Its features include a foldable neck, an analog stick, and a 30-foot low-latency cable for charging.
A PlayStation version of the Riffmaster was provided to TheGamer by PDP.
