Guitar Hero II

"Less Talk More Rokk"

Warming up. Just getting a feel for it. Of course it feels great, guitar neck in hand, fingers positioned to strum. Shifting up, down, up, down - to prepare, you know? Press in. Release. Press in. Release. Get a feel for the buttons, your tools of rock. The notes appear now on the horizon. They're comin'. They're comin'.

BrrrrowwwowwwdRRROOOWWW!!

A flurry now, notes darting across the screen faster than your eye can catch, fingers racing to keep up across the neck, furiously shaking the guitar as you drop to the ground, the solo's killing you, but you don't care, you've nailed so much of it but the notes don't stop coming they're in drones in droves it's the army of the Empire in Star Wars of notes coming forth all together now attack war here we are here we go STRIKE DOWN NOW.

Deliver unto me your wrath, Guitar Hero. Unto your creation. You created me.

You don't walk into Guitar Hero a thrasher, because regardless your real life guitar skills you won't be using them to go anywhere here. With five buttons to hit on the guitar's neck and the flurry coming down the screen like Dance Dance Revolution, there's certainly no mistake; this is a video game. But care not, head-bangers; you feel like you're raging at a concert anyway, playing Hanger 18 better than Megadeth itself, so screw it, it's time to rock!

Guitar Hero plays to the strength of the addictive formula of the rhythm genre, it's essentially DDR for the rockin' crowd. Strumming with the guitar controller is extremely effective throughout the game's many songs, and it works very precisely. This is the labour of sweat and love from the most proficient of metal-head developers. You'll notice the moment you lay waste to your first song.

That's all Guitar Hero is, though; song after song after song. It's not a problem, because it's so damn fun, and the game basically is just playing music, but it's somewhat limiting if you're looking for a very robust experience (but then, when have rhythm games been robust experiences with story modes and whatnot? Guitar Hero at least throws you down a road of concerts that come together like tours, almost simulating a career of sorts. And you make cash. So yeah.)

The songs themselves though, what a nice array for a selection! Megadeth, Primus, Rage Against The Machine, Nirvana, Freezepop, Counter Zero, Jane's Addiction, Stone Temple Pilots, Foo Fighters, Iggy Pop - seemingly endless! There's a hefty mix of metal, rock, grunge and punk, well enough to satisfy the tastes of many. Not every song will cater to every person - obviously - but it at least covers the bases, much better than its own predecessor.

Through playing the game's career, you can garner some unlockables; bonus songs, killer new guitars to throw into the hands of your virtual rocker, hell, even new virtual rockers to rock out with! Much of these extras are purely cosmetic, but it gives the obsessive stuff to collect, more ways to 100% the experience and reap the most out of it.

Of course, ripping through the music is tough enough as it is; anyone can throw together an effort on ‘easy' or ‘medium', but the difficulty ramps from there, keying out only the Gods of rock to spread their fingers across an ‘expert' track, wherein some songs are said to be more difficult to play in Guitar Hero than in real life (just to give you an idea of how rough the going gets.) Of course, any self-respecting metal-head won't let this petty disturbance get in the way; all tracks shall be conquered, all notes shall be hit! For your completion is rewarded with stars to signify how well you executed a performance; three stars for a holy crap what the hell are you doing on stage offering, or five for a holy crap I guess you're pretty good performance. The elite of the elite, however, is the golden five star; all notes hit, perfectly. It's reserved for a holy crap are you sure you're playing a cover and aren't actually, y'know, the band? performance.

Which means that you'll be raging across the neck for a long time if you've found your place in the rock kingdom. If the solo offering isn't enough, even still are there strings to be pulled; multiplayer pits you against a fellow rocker, and asks you rock to the death in an effort to see who can score the most points. Or, let your fellow Ozzy-in-the-making play the other role; bass, or rhythm. Rock as a team, Gods of rock competing to be the best in their own circle. No matter your desire in rock, Guitar Hero shall surely raise a fist of yours in triumph.

Of course, if your knowledge of rock is limited, there's this ‘practice' mode for you folk so you can get the hang of how music ought to play. This mode is also for you rockers weaned on hitting that intense solo perfectly, since, y'know, it's awesome for a reason; it's hard to play!

So yeah, Guitar Hero kicks ass. Now are we gonna rock this concert, or what?

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 02/06/07