Guitar Hero 2 has finally made it’s long awaited appearance on Microsoft’s Xbox360 5 months after it’s appearance on the Sony Playstation 2 at a more than eye-watering £70 rrp, much more than most people were expecting or hoping for, whether this has hurt sales or not is unknown, but it was the 2nd highest selling game within Europe on the all formats chart for the week of Monday 2nd, April 2007.
Guitar Hero recieved many plauditz and praise on it’s release back on the Playstation for combining an original concept, awesome soundtrack and a third-party peripheral that was great to use and cool at the same time. Guitar Hero was the biggest revolution for the ‘party’ game since Dance Dance Revolution and above all it encapsulated everything about the word ‘fun’. The question however is… does this apply to the sequel, something that follows the exact same formula? Is it still fresh? Is it still ‘fun’?
First things first. It’s £70. Regardless of whether Guitar Hero 2 is a good game or not, £70 is a huge stumbling block, a price that not many people can afford, especially as a regular Xbox360 or Playstation 3 title can be had for £39.99 in any major Supermarket or on any online retailer. Online Guitar Hero 2 is rarely any lower in price than £62.99, which is infact the price that was paid for the copy I have played since Thursday afternoon. Whether the game is/was worth that is an entirely different matter.
For your £70 you get a very, very long box which contains a guitar controller based on the ‘Gibson X-plorer’ guitar, a different version to those given in the Sony Playstation 2 versions of the series. You also get the game in a regular DVD Jewel case, a strap for your newly acquired guitar and a 2-sided sheet of stickers which can be placed on the guitar. These stickers however are not the re-applyable wet-stick variety so I opted not to use these as they, in my opinion, would cheapen the appearance and look as if they would flake and lose clarity very quickly, but your average kid will love them.
As the game is a port, and as those, for the most part, suck ass, it was important that Harmonix had to make sure something seperated the newer Xbox360 version from the older (and considerable cheaper) Playstation 2 version. Harmonix have made available exclusively to the Xbox360 version of Guitar Hero 2, 10 new songs and the ability to download new songs at a later date, HD graphics and reworked 5.1 audio.These new songs however are actually old songs that appeared in the original Playstation 2 version of ‘Guitar Hero’, whether new songs that weren’t in any version of Guitar Hero will be made available is currently unknown, but I for one hope so. The ability to use the Xbox Live Marketplace as a way to get new music to it’s users it a massive advantage over the Playstation 2 users for 2 reasons, none of which is online multiplayer sadly enough, but onto that later. The first major benefit is the ability to download more and more songs to play, whether it’s older versions from Guiter Hero (1) or completely new songs doesn’t matter. More is ALWAYS a good thing. Second is the ability for Harmonix to release chapters, or even sequels over the marketplace, much like the ‘Shivering Isles’ add-on for Oblivion which costs 2,400 points and with rumours of a ‘Guitar Hero: 80′s Music’ being released this is a very possible reality. Users who have spent £70 on a title are always going to want to put their guitar to more use, whether they can get more songs for free or at a small cost won’t matter too much, just as long as we as users aren’t held to ransom.
The most noticable item of the game is the guitar, it’s without a doubt what has attracted users to the series of game and what continues to excite people who haven’t had the chance to own the originals on the Playstation 2. After getting the guitar I must express my disappointment at a couple of flaws. The most obvious of which is the lack of wireless, something which was announced months prior to the launch, but still remains a major upset with many users out there, though Red Octane have announced they are trying to strike a deal with Microsoft to release a wireless version (Microsoft will currently not let 3rd party the Xbox360’s wireless technology).
Second is the size, it’s slightly too small, especially in comparison with the guitar from the Sony Playstation 2’s outing, anyone with big hands may struggle.
Another problem, though this may just be me, is the placement of the wired connection, it’s position is in the way of the natural placement of my 3rd finger on my right hand, this is clearly a flaw in the design and something which ‘did’ bug me but I have since gotten used to this.
Lastly is the whammy bar itself. It’s widely reported that a large number of whammy bars are faulty on the Gibson X-plorer guitars, mine is no different, some out there work, some don’t and as of right now it’s the luck of the draw as to whether you get one or not. The widely accepted method of fixing this is with an elastic band connected between the bar and the strap connector on the base of the guitar.The graphics, whilst not mindblowing are an improvement over the Playstation 2, providing sharper imagery and some beautiful bright colours.. though when you are supposed to notice these I don’t know, they are for the viewer only because believe me, and certainly on the higher difficulties you won’t have a chance to look. Models and textures are far more detailed, lighting effects have been added and a few more animations inserted, all in all it’s a much more visually rich title than either of it’s predecessors.
Audio is definitely the biggest part of the title, it’s the essence of the game. Harmonix could quite easily have just ported all the audio across, but they haven’t. In the biggest surprise they have reworked all of the audio in the game to take make full use of the Xbox360′s 5.1 Dolby Digital capabilities and as a result sound much, much better than those found on it’s earlier outing. As nice as 5.1 audio setups are for action games such as Ghost Recon 2 or Gears of War, it’s great fun being stood in the middle of the audio and rocking out. But as is said time and time (and time) again, graphics and audio are all good and welcome, but it’s gameplay that makes a great game…Guitar Hero features a couple of modes of play:- Career, Quickplay, Multiplayer and Practice. The one people will spend most of their times playing is career, a mode where you create the name of your band and work your way from the flea-pits to sold out arena’s (or in the case of GH2, Stonehenge). You are given a selection of 5 songs per chapter and in most sections you have to complete 4 of these 5 songs to progress to chapter two. If progressing is your aim you can happily blast your way through the game (skill level permitting) and unlock all of the songs in the game, however you have the option to complete every song for points or a star rating. Thankfully the chapters get more difficult as you progress, some of these can be very challenging, though never to the point that they aren’t enjoyable, a great sign in such a game. The ability to play each song to a rating increases the longevity greatly, especially with over 70 songs available to play.If perfecting a song is your preferred method of play then you are in luck. Each song completion is rated in one of two ways.
One method involves a ‘star rating’, depending on your skill level you can pass a song with a star rating between 1-star and 5-stars, though there is actually a 5-gold-star rating which you are rewarded with for hitting 100% of the notes.
The other method is a point score. Scores come from the accuracy of correctly played notes, the more consistent you are the higher your multiplier becomes (2, 3 or 4). Each note is worth 100 points so consistency is the key to the highest scores. The player can increate his ‘star power’ by hitting a series of star notes (a series of regular notes that when completed in sequence add power to your star meter) which, when the guitar is turned vertical allows the player to unleash the power of the guitar and double the value of your multiplier allowing for a maximum of 8x.
Songs within Guitar Hero 2 are far more ‘metal’ than those in the original, and I am sure many people will prefer them, I however was left a little disappointed with some of the songs in this game, however it’s not all bad, there are some absolute crackers and none better than ‘Gun’s N Roses – Sweet Child ‘O Mine’ and Lynard Skynards fabulous ‘Free Bird’, THE guitar anthem… and it’s the extended version. Arguably £70 is a bargain to play this song alone. However not all the songs are to such a standard, some songs really got on my tits such as Reverend Horton Heats ‘Psychobilly Freakout’ or ‘Can’t You Hear Me Knockin’ by The Rolling Stones.Many of the songs are not master copies, by which I mean they aren’t actually performed by it’s original artist, but instead by session musicians, a bit of a disappointment considering the number of licensed music in many video games these days such as Gran Turismo, Grand Theft Auto or Burnout: Revenge. The session artists in general have done a fantastic job, ‘Sweet Child ‘O Mine’ and ‘Free Bird’ for example are superb, but equally ‘Can’t Hear you Knockin’ and ‘Heart Shaped Box’ are absolutely apalling. There are a couple of master tracks in GH2, ‘Dead!’ by My Chemical Romance and ‘Possum Kingdom’ by The Toadies are two that come to mind and these do stand out, these are the way forward and hopefully Guitar Hero 3 will feature only Master versions.
One of the most anticipated features of GH2 on the Xbox360 was the potential for online multiplayer, unfortunately Harmonix decided that online multiplayer wouldn’t be included, whether this was due to time or because of timing issues I don’t know, but it’s definitely a feature from which the game would have benefited from. Harmonix have opted for local multiplayer, a good inclusion which offers 2 methods of play, versus and co-operative. Versus is your basic one on one battle for the highest score. Co-Operative mode however is much more fun and creatively allows for friends to split a song into 2 sections, lead and bass guitar! Having 2 different patterns of play per song over 70 songs increases the longevity of the game even further, although if you want you are both able to play the same mode if you so wish. Unfortunately at £140 for two copies of the game it’s unlikely that most people will have the ability to play this mode, which is a real shame, something which an online mode would have opened to the public… Harmonix have admitted that they may add this in a later patch, which would be great. Thats not to say that Xbox Live isn’t used though. Guitar Hero 2 makes great use of leaderboards which allow you to compare you score to the entire world or your friends list. Who doesn’t want to be the best of all their friends, be it your ‘real-life’ friends or your ‘cyber’ friends? I know I do, however Davey_Pitch is proving to be a real pain in the ass, but this only adds to the longevity of the game! You might have a 5-star rating, but your score is still second best… play it some more. Thankfully this game gives you the feeling that you must play more and more, something which the Playstation2 version didn’t have. Once you had all the songs getting 5 stars or a higher score didn’t matter, so well done to Harmonix and Red Octane for adding such a well worked leaderboard into the title.
As with any game from the rhythm and timing genre, gameplay is the main feature and GH2 is no different, however unlike most games it does require a seperate peripheral from your regular controller however it does not feel like a cheap, tacked on idea to enhance a game, it’s actually brilliant and the game would not be as good without it, this game is definitely not style over substance, but a fantastic blend of the two. Music tracks are well laid out and and in most cases, brilliant fun to play which provide challenges to anyone who has never played it, anyone who is trying harder difficulties and even challenges to those people who have already mastered the first game. Whether or not the game provides a challenge or a gameplay mode comparible to playing the real guitar I don’t know (I have never tried), but that’s not the aim of the game. I’m sure there are people out there who say ‘just play a real guitar’, but that’s not what this game is about, it’s about playing something that’s fun, pick up and play and most importantly, something that sounds good as you play. I for one have played Freebird, Sweet Child ‘O Mine, The Trooper and Message in a Bottle all in 1 night and it didn’t require years of guitar practice to achieve. Is it as rewarding as playing for real? I’m sure it’s not, but I really don’t care one bit.Another major addition for the Xbox360 is the ability to unlock achievements, something I’m sure many people and all Xbox360 owners are aware of so I won’t explain what they are. Guitar Hero 2 is possibly the best example of what can be done to encourage gamers to improve via achievements, some of which are easy to achieve and some which seem impossible and will challenge even the most veteran guitar player. Not only are these achievements great to get, but they are names superbly, an example would be the ‘A Long Road Ahead…’ achievement which you collect for failing a song on easy, another example is the ‘Lennon and McCartney’ achievement for getting an 8x streak in co-operative mode. It really goes to show what a developer can accomplish with the use of achievements on Xbox360 titles when they are planned and utilised well, even those who don’t chase achievement points will lose collecting these.
There is no doubt about it, Guitar Hero 2 on the Xbox360 is definitely the finest iteration of the title yet, bringing together a wide range of music which should suit all tastes whilst being great fun to play. It has a soundtrack that brings out the best in a 5.1 surround system and whilst it’s visuals won’t test those of Gears of War, they are by no means poor, you notice little things more and more such as your onscreen character playing the notes, sliding his/her hand up the fret board and releasing notes at the correct time. The touches don’t stop there though, GH2 has cliches and in-jokes spread throughout the game, an example would be within the options menu, enter ‘audio settings’ and you are able to alter all volumes to ‘11’, a tribute to the brilliant rockumentary ‘Spinal Tap’, and is definitely worth a smile. Loading times in the game are quite and effortless, these are also made more entertaining with little comments regarding rock music, these definitely help the 5 or so seconds go by and there are plenty, so repetition for your first game completion isn’t too bad.
All told GH2 is an absolute blast, anyone who hasn’t tried it or can’t see what the fuss is about, I urge you to try it, it’s really worth the time and purchase, you will certainly be surprised by the quality of the title and just how entertaining it is to play. There is no other game that allows you to simply rock out in the way Guitar Hero does, be it simple foot-tapping, head-bobbing or knee slides across the floor! Everyone wants to be a rock star and this game lets you live the dream, you can’t help but picture yourself infront of a real crowd and being the enigmatic front-man prancing around on stage. If for only 4 minutes you feel like a rock god and when you pull off an extraordinarily tough section nothing feels better. Nothing.
The real stepping stone for most people is the £70 price tag, which as I mentioned already is more than most people were expecting, myself included, infact the last time I paid £70 for a game was a decade ago (almost to the month) for Turok on the Nintendo 64. The question is, is £70 too much for you to afford, if you certainly have it available and you won’t miss it too much then you could go far worse than spend it on this, and with extra content being released (albeit at a currently unannounced price) it certainly looks like a game with unlimited playability.
If you have any love of awesome guitar solo’s, wanted to play the guitar, want a different and original title to play or something challenging then this game is a must.
