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Guitar Hero II

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Template:Future game

Guitar Hero II
Guitar Hero II box art
Developer(s)Harmonix Music Systems
Publisher(s)RedOctane
Designer(s)Harmonix Music Systems
Platform(s)PlayStation 2, Xbox 360
ReleaseNovember 7 2006
Genre(s)Music video game
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

Guitar Hero II is a music video game and an upcoming sequel to the original Guitar Hero, being released for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console.[1] [2] and Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system.[1]

Confirmed information

Guitar Hero II is scheduled for a November 7, 2006 release date and will feature at least 55 songs, the majority of which will be licensed tracks covered in-studio.[citation needed] Guitar Hero Gibson SG controllers have been confirmed to be compatible with Guitar Hero II, and the sequel will feature the debut of three button chords, requiring players to press three of the buttons on the controller at once to get the desired note.

Three new characters will join the roster of playable characters from the original game: these include a rockabilly player named Dax DeVille, a male Norwegian black metal guitarist named Lars Umlaut, and a "rocker chick" who seems to be tenatively named Rock Girl[3]. All eight original characters will be returning in the sequel, and all of them appear to have differences in appearance from the original. In addition to the new characters, the new game will feature an overhaul of the graphics, venues, and motion-captured characters.

Marcus Henderson, former guitarist for the band Drist and the lead guitarist on many of Guitar Hero's cover tracks for the original and sequel has claimed, "Heavy metal will get its due in Guitar Hero II."[4]

Guitar Hero developer John Tam has said that the game is a "lead guitar game first and foremost" in response to questions on the July 27 On the Spot online show of whether or not one will be able to play bass or rhythm guitar in the single-player career mode.

Guitar Hero producer Elena Seigman has confirmed a few changes to the way notes are played. Pull-offs will no longer require the lower note to be held and the window for succesfully hammering-on has been tweaked. There will not be chords that require holding the green and orange buttons at the same time.[5] The game now shakes the screen whenever the player misses a note. [6]

RedOctane has announced pre-ordered copies of Guitar Hero II will come with a classic red SG Guitar (different from cherry red), a Guitar Hero II shirt, and stickers.[7]

Additions to the game modes include:

File:Gh2-screenshot.jpg
A screenshot of the Co-op mode from Guitar Hero II
  • A revamped career mode. The player's band will compete in a high school battle of the bands and will work their way to the top from there. Every setlist will now be capped off by an encore performance at the designated venue, with unlockables still bought with cash earned in career mode.[8]
  • Practice mode. The player will be able to choose from predetermined sections of a song such as "Verse 1", "Bridge", "Chorus" or "Solo 1", and will also have the option of moving the notes at four different speed settings.[9][10]
  • An expanded multiplayer section gives two players the chance to engage in many different modes of play such as:
    • Co-op mode, where each player is given a section of the song to play; one player will be playing lead while the other will be playing rhythm or bass guitar, depending on the song. In co-op, the song can be failed, unlike the original game's multiplayer. Both players share star power, the rock meter, the multiplier and a total score. In order to activate star power, both players will need to raise their guitar necks in a near simultaneous motion. Co-op mode will not have a practice feature.[citation needed]
    • Traditional mode, similar to the original in which both players trade off sections of songs to play.[citation needed]
    • Pro Faceoff mode, similar to the original again, but now both players are playing the full song note for note.[11]

Confirmed songs

Recent news

Redoctane and Activision announced on September 27, 2006 that Guitar Hero II will be available for Xbox 360. [14]

RedOctane announced on April 24, 2006 that there would be another "Be A Guitar Hero" competition. The winning band will have their song featured in Guitar Hero II as a bonus track. Submissions for the contest ended on June 30, 2006. [2]

On May 4, 2006, RedOctane revealed the first tracks scheduled to be included in Guitar Hero II's final song list. On July 30, 2006, a new build of Guitar Hero II added three songs to the list.[15][16]

On the July 27 edition of GameSpot's online show On the Spot, John Tam, Guitar Hero producer, confirmed that the song list is complete, but is being kept under wraps by the marketing department. He also confirmed that they have "more original tracks than just the Primus song."

On August 21, RedOctane released a video on GameSpot confirming "Sweet Child O' Mine" by Guns N' Roses as a playable song in the game. On August 22, GameSpot released yet another video, confirming "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd as a playable song. The latter song proved to be an ironic surprise, as the original Guitar Hero featured a loading screen gag of "They don't really want you to play 'Freebird'. They're just heckling you," a reference to fans screaming for the song at various rock concerts.

Featured in the October 2006 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly is a list of confirmed songs for Guitar Hero II, adding twelve previously unannounced songs to the list.[17]

Also in the EGM article: Led Zeppelin and U2 are among the big name bands not featured in Guitar Hero II.

  • John Tam has "plans" for "The Final Countdown" by Europe.
  • Bonus songs will be from bigger bands, unlike the indie and house bands in the original.
  • Marcus Henderson had the following quote in regards to the final song: "You'll know it when it arrives. This is a major, major guitar ass-kicker. It has no less than 11 guitar solos in it." [18]

A recent Gametrailers preview video titled "Staying on Track" features a member of Wavegroup confirming Megadeth's "Hangar 18" and Aerosmith's "Last Child". This video has since been removed from the site due to undisclosed reasons. [19]

The official demo of Guitar Hero II will be in the November issue of OPM. The demo will feature 4 playable tracks ("YYZ", "Strutter", "Shout at the Devil", and "You Really Got Me") in single player mode. The magazine is expected to hit shelves between September 22 and mid October. [20]

According to Gamespot[21], MTV has bought Guitar Hero developer Harmonix.

In a recent EGM podcast broadcast, it has also been revealed that Metallica will not be in Guitar Hero II. [22]

Rumors and unconfirmed information

According to MTV, Tool have also been in negotiations with RedOctane to be in Guitar Hero II.[23]

Buffalo band Every Time I Die claimed during a show on July 4, 2006 that a song of theirs called "The New Black" would feature in the game; however, IGN was told that the company is in negotiations with the band.[24]

On August 23, Voivod posted the following on their website: "In other news we were asked by the makers of the Guitar Hero Game if we would let them use a song for GH2, so after some thought we could see no wrong in having 2 million kids learn Piggy's riff on a Playstation!"[25]

On September 8th, heavy metal band Breaking Wheel (known formerly as Artillery) revealed their song "One For the Road" would be a bonus track for Guitar Hero II on songs in the game. [3]

According to Eurogamer, Rage Against the Machine's "Killing in the Name" and Foo Fighters' "Monkey Wrench" will be included as playable songs. [26]

In a MySpace blog by WaveGroup bassist Darryl Anders, he mentions some of the bassplayers he's covered for Guitar Hero II, and mentions Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea as one of them. Therefore, it is speculated that a Red Hot Chili Peppers song may be in Guitar Hero II.[27]

On the official Guitar Hero II website, Drist's "Arterial Black" was recently removed from the playlist of previewable songs. It was recently confirmed that the song will be in the final build by a moderator on the Official Guitar Hero Message Board.[28]

Venues

The venue system in the game has been altered slightly. Every venue will be represented in a different city, as the career mode will have the band traveling from town to town in order to find the next arena.[citation needed]

There are several venues that have made appearances in various videos in both official videos released by RedOctane and in the E3 demo. Among these are:

  • What appears to be a high school gym, visible in the official "Shout at the Devil" video. This is the gym that will be used for the battle of the bands in the start of the career mode.
  • An updated version of the RedOctane venue in Brooklyn, NY that appeared in the first Guitar Hero, visible in the video of "Trippin' on a Hole in a Paper Heart" and in the video of "Sweet Child O' Mine".
  • The Blackout Bar in Providence, Rhode Island, a small club covered with flashing black and white stripes, visible in E3 demo videos of "War Pigs", "Arterial Black", "John the Fisherman", "You Really Got Me" and in the video of "Free Bird".
  • The Harmonix Arena in Oakland, California, which has never been seen in gameplay, but was in a venues list on the recent Best Buy trailer. .[29]
  • The Vans Warped Tour in Austin, Texas, which has a graveyard theme, visible in E3 demo videos of "YYZ", "Strutter" and "Who Was in My Room Last Night?".
  • Republik Theatre in Detroit, Michigan, likely an updated version of the original and only seen in a venue list in the Best Buy trailer.
  • Stonehenge in England, an outdoor music festival, much like the Toxic Summer Fest in Guitar Hero, confirmed in the feature article in EGM and in the trailer's venue list.[30]

The venues will now have lighting that moves in sync with the music, and the band themselves have already been confirmed to be playing with Orange amps and DW drum kits, with more in-game endorsements expected.[31]

Awards

At E3 2006, the game won the following Game Critics Awards: Best Puzzle/Trivia/Parlor Game.[32]

Future games

Activision, which agreed to acquire RedOctane in May 2006, has announced that a 3rd installment of the Guitar Hero series is set to launch sometime next year, most likely during the 4th quarter of 2007 or the 1st quarter of 2008.[33] Activision has also confirmed that the Guitar Hero franchise will be making appearances on other gaming consoles by next year. The details of which system(s) will recieve Guitar Hero II or its sequels has yet to be revealed, as each version would require its own special controller save for the PS3. [34] The multiplatform version(s) will not be released until 2007. [35]

References

  1. ^ Guitar Hero II for the PS2
  2. ^ IGN: Guitar Hero II Interview
  3. ^ "BestBuy.com".
  4. ^ Interview with Marcus Henderson on Guitar Hero II
  5. ^ "A Day Spent in the Presence of the Mighty Guitar Hero 2".
  6. ^ Boyer, Crispin (2006-10). "Hero Worship". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Ziff Davis Media. pp. 90–99. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ "Guitar Hero II Single Player Bundle (Game+Guitar)".
  8. ^ Boyer, Crispin (2006-10). "Hero Worship". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Ziff Davis Media. pp. 90–99. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ "John Tam's Page on 1UP.com". 1UP.
  10. ^ "ScoreHero.com :: Gamespot - On The Spot show". Gamespot.
  11. ^ "A Day Spent in the Presence of the Mighty Guitar Hero 2".
  12. ^ "Guitar Hero II Tracklist Expands To 29". DarkZero.
  13. ^ "IGN: Guitar Hero II Rocks and Rolls Out New Tracks". IGN.
  14. ^ "X06: Guitar Hero 2 Announced for 360". IGN.
  15. ^ "Song List". IGN.
  16. ^ "IGN: New Guitar Hero II Tracks". IGN.
  17. ^ "Guitar Hero 2 Songlist Revealed". EGM/1UP.
  18. ^ Boyer, Crispin (2006-10). "Hero Worship". Electronic Gaming Monthly. Ziff Davis Media. pp. 90–99. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ "Gametrailers Trailer Archive". GameTrailers.
  20. ^ "Guitar Hero 2 Demo Coming Soon".
  21. ^ "MTV to acquire Guitar Hero developer". Gamespot UK.
  22. ^ "EGM Live* Podcasts from 1UP.com". EGM.
  23. ^ "Tool in negotiations with RedOctane?". MTV.
  24. ^ "Guitar Hero II Song Leaked?". IGN.
  25. ^ "Voivod Home Page". Voivod.
  26. ^ "Foos and Rage in Guitar Hero II". Eurogamer.
  27. ^ "blog.myspace.com/darrylanders". Darryl Anders @ myspace.com.
  28. ^ "Arterial Black out of GH2?".
  29. ^ "BestBuy.com".
  30. ^ "BestBuy.com".
  31. ^ "A Day Spent in the Presence of the Mighty Guitar Hero 2".
  32. ^ "2006 Winners". gamecriticsawards.com.
  33. ^ "New Call of Duty, Guitar Hero, and 007 coming in 2007-8 69". Gamespot.
  34. ^ "IGN: Guitar Hero to Rock All Consoles".
  35. ^ "Gamespot: Guitar Hero going multiplatform".
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