Alright boyz, here we go! Guitar Hero 2 on XBox 360 released!

[cartman]

There was a package waiting for me when I got home from work. I haven't hooked it up yet, but will do so shortly. I was worried a bit about the stuff I'd heard about the guitar being tiny compared to the PS version, but I don't really see what people were complaining about. It is a touch smaller, but it feels fine when holding it in the playing position. Also in reading through the manual, the mystery port on the bottom of the guitar is for a future wa-wa pedal. Gonna get dinner, then hook it up and see what downloadable content they've thrown out so far.

[DeToxRox]

And remember there is an FOFC-BBCF sim tonight. I refuse to tolerate your riffs as an excuse for my recruiting domination being stalled.

[Phototropic]

I had never played Guitar Hero. I've never had as much fun on the 360.

The only complaint I have so far is I'm having problems keeping the strap on my shoulder, but I might try a real strap instead.

[cartman]

And remember there is an FOFC-BBCF sim tonight. I refuse to tolerate your riffs as an excuse for my recruiting domination being stalled.

There's some downtime while files are uploading/downloading, and the sim itself is running, so there will be some chances to sneak away for a quick song or two during the sim...

:D

[DeToxRox]

There's some downtime while files are uploading/downloading, and the sim itself is running, so there will be some chances to sneak away for a quick song or two during the sim...

:D

I swear to god if it's Freebird...

[cartman]

I swear to god if it's Freebird...

I was hoping In-a-Gadda-da-Vida was in the downloadable content...

:D

[cartman]

Dola,

I might be missing something, but I don't see any downloadable content out there yet in the Marketplace. I thought it was going to be something available at launch.

But the game is awesome. I had played the original on a PS2, and when I saw that it was coming out for the 360, that is what pushed me into finally picking up a 360.

I've only played two songs so far, Possum Kingdom and Heart Shaped Box. Good stuff. I like the expanded scoring, so you can see how you did on different sections of the song.

Not that it matters for those actually playing, but the game is in 1080P if your TV supports it. The notes are the only thing I see when playing, but the extra eye candy is definitely a plus when the game is broken out at a party.

[cartman]

Game....is....so....addictive....

The addition of the online component just makes it that much better. Still waiting on the DLable content, but the scoreboard is a great feature. You can compare your scores against everyone else that's played. It is filterable and sortable, so you can see only scores from the current week, or scores by others on your Friends list. This game is selling like hotcakes. This is the street release date, and I'm ranked in the 50,000 plus range on a couple of songs! I wouldn't be surprised to hear they sold 200K copies in the first week.

[Doug5984]

I picked this up today as well- I had never played until last week when someone brought over the ps2 version. I suck, but its so much fun. Still playing on easy, and messing up a lot...

[SackAttack]

I swear to god if it's Freebird...

If I leave here tomorrow,
Would you still remember meeeeeeeeeeeeeee?

[law90026]

I am sad :(

Rumour has it that this will not ship to Singapore because the 360s we have here are not the US version :(

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Any of you have the guitar that has the whammy bar problems? Multiple places reporting that one of the two guitar models is unresponsive in regards to the whammy bar......

http://www.gamestooge.com/2007/04/03/guitar-hero-360-whammy-bar-problems/

[cartman]

Any of you have the guitar that has the whammy bar problems? Multiple places reporting that one of the two guitar models is unresponsive in regards to the whammy bar......

http://www.gamestooge.com/2007/04/03/guitar-hero-360-whammy-bar-problems/

LOL, this sounds like the same complaint when GH1 first came out on the PS2. It sounds to me like people are pushing the bar side to side, instead of up and down. I have no problems at all with the whammy bar, and my guitar matches up with their description of ones potentially with a problem.

[spleen1015]

LOL, this sounds like the same complaint when GH1 first came out on the PS2. It sounds to me like people are pushing the bar side to side, instead of up and down. I have no problems at all with the whammy bar, and my guitar matches up with their description of ones potentially with a problem.

This make sense. I'm not a guitar player. I've always thought they moved that lever up and down in a swinging motion to get the effect. I had no idea that you push it in until I went through the tutorial within the game.

[heybrad]

Any of you have the guitar that has the whammy bar problems? Multiple places reporting that one of the two guitar models is unresponsive in regards to the whammy bar......

http://www.gamestooge.com/2007/04/03/guitar-hero-360-whammy-bar-problems/
The PS3 won't have this problem because they have tech savy users!

[cartman]

Woot! Austin made it as a venue in the game. And surprisingly, they modeled it after a real venue here. The other places are indoors, but they put the show in Austin at an outdoor stage that looks suspiciously like "The Backyard".

I'm seriously digging this game. I need to get to the point where I can unlock "Trogdor"

[RGunner]

good good...i bought this game today, having barely played the first one at all, and good god its hard even on easy...my hands are dead and ive played about 15 songs...who was in my room tonight or whatever is freaking hard for me

[Bee]

So this is one of those games that stuff scrolls down and you push the correct button(s) at the right time?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

LOL, this sounds like the same complaint when GH1 first came out on the PS2. It sounds to me like people are pushing the bar side to side, instead of up and down. I have no problems at all with the whammy bar, and my guitar matches up with their description of ones potentially with a problem.

Here's the comments from Red Octane. It appears that they suggest just unplugging the guitar and putting it back in to fix the problem at this point until further notice.

Red Octane has responded to reported issues with the guitar for the Xbox 360 version of Guitar Hero II. Speaking to Joystiq, Red Octane states, "In regards to the controller, we're currently in the process of having our internal QA and production teams look into this possible issue, and are working to quickly isolate this if there is one. In the meantime, we suggest our fans try to replug in their guitars without holding down any buttons or the whammy bar, and that may help immediately resolve the issue."

[spleen1015]

good good...i bought this game today, having barely played the first one at all, and good god its hard even on easy...my hands are dead and ive played about 15 songs...who was in my room tonight or whatever is freaking hard for me

I never thought I would like a game like this. I played for a while last night and really enjoyed it. My left hand needs some work because it likes to cramp up after 2 or 3 songs.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I never thought I would like a game like this. I played for a while last night and really enjoyed it. My left hand needs some work because it likes to cramp up after 2 or 3 songs.

That'll happen for awhile. Eventually, you don't cramp up quite as quickly. Your GH stamina obviously needs some work. :)

[rockboy70]

I am having fun as well, even though I did encounter the whammy bar problem. After reading some forums I plugged the guitar into a pc, and looked at the whammy bar response. It works pretty much like the throttle on a joystick, but on mine it didn't always reset back to zero on release, which I think is what's wrong. Simple fix suggestion that worked for me was rubber band around whammy bar connected to the strap peg on the side.

[spleen1015]

I made the move to Medium this morning. The introduction of the Blue fret button has been tough on me.

One thing that I have realized this afternoon....If I have to hit the red and blue fret buttons at the same time, I can't do it. Some how, my brain can't do this.

I've seen a video of an 8 year old get 5 stars for that Psycho song on expert. I was thinking that someone else did it for him, but they showed his hands in view of the tv and the kid is really playing. There is one sequence that he plays with his back to the tv. Amaysing.

Anyway, red and blue sucks!

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

LOL, this sounds like the same complaint when GH1 first came out on the PS2. It sounds to me like people are pushing the bar side to side, instead of up and down. I have no problems at all with the whammy bar, and my guitar matches up with their description of ones potentially with a problem.

FYI......response from Red Octane concerning the guitars. If you have either of the defective models, you're supposed to return them.

http://dubiousquality.blogspot.com/2007/04/guitar-hero-ii-360-controller-issues.html

[RGunner]

I made the move to Medium this morning. The introduction of the Blue fret button has been tough on me.

One thing that I have realized this afternoon....If I have to hit the red and blue fret buttons at the same time, I can't do it. Some how, my brain can't do this.

I've seen a video of an 8 year old get 5 stars for that Psycho song on expert. I was thinking that someone else did it for him, but they showed his hands in view of the tv and the kid is really playing. There is one sequence that he plays with his back to the tv. Amaysing.

Anyway, red and blue sucks!

When I switched to medium I was having that exact problem, but now I've started to be able to get it most of the time, but still having a few problems, its pretty hard to get that switch though

[WVUFAN]

Anyone else have wierd vision-y after playing this awhile, like whatever you see is still scrolling? :)

[RGunner]

I'm officially addicted to this game even though my hands are dead, I'm on medium and have 5-star all but the last 2 sections, and im stuck on those, they are freaking hard.

[cartman]

Dang, I almost got my first 100%. Granted it was with Possum Kingdom on easy, but I had it nailed until I missed ONE of the final string of consecutive notes. 396/397. AAAAGH!!!

I did make it through the medium section, and the final encore is awesome!

[Groundhog]

Anyone else have wierd vision-y after playing this awhile, like whatever you see is still scrolling? :)

This happens to me after about 30 mins of playing. After 3 hours of playing my eyes get red and sore and my vision scrolls much worse. Doesn't stop me playing though. :)

[Phototropic]

I'm officially addicted to this game even though my hands are dead, I'm on medium and have 5-star all but the last 2 sections, and im stuck on those, they are freaking hard.
They are quite hard. I went back to 5-star those after I struggled to pass the early level hard songs, and it has made me a much better player.

[Bee]

I've never played this or seen it played, so this might be a stupid question but is there anything to the game other than pushing the buttons when the various colors scroll down? Is there career play or any type of managing involved? Also, is there visual and audio feedback based on how well you match the scrolling stuff?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I've never played this or seen it played, so this might be a stupid question but is there anything to the game other than pushing the buttons when the various colors scroll down? Is there career play or any type of managing involved? Also, is there visual and audio feedback based on how well you match the scrolling stuff?

Yes, there is a form of career play where you get to play in larger venues as you advance. The crowd will go nuts if you do well and will boo you off the stage if you don't do well. No real managing per se. You'll know if you hit the notes. Anything you don't hit sounds like a badly struck note.

[BrianD]

I would say there is really no career play with this game. You do get to play bigger venues and unlock other songs, but that really doesn't change the game at all. You have no fame and no management, you just play the next level when you "beat" the previous one.

There is definite visual and audio feedback for each note and for how well you are doing in general.

If you want to try it out or see it played, just go to your local electronics store. Many stores that have demo consoles out will have this game on at least one of them.

[Bee]

If you want to try it out or see it played, just go to your local electronics store. Many stores that have demo consoles out will have this game on at least one of them.

I try to avoid that since I've gotten old. The last time I was looking at games at Best Buy, one of the employees asked me if I knew if my kids liked First Person Shooters. :(

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I try to avoid that since I've gotten old. The last time I was looking at games at Best Buy, one of the employees asked me if I knew if my kids liked First Person Shooters. :(

LOL. Nice. How old was the guy?

[Bee]

LOL. Nice. How old was the guy?

He looked to be in his early 20's or younger.

[BrianD]

I try to avoid that since I've gotten old. The last time I was looking at games at Best Buy, one of the employees asked me if I knew if my kids liked First Person Shooters. :(

About the only thing worse than that is going up to the cute check-out girl and having her address you as "sir".

[spleen1015]

About the only thing worse than that is going up to the cute check-out girl and having her address you as "sir".

I get this and I am only 30.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

3 songs for over $6???? Are they serious????

http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/11/guitar-hero-ii-song-packs-now-live-pricey/

I'm going to take a wait-and-see approach, but if they release the new version of GH on the PS3 with the new controllers and fail to make GH I and II backwards compatible with the new controllers, I'm going to be one pissed off fella. I feel bad for the GH 360 owners because that's absolutely ridiculous.

[Bee]

3 songs for over $6???? Are they serious????

http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/11/guitar-hero-ii-song-packs-now-live-pricey/

I'm going to take a wait-and-see approach, but if they release the new version of GH on the PS3 with the new controllers and fail to make GH I and II backwards compatible with the new controllers, I'm going to be one pissed off fella. I feel bad for the GH 360 owners because that's absolutely ridiculous.


How much is Sony charging for additional songs?

[Arles]

3 songs for over $6???? Are they serious????

http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/11/guitar-hero-ii-song-packs-now-live-pricey/

I'm going to take a wait-and-see approach, but if they release the new version of GH on the PS3 with the new controllers and fail to make GH I and II backwards compatible with the new controllers, I'm going to be one pissed off fella. I feel bad for the GH 360 owners because that's absolutely ridiculous.
The market will sort that out. If people feel that getting all 9 songs for $18 is too much (as it seems), I'm guessing they will run a promotion to lower it. I do like the fact that they are atleast allowing people to expand the game and buy more songs (instead of, say, charging people another $50 for a new version with simply more songs). Still, I've been having a blast with GH2 for the 360 and by the time I feel the desire to get more songs I'm sure either they will be cheaper or I can simply download them in groups of 3 as I want them. Or, if the PS3 comes out with a better plan, I can buy it for that system.

I just think it's silly that GH1 and 2 have been hallmarks of the PS2 for years yet the first time I have been able to play the GH series is on my XBox 360 because sony didn't think to come out with a guitar that would work for the PS3.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

I just think it's silly that GH1 and 2 have been hallmarks of the PS2 for years yet the first time I have been able to play the GH series is on my XBox 360 because sony didn't think to come out with a guitar that would work for the PS3.

Yep, from a backwards compatibility standpoint, it's one of the worst oversights. I just ended up holding on to my PS2 and hooked it up when I wanted to play or people came over for parties.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

How much is Sony charging for additional songs?

All of these songs are already on GH I and II for the PS2. Problem being that you have to keep your PS2 to play the game. Hopefully they'll make the old games compatible with the new guitar so I can get rid of my PS2.

If they charge anything close to that when they release GH III in the fall, I'm certainly not going to download any of those songs.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Info on the latest GH II 360 problems. It appears they applied a patch which is causing some of the systems to get the dreaded 'ring of death'. Might want to be careful with this one until it's resolved.

http://www.revolution.joystiq.com/2007/04/16/red-octane-looking-into-guitar-hero-ii-patch-problems/