Guitar Hero 3, a little more than before

At first it wasn’t my intention to buy Guitar Hero 3 right away. I had been reading about it and its counterpart, Rock Band, for quite some time. As a loyal Guitar Hero-ist for the previous three titles, I felt I had to make my next decision carefully. Guitar Hero 3 continues to the series made famous by playing famous rock songs with a plastic guitar controller. Rock Band, on the other hand, took things a bit further by adding drums and microphone to the game - in other words a complete band experience.

Rock Band looked to be the obvious choice, but after reading reviews and seeing some footage, plus hearing it wasn’t going to be out for the Nintendo Wii until next year, it quickly dropped off my choice list. So at that point Guitar Hero 3 was the pick. They were making GH3 for both current consoles but also for the Playstation 2, where the previous GH titles play. It seemed obvious to pick the current Wii version since the PS2 variety is on its way out as a whole. But even then, I wasn’t set on getting it when it came out.

But that all changed when they had them in-stock at Best Buy just before my birthday. Happy birthday, me! Also at Best Buy was a setup demo of Rock Band, complete with guitar and drum kit. I gave the drums a go and I wasn’t all that impressed. Maybe it was because I had made my decision by then and didn’t want to have second thoughts, but the drumming just felt clumsy. I’m sure if you play with three other people that changes things, but I have my theories about Rock Band anyway. It’s a novel idea but I’m not sure it will take off like Guitar Hero has.

Guitar Hero 3 is a good step in the series. While most of it is more of the same, there are some tweaks that make it better in some ways, but also worse in others. This game is by far the easiest of the series, but then also at some points, the hardest. They’ve made things easier my being a bit more forgiving in your playing and also by highlighting optional strum notes (which I don’t like). But they’ve made it harder by adding some crazy hard songs (read Slayer) and forcing you to learn the double strum technique. The latter isn’t so bad as I like songs that require you play that way, but it generally gets more demanding at that point.

I know I’ve had my issues with on-line gaming before and have barked about how games only need to provide simple leaderboards and complete experiences aren’t necessary. Well, GH3 for the Wii has bridged that anger just a bit. The Wii supports on-line play with friends and strangers. Playing with friends requires you to get their “Friend code,” which is a pain but not so much depending on how many friends you have. Thankfully, a “strangers” mode lets you easily search for any game and start playing with anyone. I finally got to play a few on-line battles the other night and the gameplay was surprisingly fast, (I still don’t have much faith in console on-lineness). Overall it was just like playing a normal 2-player game, but it does sometimes take a bit to find a waiting game.

The nice part about on-line play is that it tracks your score, standings, and also what you do in the regular single-player game. It then posts that on-line at the GH web site for you to track and all to see. To start I was playing on-line but didn’t see any of my scores displaying. It took me a bit to realize that you have to register at the Guitar Hero web site, then enter the player code your Wii offers and include that with your web site account. Again, another pain in the arse but once you know the flow it’s not that bad. Actually, it was kind of neat because I had played on-line and unlocked a lot songs prior to me signing up at the site, so when I finally did all my stats up to that point were saved and I started out of the gate with a good score and rank. No bad.

The GH web site also offers some nifty features like creating a tour group that people can join where scores are combined as a group or something like that. You can also see how many rockers are near you with a little map (you enter your zip code at sign up). In the end I think the on-line play will keep GH3 at the front of my play list longer than the previous games because there’s now comparable scores. You know I like my high scores.

The unfortunate and sad part about seeing scores on-line is knowing that you’ll never be the best. Why? Because someone out there is apparently playing GH3 all day long without stopping and has a bionic wrist. The game came out on 10/28 and the web site publicly shows when you signed up. So the top leader right now is someone that signed up day of release and already has unlocked everything, has seemingly beaten everyone in the world and keeps going higher. I guess I should just be happy that I have a life beyond the game and my lower ranking is proof of that.

The set list of songs for the game is a pretty good mix for classic rock and alt tracks, a lot from original masters too. Shy of a few crappy heavy metal songs (read again, Slayer) it is a solid set that you can enjoy over and over. From The Who to Weezer to Santana to Kaiser Chiefs, there’s a little something for everyone. It may not be as metal/rock as you might have hoped, but I see GH3 as a re-starting point for the series. Sure, GH2 was popular but it was the title that got the buzz going. Now that the buzz is hot and heavy, many will be getting GH3 as their first entry into the land of plastic guitars and wrist cramps.

The guitar controller itself is a big improvement as well. Instead of modeling after the Gibson SG, GH3 uses the classic Les Paul model. Not only does it look better, it feels better. There is a lot more weight to the new controller that makes it feel a bit more reliable and sturdy. It doesn’t help it feel any more “real,” but it never will, despite what some people might think. One down side for me is that the Wii version requires you put the Wii Remote in the guitar. This requires a hole be cut out of the face plate and for me, this gets in the way of my “strumming” while playing. The consoles don’t require it. The new model also has the option for removable faceplates. This will be a huge merchandising point that will probably get myself and everyone else to shell out $15 for a logo’ed faceplate by other bands…oh, like KISS! Unfortunately, as of this writing there were no Wii faceplates available, only PS3 and 360 models. Eh…but really, the Les Paul design actually gives you more space for your custom stickers, and it’s white so I think it’s a little more flexible to use any type of sticker.

If you have played a previous Guitar Hero title, then GH3 will feel natural with no learning curve whatsoever. If you’re new to the series with this title, it is still a good game to play, fun to play, and easy to learn from this point on. You’re not at any disadvantage starting with this fourth game. And with the on-line play now viable (except on PS2) this is a whole new ball of wax. And if these “touring groups” act like I think they do, then it’s all the better for starters and veterans. Safe to say I’ll be hooked on this one for a while, at least until Puzzle Quest comes out next month, then we’ll just have to see who wins out.

I’ve started a post in the Forum about GH3, their web site, and about what I’ve done thus far. Feel free to add me as a friend and join the Morning Toast tour group. I’m not sure exactly what it does yet, but hey, it can’t hurt.