Guitar Hero is a revolutionary breakthrough for the video gaming world. This game actually simulates playing a guitar and is not only fun, but it can actually help develop musical talent as well. The motions in this game closely resemble those made when playing a real guitar. In fact, in some cases, the songs are easier to play on the real guitar than on the SG controller! This game truly is an air-guitarists dream....
The song list is awesome and takes a little from each rock genre. You have your timeless classic rock hits such as "More Than a Feeling" by Boston and "Ziggy Stardust" by David Bowie, some new age songs such as "Take Me Out" by Franz Ferdinand and some bonus tracks to make the deal even sweeter. Some of the bonus tracks are actually surprisingly good, and "Even Rats" by The Slip is an unheard gem that may be my favorite song to play in the game. The great song selections of this game is its major strength since, after all, it is all about the music.... isn't it?
Quick finger movements and timing are the keys to success in this game, which is where the skill development comes in. After playing Guitar Hero for a while you notice that your fingers start to hurt and that your rhythm and timing get better with every song. The finger movement / strength building is how this game can actually help a guitar player or an aspiring guitar player become a better musician. This game is also great in the aspect that it has the potential to get kids to develop basic rhythm and a feel for music at an early age, which is mentally stimulating. Being a Tae Kwon Do instructor that tries to teach children rhythm in class, I can tell you that tools such as this are sorely needed.
My personal favorite parts of this game are the whammy bar and Star Power. When you hit enough special star notes or charge up your star power by using the whammy bar on a long "starred" note, you get to use your Star Power. When you have enough Star Power, you actually tilt up the neck of the guitar to get in a mode where the points from all of the notes that you hit get doubled for a short time. This is an awesome feature since you not only have to be able to hit the notes in this game, but you have to be a crowd pleaser as well! The whammy bar is a cool little feature that actually allows you to warp the sound of long notes and chords that you play.
Overall, the nice people at Red Octane knew what they were doing when they developed this game. The songs are very well made, the game is of a very high quality, it is thoroughly enjoyable, and can be very challenging. With two SG controllers and a couple of friends, you can literally "rock and roll all night."
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