The Rock Band 2 vs. Guitar Hero World Tour Thread

[areaseven]

Last year, Harmonix, MTV Games and EA Games gave RedOctane, Neversoft and Activision a bloody nose with Rock Band, which has sold over 1.5 million copies worldwide. Starting this September, both Rock Band and Guitar Hero franchises are gearing up for round 2. Here's a look at what's to come with both sequels:

Rock Band 2

Gameplay remains the same, but Band Tour mode has been tweaked, so that a player's band doesn't require all four players. Also, a Freestyle mode will be available for those who want to play the drums with their favorite MP3 songs.

And then, there are the songs:

List of songs in Rock Band 2

Finally, after years of making requests, fans get to play an AC/DC song in the form of "Let There Be Rock." And if you want to really test the durability of your drum kit, try playing Judas Priest's "Painkiller."

Guitar Hero World Tour

"If you can't beat them, copy them." And that's what RedOctane, Neversoft and Activision are doing with the latest installment in the Guitar Hero series. The new game will feature 4-player gameplay with the addition of a microphone and drum kit. RedOctane's new guitar controller will feature a touchpad below the fret buttons so players can do sustains, staccato and tapping. The new wireless drum kit features velocity sensitivity sensors (which allows players to alter the drum sounds) and a MIDI port to give players the ability to play double bass.

The final song list hasn't been released yet, but it will include Van Halen's "Hot for Teacher," Jimi Hendrix's "The Wind Cries Mary" and Lenny Kravitz's "Are You Gonna Go My Way." The developers have confirmed that all of the songs in the game will be master recordings.

What will probably be Guitar Hero World Tour's ace in the hole is the "Advanced Studio" mode, where players can create their own songs and share them with friends online.

There's also Konami's Rock Revolution, but quite frankly, they're no match for the other two, not to mention that the songs on that game are all covers.

So which music game are you most excited about?

[mikeszekely]

Is there really any competition anymore? Neversoft understands the mechanics involved in the Guitar Hero games, but they've fuglied it up and drained all the soul out of the franchise. And that was just Guitar Hero III, mind you... GH Aerosmith isn't worth full-price. Back when GH was a Red Octane franchise, the original was like $30-$40.

Harmonix, on the other hand, has devised an interface that's cleaner than Guitar Hero's, gave us a well-rounded track list, and not only made me feel like I was playing guitar, but like I was playing drums as well.

So what if I can create my own songs in Guitar Hero? It's going to be a pain to do, and if it's like Frets on Fire, most of the user-created songs are going to suck anyway. Rock Band 2's giving us backwards-compatibility with our original Rock Band DLC, plus most of the songs in the first game.

Yeah, I'll take Harmonix's lovingly-crafted Rock Band over Activision's shovel-ware cash-cow any day.

[akt_m]

With the price of this game + guitar control, can't you just buy a real guitar and play any songs you like??? Ok... i know it would be a cheap guitar, and you would needto do a lot of practice to get any result.

[mikeszekely]

With the price of this game + guitar control, can't you just buy a real guitar and play any songs you like??? Ok... i know it would be a cheap guitar, and you would needto do a lot of practice to get any result.

According to my dad, who's been playing since he was 11, the easiest guitar to learn on is a Squire (essentially a budget Fender Stratocaster), which run about $250-$300, so the guitar still costs a bit more. And you'd still be missing an amp.

But then there are people like me... my dad's tried teaching me to play, on both a Fender Strat and a Kramer American. Three times total, with three different approaches, and I still can't play. I just don't have the aptitude for it. But I still love music, and a game like Rock Band gives people like me a way to interact and connect with music in a meaningful way.

I'm sure playing a real guitar is very rewarding; more so, in fact, than playing a video game. And if you've got the talent for it, then you've really got a gift. But for the rest of us, there's Rock Band/Guitar Hero.

[Apollo Leader]

I'll probably end up getting both like I did with the first Rock Band and GHIII. I ended up getting GH Aerosmith in part because I was able to get a bunch of free swag when I ordered it through Best Buy's website (I picked up all the stuff up at a local store, though), but the inclusion of Ted Nugent's Cat Scratch Fever is what sealed the deal.

As for Konami's game, probably going to pass on that.

[Apollo Leader]

But I still love music, and a game like Rock Band gives people like me a way to interact and connect with music in a meaningful way.

I'm sure playing a real guitar is very rewarding; more so, in fact, than playing a video game. And if you've got the talent for it, then you've really got a gift. But for the rest of us, there's Rock Band/Guitar Hero.

Besides loving the music, these games are very great to have at parties and other gatherings. But it's on my list of things to do to eventually learn how to play an electric guitar.

[myk]

I'll probably end up getting both like I did with the first Rock Band and GHIII.

Man, where're you putting all of this gear? I enjoyed Rock Band but stowing the drum set is annoying...

[badboy00z]

Both of those are pretty repetitive. Just new visuals and songs. I do like the freestyle drums though. I always thought that it would be a cool feature to have and now they do.

[Hoptimus]

I am waiting to see both.

I never got the first Rock Band but I have played it alot.

I really like all the stuff about GHWT that I read so far though.

[areaseven]

- Featuring the all-female Ramones tribute band The Sheenas. Edited November 6, 2008 by areaseven

[gerwalk25]

IF Konami came out with Guitar Freaks in the US during the DDR and Beatmania craze they would have had an edge over GH and RB. It's too late for Konami now, they must be banging their heads in shame .

Here's what I gotta say to you Konami

Edited July 22, 2008 by gerwalk25

[dizman]

Im going to go with the guitar hero sequel for ps3. I like the fact you can make your own songs (finally) and also the fact that the drums actually look like a real drum set instead of 4 pads in a row.

[Fort Max]

I voted Rock Band 2 but I'll likely get both games, and why not, for only another £30 odd I can have a whole bunch more songs to play on top of the backwards compatibility (world tour has this too btw, with the DLC from GH 3 and possibly Aerosmith).

I will however only buy one new piece of equipment, the GH:WT touchy feely guitar on account if it being gorgeous, well designed and my GH 3 Les Paul owning the Rock Band Stratocaster.

[Garou Kuroryuu]

I think I'll pick RB2, thou still waiting for any information about RB's peripherials changing (if it happens, anyway).

I got both GH3 and RB. But as soon as I got RB, GH3 began gathering rust in the closet. The drums are the s#it for me, so GH3 stopped being of much interest.

Now, with GHWT bringing a nice more-realistic-looking drum kit, I'm still thinking about it. The "create you own stuff" does nothing for me, me and my pals won't be uploading any crap we could come up with in the first place, but the sole experience of a better drum kit might just sell me into it.

Guess I'll have to wait and see.

[areaseven]

[areaseven]

[Impreszive]

I never got into Guitar Hero's soul crushing higher difficulty. I can play some songs on RB on Hard or Expert, but I could never get past medium on GH. I guess this means I am not cool as a player, but I would rather enjoy the game than be frustrated all the time. The other issue I have is time. Going to grad school has a tendency to kill your free time.

[Penguin]

I struggled with Hard on Guitar Hero and never made it to expert. I think Rock Band's hard and expert are easier than Guitar Hero. In GH, for hammer-downs you had to keep your fingers planted on the other fret buttons as you went down the notes, and for pull-offs you had to have them all down before releasing (which I could never master). In RB, you can just tap the keys for the "small notes" without having other fingers in place. I never would have gotten through the solo on "Green Grass and High Tides" (you know... the last 2/3 of the song ) on hard without that feature. I suppose keeping your fingers in place is more accurate to playing a real guitar... but I never fooled myself into thinking playing these games is anything close to playing a real instrument (aside from possibly some improved manual dexterity ).

[areaseven]

Holy crap! I never thought this song would be that hard on drums.

Edited October 13, 2008 by areaseven

[Apollo Leader]

Holy crap! I never thought this song would be that hard on drums.

I still haven't beat the drums on medium in Rock Band 1 because of the last part of Green Grass and High Tides... my hands would go numb about 2/3rd of the way into the song.

BTW, I think Konami's Rock Revolution came out this week. Anyone picking that up?

[Isamu Starkiller]

I'm getting RB2 my wife, her Brother and I have some hilarious sessions we recorded and put on Youtube, I'll add the link later, but for a measley $5 I'll get 99% of my RB1 songs + all my DLC + all the RB2 songs! That's alotta drumming for me ^^

[Apollo Leader]

There are a few songs that are on RB1 (ie. Metallica's Enter Sandman) that aren't part of the transfer deal. But all the DLC that were on RB1 so far work on RB2 so thumbs up to Harmonix for working that out.

[areaseven]

It's official: Konami's Rock Revolution is an Epic Fail!

"Chop Suey!"

"Run to the Hills"

"Walk"

[areaseven]

Oh, now it's hard to decide between Guitar Hero World Tour and Rock Band 2:

"Rising up, back on the streets

Did my time, took my chances

Went the distance, now I'm back on my feet

Just a man and his will to survive..."

"So many times, it happens too fast

You change your passion for glory

Don't lose your grip on the dreams of the past

You must fight just to keep them alive..."

Edited January 5, 2009 by areaseven

[Apollo Leader]

It's official: Konami's Rock Revolution is an Epic Fail!

"Chop Suey!"

"Run to the Hills"

"Walk"

Sad that there are some pretty awesome songs that Konami picked up for this game, but they were unwilling to fork out the extra money for the true album versions instead of covers. At least Dream Theater's Pull Me Under is on GH World Tour. Also sad is that if this had come out two years ago or earlier that this might have been a contender considering that GH 1 and 2's songs were pretty much all covers at that time.

[areaseven]

So I went to Best Buy today and tried out the demos for both Rock Band 2 and Guitar Hero World Tour. Here are my observations:

Rock Band 2 (XBOX 360)

- The wireless Fender Stratocaster controller supposedly has improved electronics, but I'm still not liking the spongy strum bar.

- The wireless drum kit is now equipped with rubber padding to reduce noise. Still doesn't do as much as foam pads you can get on eBay, though.

- In terms of gameplay and graphics, nothing's changed from the first game. Harmonix is sticking to the philosophy of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Guitar Hero World Tour (PS3)

- RedOctane's new wireless guitar feels very much like Kramer Striker from the PS2 version of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. The Whammy bar is longer and the select button has been redesigned to look like the guitar's bridge (making it easier to press for Star Power). Didn't get to try the new touch pad, as most of the songs on the demo playlist don't take advantage of it.

- The new drum section of the game is frustratingly difficult. When RedOctane said the pads are pressure-sensitive, they mean you have to really bang on them in order to score points.

- The new graphics interface is much cleaner and more organized than the previous games, which is very uncharacteristic for a Guitar Hero game.

[Apollo Leader]

One big change with Rock Band 2 over the first game is that the single player and tour modes have been combined as one. I haven't tried it yet, but in the Drum Trainer I believe you are able to play the drums to any music you like whether it be from the game or that you have ripped to your system.

[Apollo Leader]

The Beatles coming to Rock Band. Remains to be seen if this will be a fully dedicated game or DLC.

Though the Beatles are truly rock legends and have a huge following, I personally got to ask how much of the Rock Band or Guitar Hero audiance going to snatch up whatever Beatles songs are put out on Rock Band? The Beatles and their music existed well before many of the people or kids that play Guitar Hero and Rock Band today. I know in my case I'm far more interested in either the AC/DC release for Rock Band or Guitar Hero Metallica then this news. Heck, I would pick Guitar Hero Aerosmith (which I have) over whatever Beatle release takes place for Rock Band. But I guess that's just me.

[Ghadrack]

I was sold on GHWT when I saw that they had included 3 Tool tracks.

I was and continue to be shocked at how hard you have to wail on the drums for the bonus notes, I assume they were designed to take the abuse but you really have to crank them pretty good.

I played some Rock Band 1, have not tried RB 2, I like the new Guitar Hero guitar controllers better than I like the RB guitar, but I am probably biased by the year + of Guitar Hero controller use I had behind me.

[areaseven]

Heidi Klum does some Risky Business with Guitar Hero World Tour

Heidi Klum: The Director's Cut

Edited January 5, 2009 by areaseven

[Apollo Leader]

Since both bands have a song in Rock Band 2...

Jethro Tull beats Metallica for Grammy's first, and only, Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental award!

[areaseven]

Guitar Hero World Tour with Heidi Klum - The Director's Cut

[Hoptimus]

Im sticking with Rockband 2. The tour is really good and from what I saw of the GHIV SP mode it looked alot more messy.

[mikeszekely]

I might check out GHWT if I see a cheap used copy of the stand-alone game; no box sets for me. I had a chance to play it at a Wal-Mart. I only go to play the guitar, so I can't comment on their take on drumming, but I'm not really impressed so far. I do like that they cleaned up the interface (GHIII's was just awful), but it's still not as clean as Rock Band's. And I'll say it before, and I'll say it again and again, Harmonix does a great job of making you feel like you're really playing music. Neversoft just doesn't get it, and (especially when you play a song you're already familiar with from Rock Band) it feels more like a game with patterns and timing to learn than music. Guitar Hero would be the same thing with the sound off.

[gerwalk25]

I just bought Guitar Hero World Tour Guitar Kit for the 360 yesterday and when I took it out and began using the new Axe on GH: Aerosmith my down-strums don't register. Is it just me or is this a common problem with the GHwt Guitar? I'm planning on exchanging it today.

Edited January 4, 2009 by gerwalk25