The peripheral-centric rhythm genre seems like it's been around for an eternity, hasn't it? In actuality, the genre went from relative obscurity to complete and utter saturation in just five years. From deep beneath a blanket of fake plastic instruments, it can be difficult to see where the innovation is going to come from next -- or, to put it more efficiently, it can be easy to adopt the opinion that that innovation may never come. Fortunately, Harmonix hasn't capitulated quite so easily.

Though Rock Band 2 could be knocked for its lack of ambition, with its largest changes being focused on improving the user experience on a superficial level, the third generation of Harmonix's music platform has ambition to spare. Not only does it fix the few kinks left unsmoothed by previous entries into the series; it adds an unprecedented amount of new features to the Rock Band experience you -- and likely your group of faux-bandmates -- have come to know and love. That experience, already a relatively unparalleled source of enjoyment, is exponentially greater by the virtue of these new additions.

Or, to put it less mathematically: Rock Band 3 is the greatest rhythm game ever made, and quite possibly the only rhythm game you need to own.