GI Preview Talks Guitar: It's Easier, Drums Steal the Show, but It Feels More Real

[Xzyliac]

Okay this preview owns in the fact that it puts spotlight on the one instrument I personally have not heard enough of: guitar.


Players who are pretty good at Guitar Hero will notice one thing almost immediately—the lead guitar sections are considerably easier than those in Guitar Hero games. While the first few song tiers are obviously geared toward getting players situated with the game, even the songs that appeared much later on posed little challenge. We’re far from guitar gods—though we’re pretty good—and even on the expert difficulty we cruised through songs, getting four- and five-star ratings on the first try. We only hit one point where we had to enter power mode, and we probably could have squeaked by without it.


Guitar Hero has trained a lot of players into thinking that guitars are the only instrument in the mix, and that if your fingers aren’t twisted into pretzels by the end of a song something’s wrong. In Rock Band, some of the guitar parts are going to be kind of boring. That’s because the bass player is grooving along, taking the spotlight. Other parts might focus on tricky drum sections or showing off the vocalist’s chops.



That’s not to say that the guitar is a let-down—it’s far from it. Because of the difference in overall objectives, we got a better sense that we were actually playing the guitar in some sections of Rock Band than we have in Guitar Hero. We didn’t find ourselves tapping out a keyboard section on our plastic guitar controller, just so we’d have something to play.


From what we played in Rock Band, we only encountered a few three-note chords, and very, very few hammer-ons and pull-offs.



The buttons are a bit bigger and more closely spaced in Rock Band, which took some time getting used to. During a few sections—particularly when alternating between chords on extreme ends of the fretboard—we lost our bearings and missed notes.


AWESOME!!! BRING! IT! ON!!!

Video of The Strokes side-by-side with Guitar Hero (http://media.gameinformer.com/downloads/downloads2014/movies/2007/rock/rb-mix.wmv)

Full article (http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Story/200709/N07.0914.1002.29748.htm)

[Eman311]

As long as the songs are fun to play, it's all good. I'd prefer a fun-to-play note chart over a finger-bending one. Plus i'll be primarily playing the drums anyways so it's all good.

Edit: They only got a 1/3 through it, not very indicative at all.

Notice the lyrics in the screenshot: is Rockaway Beach still in the game?

What happened to the notes? why do they look so funny in the video?

The note charts between RB and gh3 are pretty damn close (especially towards the end), but why the chords in RB and the single notes in gh3? Seemed like they were playing different parts altogether

[Xzyliac]

The Strokes video was pretty interesting. Makes me wonder how often GH splits the rhythm and lead in single player.

[Eman311]

That video is tight. Finally a nice look at RB in action. Look how AWESOME everything is in the background, looks so comparative to an actual concert. I found myself drawn so much more to the RB side of the vd.

By the way, the charts are different because HMX switches back and forth between the lead and guitar sections of that song, which I didn't know they would do.

[espher]

I expected it to be the other way around, after seeing that Through The Fire And Flames video -- I figured Rock Band would stick to lead and Guitar Hero 3 would have you playing lead, rhythm, piano, harpsichord, and vocoder.

Edit: The RB background action definitely seemed more 'concert'y, in the sense that the performers were far more animated.

[Xzyliac]

My crappy, and first, attempt to upload a video on YouTube:

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/AT4zG4V6XFc"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/AT4zG4V6XFc" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>

[Eman311]

I expected it to be the other way around, after seeing that Through The Fire And Flames video -- I figured Rock Band would stick to lead and Guitar Hero 3 would have you playing lead, rhythm, piano, harpsichord, and vocoder.

Edit: The RB background action definitely seemed more 'concert'y, in the sense that the performers were far more animated.

I loved the part where the singer is clapping (right before the section change). Super cool

and Xzyliac, nice job, although the sound quality is a bit worse

[bounchfx]

thank god for GH3.

RB will be all about drums/vocals for me. should be more than enough challenge.

let's hope DLC brings some heat guitar (hell - EVERYTHING)-wise

[Xzyliac]

I loved the part where the singer is clapping (right before the section change). Super cool

and Xzyliac, nice job, although the sound quality is a bit worse
Yeah well you can't have it all unfortunately. I offered both ways to watch it. Presonally I still prefer watching original source vids than embeded ones.

[Eman311]

Yeah well you can't have it all unfortunately. I offered both ways to watch it. Presonally I still prefer watching original source vids than embeded ones.

Agreed. I still can't get enough of that vid though. I WANT MORE :D

[Xzyliac]

I fully intend on making some vids as soon as I get my hands on Rock Band.

Paranoid especially.

[Eman311]

Meh, i'll be too busy playing to care anyways!

[Keebler]

Someone screwed up - I think some of the Rock Band note chart is for the bass guitar (which would explain why they awkwardly transition from the main riff to chords).

[Eman311]

^ Nah dude, that is definetly guitar. But there is a rythym and lead in that song, and HMX just switched to it to keep things from getting repetitive I guess.

Could be right, but I doubt the bass plays like that.

[bounchfx]

so sad that there are so many songs in BOTH gh3 and RB. Ugh.

[Keebler]

^ Nah dude, that is definetly guitar. But there is a rythym and lead in that song, and HMX just switched to it to keep things from getting repetitive I guess.

Which makes no sense when you think about the way they've done Guitar Hero songs in the past....

I really have to question why they would make their note chart so odd.

[Eman311]

^ Didn't they mix them in the guitar hero games? Pretty sure they did.

[Xzyliac]

^ Didn't they mix them in the guitar hero games? Pretty sure they did.

Yeah the reality is GH used quite a few cheap tricks to keep the experience exciting. That always kind of bugged me.

I'm glad RB doesn't rely on any sly tricks like GH.

Not knocking GH. I mean it was fun right?

[masterx1918]

in some songs they confused rhythm and lead parts, but usually to make it more diffucult.I can't really think of any examples but I think in Last Child you play rhythm parts at times simply because there's no lead part to play at that point. same thing with can't you hear me knockin I think

[Magnet]

in some songs they confused rhythm and lead parts

I'm not sure why you chose the word "confused" since I highly doubt they ever got confused about what part they wanted to chart. They intentionally mixed the two throughout the song.

Switching from the lead to another guitar in the Guitar Hero games is something Harmonix frequently has done, and I'm not surprised in the least that it's going to continue in Rock Band. Just look at No One Like You and you have all the evidence you need for what Harmonix is going for. You switch from playing mainly one guitar to playing mostly another guitar about halfway through the song, and the fact that it switches makes playing the second part all the more awesome. People who wanted to play the acoustic part in the song got to do so, as did the people who wanted to play the electric sounding part.

I believe Harmonix does this to both vary gameplay and let everyone experience more dimensions of the song. The RB note chart looked weird in this side-by-side comparison because the rhythm part was not accented in the song playing for the video (although you can probably expect it to be when you actually play it). When you hear the rhythm part louder as you hit those notes while playing Rock Band, it shouldn't be confusing for anyone.

Neversoft seemed to stick to the lead guitar the entire time, which is fine by me. I'm okay with both charts, and I'm glad they're going to end up different. Won't be as boring to play over again in Rock Band after playing it in Guitar Hero III, and you'll get to have some snippets of rhythm guitar action in Rock Band. The rhythm guitar during that part of the song versus the lead has you playing about twice as many notes in Rock Band as in Guitar Hero III. I'm not sure which will be more fun. It's basically "Less notes + lead" vs. "More notes + rhythm." Lead probably sounds better during the section, but might be more boring to play than rhythm.

I'll probably prefer the switching guitar parts over just the lead because of the nice change of pace that should make the song more interesting to experience. But who knows. All we really know at this point is that rampant arguing can now commence on various message boards throughout the Internet about which note charts are better. Hopefully most of us here can just recognize that it's going to be a matter of personal taste which note chart you really prefer. Neither is really right or wrong. I'm surprised at how different they turned out, actually.

[tucsonovernite]

yeah i was certainly hoping they'd do the guitar gameplay ala guitar hero mixing the lead and rhythm ...I thought that really added to the gameplay...so personally it's great to see that

[milkman4591]

I'm not sure if this has been posted yet, and this is just my opinion, but (Especially from looking at this video, thanx for posting) I think every character in GH looks terrible. The singer has an ass chin, his mouth is ridiculously big, and his hair is coving his entire face (looks terrible to me). And then theres Napalm, who was my favorite char from GH 1 and 2, the dude looks like a rooster now, seriously. Activision dropped the ball with the character models I think. Oh and by the way, explain to me how they can call Rock Band imitators, when the company making it (harmonix) made the first 2 GH's! If anything the people making GH3 are biting off what Harmonix (and now rock band) started. Sorry just my 2 cents, got mad when I heard that.

[Xzyliac]

You think you're pissed because they royally screwed Napalm (platform shoes? WTF!)? Guess who my favorite was?

PANDORA!

Sweet Jesus I hope RB lets us recreate GH characters. I'm afraid to see Izzy Sparks (second fave) since they effed up Judy Nails (third).

[skyehill]

thank god for GH3.

RB will be all about drums/vocals for me. should be more than enough challenge.

let's hope DLC brings some heat guitar (hell - EVERYTHING)-wise

Couldnt agree more. The fact that RB's guitar parts are anything but difficult is a huge disappointment. Yeesh. Now I have to buy GH3 and RB. Sad to hear yet another person complaining about the button placement on the guitar. Not enough time for Harmonix to correct.

[Kaboobi]

Also note that GI only played through the first 1/3 of the game, and all those songs in the video are from the first 1/3rd of the game, which explains why they're pretty damn easy. They do get significantly harder.

[Xzyliac]

Also note that GI only played through the first 1/3 of the game, and all those songs in the video are from the first 1/3rd of the game, which explains why they're pretty damn easy. They do get significantly harder.

I just wanna know if they played Highway Star or any unannounced songs.

And Alex did say their big "Freebird" would be one of the last announcements. Plus the unlockables.

[Kylekillgannon]

You think you're pissed because they royally screwed Napalm (platform shoes? WTF!)? Guess who my favorite was?

PANDORA!

Sweet Jesus I hope RB lets us recreate GH characters. I'm afraid to see Izzy Sparks (second fave) since they effed up Judy Nails (third).

I'm really hoping for this as well, Izzy is just awesome

[milkman4591]

You think you're pissed because they royally screwed Napalm (platform shoes? WTF!)? Guess who my favorite was?

PANDORA!

Haha yeah u definitely seem like a Pandora person to me. I know people say "It doesn't matter, its all about the music, who cares what the people look like?" and thats true to a point, but I feel if you truly like your character, it makes the entire experience better. And to what you said about the GH characters I hope as well, since I liked everyone, but just wanted to tweak them a little bit (heres hoping we can). Finally to everyone who says that RB guitar (in songs and IRL) is a disappointment, I have 3 things to say. 1) Like everyone said, we have only seen around 1/3 of the first songs on the list, so give it some time for them to show how the higher ranking ones play. 2) The original song list is to reel everyone in, not only including having song everyone likes, but ones everyone can play. Just wait for the DLC to really kick in where they can throw in some really crazy difficult songs. 3) The guitar may seem weak structurally, but based on what people said, so long as you take care of it just like the last GH controller (as in not smashing it on the ground after you fail Jordan 50000 times, I'm still working on that damn song) it will be perfect.

Again just what I think, nothing is fact and all that :P

[ThuDogFood]

Also note that GI only played through the first 1/3 of the game, and all those songs in the video are from the first 1/3rd of the game, which explains why they're pretty damn easy. They do get significantly harder.

I'm hoping that they are only referring to the campaign.... For all we know they could've counted bonus songs....


I just wanna know if they played Highway Star or any unannounced songs.

And Alex did say their big "Freebird" would be one of the last announcements. Plus the unlockables.

*wonders if he meant their "Freebird" meaning epic/really popular or hard*

I am planning to try a little bit of everything, but I don't want to be bored with guitar (if they have 5 hard guitar songs in the game, and more for DLC then I'll be satisfied)

[Kylekillgannon]

I'm hoping that they are only referring to the campaign.... For all we know they could've counted bonus songs....



*wonders if he meant their "Freebird" meaning epic/really popular or hard*

I am planning to try a little bit of everything, but I don't want to be bored with guitar (if they have 5 hard guitar songs in the game, and more for DLC then I'll be satisfied)

I hope they don't announce it and everyone just gets a big suprise......I reeeeeeeaaaaaly want God Gave Rock 'n' Roll To You II to be in.

[Xzyliac]

Give. Us. Metal.

[defmonkey]

Give. Us. Metal.

Agreed.


And I'm kinda of a sad panda about the Guitar parts being a bit simple. Even if they only played though 1/3 of the game, thats still over 10 songs or something. Tom Saywer's solo should be a tad difficult.


Maybe if you beat the game on expert, there will be an unlocked difficulty for God or something. More replay value.

[Kylekillgannon]

would this "God" level be like the NO Hud code?

[ductyl]

Very interesting video... I would love to see some more side-by-sides as well.

I really like the way they did the multiplyer for RB. Both the easy to read location and the fact that it shows you how close you are to the next multiplier level. Very nice touch.

- ductyl

[Tendoza]

I like the style of the game in terms of characters, it kind of has a bit of a cell-shaded look to it. The kind of look where you could pause it at any time and it would look like a very good drawing.

Or maybe it's all just my computer screen...

[Xzyliac]

I like the style of the game in terms of characters, it kind of has a bit of a cell-shaded look to it. The kind of look where you could pause it at any time and it would look like a very good drawing.



Very true.

[milkman4591]

I was just wondering, after watching the video, whether there has been any news on if you can customize the note chart, as in making it look similar to the GH ones with a custom backgrounds (napalm's was the best!), but you can customize it how you like, just looks really bland to me. If there was news I missed it, and if not, again was just wondering. Thanks

[Xzyliac]

I was just wondering, after watching the video, whether there has been any news on if you can customize the note chart, as in making it look similar to the GH ones with a custom backgrounds (napalm's was the best!), but you can customize it how you like, just looks really bland to me. If there was news I missed it, and if not, again was just wondering. Thanks

I too have pondered such a thing.

I think it depends on your style (punk, classic, metal, etc.).

[Eman311]

I hope they change the notes, they look pretty bad. Otherwise, AMAZING presentation.

can't get enough of the visual style.

[AdamBomb629]

Great article, thanks for the link. I am REALLY excited about Rock Band (have the 360 bundle pre-ordered), but this article and some of the comments in WIRED have me slightly concerned. I'm worried now that the DLC will be expensive and the game itself will be too easy. I'm sure they won't be, but I'm just nervous. $200 is a lot to drop on a game...

[Brock_Landers]

Also note that GI only played through the first 1/3 of the game, and all those songs in the video are from the first 1/3rd of the game, which explains why they're pretty damn easy. They do get significantly harder.

They way I read it was that they played A third of the campaign.. not neccessarily the first third of the campaign.. That's how it sounded to me when they started explaining that the first songs are expected to be easy but they also played songs much further in which were not that difficult either..

I wouldn't expect them to say that if they were still just talking about the first third of it.

Of course you would also expect them to be playing in order if they really were doing the campaign.. so it's got me vexxed.

[bumbousdude25]

I would think that HMX would have some pretty hard guitar songs in the game (on the ship disc) for the campaign. HMX knows what us guitar heroes want for campaign, and that is a good focus on a particular instrument. Now, I understand that the campaign will be a little thinner considering it's spread over three instruments, but I think HMX would realize this and compensate accordingly.

I just can't believe that EXPERT would be as easy as it seems for this game. Think about GH II with Jordan and Free Bird and... well EVERYTHING on expert pretty much. It's exactly how it should be: it looks impossible at first, but you get used to it and figure out all the tricks to making sure you don't fail (and if you're lucky 5-star). That's how RB should be -

and I think HMX knows it, too.

[milkman4591]

I would think that HMX would have some pretty hard guitar songs in the game (on the ship disc) for the campaign. HMX knows what us guitar heroes want for campaign, and that is a good focus on a particular instrument. Now, I understand that the campaign will be a little thinner considering it's spread over three instruments, but I think HMX would realize this and compensate accordingly.

I just can't believe that EXPERT would be as easy as it seems for this game. Think about GH II with Jordan and Free Bird and... well EVERYTHING on expert pretty much. It's exactly how it should be: it looks impossible at first, but you get used to it and figure out all the tricks to making sure you don't fail (and if you're lucky 5-star). That's how RB should be -

and I think HMX knows it, too.

Except that you don't see performers on stage messing up and hoping to hit the right notes at the right time. You see them nailing everything (most of the time). This is probably why rock band it like this, so that eventually, everyone can nail the entire song. I mean just look at me, I've played guitar hero everyday it came out on 360 (so April 1ish) and have yet to beat a song perfectly with 100% (I realize this is weird, I'm just not that amazing, I'm better at bass :P). It takes a long time for people to be able to do that on GH, some still have yet to do it. This is exactly what they want to avoid (from what I can gather when compared to GH). They want a more casual game for everyone to enjoy, so just go with the flow :)

[bumbousdude25]

Except that you don't see performers on stage messing up and hoping to hit the right notes at the right time. You see them nailing everything (most of the time). This is probably why rock band it like this, so that eventually, everyone can nail the entire song. I mean just look at me, I've played guitar hero everyday it came out on 360 (so April 1ish) and have yet to beat a song perfectly with 100% (I realize this is weird, I'm just not that amazing, I'm better at bass :P). It takes a long time for people to be able to do that on GH, some still have yet to do it. This is exactly what they want to avoid (from what I can gather when compared to GH). They want a more casual game for everyone to enjoy, so just go with the flow :)

Yes... you make a very good point. Guitar Hero has, and will always be, about crazy guitar songs that look insane to play and people cheer you on when you're doing good on expert. It's all about the hardcore craziness of it that makes you laugh when you play it, and you say, "holy crap! How do you play that!?! That's impossible!!!"

Rock Band will be all about having fun with a group of friends in a "relaxed environment".

The only thing is that when it comes to achievement time... HMX will need to get creative.

[Brock_Landers]

Yeah that's exactly what I was thinking last night, actually. Would probably rather curb the difficulty easier, so everyone has a better chance of making it through the song.. given that multiplayer is such a big part of this, and it could get frustrating on everyone else otherwise.

Although if DLC turns out to be too easy as well, then it'll be the guitarists who start getting frustrated instead lol

[bumbousdude25]

Although if DLC turns out to be too easy as well, then it'll be the guitarists who start getting frustrated instead lol

Exactly... That's what they need to do for DLC. They need to have songs that are good for specific instruments. Like some weeks they'll just come out with whole albums for everyone to play, but other weeks they can have songs that have really hard guitar solos and so-so drums/bass/singing. The next week, they come out with a really hard drum song with so-so guitar/bass/singing, etc. etc.

I mean, that's a plausible way of doing things, anyway. And maybe they could only do it every now and then.

[Electric_Zen]

Harmonix and Neversoft are definitely taking divergent approaches here.

Neversoft is stressing hardcore competition. From the "Dragonforce will make you their *****" song selection, to the competition modes where you try and screw up your opponent's fretboard. Neversoft is embracing the school of "You know, I sounded like crap, and only hit 85% of my notes, but damnit, I made it through the end of the song, and that makes me the champ."

Rock Band is stressing coop over competition. You rescue your bandmates instead of breaking their strings, and the thrills come from putting together a solid performance, not by ekeing by without failing.

I think Rock Band's approach is going to appeal to a larger demographic.

Look at me. According to XBox, I am in the top 10% of the career leaderboard, and I am just not very good at Guitar Hero. I can beat Hard, five-star the first few tiers on Hard, and that's about it. Playing Misirlou on Expert is just not that fun for me. If I could pass it (I can't), I would still sound like crap. I am not going to be bored with Rock Band Expert being too easy for me.

The hardcore Scorehero guys have been important influencers of opinion, and have done a lot for the success of the game. They should not be tossed aside, and I'm glad to see Harmonix actively supporting them with donations and junkets. And it's important for them to offer killer guitar DLC that will challenge the hardcore shredders.

But Rock Band needs to be fun for us bottom 95% players, and the many other players that will be introduced to rhythm gaming for the first time when Rock Band comes out.

[Xzyliac]

I mean just look at me, I've played guitar hero everyday it came out on 360 (so April 1ish) and have yet to beat a song perfectly with 100% (I realize this is weird, I'm just not that amazing, I'm better at bass :P).

Radium Eyes?

[sushi111]

Actually are the songs in GH3 really that hard? They sound noticably easier than most songs in GH2, and the only real challenge seems to be in the last teir and bonus songs.

[Rainer7]

Pretty good preview, and yeah you have to take it into consideration that Harmonix needs songs to fulfill the other instruments as well. And like GI said, Harmonix is bound to release some shredding material via DLC.

[DarkSide]

Except that you don't see performers on stage messing up and hoping to hit the right notes at the right time. You see them nailing everything (most of the time). This is probably why rock band it like this, so that eventually, everyone can nail the entire song. I mean just look at me, I've played guitar hero everyday it came out on 360 (so April 1ish) and have yet to beat a song perfectly with 100% (I realize this is weird, I'm just not that amazing, I'm better at bass :P). It takes a long time for people to be able to do that on GH, some still have yet to do it. This is exactly what they want to avoid (from what I can gather when compared to GH). They want a more casual game for everyone to enjoy, so just go with the flow :)
This is exactly what lower difficulties are for. If you can't nail that super insane solo on expert, well... don't play on expert! Just because a song on expert may be nearly impossible for the casual gamer doesn't mean that the expert difficulty should be dumbed down at all. Casual gamers shouldn't be playing on expert to begin with.

I'm like you in that I've yet to FC any song on expert in GH II, but that doesn't mean I want it to be any easier just to compensate for my lack of skill. Lesser players have the option of choosing lower difficulties, but what's a pro gonna do when they 5 star a top tier song on expert on the first try?

It's still far too early to come to the conclusion that Rock Band's guitar portion is going to be too easy, but to say that it should be easier, just to appeal to more casual gamers is flawed logic in my view. Those casual gamers could always choose a lower difficulty, but what are those looking for a real challenge going to do?

[milkman4591]

Radium Eyes?

Nope, no guitar songs. I think god is watching me play and just as I'm about to beat it, he changes the song so I miss a single! note, or the game cheats haha. (Honestly that has happened to me so many times, I miss a single note I don't even realize). It don't matter though, I still love the game and cannot wait for Rock band, especially after seeing that amazing video of all the expert songs (the Maps singer was amazing!). Thanks

[Xzyliac]

My brother keeps screwing our 100% co-op Achievement so I know how you feel.

[milkman4591]

This is exactly what lower difficulties are for. If you can't nail that super insane solo on expert, well... don't play on expert! Just because a song on expert may be nearly impossible for the casual gamer doesn't mean that the expert difficulty should be dumbed down at all. Casual gamers shouldn't be playing on expert to begin with.

I'm like you in that I've yet to FC any song on expert in GH II, but that doesn't mean I want it to be any easier just to compensate for my lack of skill. Lesser players have the option of choosing lower difficulties, but what's a pro gonna do when they 5 star a top tier song on expert on the first try?

It's still far too early to come to the conclusion that Rock Band's guitar portion is going to be too easy, but to say that it should be easier, just to appeal to more casual gamers is flawed logic in my view. Those casual gamers could always choose a lower difficulty, but what are those looking for a real challenge going to do?

I agree with you that people who are good shouldn't suffer for those who aren't, but playing on anything but expert makes me feel like I suck, but its the only way I can 100% a song. IDK, whatever HMX decides to do will work, I have faith in them. Also remember that GH throws crazy **** in sometimes by adding non-existent notes and changing notes which would normally be hammer-ons and pull-offs. So to say that RB is making the game easier is a lie in my opinion; RB is making the game truer (yes I made a word up), RB is making rhythm games more realistic.

And to this

My brother keeps screwing our 100% co-op Achievement so I know how you feel.

It just makes me crazy because by now, I should be able to performance mode songs, but I just keep screwing up. Like just now after you said that I tried Radium Eyes again; when did they throw in Green-Orange chords?! I never knew that song a few of those, totally threw me off, and the fact that I can't do those unless I switch my hand position haha. Thanks

[bumbousdude25]

My brother keeps screwing our 100% co-op Achievement so I know how you feel.

lol I got that on Trogdor on easy, I think, with my friend. :rolleyes:

[Xzyliac]

Hallelujah Mikman!

Although I would like my fingers to bleed once in a while.

[milkman4591]

lol I got that on Trogdor on easy, I think, with my friend. :rolleyes:

Can you even get achievements for doing songs on easy? Like the co-op ones and stuff? Sweet!

[bumbousdude25]

It just makes me crazy because by now, I should be able to performance mode songs, but I just keep screwing up.

No! That's insane! Very, very few people can do performance mode and pass! Don't put yourself down by saying you should be able to do it by now.

[milkman4591]

No! That's insane! Very, very few people can do performance mode and pass! Don't put yourself down by saying you should be able to do it by now.

Really? Because I can do about the first 3 tiers on performance (and pass haha) I didn't realize it was that big a deal. Which only makes me feel worse that I can't 100% any HAHAHA. Thanks

[Kaboobi]

They way I read it was that they played A third of the campaign.. not neccessarily the first third of the campaign.. That's how it sounded to me when they started explaining that the first songs are expected to be easy but they also played songs much further in which were not that difficult either..

I wouldn't expect them to say that if they were still just talking about the first third of it.

Of course you would also expect them to be playing in order if they really were doing the campaign.. so it's got me vexxed.

Well if the video they made of the guitar tracks is any indication, they played through the first 1/3rd of the guitar career. The songs do get significantly harder.

[bumbousdude25]

Really? Because I can do about the first 3 tiers on performance (and pass haha) I didn't realize it was that big a deal. Which only makes me feel worse that I can't 100% any HAHAHA. Thanks

Huh. Okay, whatever. Can anyone else do that? Of course, I might be able to, I've never tried.

[Xzyliac]

All but the final tier, Six, The Trooper, and Psychobilly Freakout (on Expert).

And yes I can three star Jordan on Expert with Performance Mode. If you can beat it normally chances are it's so engraved in your head from practice you can beat it with Performance on. :p

[bumbousdude25]

All but the final tier, Six, The Trooper, and Psychobilly Freakout (on Expert).

And yes I can three star Jordan on Expert with Performance Mode. If you can beat it normally chances are it's so engraved in your head from practice you can beat it with Performance on. :p

Wow, crazy. I should probably start trying performance then because I'm bored with everything else, anyways lol. Though I still haven't beaten Jordan... I guess I should work on that instead... :rolleyes:

[milkman4591]

Wow, crazy. I should probably start trying performance then because I'm bored with everything else, anyways lol. Though I still haven't beaten Jordan... I guess I should work on that instead... :rolleyes:

same for me, I really should get around to practicing that a lot more so I can finally beat it.

[blue_dragonzero]

Why does no one pay attention to Highway Star. The guitar is crazy on that!

[Xzyliac]

I beat Jordan and never got my damn Achievement.

Edit:
Yeah but Highway Star is one song.

[bumbousdude25]

Why does no one pay attention to Highway Star. The guitar is crazy on that!

Aye, 'tis. But what do you mean,"why does no one pay attention to Highway Star"? I think a lot of people are, especially considering it's in the new opening cinema.

[blue_dragonzero]

Aye, 'tis. But what do you mean,"why does no one pay attention to Highway Star"? I think a lot of people are, especially considering it's in the new opening cinema.

As far as guitar difficulty.

[bumbousdude25]

I beat it and never got my damn Achievement.

Huh? Why not? That sucks.

EDIT:

To blue_dragonzero: Ah, I see. You're right.

[Xzyliac]

As far as guitar difficulty.

It's one song.

[Xzyliac]

Huh? Why not? That sucks.

Glitch of suck apparently.

[blue_dragonzero]

It's one song.

True, but it's one hell of a song at that.

Edit: Yes 100th post! Senior member!

[Xzyliac]

True, but it's one hell of a song at that.

I can only play it so many times ya know?

Still have ten songs to go. I'd be happy if five of them have great guitar.

[dlisapussy]

Game Informer-
While the current song list contained on disc is geared toward band-oriented gameplay, the company has plans to release songs and entire albums directed toward guitar parts. So shredders who feel like their best licks are going unused in the standard career path can take consolation knowing that—if Harmonix delivers on their promises—they’ll be able to show off their moves in earnest eventually.





Will this mean less fun bass, drums, and vocals? I don't think HMX would do that but it says that their focus is on the guitar. Its a band-oriented game so they're should be band-oriented songs for DLC. Plus, songs like Jordan are just simply not fun to play unless you're amazing and don't mind the pain.

[ababypenguin]

I can only play it so many times ya know?

Still have ten songs to go. I'd be happy if five of them have great guitar.

I can't believe everyone is acting so calm about this, I am really pissed off that HMX dumbed down the gameplay for us.

Source GameInformer...

Just for fun, we captured video of The Strokes? ?Reptilia,? one of the master tracks featured in both Rock Band and Guitar Hero III. Playing the two clips side by side illustrates how Harmonix and Neversoft tabbed out the same song differently, with Harmonix switching between lead and rhythm guitar parts and Neversoft choosing to stick with the lead. With both titles sharing some of the same songs, it?s inevitable that people are going to scrutinize the differences between the individual note charts and do side-by-side comparisons.

This is the complete opposite of what I thought HMX would do, I thought HMX would stay true to the music, and I thought Neversoft would butcher the song. I thought I heard Alex R. say that you wouldn't be playing any keyboard solos on the guitar, well the keyboard might as well be the same thing as the rhythm guitar. If I am playing guitar, I wanna play lead, and only lead. If I have to play rhythm guitar, then keep me playing the rhythm guitar, don't switch me between the two guitars like a game of hot potato.

And also, why does Reptilia look so easy? It is like playing on hard mode on GHII. I want a challenge when I play RB. You guys realize that you wont ALWAYS be playing with your entire band right? So when you are by yourself playing guitar, don't you want to play some really challenging songs? I am not talking about Through The Fire and Flames, more like Institutionalized, or Cowboys from Hell.

I am getting really angry so I am just going to click the Submit Reply button now...

>>edit I realize that they only played 1/3 of the set list, but seeing Reptilia that easy is ridiculous. It should be identical, or even harder than the GHIII version.

>>edit>>edit Oh yeah, he said there were rarely any HO/PO's!!!! WHAT!!!!! thaiouwp;ioshd;oaihwhh

...

........ I'm going to shut up now

[blue_dragonzero]

I can only play it so many times ya know?

Still have ten songs to go. I'd be happy if five of them have great guitar.

Yeah, I understand. But I have a feeling more than one of us will get stuck on that solo.
Thank Harmonix for solo buttons! If they work correctly solos may just be more fun (and easier) to play.

[Xzyliac]

You know what I love about Penguin? His subtle expression and velvety approach. Smooth operator indeed.

[sushi111]

You know what I love about Penguin? His subtle expression and velvety approach. Smooth operator indeed.

Indeed. I especially like the part where Harmonix "dumbed down" the gameplay, by choosing songs that would be fun for everyone
:rolleyes:

[Kang_Zircon]

I think people might not be as upset because, for a lot of people (well for me anyway), the hardest songs aren't my favorites.

More Than a Feeling and Carry on My Wayward Son are probably my two all-time favorite songs, and are now way near the hardest. I like the way they sound and it just feels enjoyable to play. Plus being able to hear all the notes, and not just 2/3 plus a bunch of scratches is much more enjoyable for me. And it's not that I don't appreciate a challenge. I liked that there were a few songs on GH 80s I didn't beat the first time through, but a lot of the harder songs just aren't as fun. Institutionalized and Six are two, for sure. Once I beat them I pretty much never played them agian.

[Xzyliac]

I like fun songs and finger bleeders.

Like I love You Really Got Me Now and Carry Me Home. Both not so hard but very fun. I love Jordan and Cheat on the Church. Hard and still fun.

I HATE Six. And it's a finger bleeder.

Overall it just has to sound good.

My fave? Probably FTK. It just sounds awesome. I sing to it every time I play. Helen rocks. VAGIANT'S DEBUT ALBUM FOR DLC PLEESZZ!!

[Kylekillgannon]

I think people might not be as upset because, for a lot of people (well for me anyway), the hardest songs aren't my favorites.

More Than a Feeling and Carry on My Wayward Son are probably my two all-time favorite songs, and are now way near the hardest. I like the way they sound and it just feels enjoyable to play. Plus being able to hear all the notes, and not just 2/3 plus a bunch of scratches is much more enjoyable for me. And it's not that I don't appreciate a challenge. I liked that there were a few songs on GH 80s I didn't beat the first time through, but a lot of the harder songs just aren't as fun. Institutionalized and Six are two, for sure. Once I beat them I pretty much never played them agian.

Agreed, I'm personally interested in the songs everybody'll be able to go "OH MY GOD THIS SONG KICKS ASS!!" And not "OMG YOU JUST DID A 300 NOTE STREAK USING HAMMER ONS AND PULL OFFS!!!"

[ababypenguin]

Indeed. I especially like the part where Harmonix "dumbed down" the gameplay, by choosing songs that would be fun for everyone
:rolleyes:

I NEVER said Harmonix "dumbed down" the gameplay, by choosing songs that would be fun for everyone. Show me ANY part of my post where I said the songs were a bad choice. Don't put words in my mouth, this is what I said...


I thought I heard Alex R. say that you wouldn't be playing any keyboard solos on the guitar, well the keyboard might as well be the same thing as the rhythm guitar. If I am playing guitar, I wanna play lead, and only lead. If I have to play rhythm guitar, then keep me playing the rhythm guitar, don't switch me between the two guitars like a game of hot potato.

I am saying that the "tablature" of the songs shouldn't be a mixture of Rhythm and Lead guitar, it should be one or the other. I am also saying that the "tabs" should be as realistic and difficult as possible.... on the Expert difficulty. I understand if they have to "dumb down" the easy/medium/hard difficulties, but Expert means one thing, and that is Expert.

Please read my posts carefully, if you don't then you won't understand my point. (Thank you Xzyl ;) )

[espher]

>>edit I realize that they only played 1/3 of the set list, but seeing Reptilia that easy is ridiculous. It should be identical, or even harder than the GHIII version.

I agree 100%.

Considering the charts are almost identical aside from some minor finger placement issues that really don't make either version harder than the other, I can say that this man's conclusion is right: the Guitar Hero 3 chart is much, much harder than the Rock Band chart. So hard that I'm afraid I might have to get cybernetic implants in order to stretch my fingers over that extra centimeter or so.

Plus, that switch to rhythm? Wow man, I don't know why they made it so easy. Strumming those chords is so much easier than hitting all of those single notes. It's like, a million times easier. The tempo is so much slower on the lead guitar that it makes it challenging because when I strum the guitar I'm on speed and playing that slow will make my head explode.

I think Rock Band should do the right thing and replace every note with awkward triple chords like GYO or GRO just to make it so the chart is harder than the Guitar Hero 3 chart and up the tempo of the entire note chart to that of those wicked sections of Misirlou so that I really have a challenge playing Reptilia which in and of itself is not an amazingly difficult song.

HARMONIX:

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/4242/doingitwrongsb1.jpg

[Xzyliac]

I agree 100%.

Considering the charts are almost identical aside from some minor finger placement issues that really don't make either version harder than the other, I can say that this man's conclusion is right: the Guitar Hero 3 chart is much, much harder than the Rock Band chart. So hard that I'm afraid I might have to get cybernetic implants in order to stretch my fingers over that extra centimeter or so.

Plus, that switch to rhythm? Wow man, I don't know why they made it so easy. Strumming those chords is so much easier than hitting all of those single notes. It's like, a million times easier. The tempo is so much slower on the lead guitar that it makes it challenging because when I strum the guitar I'm on speed and playing that slow will make my head explode.

I think Rock Band should do the right thing and replace every note with awkward triple chords like GYO or GRO just to make it so the chart is harder than the Guitar Hero 3 chart and up the tempo of the entire note chart to that of those wicked sections of Misirlou so that I really have a challenge playing Reptilia which in and of itself is not an amazingly difficult song.

HARMONIX:

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/4242/doingitwrongsb1.jpg
Best use of satire today.

[Sons_of_Kyuss]

Agreed, I'm personally interested in the songs everybody'll be able to go "OH MY GOD THIS SONG KICKS ASS!!" And not "OMG YOU JUST DID A 300 NOTE STREAK USING HAMMER ONS AND PULL OFFS!!!"

Yeah, I'm not that great at GH2...just bought it not too long ago...quickly realized I wasn't made to be playing this game as old as I am, lol. I would personally love it if the guitar wasn't as hard in RB as it is in GH.

[Magnet]

I can't believe everyone is acting so calm about this, I am really pissed off that HMX dumbed down the gameplay for us.

Yes, obviously they dumbed down gameplay by picking songs that would be fun for every person to play as a band.


This is the complete opposite of what I thought HMX would do, I thought HMX would stay true to the music, and I thought Neversoft would butcher the song. I thought I heard Alex R. say that you wouldn't be playing any keyboard solos on the guitar, well the keyboard might as well be the same thing as the rhythm guitar. If I am playing guitar, I wanna play lead, and only lead. If I have to play rhythm guitar, then keep me playing the rhythm guitar, don't switch me between the two guitars like a game of hot potato.

If you only want to play lead, I shudder to think how you got through the previous Guitar Hero games. You switched guitar in the songs in those games many, many times. I don't know why you thought Rock Band would be any different. Harmonix is varying the guitars to make gameplay less repetive and let you experience more of the song. They're not putting you on the keyboard. It's still guitar.


And also, why does Reptilia look so easy? It is like playing on hard mode on GHII.

Because Reptilia has an easy guitar part. Would you rather have them add in notes that have nothing to do with the music just to make it harder? Guitar Hero III's version is very, very similar to Rock Band's barring the rhythm guitar switch. Neither looks difficult, actually. Time to get slightly worried about GHIII I guess.


I want a challenge when I play RB.

Crap. You picked the wrong game. Guess you can either wait for DLC or buy Guitar Hero III to get your fix there.


You guys realize that you wont ALWAYS be playing with your entire band right? So when you are by yourself playing guitar, don't you want to play some really challenging songs? I am not talking about Through The Fire and Flames, more like Institutionalized, or Cowboys from Hell.

Totally! They should've licensed 45 more songs for each individual solo career mode in addition to the band mode, bringing the total up to 180 for the disc! That's totally a more viable option than picking 45 songs that are fun for all instruments!

Seriously though, I do want to play really challenging guitar songs. And they've said that they're coming through DLC. So I will wait patiently for them (after playing one game especially designed for them: Guitar Hero III). In the mean time, it will be awesome playing 45 songs with three other people that were picked especially to satisfy each part. 45 songs tailored to one instrument with the other three tacked on would have sucked tremendously for band play.


>>edit>>edit Oh yeah, he said there were rarely any HO/PO's!!!! WHAT!!!!! thaiouwp;ioshd;oaihwhh

Many of the songs they were shown don't have outrageous solos where you need to use HOPOs. They're not going to insert HOPOs randomly just to have HOPOs.


........ I'm going to shut up now

Good idea. Glad to hear it.

[Quinarvy]

Harmonix will end up making it great, I mean, we still have 2/3s of the game left, 12 unannounced songs, and over two months to go.

They have room to work with.

[milkman4591]

Good idea. Glad to hear it.

FACE! EAT IT!

[sushi111]

I NEVER said Harmonix "dumbed down" the gameplay, by choosing songs that would be fun for everyone. Show me ANY part of my post where I said the songs were a bad choice. Don't put words in my mouth, this is what I said...

Please read my posts carefully, if you don't then you won't understand my point. (Thank you Xzyl ;) )


I can't believe everyone is acting so calm about this, I am really pissed off that HMX dumbed down the gameplay for us.



:confused:

[bumbousdude25]

Harmonix will end up making it great, I mean, we still have 2/3s of the game left, 12 unannounced songs, and over two months to go.

They have room to work with.

Absolutely. I think this should be the "end all" statement for this thread.

[ababypenguin]

Yes, obviously they dumbed down gameplay by picking songs that would be fun for every person to play as a band.

If you only want to play lead, I shudder to think how you got through the previous Guitar Hero games. You switched guitar in the songs in those games many, many times. I don't know why you thought Rock Band would be any different. Harmonix is varying the guitars to make gameplay less repetive and let you experience more of the song. They're not putting you on the keyboard. It's still guitar.

etc etc...


dude, you said what Sushi already said, just in one gigantic post. I NEVER SAID ANYTHING ABOUT THE SONG CHOICE, I SAID I DIDN'T LIKE THE NOTE CHART FOR RB'S VERSION OF REPTILIA, I LIKED GHIII'S VERSION BETTER.

Read my response to Sushi's post .....



I NEVER said Harmonix "dumbed down" the gameplay, by choosing songs that would be fun for everyone. Show me ANY part of my post where I said the songs were a bad choice. Don't put words in my mouth, this is what I said...

I am saying that the "tablature" of the songs shouldn't be a mixture of Rhythm and Lead guitar, it should be one or the other. I am also saying that the "tabs" should be as realistic and difficult as possible.... on the Expert difficulty. I understand if they have to "dumb down" the easy/medium/hard difficulties, but Expert means one thing, and that is Expert.

Please read my posts carefully, if you don't then you won't understand my point. (Thank you Xzyl )

[Kylekillgannon]

dude, you said what Sushi already said, just in one gigantic post. I NEVER SAID ANYTHING ABOUT THE SONG CHOICE, I SAID I DIDN'T LIKE THE NOTE CHART FOR RB'S VERSION OF REPTILIA, I LIKED GHIII'S VERSION BETTER.

Aren't they basicly the same?

[ababypenguin]

:confused:

sorry to double post, but Sushi wrote that confused smiley and I thought I should clear things up.

I said "I can't believe everyone is acting so calm about this, I am really pissed off that HMX dumbed down the gameplay for us."

You CLAIMED I said "I can't believe everyone is acting so calm about this, I am really pissed off that HMX dumbed down the gameplay for us, BY PICKING EASY SONGS!!!"

I did NOT say anything about the songs, just the note charts OF the songs.

>>edit @KyleKill No, the chord part is very different, and the single note section was harder on GHIII than on RB.

[jq71586]

I think it's safe to say that this is the most heated discussion ever involving anything about The Strokes in the history of mankind.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PSN - jq71586 - looking for PS3 friends.

[Magnet]

Despite your claims that the GH3 single notes are definitively more difficult than the RB ones, the note charts are essentially equivalent in difficulty. They are very, very similar. Here's a screen for that comparison video at 0:24...

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/4131/rockbandguitarherope3.jpg

Rock Band's note chart actually seems to be more in tact with the music than GH3's at this part, as can be seen by the jump to the orange for the next three-note sequence which starts at an obviously higher note. That's not to say that GH3's note chart is wrong, but I don't feel it follows the guitar as well during that part. It might utilize the orange note more (I'm guessing this is why you believe it's more difficult?), but if that's at the expense of diminished relevancy with the song (and it could be argued that it is from that screen), I'll take the one that looks more accurate over the more difficult one any day.

Either argument is pretty weak for saying one note chart is more difficult than the other based on what we've seen. They're basically identical on the lead and both follow the music well enough that it would be silly to call either chart "dumbed down."

And with the rhythm part that Rock Band has, you're playing faster chords versus the slow individual notes of the lead that you've just played five times in a row already. So I would think it really evens out there in difficulty.

If they're not dumbing down the gameplay with the actual notes (and they're clearly not, it's completely accurate), then how could you possibly claim that they are doing so at all, if not via the song selection? That's really the only available argument for dumbing down gameplay possible. And it's a silly one at that.

[Kylekillgannon]

I think it's safe to say that this is the most heated discussion ever involving anything about The Strokes in the history of mankind.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

PSN - jq71586 - looking for PS3 friends.

XD.........

[ababypenguin]

If they're not dumbing down the gameplay with the actual notes (and they're clearly not, it's completely accurate), then how could you possibly claim that they are doing so at all, if not via the song selection? That's really the only available argument for dumbing down gameplay possible. And it's a silly one at that.

I actually thought that the GHIII chart was more accurate, and more difficult. I thought it was more difficult not because of the use of the orange note, I thought it looked more difficult because it uses all of the notes. When the RB was just using the R, Y, B, and O notes, and rarely using the green.

I am sick of arguing, and judging by your last post, I think you won the argument anyway. But I still stand by what I have said, how about we agree to disagree?

>>edit

I think it's sfe to say that this is the most heated discussion ever involving anything about The Strokes in the history of mankind.

lol

[Pandacon]

Well, I only got to medium difficulty on GH, so I can't say if RB looks any easier than GH3, but I personally like the switching from the rythem to the lead, it gives more varity and presents different challenges in the songs.

In any case, I think the Rock Band characters look a lot more into the song than the GH3 guys :p

[Quinarvy]

In any case, I think the Rock Band characters look a lot more into the song than the GH3 guys :p

And less creepy, the GH3 singer scares me.

Unless were talking Bret Michaels, I thought his character was Fergie from her new music video :rolleyes: