Found on the official Guitar Hero site, is upcoming news for the 5th installment of the Guitar Hero franchise. Assuming that World Tour was it’s 4th outing, 5 announces the premiere and return of some favorites:
Beasties Boys
Bob Dylan
Duran Duran
Gorillaz
Muse
Coldplay
Jimmy Eat World
The Raconteurs
The White Stripes
Expect this franchise to keep pumping out the sequels and milking our wallets dry with Guitar Hero 5, September 1, 2009.
Guitar Hero, one of the biggest-hit video games of all time, is about to get bigger. Activision, the distributor of the virally popular Guitar Hero Series, plans to roll out three more Guitar Hero spin-offs this fall. They are as follows: 1) Guitar Hero 5, 2) DJ Hero, and 3) Band Hero.
Guitar Hero
All three music games are tied together with the “hero” motif, but each will be based on different genres of music. Guitar Hero 5 keeps the general theme of the Guitar Hero series, with a strong lineup of classic rock, hard rock, and indie rock. Because the game already appeals to customers who prefer that style of music, Guitar Hero 5 will help maintain that clientele, while attracting perhaps more of the indie-style music lovers. As expected, Guitar Hero 5 should boast an increased level of game control and other new perks.
Band Hero
Band Hero is a game that is on the other end of the music spectrum. This game overtly targets a family audience, beginning with its E10+ rating and continuing to its “top-40 hits” listing. The style of music is not only tamer, but the array of multi-player instrumentation lends itself well to family play. Band Hero will be a new flavored venture for Activision, and it will be interesting to see how the game is received.
DJ Hero
DJ Hero, the third game to be released, features an eclectic blend of music styles-dance, hip-hop, electronic, Motown, R&B, etc. On DJ Hero, you get to sit in the seat of a DJ. Your game controller is a turntable. Sneak peaks reveal a relatively simple controller, with a layout similar to Guitar Hero’s controller. Most exciting is the selection of music that DJs will be able to mix themselves.
News of the releases helped Activision’s share increase, adding more to a steadily-growing value.
Zivix is cooking up a guitar controller that simulates the guitar experience even closer with their “Headliner” model wireless guitar. It’s got finger sensor technology that will allow the player to go up and down the frets and will even be compatible with Guitar Hero.
Even more interesting is their own software, JamParty, that is its own music generator. You’ll be able to create arrangements with a library of audio loops, samples and music genres. Looks like these guys are taking the Guitar Hero concept a little further easing the general public into actual musicianship and composition.
Source: BeatCrave
The Guitar Hero experience is now being brought to fans via a non-console version. Vicarious Visions has found a way to bring the Guitar Hero experience to the handheld Nintendo DS (as well as Game Boy Advance and DS Lite, with the help of an included small plastic adapter) in the form of Guitar Hero: On Tour.
Now, rather than using a plastic guitar, the handheld version comes with a four-button “guitar grip.” You slide your left hand through the adjustable wrist strap and cradle the DS in your palm, such as you would an open book. Notes scroll downward on the left screen and you push down on the corresponding fret buttons with your fingertips. There is no strum bar, instead you use the included guitar pick-like stylus to strum across the guitar that is displayed on the right screen. It takes a bit of practice to get the strumming down but unfortunately, even when you do, at times the input is not registered. Improving your high scores using this handheld version can become quite frustrating but isn’t enough of an issue to render the game unplayable.
Guitar Hero: World Tour for Nintendo DS with fret attachment
The game begins with instructions for the player to keep his/her wrist straight, to take frequent breaks to avoid cramping, try different play styles to find one that is most comfortable for the player, and to even visit the game’s Web site “for more play comfort suggestions.” That tells me that someone was aware that the game could present physical problems for people.
There are 26 songs on the setlist. The audio quality of the songs is poor through the DS speakers and it has been recommended to use headphones, but this also highlights the low fidelity of the tracks.
It is yet to be seen what types of improvements will follow and possibly allow the user to play the game with some sort of alternate control scheme, but such an option isn’t available.
Though impressive from a technical standpoint, the limited setlist, the somewhat awkward-at-times fret attachment, and the high price tag ($50 USD) leads a Guitar Hero aficionado to decide whether the cost is worth having your favorite game…on the go.
