Wednesday, July 09, 2008
Recently, Phoenix contributor Mitch Krpata expressed some concern about Rock Band 2 on his personal blog, Insult Swordfighting. To summarize: Krpata was concerned that a sequel to Rock Band coming less than a year on the heels of the original would function more as an expansion pack - meaning plenty of new songs, venues, and character customization options, but few genuine innovations. As such, the whole thing could be downloadable (a sentiment I agree with.) Today, the AV Club's Chris Dahlen (also a one-time contributor to the Phoenix) reports on a visit to Harmonix that resulted in some hands-on time with the game. And while he does describe some neat things, he also doesn't completely allay the fears expressed by Krpata and others. Rock Band 2 does feature some almost necessary refinements, like customizable setlists, online tour mode, and non-linearity. And the drum lessons sound really cool. It will not, however, feature any user-generated content, which is a bit of a disappointment, particularly considering that feature's existence in Guitar Hero World Tour. Harmonix's Greg LoPiccolo did tell Dahlen about something else cool, though, that would enable up and coming independent bands to use the game as a platform to release their material to the world: "We have a very ambitious indie initiative that’s cooking now. It’s
not really ready for any detailed announcement. But long-term, we see
that as a significant component of the Rock Band universe, that gets
used actively by the independent music community to debut new material.
We think that it’s an ideal way for people to explore new music."
Now that is an idea with potential. That could be a real boost to both game and band. And it sounds preferable to the idea of millions of teenagers trying to create "TEH HARDEST GUITAR SOLO EVAR OMGZZ!!1!", which is what some (okay, me) believe GH:WT's create-a-song will result in. Contrary to popular belief, writing a song isn't exactly easy, and there's only so much you can do with a five-button guitar. So, despite surface appearances, it's possible that Harmonix is ultimately taking the better path here. That said, LoPiccolo's statements also would seem to suggest that none of this will be ready to go when this version of the game launches. Presumably we'll hear more about this and other things at E3, though. None of this changes the central concern - that all of this would
be almost preferable as downloadable content. If for no reason other
than to allow people to say "thanks, but no" to the long-rumored appearance of Linkin Park. And perhaps the most disappointing news? There still won't be any Zeppelin.
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
There's a lot of hatred being directed toward the new Guitar Hero Air Guitar Rocker, a device from Jada Toys (available in March) which allows its operator to air guitar "out loud," if you will. Most of it seems to be coming from outraged Guitar Hero fans, who apparently find the idea ridiculous, even reprehensible, thinking it will somehow dilute the brand. While we're not surprised to see the reaction, especially when the first glimpse of it in action came courtesy of this guy at this week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, we don't think it's much sillier than standing in front of a screen with a plastic guitar. And to be perfectly honest, we couldn't be happier that all of our Bill and Ted-inspired fantasies are now going to be realized. Ladies and gentlemen, air guitaring just got a whole lot more exciting.
Fuck Yeah.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Friday, October 19, 2007
Last Friday, the Phoenix visited the Central Square offices of Harmonix, the video game development house behind the first two Guitar Hero products, and, with help from their new parent company, MTV, the upcoming, hotly-anticipated Rock Band, which, as you may have heard, takes Guitar Hero's authentic musical simulator feel and stretches that to accommodate a drummer and vocalist. There's video forthcoming, but in the meantime, we present our conversation with Sean Baptiste, their director of community development, and one of the game's de facto spokespeople. One of the things that came across that might not come through in text, though, was just how passionate and genuinely excited about Rock Band he was. You get a clear sense talking to him that he will gladly talk about it for hours, and never lose interest. He even told us as much. Anyway, here it is after the jump:
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Tuesday, August 07, 2007
 Microsoft officially announced what we've been expecting all along: the 360 will be getting a $50 price cut across the board on all models starting tomorrow. The standard model will now check in at $349 with the "elite" model setting you back $449. Makes sense that Microsoft would do this now: there are some amazing-looking games coming in the next few weeks and months, including Halo 3, Rock Band, Bio Shock, Blue Dragon, Assassin's Creed, Guitar Hero 3, Mass Effect, Jericho, Lost Odyssey, Half-Life 2: The Orange Box... you get the idea: lots of games with greatness potential. So, of course, Microsoft's press released focused on Madden: The fact that we have been able to keep our launch price longer than
any other console while retaining our leadership position demonstrates
that consumers believe in the value of Xbox 360," said Mitch Koch,
corporate vice president, Global Retail Sales and Marketing Group,
Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft.. "On the eve of the
best holiday games lineup ever and the launch of 'Madden NFL 08,' there
has never been a better time to jump into Xbox 360.
Admittedly, yes, Madden is the top-selling game every year. But it just drives us nuts that more people don't actively reject this game when all it amounts to is a roster upgrade with some incredibly stupid bells and whistles that don't enhance the experience in any way shape or form. Remember this?
Monday, July 30, 2007
We keep thinking we couldn't possibly be more excited about Harmonix's Rock Band (see previous entries here and here), but each time we learn more about the game, we find a way to geek out even more. Today's news: Nirvana's Nevermind joins Who's Next as downloadable content in the game. Okay, so maybe you aren't so hot on playing "Polly" or "Something in the Way," but you'd be nuts to deny the opportunity for potential awesomeness this presents, especially to those of us who were in middle school in the early 90s. This is a slam dunk for Harmonix, as they continue to make Activision and Red Octane look silly. Stay tuned for more as always...
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
 Why?
Quick and dirty analysis, based on reporting from the scene here, here, and here: Microsoft didn't really tell us anything we didn't already know, Sony impressed by actually revealing new info, and Nintendo basically took a huge shit on everyone's head.
Well, maybe the last one isn't entirely accurate. You can argue fairly that Nintendo is in the process of accomplishing their goals with the Wii, namely bringing games to the non-gamer market. The problem is that they seem to be doing this at the expense of the actual gamer market, whether it's someone who plays for three hours a night, or two hours a week. Nintendo did unveil a Wii version of Mario Kart, and gave more details on already-announced titles like Super Mario Galaxy, Super Smash Bros. Brawl (no online play, it seem), and Metroid Prime 3. They also revealed a goofy and redundant zapper, and a really cheesy-looking steering wheel.
All that is fine, but what's bugging people is that the "big news" is WiiFit, a "game" that will be played on a Power Pad-like "balance board" and consist of a series of fitness-related mini-games. Nintendo's heart is in the right place, but it seems like the kind of thing that gamers are going to scoff at and non-gamers will simply not give a second thought to. To our eyes, anyway, it certainly looks pretty damn silly. Yet Nintendo devoted a large chunk of their presser to it, and seemed to suggest it would be the kind of thing they'd be doing more of in the future. For those who've gone to great lengths to get this system, it wasn't great news; these people have been forced to suffer through enough mini-game collections as it is. Let's get some content, here, Nintendo. What's going to happen when you run out of crowd-pleasing franchise updates? Do they think "Check Mii Out" will get people excited? At least the DS is getting a pretty sweet Zelda game.
Sony, on the other hand, didn't exactly bring out the big guns, but they did announce some good-looking PSP titles as they try to narrow the gap with the DS in the handheld wars, and they delivered some actual good news for those who shelled out $600+ for a PS3. Unreal Tournament 3 is going to be a PS3 exclusive. And Infamous, from the people who brought you Sly Cooper, will be hitting the machine this year as well. And, of course, in the not-distant future, Metal Gear Solid 4 will come out for the PS3. This will be the last game in the saga, at least as far as creator Hideo Kojima's involvement is concerned. Did somebody say "trailer"?
Meanwhile, Harmonix's Rock Band continued to put the Neversoft-produced Guitar Hero 3 to shame. Rock Band announced that Steven Van Zandt will be heading the game's "music advisory board" (expect some garage.) They also announced that full-album downloadable content will be a part of the game, starting with The Who's Who's Next. And finally, they made a shitload of fanboys happy by announcing that Metallica will be on board with the game. We've been waiting since the first Guitar Hero two years ago for that. Guitar Hero 3's big announcement? Slash will be a boss character. It's cool that he's in the game (and playable, too), but there's something about a boss battle in a Guitar Hero game that just doesn't seem right to us. Combined with the new battle mode, it seems that the concerns about Neversoft's involvement with the game may have been well-founded. Color us guarded, at the very least.
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