“Dropping Your Pants Onstage Does Not Deploy Star Power”
So it’s been a little over a year now since the first Guitar Hero game came out, and not quite a month since GHII hit store shelves. With a production period of less than a year, while still producing a great game, I have to wonder how quickly we'll see future installments of the series.
Given the constraints of a five-fret-button controller with one strum bar taking place of the usual six strings, I feel the RedOctane and Harmonix crew have come up with some good improvements within the game play. As I was playing the first GH, there were some songs that had really great bass lines, most notably with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and I had thought it would be a great way if they could either find some way to come up with a bass section in the next game, or come out with a different version like "Bass Hero." Being able to play both bass and accompanying guitar, as well as the way they're implemented, was an excellent decision. Ever since the first game, people have questioned if it would be possible to combine other rhythm-based game controllers together, from games like Drum Mania/Taiko Drum Master, Karaoke Revolution, or Beat Mania. Considering RedOctane's roots in 3rd party controllers, I'm sure they'll be able to find some way to make this a reality.
Speaking of 3rd party controllers, I know there's been tons of posts on BBS's that say something like, "lulz, its so ironic that red octane wont let gh work with other controllers when they started by making their own dance mats for DDR," and I think it is a case of looking at the situation from a different point of view for RedOctane. I have to agree that it's a bit unfair to have taken such a drastic step. Hell, not only did they produce their own line of dance mats, they even copied Konami's taiko controller. I think there's also a huge difference in quality, though. While RedOctane made some arcade-quality mats at reasonable prices, most of the guitar controller competition comes up a bit short. For one, they've got some funky designs out there. The "shredder" series just LOOK cheap, period. I've never been a huge fan of "V" designed bodies, so I suppose there's some bias there, but from reviews that I've read, there are also some problems with their design and overall quality. Plus, with the designs that incorporate a second set of tive fret-buttons seem like they'd just be more confusing, rather than more realistic. They're programmed to the exact same five notes that the top set is, so you'd have to know ahead of time which notes are played higher than the rest (but then if you're going to do that, why not just make a game that has buttons for every fret down the neck, and add five more strum bars to the body?). Plus, they use much smaller buttons than the top set, making it both look weird and seem awkward to use. Finally, there's this crazy amp contraption that supposedly makes the songs sound more like they're being played by an actual guitar. First of all, they are being played by real guitars. They record the individual tracks in a real studio, then tie the notes played with the game's controls. What I think they mean is that this amp add-on is supposed to give the songs a more distorted sound, which is accomplished by running the two audio cables from the PS2's A/V cord through the amp, instead of through your TV's input terminals. I have to wonder how well that really works, though. I mean, first of all, if it just distorts the audio signals, how does it distinguish between the guitar tracks in the game, and every single other sound , such as vocals or other soundFX that's used? What about the songs that aren't meant to be distorted? The tracks are already run through the mixing board, as well as various pedals and effect machines to produce sounds that are as close to the original guitar parts as possible, why change it any further?
The final track list in the game has its pros and cons. For one, there's a ton of Metal/Hard Rock this time around, which I must admit I'm not a huge fan of. It does seem like the current trend has moved from boy-bands, to pop/punk, to the current metal trend. With songs from The Living End, Lamb of God, Avenged Sevenfold, Every Time I Die, and Shadows Fall, there are far more screeching songs than I care to hear. Unfortunately, my brother loves this stuff, so I constantly hear him attempting to play them on his (actual) guitar or pounding through the walls as he plays their CDs while he sleeps. I am a fan of Avenged 7X, so I'm actually happy with the inclusion of "Beast and the Harlot" in the game. It was difficult on Hard, and damn crazy on Expert, but I finally did manage to pass it, and even land a consistent 97% with bass on Expert. The rest, though, I could do without. Well, I have gotten to like Every Time I Die's "The New Black" a bit more, but I think that has more to do with having seen the song's video, and actually being able to pass the song on Expert without too much trouble than it is with me getting used to the harsh vocals.
In previous posts, there has been much gloating over my GH skills, followed by a list of my scores. Unless you want to compare a specific difficulty, I'm going to have to wait a bit more before I post a full list. I still haven't been able to beat "Hangar 18" on Expert. I get 87% through, and then the solos kill me. It tricks you with the first 2/3 being really easy, and the "wham!" you're looking at the flashing red. Has anyone else noticed how sensitive this particular track is to mistakes? I swear, I miss five notes during the solos, and I fail the song, even when the gauge was maxed out green before that. Another reason for this list's absence is that I haven't really gone for high scores yet, other than on Hard. Easy and Medium are too simple now, and I get bored with them. I really am impressed with kira_'s 100% on "Freebird." Even though he's a sissy and only plays it on Easy, I don't think I'd be able to play through it three or more times to get to that point. I'd make one simple timing mistake, and say "fuck this."
Speaking of individual songs, I'm surprised with the ones that I actually enjoy. While there are only a handful that I did know at all going in to this game, there are many that I either haven't heard in a long time, or have never heard completely though. First, here are most of my favorites, as far as the songs themselves go: "Mother," Tonight, I'm Going To Rock You Tonight," Strutter," "Message in a Bottle," "Carry On Wayward Son," "Monkey Wrench," Sweet Child O' Mine," "Last Child," "Crazy on You," "Rock This Town," "Jessica," "Stop," "Beast and the Harlot," "Miserlou," "Push Push (Lady Lightning)," "Laughtrack," Less Talk More Rokk," "Jordan," "Mr. Fix-It," "Soy Bomb." I'm really not a fan of anything Nirvana, but I do enjoy playing "Heart-Shaped Box" on Hard and Expert, but conversely, I find myself insanely frustrated trying to play "Crazy on You," "Rock This Town," "Less Talk More Rokk," and "Jordan" on Expert. While have managed to finish the first two without failing (though I've yet to five-star them, as far as I can remember), and can barely finish "Less… ," "Jordan" is so crazy hard, I can't even complete the song. Then again, it is from Buckethead. And, if you're familiar with him at all, especially if you've every actually seen him play, then you should have plenty of pity for me. Buckethead… like, whoa!
Well, that's my post on all most things Guitar Hero II. Perhaps if I can work my way through the last two songs on Expert, and maybe boost up my other scores a bit, I'll post them on a future post. Also, I'll have to upload these shots of my guitar controller that I'm both quite happy with, yet also extremely pissed off at. One of these days, I'll put them up on PhotoBucket or something. Then you'll see what I'm talking about.
Until then, remember to always jack the VOLUME UP TO 11!
Given the constraints of a five-fret-button controller with one strum bar taking place of the usual six strings, I feel the RedOctane and Harmonix crew have come up with some good improvements within the game play. As I was playing the first GH, there were some songs that had really great bass lines, most notably with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and I had thought it would be a great way if they could either find some way to come up with a bass section in the next game, or come out with a different version like "Bass Hero." Being able to play both bass and accompanying guitar, as well as the way they're implemented, was an excellent decision. Ever since the first game, people have questioned if it would be possible to combine other rhythm-based game controllers together, from games like Drum Mania/Taiko Drum Master, Karaoke Revolution, or Beat Mania. Considering RedOctane's roots in 3rd party controllers, I'm sure they'll be able to find some way to make this a reality.
Speaking of 3rd party controllers, I know there's been tons of posts on BBS's that say something like, "lulz, its so ironic that red octane wont let gh work with other controllers when they started by making their own dance mats for DDR," and I think it is a case of looking at the situation from a different point of view for RedOctane. I have to agree that it's a bit unfair to have taken such a drastic step. Hell, not only did they produce their own line of dance mats, they even copied Konami's taiko controller. I think there's also a huge difference in quality, though. While RedOctane made some arcade-quality mats at reasonable prices, most of the guitar controller competition comes up a bit short. For one, they've got some funky designs out there. The "shredder" series just LOOK cheap, period. I've never been a huge fan of "V" designed bodies, so I suppose there's some bias there, but from reviews that I've read, there are also some problems with their design and overall quality. Plus, with the designs that incorporate a second set of tive fret-buttons seem like they'd just be more confusing, rather than more realistic. They're programmed to the exact same five notes that the top set is, so you'd have to know ahead of time which notes are played higher than the rest (but then if you're going to do that, why not just make a game that has buttons for every fret down the neck, and add five more strum bars to the body?). Plus, they use much smaller buttons than the top set, making it both look weird and seem awkward to use. Finally, there's this crazy amp contraption that supposedly makes the songs sound more like they're being played by an actual guitar. First of all, they are being played by real guitars. They record the individual tracks in a real studio, then tie the notes played with the game's controls. What I think they mean is that this amp add-on is supposed to give the songs a more distorted sound, which is accomplished by running the two audio cables from the PS2's A/V cord through the amp, instead of through your TV's input terminals. I have to wonder how well that really works, though. I mean, first of all, if it just distorts the audio signals, how does it distinguish between the guitar tracks in the game, and every single other sound , such as vocals or other soundFX that's used? What about the songs that aren't meant to be distorted? The tracks are already run through the mixing board, as well as various pedals and effect machines to produce sounds that are as close to the original guitar parts as possible, why change it any further?
The final track list in the game has its pros and cons. For one, there's a ton of Metal/Hard Rock this time around, which I must admit I'm not a huge fan of. It does seem like the current trend has moved from boy-bands, to pop/punk, to the current metal trend. With songs from The Living End, Lamb of God, Avenged Sevenfold, Every Time I Die, and Shadows Fall, there are far more screeching songs than I care to hear. Unfortunately, my brother loves this stuff, so I constantly hear him attempting to play them on his (actual) guitar or pounding through the walls as he plays their CDs while he sleeps. I am a fan of Avenged 7X, so I'm actually happy with the inclusion of "Beast and the Harlot" in the game. It was difficult on Hard, and damn crazy on Expert, but I finally did manage to pass it, and even land a consistent 97% with bass on Expert. The rest, though, I could do without. Well, I have gotten to like Every Time I Die's "The New Black" a bit more, but I think that has more to do with having seen the song's video, and actually being able to pass the song on Expert without too much trouble than it is with me getting used to the harsh vocals.
In previous posts, there has been much gloating over my GH skills, followed by a list of my scores. Unless you want to compare a specific difficulty, I'm going to have to wait a bit more before I post a full list. I still haven't been able to beat "Hangar 18" on Expert. I get 87% through, and then the solos kill me. It tricks you with the first 2/3 being really easy, and the "wham!" you're looking at the flashing red. Has anyone else noticed how sensitive this particular track is to mistakes? I swear, I miss five notes during the solos, and I fail the song, even when the gauge was maxed out green before that. Another reason for this list's absence is that I haven't really gone for high scores yet, other than on Hard. Easy and Medium are too simple now, and I get bored with them. I really am impressed with kira_'s 100% on "Freebird." Even though he's a sissy and only plays it on Easy, I don't think I'd be able to play through it three or more times to get to that point. I'd make one simple timing mistake, and say "fuck this."
Speaking of individual songs, I'm surprised with the ones that I actually enjoy. While there are only a handful that I did know at all going in to this game, there are many that I either haven't heard in a long time, or have never heard completely though. First, here are most of my favorites, as far as the songs themselves go: "Mother," Tonight, I'm Going To Rock You Tonight," Strutter," "Message in a Bottle," "Carry On Wayward Son," "Monkey Wrench," Sweet Child O' Mine," "Last Child," "Crazy on You," "Rock This Town," "Jessica," "Stop," "Beast and the Harlot," "Miserlou," "Push Push (Lady Lightning)," "Laughtrack," Less Talk More Rokk," "Jordan," "Mr. Fix-It," "Soy Bomb." I'm really not a fan of anything Nirvana, but I do enjoy playing "Heart-Shaped Box" on Hard and Expert, but conversely, I find myself insanely frustrated trying to play "Crazy on You," "Rock This Town," "Less Talk More Rokk," and "Jordan" on Expert. While have managed to finish the first two without failing (though I've yet to five-star them, as far as I can remember), and can barely finish "Less… ," "Jordan" is so crazy hard, I can't even complete the song. Then again, it is from Buckethead. And, if you're familiar with him at all, especially if you've every actually seen him play, then you should have plenty of pity for me. Buckethead… like, whoa!
Well, that's my post on all most things Guitar Hero II. Perhaps if I can work my way through the last two songs on Expert, and maybe boost up my other scores a bit, I'll post them on a future post. Also, I'll have to upload these shots of my guitar controller that I'm both quite happy with, yet also extremely pissed off at. One of these days, I'll put them up on PhotoBucket or something. Then you'll see what I'm talking about.
Until then, remember to always jack the VOLUME UP TO 11!