This is Guitar Hero IV, and I would like to stress "guitar" as much as possible.
The long awaited Guitar Hero: World Tour has arrived. Of course, that was back in October so I'm a little late. Anyway, this is my second review. My first review I was being a total D-bag and the thing got deleted, so here we go again.
Pretty much, as it says in the review deck, this is Guitar Hero IV. World Tour is a misnomer, because if you're not playing on a plastic guitar, chances are you're not having fun.
Of course, the guitar moments have their flaws as well.
So, where to begin?
Full Band: Shared star power is the dumbest idea I've ever seen. One person failing causing the rest of the band to fail is the second dumbest idea I've ever seen. Failing after like, 10 missed notes is the third dumbest idea I've ever seen.I didn't read Gamespot's review closely enough to discern the truth behind it, but my girlfriend's brother told me GS said that there is no display to determine how close anyone is to failing in game. While this is obviously false, I wish there was something similar to the meter in Rock Band, because it's really damn tiny and I always forget it's there. There still is no display of how many stars you currently have or how far from the next star you are, but they did keep the active note streak counter and the more stats page, so it's not ALL bad I suppose.
Guitar: The new sliding feature seemed like an awesome idea when it was announced. Mostly because it sounds great on paper, and I'm sure it's even fun if you can learn to utilize it properly. But considering the sliding pads or whatever they're called are wider than the buttons, it makes it difficult because you can lose track of your fingers in a heartbeat. Then add in the fact that I can just mash my way mindlessly through the Beat It solo and not even drop into yellow and it makes the sliding feature altogether pointless.
The new feature of sustained notes being played at the same time also feels gimmicky. I don't know about you, but I don't want to start playing four-note sustained chords, even if they bring them in one at a time.
Other than that, the broken HOPO's and overcharting that pissed me off from GHIII so bad are very, VERY toned down thankfully, but still present. For the most part, it's ignorable, but it's still obnoxious.
The HOPO's themselves aren't broken like before, the problem more in lies with the fact that the timing window is WAY too lenient. I found myself bashing my way through trills and rolls with ease without even paying attention.
Anywho.
Bass: The open note feature is a cool addiction, and there's actually not a whole lot wrong with bass.
Drums: This is where the game goes downhill quickly. There is nothing wrong with the actual drum gameplay itself, for the most part. Star power activation is annoying, but I do understand they had to do something different than Rock Band. Also, the purple bass note? Hard to see. They should've made it some other color. Something bright and shiny to stand out.
That could be ignored, but the fills. Oh my God, they are obnoxious, drawn out, and take away from the impact of the song. Mostly because in RB, the fill takes the place of, oh, I don't know, a drum part? As opposed to "Wail the drums while you're not supposed to be playing!"
Of course, all this could be cast aside if it weren't for the biggest issue: The songs are long and boring. Seriously. There are like, maybe 10 songs I played in the entire setlist that were exciting to me. But seriously. Who the hell looked at the drum chart for On the Road Again and didn't say "You know, guys, we need some better ****ing drum songs. Seriously."?
Which brings us to the setlist itself. I won't cover vocals because the vocals in this game are honestly a joke.
So, the setlist. Pretty good, right? I mean, The Eagles, Tool, Skynyrd, Wings, Sublime, and Jimi friggin Hendrix? Well, honestly, the setlist is pretty damn awesome. If you like guitar.
As I mentioned, everything is boring on drums. Everything.
But the other problem: Some of the worst track selections for these big name artists. For some of them, anyway. Tool being the main example. Schism is stupid as hell for this game. Let's play the same set of single notes 26 times! :D! And yes, I counted. Oh, and while we do that, let's have the drummer play a distracting ass fill with GH's lame sound effects.
Also, other issues arise in terms of sound. In L'Via L'viaquez, for example, I'm not sure if it's the fault of the radio edit or GH just mishandling the master, but what the hell is up with the part where Cedric sounds like he's moaning? My girlfriend's brother showed me it because he thought it sounded horrible. I had never heard it before. I listened to the CD version and, lo and behold, that part is BARELY audible on the CD as compare to the rest of the track. And then a lot of songs (especially in the main menu) sound like they're being played a in a freaking hallway. I don't understand where this issue comes from, but considering I have a new TV and I had the same problem on other TV's, I know it's an issue with the game.
The presentation is a little lame. The graphics, note highway, animations, just about everything comes off as really, really cartoon-y and lame. It's part of why I start to get really tired when I play drums, the entire thing just bores me.
As far as other features go: The song creator tool is a great idea, and it is implemented fairly well. I just wish they made it a little more accessible to the musically inclined. But hey, other people have the opportunity to make some pretty awesome tracks with it.
Also, the character/instrument editor is awesome. It's something I wish Rock Band would implement.
To summarize my review: The game has some cool features and some fresh new ideas to an over-saturated game genre. But if they're not implemented absolutely poorly, they're overshadowed by the game's other flaws. If you absolutely adored Guitar Hero III and found no solace in Rock Band whatsoever? Play it, you might like it. But I'd suggest to every single rhythm game lover out there, regardless: Rent it first to gauge your interest.