Guitar Hero III (and demo!)

[n0wak]

So the demo for Guitar Hero III is available. Sort of. It was a bonus with the Tony Hawk but someone, somewhere figured out that there's no copy protection on it so you can just burn it to a disc and get it working. I tried and it works great!

http://www.xboxlivetheguide.co.uk/News/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1653&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

I played it and felt a little less than enthused about it. No doubt, GH3 will sell millions -- maybe even millions more than Rock Band -- but I find myself being drawn to Harmonix's game more. Playing it feels like the same old thing but slightly off. Things like the UI and the texture of the notes don't feel right. I can't put my finger on it but it doesn't come across as a Harmonix game anymore. It's something else now. And as a fan of Harmonix, I don't think I like that.

[miffy495]

Dunno. Downloaded the demo iso but haven't tried it yet. I went and pre-ordered GHIII so I'll have it eventually anyway. I'm pumped, if only because I really want to sing along to "My Name Is Jonas," but that may simply be because I'm a huge Weezer fan. Either way, I'll be playing it in a couple of weeks so if nothing else it should give a pretty solid boost to my gamer score...

[ThunderPeel2001]

HAAARMONIIIIIIX!!!

It sucks that they fell out with Red Octane and RO got to keep the Guitar Hero name. I feel sorry for them because all RO did was make the plastic guitars! Rock Band looks good... Can't imagine how incredibly expensive it's going to be with all those peripherals though!

[Spaff]

it's a bit odd but it became better with the sfx turned down, way way down.

the new note missing noises are fucking annoying.

the shininess off it is bothersome, it does feel rather odd, but I'm sure it will be fun still.

[ThunderPeel2001]

Hmmm, the presentation is way off compared to Guitar Hero II. I thought it was probably an easy game to design, visually, but it does show how much care went into Harmonix's game. The only thing I prefer is being able to see the Artist and Year on the setlist. That's a cool addition.

The music is... weird! The sound effects are way too loud, so you lose the music (I could barely hear the Tenacious D song).

What's the with songs themselves though? The Pearl Jam song sounded exactly like the original.... was it?? I thought Tenacious D were doing a song for GH3, and yet... it didn't sound anything like Jack Black....??

Very bizarre.

I'll most likely get GH3 because of the songs and the fact I won't need to buy another controller, but Rock Band is probably going to be where its at.

[n0wak]

I think about a third to half of the songs are master recordings, so the Pearl Jam one IS the original. No Eddie Vedder wannabe here.

Shows you what success does to your music licensing options...

[miffy495]

Had a really good time with the demo now. The Metal = fantastic fun on expert. It's just one of those really satisfying riffs that's not too hard to get down but tricky enough so that you're always on your toes in case you fuck up. Even Flow, I love that song, so .

Only complaint is that the only multiplayer options in the demo are face-off and battle. I want to co-op with my roommates, dammit! Well, ok. There is one more complaint. Why does Johnny Napalm now look like he needs a walker? And Lars Umlaut's face is just... wrong. I miss Harmonix's style. Still going to be a great game, but it's missing something in the presentation now.

[BigJKO]

Am I right in thinking GH3 is coming to the Wii, as well?

[brkl]

Yes, although after these comments I'll have to wait and see if I actually get it.

[Spaff]

Hmmm, the presentation is way off compared to Guitar Hero II.

agreed, but it'll do.

The music is... weird! The sound effects are way too loud, so you lose the music (I could barely hear the Tenacious D song).

yup, turn the sfx down and it becomes ok.

I thought Tenacious D were doing a song for GH3, and yet... it didn't sound anything like Jack Black....??.

That song is not a cover so... ¬¬ - Although they could have picked a better song, as good as the metal is, the D have some far more interesting songs that would be good for GH... hopefully GH3 or Rock band will have some more Tenacious D downloads.

[Salka]

I am glad I am not the only one who thought the Tenacious D song sounded like a cover. I thought it was a fairly good cover... but it sounded like somebody very good trying to impersonate JB... but apparently it is actually him... hmm...

[brkl]

So which song is it?

[DanJW]

[ThunderPeel2001]

I think about a third to half of the songs are master recordings, so the Pearl Jam one IS the original. No Eddie Vedder wannabe here.

Shows you what success does to your music licensing options...

Wow There was only one or two known bands that were actually themselves in GH2 weren't there?

[miffy495]

Primus, The Toadies, Jane's Addiction, and My Chemical Romance all contributed master tracks to GHII, but two of those songs were only in the 360 version. Originally only Stop and John The Fisherman were the original songs, so this is definitely a huge improvement.

[miffy495]

K, just got 5 stars on the Metal. Demo now conquered, bring on the real game.

[marked1234]

Hey I found the entire tracklist of the New Guitar Hero 3 music. The full length versions as well. Enjoy!

[n0wak]

So I'm playing GH3 and I'm finding myself less than enthused. It's making me want to bring out Guitar Hero 1 and 2, really. I can't put my finger on it. The game is competent and it plays the same but it's just missing that soul, I think. It doesn't have that kind of charm and universal appeal that Harmonix was going for. Gamey boss battles A presentation with far less irreverence. More skankiness. I doesn't feel the same.

[Moosferatu]

I never played either of the previous two games extensively, but I'm very satisfied with GH3 for the Wii. It's a blast.

[miffy495]

I had to mail order my copy for 360 because EB wasn't taking pre-orders by the time I went round to get it. I am wondering a bit about the boss battles, as all I know of GHIII so far is the demo. What sort of play does it require? Is it really jarring to move into a battle after playing normal songs for so long? Finally, I read somewhere that you can't play the boss battle songs outside of boss battles. Is this true? If so, what the fuck were they thinking?

[Moosferatu]

I hated the boss battles, but there are only three of them. It's basically like you're playing co-op but instead of getting star power you get attacks that you activate like star power to mess-up your opponent. For example, one of them ups the difficulty by one for a short period and another "breaks" a string so you have to hammer a particular button till it's fixed. You can only win by making the boss fail. And, yeah, you can't play the songs outside of the battles, but you can replay the battles.

[Noyb]

You can only win by making the boss fail. And, yeah, you can't play the songs outside of the battles, but you can replay the battles.

I'm curious what would happen if, say, Miffy were to play a boss battle but refuse to use any attacks. Are the attacks necessary, or would he be able to win on sheer insane skill alone?

[eljay]

He would lose, you have to attack the boss to make him fail otherwise he plays perfectly.

I've only seen the Tom Morello battle, and frankly I think it's a good thing the song isn't playable outside the battle.....

[Moosferatu]

I've only seen the Tom Morello battle, and frankly I think it's a good thing the song isn't playable outside the battle.....

I've found myself wanting to play the final battle song by itself.

[miffy495]

I would love to play "The Devil Went Down To Georgia" by itself, which was why I asked in the first place. Damn, that's disheartening. A friend brought over his copy tonight and we went through the first 4 tiers of the co-op career together (what excited me most about the game) and it seems pretty solid. This boss battle news is pretty disappointing, but I'm still eagerly awaiting the game. Just a bit less now.

In other news, only 20 days to Rock Band! (Which I've preordered from the store and will be getting on release day!)

EDIT: Awww... Thanks Noyb. I'm flattered. Probably sounds insincire typed, but true.