Gaming Guitar Hero

[Desbreko]

[color=#4B0082]At this point I figure I'll just buy GHII on the PS2 since there've been game+guitar sets for only $57 on eBay and then I can pick up the standalone version of GHIII on the PS2 later if I want and my guitar controller will be compatible with both. $57+$50 would only be $17 more than I'd have to pay for the GHIII+guitar set for the Wii and I'd be getting two of the games.

In other news, I can't stop listening to Message in a Bottle now. :animestun[/color]

[Shinmaru]

[quote name='Heaven's Cloud'][color=indigo]My only real question is whether or not Velvet Revolver makes an appearance on the game? After all, one of their songs shows up on the commercial for the game.[/color][/QUOTE]

I believe the Velvet Revolver songs are available in downloadable packs for the PS3 and Xbox 360.

To add more to this post... I have GHIII and like it, though I agree that the singer is *** ugly. It's horrible. He always seems to pop up in the sections of songs where there's a lull and you're doing to longer notes, too. :(

"YYZ" is my favorite song in GHII. It's a great song on its own, and it's fun as hell to play.

[visualkei]

[quote name='Korey'][FONT="Franklin Gothic Medium"]I can't believe that they would actually put a DragonForce song on GH though....that was kind of corny.[/FONT][/QUOTE]

Haha. Yeeeeeeeah. The first time I heard the song, I thought, "Wow, this sounds like something a bunch of guys who are playing Dungeons and Dragons would have playing in the background of the tournaments..." Then I found out the band name (which didn't surprise me) and some background on them. =]. Good song, though. Hard.

I was ecstatic when I noticed they had groups such as Muse, Bloc Party, and The Strokes on there. I was pleasantly surprised to not see bands like Nickelback on there. I wonder about how they go about choosing songs, and then getting permission to have it on the game.

I recently got into GH when my sister got GH3 for our Wii during Thanksgiving break. Didn't really sat down and tried to do well until Christmastime when no one was awake and I was alone with the game console. I think it's a lot of fun, but you can only play so much until you need a break from the songs, and listen to something on your stereo for variety's sake. Right now I can only make in the 80 percentile on Medium, and that's only on certain songs. I just CAN'T do certain notes like Green+Yellow or Red+Blue. The ones that skip a finger. It requires a great deal of consciouness for the missing finger in between to not hit the note. It's practically impossible for me. If it weren't for that, I think I could do pretty well on Medium.

Man, I kind of almost wish there was some sort of gathering around here where people can just get together to play GH until they're sick of it. It's just something that's fun to do with a group of people.


Also, GH has made our useless pinkies useful again!!!!!

[Shinmaru]

I never thought green+yellow was too difficult, but red+blue took me a while to master because I use my middle and pinky fingers to hit the notes, and it feels a bit weird lol. How does everyone else do it?

It took me a bit to get the hang of sliding, too. Right now I'm working on Hard; I can only complete about 3/4 of the songs, though. A few of them are just too much for me to handle right now.

Regarding "Through the Fire and Flames" ... I [i]hate[/i] that song. It's needlessly difficult, and the song itself is garbage.

[Heaven's Cloud]

[quote name='Shinmaru']
It took me a bit to get the hang of sliding, too. Right now I'm working on Hard; I can only complete about 3/4 of the songs, though. A few of them are just too much for me to handle right now.

Regarding "Through the Fire and Flames" ... I [i]hate[/i] that song. It's needlessly difficult, and the song itself is garbage.[/QUOTE]

[color=indigo]I actually just finished the game on medium yesterday (I also bought all of the bonus songs, which are pretty spiffy), so I will probably start giving it a go on hard today. It will be interesting, I am not sure how I will position my hand for the stupid orange key.

Hammer ons and offs work well for me on the slides, however, I haven?t had to hit any five finger slides yet, so who knows how that will work out. My biggest problems are the quick hammer ons that have a one or two finger spread between them (like on One or Knights of Cydonia).

Oh, and I love ?Through the Fire and Flames? just because it is such a cheesy song. Still, I found it hard to hit above an 85% on it on medium, so on hard it must give people fits. [/color]

[Desbreko]

[color=#4B0082]I hit red+blue the same way, Shin. Message in a Bottle on medium has a couple sections where it switches back and forth between stretches of green+yellow notes and red+blue notes (and then ends with a yellow+blue long note, which would throw me off :animestun) and it took me a few practice runs to get the hang of it. Like with everything else I encountered, though, I just memorized how the finger positions for those note combos felt and got so I could do them without having to think about it much; gotta love muscle memory.

That orange button scares me though. I think getting used to sliding my hand up and down to reach different buttons instead of pressing them with only one set finger will be the hardest thing for me to learn. Mainly because it will require memorizing a whole new set of finger positions for when my hand is slid down to reach the orange button.[/color]

[Shinmaru]

[quote name='Desbreko'][color=#4B0082]That orange button scares me though. I think getting used to sliding my hand up and down to reach different buttons instead of pressing them with only one set finger will be the hardest thing for me to learn. Mainly because it will require memorizing a whole new set of finger positions for when my hand is slid down to reach the orange button.[/color][/QUOTE]

That was easily the most difficult part of moving up to Hard for me. Sometimes I'm quick enough to be able to tap the orange button quickly with my pinky and get back to my normal guitar stance, but most of the time I have to keep my hand there and shift all of my fingers over by one button until a green note shows up. It took [i]forever[/i] for me to get used to the switch (index = red instead of green, etc.), and I still mess up occasionally.

Luckily, there are some songs with long strings of notes that make it easier to slide and get used to doing it. "Even Flow" and "Anarchy in the U.K." helped me get a lot better at it.

[Neptune]

[COLOR="Navy"][SIZE="2"][Font="Palatino Linotype"]Oh wow, I don't know how I missed a Guitar Hero thread. I absolutely loooove the Guitar Hero franchise, I can't get enough of it.

I started off playing Guitar Hero I back when the game wasn't that popular, so I spread the word to all of my friends in my area it caught like wild fire. I could only handle Medium-Hard on GHI at first, but I slowly and surely made my way up to Expert mode. I sucked horribly and only could get three stars on most songs, if not every song, and eventually I gave up playing when I could not beat "Bark at the Moon" on Expert. I think at that point I could barely beat the song on Hard.

Then Guitar Hero II came out and everything changed. I at first beat every song on Hard mode, and then eventually I was able to move on to Expert. I learned to double-strum and to nail hammer-ons and pull-offs, but I was eventually stopped by "Psycho Billy Freakout". That song ... is ridiculous. I went back to Hard mode and got five stars on every song, and then I eventually went back to Expert and beat the game. Hoorah! I've still to this day never beaten "Jordan" or gotten five stars on "Misirilou".

And now, I've been occupied with Guitar Hero III. It was very strange at first, but eventually I got used to the new look of the game and pressed onward. I beat all of the main songs on Expert ... barely. I took me about 20 times to beat "Raining Blood" and the final Boss Battle, but eventually I won. And, I've come to terms with the fact that I will never beat "Through the Fire and Flames". It's also ridiculous.[/FONT][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Charles]

[quote name='JimitheGreat11'][SIZE="2"][COLOR="Navy"][FONT="Times New Roman"]Oh wow, I don't know how I missed a Guitar Hero thread. I absolutely loooove the Guitar Hero franchise, I can't get enough of it. [/FONT][/COLOR][/SIZE][/QUOTE]

You'll be happy this year then. Rumor has it that there are going to be four new Guitar Hero games in 2008 alone.

**** that franchise.

[Aberinkula]

[COLOR="77656"]Holly bull-fircken crap, but they'll probably end up being for the next-gen consoles. But ****, maybe this franchise should also stay in last-gen because the graphics aren't exactely piece de la resistance, and it could keep people like me, happy until I get Rock Band and a 360. Rumor has it they're will be one for the mobile phones too?[/COLOR]

[Charles]

[quote name='Premonition'][COLOR="77656"]Holly bull-fircken crap, but they'll probably end up being for the next-gen consoles. But ****, maybe this franchise should also stay in last-gen because the graphics aren't exactely piece de la resistance, and it could keep people like me, happy until I get Rock Band and a 360. Rumor has it they're will be one for the mobile phones too?[/COLOR][/QUOTE]

Not sure. It's in the new EGM.

Supposedly there's going to be the obvious Guitar Hero 4, along with Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. The other two have not yet been disclosed.

Leave it to Activision to run a franchise into the ground.

[Aberinkula]

[QUOTE]Supposedly there's going to be the obvious Guitar Hero 4, along with Guitar Hero: Aerosmith.[/QUOTE]

[COLOR="77656"]Boy, I wish they'd make one for a non-classic rock band. I mean Aerosmith is good, but I don't much like the classics.[/COLOR]

[Panache]

I just bought guitar hero 3 a few days ago. I beat the game on easy and now I am trying to get the hang of medium. It's fun to play and that's why I play it. I am not really concerned with being super duper good at it. The songs that are most fun to play for me are Before I forget,One, and Cult of Personality.

[Neptune]

[COLOR="Navy"][FONT="Palatino Linotype"]Damn. Four new games? That's definitely pushing it a bit too far. I might go and get GHIV, but I really have no desire to get Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. It's not that I don't like Aerosmith, but a whole game dedicated to just one band seems like a really bad idea. (*cough* Aerosmith arcade game. Anyone know what I'm talking about?*cough*)

Who knows. Maybe in a few years we'll be playing Guitar Hero: The Jackson 5. * shudder*[/FONT][/COLOR]

[The Spectacular Professor]

[quote name='Charles']Not sure. It's in the new EGM.

Supposedly there's going to be the obvious Guitar Hero 4, along with Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. The other two have not yet been disclosed.

Leave it to Activision to run a franchise into the ground.[/QUOTE]

Wasn't EGM the one that ran the "April Fools" article claiming Nintendo was remaking Windwaker with Twilight Princess graphics?

All I'm saying is take it with a grain of salt. If I remember, that story wasn't even run in the April issue.

[Nerdsy]

[quote name='Charles']Not sure. It's in the new EGM.

Supposedly there's going to be the obvious Guitar Hero 4, along with Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. The other two have not yet been disclosed.

Leave it to Activision to run a franchise into the ground.[/QUOTE]

[color=deeppink]Are these four in addition to the DS version?[/color]

[The Spectacular Professor]

[quote name='JimitheGreat11'][COLOR="Navy"][FONT="Palatino Linotype"]Who knows. Maybe in a few years we'll be playing Guitar Hero: The Jackson 5. * shudder*[/FONT][/COLOR][/QUOTE]

I wouldn't knock that idea until they remove the other 4, frankly.

[Desbreko]

[color=#4B0082]Yay, I finally got Guitar Hero II on Friday. Two days later here and I've beaten it on medium with five stars on all but five songs. (Why are the 7th tier songs harder than the 8ths? :confused:) Once I five star every track I'm planning to move up to hard and get my *** kicked by the orange button for a while.

I picked up on how to use hammer-ons and pull-offs today and damn are they nice. They've made some parts so much easier. I just wish they were a bit more conspicuous since it can be hard to see them on star power notes or when star power is active. Needs moar shiny, like I've seen in GHIII.

[b]Edit:[/b]
Okay, played some more just now. Only one song left to get five stars on in the main game's tracks now. (And yes, it's Psychobilly Freakout. I got three stars my first time playing it and haven't gone back for more punishment yet.) Carry Me Home took about a dozen tries plus some time in practice mode but I finally got 94%, I think it was, and claimed that fifth star.

I've barely touched the bonus tracks so far but most of them don't look too bad from what I saw while my brother was playing.

[b]Edit II:[/b]
I can't believe I forgot to mention this twice but I named my band Peach Head and I play on Izzy Sparks, the guy with the big hair and, with the outfit I bought for him, a top hat. It's kind of awesome.[/color]

[Shinmaru]

[quote name='Desbreko'][color=#4B0082]Once I five star every track I'm planning to move up to hard and get my *** kicked by the orange button for a while.[/quote][/color]

Haha, that's the exact strategy I used in GHIII. It helped a lot because it allowed me to build up more speed with my fingers before trying the harder stuff. I still got my *** kicked for a good while though. :p

[quote][color=#4B0082]I picked up on how to use hammer-ons and pull-offs today and damn are they nice. They've made some parts so much easier. I just wish they were a bit more conspicuous since it can be hard to see them on star power notes or when star power is active. Needs moar shiny, like I've seen in GHIII.[/color][/QUOTE]

Yeah, the shinier hammer-on/pull-off buttons are a [i]huge[/i] help lol. There are times when I can't hit them regardless of that (I panic when I see a bunch of them in a row, haha), but still.

[Desbreko]

[color=#4B0082]Oh god, hard mode is [i]hard.[/i] Not only is there the orange button, it's also faster, uses way more split chords (as opposed to both the notes in the chord being next to each other), uses hammer-ons and pull-offs with three or four notes even in the early songs, and uses them so that you have to slide your hand [i]in the middle of them.[/i] It's like they decided to turn the learning curve from easy and medium straight up into a vertical wall for people to slam into when they reach hard.

About two hours in practice mode yielded an 84% on Heart-Shaped Box when I put it up to full speed. And that was one of the easier songs I tried. Getting through the game is going to take a while this time. :animesigh[/color]

[Nerdsy]

[quote name='Desbreko'][color=#4B0082] It's like they decided to turn the learning curve from easy and medium straight up into a vertical wall for people to slam into when they reach hard.[/color][/QUOTE]


[color=deeppink]Just wait until you hit Expert. The difference in difficulty is insane.[/color]

[Desbreko]

[color=#4B0082]Really? I figured the increase in difficulty from hard to expert would be less than from medium to hard. Once you master the hand positions for using the orange button in combination with the rest it doesn't seem like there'd be much left for the game to throw at you besides just adding more notes. On medium, at least, the hardest tracks couldn't really get any more difficult except for that or adding in the orange button.

Incidentally, one of them [i]did[/i] add the orange button. Arterial Black has one orange note on medium, mixed right in with a string of others. When I first played the song I instinctively pressed the blue button and strummed since the note was on the right, then wondered what the hell was up with an orange note being present on medium. My brother did the exact same thing later when he played the song and I had to laugh since I wasn't the only one.[/color]

[Nerdsy]

[quote name='Desbreko'][color=#4B0082]Really? I figured the increase in difficulty from hard to expert would be less than from medium to hard. [/color][/QUOTE]

[color=deeppink]The difficulty increase comes mostly from a massive increase in number of notes and speed... not so much 1, because hammer-ons and pull-offs are so much harder (although the last 5 songs are insane). The chords also get a lot harder and faster.[/color]

[Ellerby]

[FONT="Tahoma"][COLOR="DimGray"]Yeah, as soon as you start playing on expert you really have to make sure you've mastered (or at least can do) hammer-ons and pull-offs. They make a world of a difference during those ridiculous solos.
[quote name='Des']About two hours in practice mode yielded an 84% on Heart-Shaped Box when I put it up to full speed. And that was one of the easier songs I tried. Getting through the game is going to take a while this time.[/quote]
That's all it takes really, a lot of practice. Even for people who have a knack for the game start at medium and slowly make their way to hard and expert. It just takes patience. Getting a second controller and playing with friends helps a lot just because you get a lot more practice in without even noticing it. And it's hella fun.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[Desbreko]

[color=#4B0082]At this point I think I'd just pick up a GHIII bundle instead of buying a separate controller. It's only about $20-$30 more for the bundle than for a controller. :rolleyes: But I probably won't have the money for a while.

I should get people together to play my friend's copy of Rock Band again. Its guitar tracks seemed easier; maybe it would provide a gentler learning curve for moving up to hard. And multiplayer really is more fun since you're always trying to show up your friends, heh.

[b]Edit:[/b]
I haven't been playing as much lately but I beat the game on hard about a week ago. Meanwhile my brother, who plays about twice as much as I do, is on the last tier of songs on expert. And it's confirmed, Harmonix apparently has no clue what a proper learning curve is. The difference between hard and expert on a lot of the songs is stupidly small compared to the difference between medium and hard.

I've gotten so I can at least play competently on the first five tiers on hard, getting four or five stars on them. Well, except for Freya; I don't have gigantor hands so I'm just going to have to practice the sliding motion for the green-orange-blue HO/PO sections until I can do it perfectly. It's times like those I really wish the fret buttons were flat like on the Rock Band guitars instead of raised.

I've gotten a lot better at nailing longer strings of HO/PO's though, and sliding in the middle of them. A big part of that, I found, was simply recognizing when the best times to slide within a series of notes were. Next I need to get so I don't suck at strumming up and down for fast sections.[/color]