Guitar Hero and Guitar Hero II are two of the best-reviewed games available for the PlayStation 2 console… ever. As a (reasonably good) singer and a (pretty bad) guitarist, however, this critic’s first reaction was to greet both games with scepticism. After all, how could the Guitar Hero II ‘guitar’ ever compare to the real thing?
Seeing two of my all-time favourite musicians, the games-obsessed Dragonforce guitar duo (one of the best interviews I’ve ever done was with Herman Li), promote and applaud the game, I started to re-evaluate my first opinion. After all, the step to buy and start playing Gutiar Hero II seems to be a small one, so it seems a lot of gamers can be introduced to the actual instrument who might otherwise never even think about picking up a guitar. Also, in this age of bad music – crappy house music is heard in discotheques everywhere – it’s refreshing to see youngsters trying to find the correct notes to Them Bones by Alice in Chains or Freebird by Lynyrd Skynryd.
Let’s start with the instrument itself. There are no strings to be found on this digital guitar, which only features a strum bar where players would normally pick the notes and five differently-coloured buttons, representing the actual notes. Obviously, this is much easier to play than a normal guitar, but the difference in actual gameplay and the tough songs can provide a challenge to even fairly good musicians. Notes are played by hitting the fret button on the guitar neck while simultaneously pressing the strum bar. While the original game used two-button combinations to make chords, this new incarnation also features three-button chords, requiring three fret buttons to be held down. Because the window for strumming hammer-ons and pull-offs had been increased and because pull-offs no longer require the lower note to be held down, both of these techniques are easier to implement. There’s a More Stats screen available after completing a song and the lefty flip option can be toggled on or off from the pause menu. Along with the High Scores achieved during the Career Mode being available on the high score list that is viewed in the Quick Play mode, all of these changes are for the better, improving an already-excellent game.
There are several modes of play available. In Career Mode, players choose a band name and select a guitarist from eight different characters. I used to review Gibson guitars, and so was delighted to see all of the real-life guitars (except for the black-with-gold Gibson Les Paul Supreme and a few others) the company sent me are in the game, including the Les Paul, the Zakk Wylde model (available as a finish) and the Explorer. During the game, three different characters, character-specific clothing sets, four different painting schemes and eight fictional guitars (such as the Viking guitar, the fish, and the casket) can be unlocked (although some of these options are available from the start). Gigs are played in eight different venues. There are eight different difficulty levels. Each one features four songs and an encore. Only after playing each of the four songs to a cheering crowd and passing the encore are the songs in a higher difficulty level unlocked. Points are scored by hitting notes. The score is multiplied when the player succeeds in a lengthy combo. The rock meter tracks his or her progress, while the star meter tracks the ‘star power’ gained by perfectly hitting a section of notes. This star power is unleashed by tilting the guitar at certain moments, doubling the points gained per note.
8 x 5 = 40. That’s how many licensed songs are available, not counting the 24 bonus songs. There are some killer songs in each difficulty category, including Danzig’s groovy but heavy Mother (I tried to talk to Glenn Danzig once and failed miserably, but he’s written some excellent songs in the past, despite some of his recent live performances) in the Opening Licks, Carry on Wayward Son by Kansas in the less impressive Amp-Warmers, War Pigs, one of the best and most-covered Black Sabbath songs ever, in the String-Snappers, the epic Sweet Child o’ Mine by Guns n’ Roses in Thrash and Burn, one of my all-time favourite bass-driven songs, John the Fisherman by Primus in the Return of the Shred category, Trippin’ on a Hole in a Paper Heart by the Stone Temple Pilots in the Relentless Riffs level and Madhouse by Anthrax and YYZ by Rush in the Furious Fretwork category. The Face-Melters include one of the best solo-heavy metal songs of all time, the jaw-dropping Hangar 18 by the amazing Megadeth (Rust in Peace still stands as a metal milestone). However, despite of the seemingly-excellent songlist, not all is well in guitar land. Just as before, none of the songs are originals, except for John the Fisherman and Stop! Major kudos go to Primus (thanks, Les!) and Jane’s Addiction for making these songs available, but all of the other tracks here are covers. A lot of gamers have been claiming that the difference between the original songs and the covers is quite small, but to the trained ear and true metalhead, this is not true. The guy who tries to sound like Dave Mustaine fails miserably on Hangar 18, as his vocals are way too slick and soulless, the Zack De LaRoca imitation on Rage Against the Machine’s ultimate classic, Killing in the Name is simply awful, the singer aiming for the nasal singing of Scott Weiland on Them Bones overdoes the nasal ‘quality’, and so on. Hellfueled, Sheavy and Black Label Society have proven singers are capable of imitating Ozzy, but the guy who tries to do exactly that on War Pigs isn’t one of them. This is bad, as most of the bands featured here don’t even have great singers. What would have happened if someone had needed to sound like Eric Adams, Geoff Tate, Sir Russell Allen, Bruce Dickinson, Matthew Barlow, Hansi Kursch, Dio, Lande, Rob Halford, Ralf Scheepers, Damian Wilson, or any of the other truly great singers?
That being said, the guitar playing is up to par if a bit less inspired than the original playing, and the two dozen bonus songs are all played by the original artists. Most of the bands who have lent their songs to the game as bonus tracks aren’t well-known, however, with Voivod being one of the most notable exceptions.
Most of the songs are just as difficult as the songs available in Guitar Hero… while playing at Easy or Medium difficulty levels. Hard and Expert difficulty levels are very, very, tough, and will require a lot of dexterity and skill. This time around, the setlist features faster songs and focuses on searing solos. Some of the exceptions include Message in a Bottle by The Police and Jessica by The Allman Brothers Band, but there aren’t that many slower songs available. Completing a song at Medium level or higher earns in-game cash. More cash is rewarded at higher difficulty levels and when scoring more points. Cash is used to buy items at The Store.
Multiplayer Mode now includes the excellent Cooperative Mode, where one player can play the lead guitar and the other plays the rhythm or bass guitar. The feeling isn’t the same as you get when actually playing together in a band, but it’s close enough. Of course, gamers unfamiliar with the bass will find a lot of the bass lines are pretty boring, but more difficult bass melodies are also included – Les Claypool’s playing, for example, has always marked Primus just as much, or more, than the guitar playing. Also, the bass is a little in the back of the mix, and the same can be said of the drums. The rock meter, star power meter, streak multiplier and score are shared by two players and songs can actually be failed. In Face-Off Mode, players can select their level of difficulty independently, while in Pro Face-Off Mode, both players play the full lead guitar track at identical difficulties. However, unfortunately this mode is only available after completing Career Mode at a difficulty setting of Medium or higher.
Another new mode is the Practice Mode. With so many tough songs in the set-list, this is an absolutely essential addition. This mode is everything you might have wished it would be: players can pick the parts they want to rehearse and can do this in varying speeds. Excellent!!!!
The graphics have improved as well. The venues and the musicians look better, more accessories and musical instruments (such as BOSS effects and Roland keyboards) are added as play progresses and there’s a lot more going on on-screen. Pyrotechnics, smoke… if Iron Maiden or Metallica has used it in the past, it’s in here. Well, except for any of their songs and Eddie, that is.
Ultimately, the only thing truly disappointing about the game is (oftentimes) the singing. Also, because this is a game, you can’t choose the songs you might actually like to play in real life. There’s no Kamelot here, no Iced Earth, no Dream Theater, no Symphony X, no Stratovarius, Helloween, Primal Fear, Blind Guardian, Edguy, Avantasia, Virgin Steele, Manowar, Angra, Shadow Gallery… All bands with great songs, superb singing and Guitar Hero-worthy solos. Also, the fact that most songs need to be unlocked in order to be available, limits flexibility even more.
Still, this is a great, addictive game. It’s one of the best rhythm games out there, and it’s a lot of fun, especially in Multiplayer Mode. But possibly most game reviewers forget the best aspect of the game. Maybe, just maybe, some of the gamers who play Guitar Hero II will pick up a guitar themselves. If this game can make sure the popularity of good rock and metal gets a well-deserved boost and if more people start making music, than that’s worth a whole lot more than the hours of enjoyment one can get from playing Guitar Hero II on a digital guitar without strings and with 5 buttons replacing 22, 23 or 24 frets…
So, yeah, I loved this game. And yeah, I’ve realized what the fuss is about.
Dirk Vandereyken
