Debate: Should Guitar Hero Incorporate Elements of Rock Band

[Mike Ryan]

I, as a dedicated gamer (actually not so much lately) have been closely following the unvraveling details of Guitar Hero IV (Not Guitar Hero Aerosmith). Apparently the game will include drums, a microphone, and its already included guitar and bass. So the question is this: should Guitar Hero truly move into the full rock band experience as Rock Band has, or is it a bad move for a well developed franchise?

[TopHATslash]

Yeah it should. They should actually TRY to compete with RB... RB takes all for the combo. I would love to play the current songs on GH3 with drums... except Cliffs of Dover would be rather boring.. one roll.. the rest guitar. No bass or singin! :?

[Mike Ryan]

While it would be fun, would that not dissintegrate the differences in targeted audience? Would you not agree Rock Band is more party orriented fun while Guitar Hero takes on a much more serious note with finger breakers like Cliffs of Dover, One, and Through the Fire and Flames?

[TopHATslash]

Well, your right.

[Mike Ryan]

Well, do you think the tone and seriousness of Guitar Hero can be incorporated into other instruments, such as drums and a mic?

[Rick Brewster]

While they're at it, maybe they could incorporate animation and presentation elements that allow it to look like a game from 2008, and not something from 1998 when 3D acceleration was a novelty. Seriously, the graphics and animation in GH3 are horrendous and I can't play it. The fret board is full of noisy, distracting graphics. And the songs they give you are terrible 80's trash. It isn't fun. Rock Band is a million times better.

[Skaritt]

terrible 80's trash

:shock:

Good music is hard to find these days! :wink:

[LJXD]

True but that doesnt mean we should go listen to some eighties music.... i agree with Rick.... i mean Pat Benatar in Legends of Rock *cringe*

[Andrew D]

Besides, I'm not paying another £180 for new instruments, and as we don't know if Rock Band instruments will be compatible with GH4 and vice-versa.

I say Activision should just give up on the series.

[andROLL]

I thought there was already a full band one or coming out soon, that was called something like "play band"

I'm not sure, but I just heard it somewhere.

andROLL;x

[Mike Ryan]

Besides, I'm not paying another £180 for new instruments, and as we don't know if Rock Band instruments will be compatible with GH4 and vice-versa.

I say Activision should just give up on the series.

I can guarantee the drums will not be compatible. Here is an image of them:

[Dalton]

I think they should.. just because if you make a game and don't change anything but the music.. it gets boring after a while. And becomes unenjoyable.. I think it'll be good for them to.

[Rick Brewster]

What we really need are those new NIN songs to download for Rock Band.

[MiguelPereira]

What we really need are those new NIN songs to download for Rock Band.

NIN would be really weird to play, the composition of the songs are truly remarkable but not very simple...

They could have a LOT more grunge

[Aziz]

While they're at it, maybe they could incorporate animation and presentation elements that allow it to look like a game from 2008, and not something from 1998 when 3D acceleration was a novelty. Seriously, the graphics and animation in GH3 are horrendous and I can't play it. The fret board is full of noisy, distracting graphics. And the songs they give you are terrible 80's trash. It isn't fun. Rock Band is a million times better.

I may be pushing my luck as a newbie here arguing with the big boss man, but as a fellow programmer I hope you'll cut me some slack, and understand this is all made in good taste.

"Seriously, the graphics and animation in GH3 are horrendous and I can't play it."

Since when are you looking at the graphics in GH? And even so, it's a music game, why does it matter so much that you can't play,

simply because the graphics are in your opinion, horrendous (I don't think they're that bad, really. Not as good as Rock Band, but not band. And you are playing on a current console, right? PS2 Graphics are slimmed down to bare minimum). Games aren't animated films, their's a lot more to them. I'd rather have a game that plays amazing, is intriging, and I'd even prefer great sound over great graphics. I can't come up with a good example of a game that has great graphics but is bloody potato right now, which kind of makes my argument a bit limp, but I'm sure every gamer can. The point being, the graphics in GH3 are playable. They don't lag, they don't bug out. Following you're logic, the smash bros games would be suffering because of their graphics, but they're not pushin advanced 3D graphic at all, and one of the few games that are actually still just 2D in a 3D setting.

And as to the '80s trash, two things: out of 48 songs in the main setlist, only 21 are pre '90s, and some of them are extremely fun to play, and pretty good songs. Some of the best songs are also from >'05, like Knights of Cydonia. The game is a Rock guitar game, and rock and guitar were biggest back in the day. Things have changed at lot, you don't hear sounds like some of those oldies anymore and they're great to play to. I don't have any of them on my playlist, but I don't cringe at hearing them, and I don't play GH3 to play music I like, but that's the same thing for Rock Band (by the way, which has 22 out of 45 songs pre '80s). If they had a My Chemical Romance song, I would dread playing it, but I still likely would.

Anyways, the point is, I'm not trying to make you look the fool (or commit social suicide, or offend you in any way), but just trying to bring some points up. And as to my view on the original topic, I don't think Guitar Hero should go the Rock Band way in instruments. Guitar Hero is more about shredding crazy licks and solos, and Rock Band is more of the party game. I think Guitar Hero should be a one instrument game. I have heard of spinoffs within the franchise like Guitar Villian and Drum Hero & Villian. Now that sounds like a better idea. But of course, GH4 needs to have some changes. Changing the graphics would be a start (because I do prefer Rock Band's too), and adding the ability for custom avatars. There's a lot of things, but Red Octane can't follow Harmonix's footsteps. Harmonix is always going to be ahead. They did, after all, make the first two GH's. In order to compete, they have to offer completely different things than Rock Band and doing a whole band setup isn't likely to acomplish that.