Guitar Hero 3: The Boss Matches Suck, the Rest Rocks

[Phildo]

What?  Seriously?  Fuck them.  They had a FANTASTIC product.  Why are they adding all this extra bullshit?  Fuck Rock Band, just make more Guitar Hero.  They don't even need to release more discs, just keep feeding us DLC!  Bastards.

[Ookii]

[schild]

So awesome.

[Venkman]

Gamespot details

Seriously, who's the audience for this? People who break their Rock Band, thus making this a library comparison? People who want to make music on their console? People who didn't know about Rock Band?

[schild]

Uh, I don't know. People who thought Rock Band was a kids toy with shitty tabs, ugly graphics, and a terrible Road Show where you played the same shit over and over because you were good at it?

Also, Guitar Hero has always been about the expert level challenge. Rock Band has "always" (in parens because there's only one entry) been about easy songs that you can play while you're drunk.

Though, I'm even better at Guitar Hero when I'm halfway smashed. I doubt that's the status quo.

[Phildo]

Rock Band was about pleasing one instrument at a time.  Most of the songs had 1 part that was particularly difficult while the others were relatively easy.  Aside from that, I thought they fixed the World Tour bugs in a patch a few months ago?  The tabs on Rock Band do like like shit, though.

[schild]

Oh, I didn't even mention that the hardware in Rock Band was just fucking terrible. TERRIBLE. SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN PUT OUT TERRIBLE. Had that Guitar been even 50% as awesome as the Guitar Hero one, I could've dealt with it. Had the drums not been loud and full of defects, I could have dealt with it. As it stands, the only thing they did right was buy a third party microphone.

Also, the DLC for both has been total shit. The latest Muse pack for GH made me want to punch something. Stockholm syndrome was the only good song.

[Venkman]

Uh, I don't know. People who thought Rock Band was a kids toy with shitty tabs, ugly graphics, and a terrible Road Show where you played the same shit over and over because you were good at it?

Erm, ok? So they're going to spend even more money to buy basically the same experience just because the songs are tuned differently?

Color me unconvinced.

This isn't about GH3 vs just the guitar on Rock Band. This is a fairly serious total purchase, I'd guess somewhere in the $160-180 range (more complex software, sounds-like-more complex engineeering). I imagine more details will emerge in time, and ya, GH has a better image with the fanbase (even that, GH was built on success from Harmonix work first). But it's a pretty big expectation to expect them to jump into a price range at least three times what they paid for GH3.

Unless, again, the A-list offering is not the total bundle pack.

[Samwise]

Gamespot details

Seriously, who's the audience for this? People who break their Rock Band, thus making this a library comparison? People who want to make music on their console? People who didn't know about Rock Band?

People who weren't sufficiently satisfied with the first iteration of Rock Band and have been holding out for version 2.0 before they invest $200 of their money into it?

Though if they really are skipping the vocals I'm holding off on this one too.  This isn't hard, people.  Vocals, drums, guitar, maybe keyboard.  Let me buy another guitar controller on its own so a friend can play bass.  Make the instruments out of not crap.  And make the tab look good because I'm going to be staring at it a lot.  Get it together.

[Selby]

The tabs on Rock Band do like like shit, though.

Eh, easy and medium are tedious just because they are slow, but hard and above at least plays some resemblance.  Sure, it isn't as difficult as GH2 & 3 Expert level face melting, but not all of us are that good and need our fingers to fall off over practicing for hours to do well there.  I ran through GH3 once and wasn't really that impressed with the song choices, at least not enough to sit down and devote hours to mastering expert.  At least with Rock Band I have friends who want to play along for a good time.

[schild]

Uh, I don't know. People who thought Rock Band was a kids toy with shitty tabs, ugly graphics, and a terrible Road Show where you played the same shit over and over because you were good at it?

Erm, ok? So they're going to spend even more money to buy basically the same experience just because the songs are tuned differently?

Color me unconvinced.

This isn't about GH3 vs just the guitar on Rock Band. This is a fairly serious total purchase, I'd guess somewhere in the $160-180 range (more complex software, sounds-like-more complex engineeering). I imagine more details will emerge in time, and ya, GH has a better image with the fanbase (even that, GH was built on success from Harmonix work first). But it's a pretty big expectation to expect them to jump into a price range at least three times what they paid for GH3.

Unless, again, the A-list offering is not the total bundle pack.

Ok then.

Neversoft vs Harmonix. Don't care how you slice that shit, Neversoft is simply the superior company.

[Phildo]

Selby, I wasn't talking about song difficulty.  I was talking about how the tabs in Rock Band are hard to read (when do I hammer-on?) compared to Guitar Hero, and aesthetically it's not very interesting.  I don't usually enjoy the face-melting either, as Schild can attest.  I also prefer playing songs that I like as opposed to songs that make my brain hurt.*


*Although Through The Fire And Flames is awesome.

[Selby]

I was talking about how the tabs in Rock Band are hard to read (when do I hammer-on?) compared to Guitar Hero, and aesthetically it's not very interesting.

Now that I agree with and understand.  Althought I do feel that aesthetically GH3 is worse than 1 or 2.

Are there many songs where hammer-ons are needed in Rock Band?  I haven't downloaded any extra content but don't really recall there being an overload of hammer ons (been a few months since I played last).

[schild]

I can't remember any songs in Rock Band that required any sort of skill whatsoever let alone hammer-ons. Everything was more a case of 'fighting with the guitar to not be a squishy piece of shit."

[Venkman]

Vocals, drums, guitar, maybe keyboard.

Yea, hey! Where is the keyboard. Ok fine lots of switches and buttons and shit, but make GH4 or RB2 or whatever midi compatible and let us bring our Yamaha Best Buy piece of crap with us or something!

[Big Gulp]

ya, GH has a better image with the fanbase

Not with people like me, it doesn't.  Face it, people who can play on Schild's level are few and far between.  I tend to think that I'm more the usual player, in that I stick to medium and like it.  Most people just aren't going to get to expert level, and that's all there is to it.  Rock Band recognized that and went for group fun while GH went with the idiotic boss fights and harder tabs.  Now they're doing a special "Aerosmith" edition.  Color me unim-fucking-pressed.

I'll stick with the game that keeps releasing quality DLC and doesn't cater exclusively to the elite tab-monkeys out there.

[schild]

Pffft.

One of my roommates sisters came by last night, who is not a hardcore gamer, who is 19 or so years old, and thinks Rock Band was bland, boring, and full of shitty instruments. Which got a 'oorah' from me as I didn't prompt any of it. And she could only play Guitar Hero on Medium.

[Morfiend]

I can't remember any songs in Rock Band that required any sort of skill whatsoever let alone hammer-ons. Everything was more a case of 'fighting with the guitar to not be a squishy piece of shit."

1) Use the GH3 guitar, no fighting needed. Ohhhhh wait, PS3 is better in every way isnt it.
2) A LOT of the songs need a ton of hammer-ons on expert mode once you passed the halfway mark.

Despite the snide comment, I do agree that the RB guitar is a PoS, and with out my GH3 guitar, I dont think I would have liked RB ether.

[schild]

2) A LOT of the songs need a ton of hammer-ons on expert mode once you passed the halfway mark.

No, they didn't NEED it. They just allowed you to do it. ^_^

[Samwise]

Vocals, drums, guitar, maybe keyboard.

Yea, hey! Where is the keyboard. Ok fine lots of switches and buttons and shit, but make GH4 or RB2 or whatever midi compatible and let us bring our Yamaha Best Buy piece of crap with us or something!

That's pretty much what I was thinking.  Or just pick a brand and license it.  Even with a reasonable markup they'd still be about half the price of the guitar controllers.  Which realistically means that they'd be a little bit more expensive than the guitar controllers, but I bet people would still buy it.

[Phildo]

While I'm glad I picked up Rock Band for the PS3 because my 360 keeps breaking or telling me that brand new discs are dirty, being able to use the Guitar Hero controller would be a lifesaver.  I can't beat any of the final-tier songs with the guitar because I can't do fast runs on RB's guitar.

[DeathInABottle]

Progress report:

My roommate has beaten TTFAF on expert.  He can do it consistently.  We can *nearly* play it in co-op, but we get screwed over at the end of the twin solo.  Between the two of we've five-starred nearly every song.  And yes, I'm perfectly aware that I'm that guy.

Other:

I notice Konami's getting into the action as well with Rock Revolution.  Three different systems with three different sets of peripherals, each more expensive than the last.  I love where this is going.

[Azazel]

Coldplay DLC coming to Guitar Hero III
Look at the DLC, look how it shines for you.

Activision has announced that the latest track pack to hit Guitar Hero III will come from popular piano-rockers Coldplay.

Both PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 owners will be able to download the tracks from each console's respective download services on June 19.

The Coldplay pack will contain:

"Violet Hill"

"Yellow"

"God Put a Smile Upon Your Face"

This pack marks the third of the five promised track packs that Activision promised would arrive in June -- the first coming from Motörhead, while the second June DLC track pack featured songs from Kasabian, Kaiser Chiefs and The Sex Pistols.

Currently no price point has been announced, but we expect that it will attract the usual fee.

http://palgn.com.au/article.php?id=11831&sid=cd7015e9c1a37e3f84a1b5c941a48e65&title=Coldplay+DLC+coming+to+Guitar+Hero+III
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Well, it's good to see something being released, at least. Though Coldplay are the kind of band that are ok on the radio, I can't see myself buying their stuff...

[schild]

Without 'Don't Panic,' fails.

[Selby]

Though Coldplay are the kind of band that are ok on the radio, I can't see myself buying their stuff...

Agreed.  People always give me crap about it, but Coldplay and Radiohead are two bands I just flat out don't care for and don't really like any of their songs.  Blasphemy I know, but that is life.

[schild]

It's not blasphemy. It's just questionable taste. Not liking Billy Joel is blasphemy. ^_^

<-- Jew.

[Murgos]

Motorhead though.  C'mon, that's the good stuff there.

"(We are) The Road Crew"
"Stay Clean"
"Motörhead"
 

[Sky]

You know Sky, you could just buy the "Strategy Guide".  It's just a book of charts for all the songs in the game.

One of the librarians just added this to the collection: http://www.amazon.com/Guitar-Hero-Songbook-TAB/dp/1423446925

Also: http://www.amazon.com/Guitar-Hero-III-Legends-Rock/dp/142344020X

 

[Jeff Kelly]

I have to necro the post because I just bought Guitar Hero 3 and Guitar Hero: Aerosmith for the PS3 yesterday. I own GH3 for the PS2 but figured it would be a good idea since GH World Tour and Rock Band 2 are right around the corner (Yes I am a sucker for that sort of game)

God that wireless guitar controller is fucking awesome. It is hands down better than the SG ones for the PS2 and don't even get me started on the Rock Band guitar controller.

I five starred songs I never managed on the PS2 just because of the awesome controller. I even managed to finish "Raining Blood" and "Through the Fire and the Flames" and yet my hands didn't hurt at all.

Also no more half second freezes when star power is activated (as usually happens on the PS2 version)

If you want to seriously beat songs get a version with the Les Paul Controller

With respect to Guitar Hero: Aerosmith.

I like the idea. They put a lot of great songs in there and also have a lot of clips that are shown after a chapter is beat and which describe the history of the band in small soundbites. The locations are roughly modelled after real life locations which were relevant through the band's history.

For non-fans of the band it seems like a money grab though and for fans of the band there is not enough in there to actually make this a required buy.

They should build on the documentation and clips part. Some sort of "One year and a half in the life of metallica" but with songs that you can actually play in between would be great.

I am actually looking forward to Guitar Hero: Metallica now (did I mention that I am a sucker for that kind of game ;) )

[DeathInABottle]

Progress report:

We finally beat TTFAF on Expert in co-op.  After, like, eight months.  I feel stupidly accomplished.