Sorry your browser is not supported!

Hey,,

until recently, I've thought that GH is pretty sad, because if you want to play the guitar why not just learn it (i play guitar). However, i have to my shame bought GH2 for some ridiculously cheap price and am enjoying it .
But, I'm a bit confused on how they make some parts of it. I understand the main programming bit. It's really just playing an animation and picking up key strokes. However, I noticed that when you miss a note it doesn't play that note but still plays the bass, vocal and drums line without the guitar. Similarly, when you use the wammy bar, it changes the sound.
How would this be done? Is the song just broken down into lots of pieces and when you miss a note it misses a piece? And, what happens if in the original track, the guitarist uses the wammy bar and you don't or do use the wammy bar?

strange question lol,,,

It's separate tracks - so if the lead guitar has a problem, it just affects that track. In the band versions of these games, there's a bass, lead, vocal, drum, and backing track. When someone messes up, the track is muted and an error sound is triggered. It's a good system, because when it's taken away you notice - like in RockBand Beatles, they don't have split tracks, so instead you get a more elaborate error noise - it's not the same flow because of that - you want to punch anyone who messes up too much.

It's a pretty neat system - but I know what you mean, I was doubtful about these games until I got GH2, it's awesome, and the last song Free Bird is just epic if you can get through it. Since getting GH2 I've got GH3, GH:World Tour, RockBand, RockBand2, RockBand:Beatles - and tons of songs. I especially like playing drums in RockBand, it takes a lot of practice, but it's great fun - it's actually a pretty decent workout on the old arms as well.

I think at least it did a good thing by bringing rock music back to the world... but then DJ Hero was released

Yeah, but DJ Hero is a lot of fun. And there's Daft Punk in DJ Hero!

Well there was actually an interesting video on you tube about the mixing of the songs - Rock Band and Guitar Hero actually sounded better than the fuzzy warbles that professionals pass off as a good mix these days. So if you play these games, you actually get a meatier version of the song compared to the album version - as each part has to be distinctive. As I said though, the comparison video on youtube showed just how much nicer it sounds without all that extra filtering and engineering.

I like nothing better than visiting my mates, and playing Rock Band at crazy volume - it's become the best way to actually enjoy music. Music these days is disposable, cheap, and not very well respected IMO. When you have to save money to buy that album, it means much more - when you have to take care of it, it means much more, and when you have to do something besides click a button to listen to it, it becomes a ritual. I miss vinyl - not the sound quality so much as the ritual. Taking an LP out of it's sleeve, wiping it with the anti-static brush, setting it up on the turntable, then crackle, and you've got 30 minutes or so of music. But it's 30 minutes of music that you'll sit down and enjoy, actually listen to it and pay it the respect good music deserves.

My point is that, with rhythm games we get that back a little. We have to set up guitars and drums and microphones - we have to then decide on a playlist, look for a good collection of songs. Then when you play it, you have to listen to the music, you have no choice but to play along - it's like enforced enjoyment. But at least it is enjoyment.

I listen to music all the time, and it is thoutless backing music to keep my neurons firing when working - but I look forward to playing Rock Band because it feels more like music, music without effort is stealing . I got the Pearl Jam Ten album and made my friends play the whole thing in one sitting - it's the most fun I've had in ages.

People who scoff at these games need to realize that we do not have the time to learn guitar - if we did, then there would be something very wrong with society. There's too much snobbery from people who really shouldn't be like that. My son started out with GH2, and now he plays guitar in a band. It can get people interested more in music, but if it doesn't, those haters should just let us alone to pretend we can play. If a guitarist plays a computer game, we don't instantly tell them they should be able to make their own games, do we?. I've yet to meet one actual musician who feels that way AFTER playing Rock Band. A lot of my friends are in bands, and they all love it, no snobbery thank frak.

I play guitar, and like to think that I'm pretty proficient at it, but I still love Guitar Hero/Rock Band. It's really not much like playing the real thing, but it's fun.

Well said Van B.

Code eater, if you want to learn more about how the actual production process of recording and programming a GH/RB track, check out [href]http://creators.rockband.com[/i]. I can easily see rhythm games progressing to the point where they're no longer considered part of the standard video game catalog, but rather as another playback medium (possibly even independent of consoles in the future) that an artist would be silly not to release on if they want to reap the full sales potential of their music.

I guess you have to like that kind of music...

Guitar Hero I-III are fun to play as well as Rock Band.
World Tour is okay (except for the crappy guitar)
There's not enough good music on Guitar Hero 5 in my opinion to make it worth buying.Now I think they are seriously pushing too many of these games out at once but as long as people will shell out the cash they will keep making them whether they are of high quality or not.

I agree. Have you ever heard Death Magnetic on CD? Shoddy crap. Clipping and buzzing all up and down the EQ. The GH3 rip? Bloody flawless. And record companies wonder why people pirate? I bought the album, and then immediately grabbed the torrent. It might be a little sketchy in legal terms but the CD is unlistenably overdriven.

Ok,,, cheers for the response guys...

Well, I like a lot of electronic music. I don't really like rap or hip-hop (I recognize it as a genre that has potential, I just think that most of the modern stuff sucks), and I don't like a lot of the more "eurodance" or poppy electronic stuff. And happy hardcore - that stuff is just stupid