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Guitar Hero II

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Guitar Hero II
Guitar Hero II box art
Developer(s)Harmonix Music Systems
Publisher(s)RedOctane / Activision
Designer(s)Harmonix Music Systems
Platform(s)PlayStation 2, Xbox 360
ReleaseNA November 7, 2006 (PS2)
AU November 15, 2006 (PS2)
UK November 24, 2006 (PS2)
EU November 30, 2006 (PS2)
NA April 15, 2007 (Xbox 360)
Genre(s)Music video game
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

Guitar Hero II is a music video game and the sequel to Guitar Hero. It was released for the Sony PlayStation 2[1] video game console and is pending release for the Xbox 360.[2]

History

Guitar Hero II was released for the PlayStation 2 on November 7 2006 in North America, November 15 2006 in Australia [3], November 24 2006 in the United Kingdom [4], and November 30 2006 in Europe, while the Xbox 360 version is currently scheduled for release in 2007. Guitar Hero Gibson SG controllers are compatible with the PS2 version of Guitar Hero II; the Xbox 360 version will have its own exclusive Mini Gibson X-Plorer guitar. Pre-ordered copies of Guitar Hero II came with a classic red SG Guitar (different from cherry red), a Guitar Hero II shirt, and stickers.[5]

On October 5, 2006, in issue #110 of Official Playstation Magazine, a demo of Guitar Hero II was released to the public.[6] It features four playable songs on all four difficulty levels, in both single player and co-op modes. The demo does not feature the ability to flip the notes for left-handed players, however. The demo features the songs "Shout at the Devil", "You Really Got Me", "Strutter" and "YYZ".

On January 4, 2007, Red Octane released shots of the upcoming Xbox 360 release of Guitar Hero II. The game box pictures suggest that the game will include additional content that will be available through Xbox Live.[7] A subsequent press release on January 9, 2006 reported that the game will be available in March 2007; TeamXbox posted early information on the press release, which included details on ten Xbox 360 exclusive songs and offered four screenshots.[8]

File:Guitarhero2-xbox360-cover.jpg
Xbox 360 cover of Guitar Hero II

Gameplay

The game features 64 songs, 40 of which are licensed tracks. While most of these are covered in-studio as in the previous Guitar Hero title, Jane's Addiction's "Stop", Primus' "John The Fisherman", and all 24 bonus tracks are the original recordings. The gameplay is based on the successful formula created in the original Guitar Hero; the player must use the guitar peripheral to play scrolling notes by holding the corresponding fret button on the guitar neck and pressing the strum bar simultaneously.

Several changes have been made to the gameplay mechanics of Guitar Hero II:

  • Three-button chords, requiring three fret buttons to be held down for the note to successfully be played.
  • Pull-offs no longer require the lower note to be held down, and the window for strumming hammer-ons and pull-offs has been increased, making both techniques easier to use. Although these techniques have become easier, the overall difficulty seems to have been increased to compensate and more rapid-fire note sequences are seen in this iteration.
  • The fretboard will now shake when the player breaks a note streak, the severity of which depends on the length of the streak. In multiplayer modes, the fretboard will shake only on the player's side who broke the streak.
  • Lefty flip is now an available option that can be toggled from the pause menu while playing a song. The player no longer needs to quit to the main menu to change this option every time.
  • After the song is completed, the player can view a More Stats screen, detailing the percentage of notes played for each section of the song, the average multiplier the player had throughout the song, the number of star power phrases completed as well as the total number of notes played.
  • High scores achieved during "Career Mode" are now included on the high score lists viewed in "Quick Play" mode (rather than keeping two separate high score lists, as in the previous game). Career mode high scores will be listed under the name of the career mode band that is created by the player.

Career

In career mode, a player creates a band name and selects one guitarist from the available characters. Only the lead guitar is available to be played in this mode. Over the course of the career mode, the band plays at the eight different venues available in the game. After completing the required number of songs (three or four depending on the difficulty), the fans in the crowd will chant for an encore (except on Easy); passing the encore song will unlock the next tier of songs.

Any song successfully completed at the Medium or higher skill level during Career mode earns the player in-game cash, with more cash being given for higher difficulty and better scoring performances. The in-game money can be used at The Store to buy various items, though some items are only available after completing all the songs at higher difficulty levels or full 5-star performances. Purchases in The Store carry over to each difficulty in career mode and every game mode. The items at the store include:

  • Guitars - Several Gibson guitars can be purchased. Additionally, there are 8 fictional guitars, such as a casket or a fish, that can be purchased once they are unlocked.
  • Finishes - One to four different paint schemes are available for most guitars.
  • Characters - Three additional characters can be made available by purchasing them (one includes an extra guitar).
  • Alternate Outfits - Different sets of clothes are specialized for each character.
  • Bonus Songs - 24 additional songs (as listed below) can be purchased.
  • Videos - Two "behind the scenes" videos on the making of Guitar Hero II can be viewed. These videos are not available in the PAL version of the game.

Multiplayer

File:Gh2-screenshot.jpg
Screenshot of the Cooperative mode from the PlayStation 2 version of Guitar Hero II.

There are three different multiplayer modes available in the game:

  • Cooperative mode: Depending on the song, one player can play the lead guitar while the other can play bass or rhythm guitar. In co-op mode, both players share a score, rock meter, star power meter and streak multiplier. Co-op mode is the only multiplayer mode in which a song can be failed. In order to activate star power, both players must tilt the guitar or press the select button in unison. There are 5 bass guitars unlockable in cooperative mode.
  • Face-Off mode: This is the same multiplayer mode as featured in the original game, but both players can individually select their difficulty to play on. The scores are weighted, so therefore, a player who hits more notes on the Easy difficulty than the player's opponent on Expert will win the round.
  • Pro Face-Off mode: In this mode, both players play the full lead guitar track on the same difficulty. This mode is only available after completing Career Mode on Medium or higher.

Practice mode

Another new addition to the game is practice mode. This feature allows the player to practice certain sections of a song ("Verse 1," "Chorus," "Bridge 1," etc.) on different difficulties and instruments, and also affords the player the ability to toggle the speed of the notes (Full Speed, Slow, Slower and Slowest). After completing the section, a screen will show the number of notes hit. Although the player can view their multiplier streak in practice mode, they are not able to see star power phrases, the rock meter, or their score.

Soundtrack

All versions of Guitar Hero II feature the same 64 playable songs. The majority of the songs are cover versions, with the exception of "Stop!", "John the Fisherman", and all 24 unlockable bonus songs. The remainder of the soundtrack is credited on screen with the phrase "as made famous by" (e.g. "Surrender, as made famous by Cheap Trick").

The following is the complete list of songs as confirmed in the final build of Guitar Hero II:[9][10]

† - denotes rhythm guitar as alternate instrument for song in co-op mode (all other songs feature bass)

Main setlist

1. Opening Licks

2. Amp-Warmers

3. String-Snappers

4. Thrash and Burn

5. Return of the Shred

6. Relentless Riffs

7. Furious Fretwork

8. Face-Melters

Bonus tracks

Xbox 360 exclusive tracks

File:Gh2-explorer-controller.jpg
Xbox 360 exclusive Gibson Explorer controller

A press release published on January 9, 2007 confirmed that there will be 10 additional songs included in the Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero II. The songs that have been confirmed at this time include:[11]

While the other songs are covers, both "Dead!" and "Possum Kingdom" are listed as "master tracks." The release also confirmed that additional songs will be available for download as soon as the Xbox 360 version of the title is launched.

It has also suggested by Dusty Welch of RedOctane that the original set list from Guitar Hero will be available for download from the Xbox Live Marketplace[11][12]. In a GameSpy interview, RedOctane said that versus online gameplay was a probable future addition, and that downloadable songs would be priced the same as other similar services.[13]

Guitar Hero II features many popular real world Gibson, Epiphone, and Kramer guitars, including the Gibson Les Paul, Gibson SG, and Gibson Explorer. Oddities such as the double necked Gibson EDS-1275 and unusual looking Gibson Corvus also make an appearance. Several available finishes are also recognizable from popular guitarists, including Zakk Wylde's bullseye Les Paul. As play progresses, several custom shaped guitars become available, although some are notable in the real world such as the USA and Battle Axe (a similar looking bass was played by Gene Simmons). Basses, such as the Music Man StingRay, Gibson Thunderbird, and the Höfner bass are also available for co-op play.

The band themselves plays with Orange amps and DW drum kits, along with more in-game endorsements. When the player passes each set of songs in career mode, his/her band is rewarded with money and equipment endorsements, including BOSS effects, Line6 guitar amplifiers, Mesa/Boogie amplifiers, and Roland keyboards. These products then appear on stage while the band plays the ensuing setlists. [14]

Venues

The venue system in the game has been altered slightly. Every venue is in a different city, and the career mode has the band traveling from town to town in order to play at the next arena. The band starts out in a Midwest high school battle of the bands, progresses out to bigger New England venues before crossing back to the west coast, making a stop at the Vans Warped Tour and culminating at Stonehenge in England. The venues now feature lighting that is synched with the music.

Characters

8 characters are available from the start of the game. All characters except for the unlockables have an extra outfit available. All of the characters from the previous game return, and a few new characters are introduced such as Eddie Knox, Casey Lynch, and Lars Ümlaüt.

Reception

Guitar Hero II was welcomed with very positive reviews. It received a 10/10 review in the December issue of Official PlayStation Magazine and was awarded the Game of the Month award. The game received a rating of 9.5/10 from IGN,[15] ranking higher than the original game in the series and amongst IGN's highest rated PS2 games ever. It was also nominated for Best Game of 2006 on Gametrailers. Both GamePro[16] and 1UP.com[17] gave the game scores of 90%. GameSpot reviewed the game with a rating of 8.7/10,[18] slightly lower than its predecessor. According to Game Rankings,[19] the average critic score of Guitar Hero II is 93%.

Common praise for the game by critics are for the new multiplayer and practice modes. Common critiques concern the song list, which includes more hard rock and metal than the previous game and has been called less accessible to casual players.

Guitar Hero II has won numerous awards.

  • IGN's Best of 2006
    • Best Music Game [20]
    • Best PlayStation 2 Music Game [21]
    • Best Licensed Soundtrack [22]
    • Best PlayStation 2 Licensed Soundtrack [23]
    • Best PlayStation 2 Offline Multiplayer Game [24]

Technical issues

Guitar Hero II has reportedly had some technical issues, according to some players. [citation needed] No official statement from RedOctane or Activision has been made about the discs or the game itself having any issues, but players have reported songs freezing or skipping causing the audio to be unsychronized, unusually long loading screens, and menus that freeze or lock up entirely causing the game to crash. The RedOctane Support Center Answer Guide states, "We’re already in the process of looking into this and testing to replicate the experience. We’ll notify everyone with our results shortly, and will have a positive resolution if need be. Until then... keep rockin’ on!"[27]

Future games

Activision, which agreed to acquire RedOctane in May 2006, has announced that a third installment of the Guitar Hero series is set to launch sometime in 2007, most likely during the fourth quarter of 2007 or the first quarter of 2008.[28] Activision has also confirmed that the Guitar Hero franchise will be making appearances on other gaming consoles by next year. The only new version confirmed so far is one for the Xbox 360.[2] It has yet to be revealed if any other system(s) will receive Guitar Hero II or its sequels, as each version would require its own special controller.[29] The multiplatform version(s) will not be released until 2007.[30]

It was confirmed by GameSpot that the Guitar Hero series would be ported to "all significant consoles" in 2007.[31]

GameSpot has also confirmed in an interview with Dusty Welch of RedOctane that Activision will not rely on Harmonix for future game development. This duty has been reassigned to Activison's internal studio, Neversoft, which RedOctane assures will not have any impact on the series' quality.[32]

Trivia

  • Some of the loading screens prior to a song are jokes and references specific to that song; for example, before encores, it tells the player never to "just jam" when the audience wants an encore (a reference to the movie This Is Spinal Tap), while prior to "Jordan", the player is told that wearing a bucket on one's head won't improve one's performance, a direct reference to the song's artist, Buckethead.
  • The drummer spontaneously combusting at the end of "Tonight I'm Gonna Rock You Tonight" is a reference to the movie This Is Spinal Tap, from which the song originates.
  • The scrolling text on the walls of the school venue contains various lyrics to Alice Cooper's "School's Out".
  • The chalkboard in the loading screen has a drawing of a cherry next to the Greek letter pi, a reference to the featured song by Warrant.
  • Prior to playing "Free Bird", the loading screen may say, "FINE. They're not just heckling you this time. Sigh", a reference to a loading screen in the original Guitar Hero that read, "They don't really want you to play 'Freebird,' they're just heckling you.", itself a reference to a common joke in musician culture.
  • The loading screen "Throw your undies on the stage, no wait you're underage." displayed whenever playing "Less Talk More Rokk" by Freezepop, is a reference to the song "Super Sprøde", which is a bonus song by Freezepop in the Harmonix PlayStation 2 rhythm game Amplitude.
  • Clive Winston will use a violin bow to play his guitar when star power is activated with him. This is a tribute to several guitarists, most famously Jimmy Page, who would often do the same thing during performances. Pandora also mimics this action sometimes when her star power is activated.
  • Xavier Stone will sometimes pick his guitar with his teeth when using star power, a tribute to Jimi Hendrix.
  • Many bonus tracks are bands whose members work at the game's developer, Harmonix, including Megasus, Breaking Wheel, Acro-brats, Anarchy Club, The Amazing Royal Crowns, Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives, That Handsome Devil, Freezepop and Made In Mexico.

References

  1. ^ IGN: Guitar Hero II Interview
  2. ^ a b "X06: Guitar Hero 2 Announced for 360". IGN.
  3. ^ PALGN Updated Australian release list, 13/11/06
  4. ^ Spong confirm release UK date
  5. ^ "Guitar Hero II Single Player Bundle (Game+Guitar)".
  6. ^ "Playstation.com - OPM - Issue 110".
  7. ^ TeamXbox: Guitar Hero II for Xbox 360 Box Art and Bundle Picture
  8. ^ TeamXbox: Guitar Hero II: RedOctane to Announce Xbox 360 Specifics
  9. ^ "IGN: Guitar Hero II Final Tracklist Revealed".
  10. ^ "Guitar Hero II IGN Set List".
  11. ^ a b Guitar Hero 2 Xbox 360 Hands-On Impressions Cite error: The named reference "Guitar Hero 2 Xbox 360 Hands-On Impressions" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  12. ^ Ars Technica: Guitar Hero 1 songs in Guitar Hero 2, and the best interview answer ever... twice!
  13. ^ http://xbox360.gamespy.com/xbox-360/guitar-hero-2/754599p1.html
  14. ^ "A Day Spent in the Presence of the Mighty Guitar Hero 2".
  15. ^ http://ps2.ign.com/articles/743/743905p1.html
  16. ^ http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/guitarhero2
  17. ^ http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3154996
  18. ^ "Guitar Hero II for Playstation 2".
  19. ^ "Guitar Hero II Reviews". Game Rankings.
  20. ^ http://bestof.ign.com/2006/overall/9.html
  21. ^ http://bestof.ign.com/2006/ps2/9.html
  22. ^ http://bestof.ign.com/2006/overall/24.html
  23. ^ http://bestof.ign.com/2006/ps2/24.html
  24. ^ http://bestof.ign.com/2006/ps2/27.html
  25. ^ "2006 Winners". gamecriticsawards.com.
  26. ^ http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4400&Itemid=2&limit=1&limitstart=4
  27. ^ http://www.redoctane.us/support-center/index.php?x=&mod_id=2&id=120
  28. ^ "New Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, and 007 coming in 2007-8 69". Gamespot.
  29. ^ "IGN: Guitar Hero to Rock All Consoles".
  30. ^ "Gamespot: Guitar Hero going multiplatform".
  31. ^ "Gamespot: Guitar Hero going multiplatform".
  32. ^ "Gamespot: Q&A: RedOctane's Dusty Welch".
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