Developer: Neversoft (Xbox 360)Publisher: Activision
Release Date (US): October 28, 2007
System(s): Xbox 360 (Reviewed), PC & Mac (11/12/07), PS2/3, Wii
Modes: Single player career, Co-op, Online co-op
Rating: T
I am a huge fan of the "rhythm" game genre. Unfortunately there aren't too many, at least not that many as fun as Guitar Hero. Even though the game has departed from Harmonix (developers of Rock Band), the game is still just as good as ever!
Let's talk about the guitar. Boy is it sweet. There is virtually no lag between the wireless controller and the game. This is surprising, although for those really fast passages, I really wonder how much of it is me or the wireless signal... Anyways, the guitar is detachable at the neck for travel purposes. You can also customize the guitar with face plates (extra of course), as well as get a free universal guitar stand for your controller if you buy the game this week (10/28-11/3) at Circuit City. The glossy black finish is sweet, but it does lead to smudges showing up easily, like an iPhone screen.
The buttons are not as springy as the Xbox 360 and PS2 GH2 versions. The strum bar is much quieter than before as well, making it less noisy when playing those really fast passages. It would have been nice if the guitar had rechargeable batteries in it with a cable to recharge or play without batteries, but this would probably drive the cost up. I'm sure a third party manufacturer will produce them at one point. Also, the neck strap is REALLY long. They must've realized that fat people like to play Guitar Hero as well!
My only real complaint about the Gibson Les Paul guitar is the sensitivity when activating the Star Power. Normally this is great, because in the past I would tilt the guitar several times to get the Star Power going. But when I sit in a chair with arms, I automatically tilt the guitar up in order to play more comfortably. Whenever I get enough "juice" to activate the Star Power, it automatically starts since the guitar is somewhat tilted. Guess I'll just have to play standing up, huh? Or get a new chair...
So back to the gameplay. Everything looks basically "the same" as the previous version, as far as the format of naming your band and selecting songs. Instead of a newspaper at the end of each song you are featured in a magazine. You also play an encore after finishing 4 songs in each set, as in the previous version. One nice change with the song selection screen is that it posts your career score at the bottom of the screen. If I'm not mistaken, in previous versions you had to go to another screen to view your career score.
Co-op is expanded with being a mode in career, as well as multiplayer over XBL, either against each other or as a duo. There are also ranked and player matches on XBL. I can't wait to try the ranked matches... look for me as PekosRob!
This will keep me patiently waiting for Rock Band next month. I plan on getting the guitar and drums for that, although I have NO room in my bedroom for the drums, so I will have to figure out what I'm going to do.
The song selection is EXCELLENT, with both classic rock (hence the name Legends of Rock) from Cream to KISS, and a nice song selection from the 90s, my personal favorite decade in rock after the mid 60s to late 70s (yeah, more than a decade, but who's counting). 90s songs include Sabotage, My Name is Jonas (about time Weezer got on the game!), and Bulls on Parade.
The Achievements are REALLY difficult in this game, so I'll be happy if I get at least half of them.
I give this game and guitar and overall score of 9.0/10. It would be a 10, but how on earth could a sequel get a 10? It's the same thing, but just a tad bit better each time, so it's not like it's innovative or groundbreaking (usually). Even Halo 3 didn't get a 10 from me, although now I might rate it a lil higher.
UPDATE: Did you read how I wished the battery was rechargeable? Looks like someone already made some. But you have to take them out to recharge them.
Let's talk about the guitar. Boy is it sweet. There is virtually no lag between the wireless controller and the game. This is surprising, although for those really fast passages, I really wonder how much of it is me or the wireless signal... Anyways, the guitar is detachable at the neck for travel purposes. You can also customize the guitar with face plates (extra of course), as well as get a free universal guitar stand for your controller if you buy the game this week (10/28-11/3) at Circuit City. The glossy black finish is sweet, but it does lead to smudges showing up easily, like an iPhone screen.
The buttons are not as springy as the Xbox 360 and PS2 GH2 versions. The strum bar is much quieter than before as well, making it less noisy when playing those really fast passages. It would have been nice if the guitar had rechargeable batteries in it with a cable to recharge or play without batteries, but this would probably drive the cost up. I'm sure a third party manufacturer will produce them at one point. Also, the neck strap is REALLY long. They must've realized that fat people like to play Guitar Hero as well!
My only real complaint about the Gibson Les Paul guitar is the sensitivity when activating the Star Power. Normally this is great, because in the past I would tilt the guitar several times to get the Star Power going. But when I sit in a chair with arms, I automatically tilt the guitar up in order to play more comfortably. Whenever I get enough "juice" to activate the Star Power, it automatically starts since the guitar is somewhat tilted. Guess I'll just have to play standing up, huh? Or get a new chair...
So back to the gameplay. Everything looks basically "the same" as the previous version, as far as the format of naming your band and selecting songs. Instead of a newspaper at the end of each song you are featured in a magazine. You also play an encore after finishing 4 songs in each set, as in the previous version. One nice change with the song selection screen is that it posts your career score at the bottom of the screen. If I'm not mistaken, in previous versions you had to go to another screen to view your career score.
Co-op is expanded with being a mode in career, as well as multiplayer over XBL, either against each other or as a duo. There are also ranked and player matches on XBL. I can't wait to try the ranked matches... look for me as PekosRob!
This will keep me patiently waiting for Rock Band next month. I plan on getting the guitar and drums for that, although I have NO room in my bedroom for the drums, so I will have to figure out what I'm going to do.
The song selection is EXCELLENT, with both classic rock (hence the name Legends of Rock) from Cream to KISS, and a nice song selection from the 90s, my personal favorite decade in rock after the mid 60s to late 70s (yeah, more than a decade, but who's counting). 90s songs include Sabotage, My Name is Jonas (about time Weezer got on the game!), and Bulls on Parade.
The Achievements are REALLY difficult in this game, so I'll be happy if I get at least half of them.
I give this game and guitar and overall score of 9.0/10. It would be a 10, but how on earth could a sequel get a 10? It's the same thing, but just a tad bit better each time, so it's not like it's innovative or groundbreaking (usually). Even Halo 3 didn't get a 10 from me, although now I might rate it a lil higher.
UPDATE: Did you read how I wished the battery was rechargeable? Looks like someone already made some. But you have to take them out to recharge them.
1 comment:
I keep hearing that a lot of people get tired of this game quickly and want to move onto GH Aerosmith or Rock Band.
It seems that most players are just recommending to rent it.
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