Joystiq

[Update 4: The latest developments in this saga can be found in a new post.]

[Update 3: I just received the following message in an e-mail from Scott with Best Buy Customer Care: "At this time we are looking into why this page isn't working on the website. Please keep checking to see it once we have fixed it. I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused and thank you for your patience and understanding."]

[Update 2: As of Tuesday morning, the product description pages for Rock Band are no longer available on BestBuy.com. A customer service representative told Joystiq that existing pre-orders tshould still be valid for the moment and that the order could be changed if price or product description changes happen on subsequent versions of the site.]

[Update: It appears Best Buy has taken down the pre-order links as of late Monday night. We'll let you know if and when they come back up, and if we hear anything more about Best Buy honoring the advertised price and features for those that did get orders in.]

BestBuy.com has put up pre-order listings for the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of Rock Band. That doesn't sound like a big deal until you hear about the price each version is listed at: $59.99. That's a lot less than the $300 Gamestop estimate that was getting thrown around a while back.

We know what you're thinking: This deal is probably just for the game disc, without the special controllers needed to make it work. Au contraire -- the product features clearly state that "included drum, guitar and microphone peripherals enable players to perform music together." [emphasis added]. Even if Best Buy realizes their mistake and raises the price, their pre-order FAQ states "you will always receive the lower of the two prices."

We can't guarantee that Best Buy will actually honor this great deal when the game comes out in November, but it seems to us like they might have to. We recommend putting in the order now, printing out the applicable product features description and receipt, and arguing your case when it comes time for the in-store pick up.