Guitar Hero director knocks Rock Band 2 cymbals
by Griffin McElroy 
{ Aug 30th 2008 at 2:00PM }
Bright condemns Rock Band 2's cymbals for being "dual-mapped", meaning they'll share the functions of one of the pads of the standard kit, making the attachments somewhat unneccessary. He also dismisses them for being a panicked copycat reaction to World Tour's cymbal-equipped kit -- based on the familiar gameplay we've seen from the latest installment in the Guitar Hero franchise, we assume Neversoft would be the unparalleled experts on matters duplicative.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
cowasocke @ Aug 30th 2008 2:03PM
Neversoft/Activision... shut the Hell up.
wareye @ Sep 24th 2008 12:44PM
yeah, real instruments is fun, but this is a videogame we're talking about. And you cant really compare the videogame guitars with the real one because the real ones is 100 times harder
Red Leader @ Aug 30th 2008 2:07PM
Both Rock Band and Guitar Hero need to die, but it won't because IDIOTS keep buying the crap.
Jerkfish @ Aug 30th 2008 2:14PM
Yeah guys! Red Leader doesn't like the games so we should all stop having fun! When will we learn!?
Poisoned Al @ Aug 30th 2008 2:22PM
Yeah, stupid party games for people with friends! I hate them!
... so lonely.
VaultICEE @ Aug 30th 2008 2:35PM
After all these years of playing music games...
Red Leader just pointed me to the light.
I'm an idiot for having fun. Well, back to work!
Red Leader @ Aug 30th 2008 2:37PM
Precisely the kind of people I'm talking about. If I was hanging out with my friends and we wanted to play music, we'd use real instruments. Anything you can do in reality (sports and music basically) without any strings attached should be done IN REALITY.
People that spend hundreds of dollars on the same limiting crap that they can do for next to free baffle me.
Vegnagun bwf @ Aug 30th 2008 2:40PM
We all have time to buy and learn and instrument and make that commitment. So he's right guys, don't get a game to have fun. Also, you don't need friends to play a guitar!
Skaz @ Aug 30th 2008 2:46PM
Real instruments cost more and actually require practice and tuning to sound good.
Metal_Gear @ Aug 30th 2008 2:52PM
I see your point, but it is all fair for a group of friends to play a little bit of RB or GH but once you start playing them alone, you need to get out and get a life quick. Your dangerously close to the 'South Park' senario and taking it too seriously.
Kyattsuai @ Aug 30th 2008 2:55PM
Do, pray tell, let me know where they're giving away these "next to free" real musical instruments. I've been in the market for an oboe, but I didn't want to pay more than $2.
Slayer @ Aug 30th 2008 3:21PM
@Red Leader
Why do you even care if other people buy rock band and guitar hero? It really sounds like you just want something to bitch about. Not everyone one has the time or is willing to dedicate their time to learning the guitar or the drums. What's so wrong with wanting to play a game simulating the real thing? Last I checked call of duty 4 does the same damn thing. Would you say that game needs to die too?
Your either trying to look cool by saying guitar hero and rock band needs to die, or your just an elitist prick who thinks everyone should "go out and play the real thing." Congrats man, you sound like a real douche bag.
elmersglue @ Aug 30th 2008 4:17PM
red, you obviously don't drink.
Wiinterfang @ Aug 30th 2008 10:56PM
While I agree with Red on some things, just let people have their fun.
RavenPaul @ Aug 31st 2008 12:00AM
I will buy GHWT and RB2 games only. No way in hell I'm buying any more "instruments". Guitar Hero and their stupid "drum kit" sucks. The drums and guitar get boring anyway, I like to sing and play guitar or drums, or just play the solo singing career.
Haggard @ Aug 30th 2008 2:11PM
Yeah.. Harmonix invented Guitar Hero, and then Rock Band. All Activision and Neversoft have been doing since then is copying, making money off old IPs and playing catch up.
And do you know why HMX have put cymbals onto their drums Activision? So that they'll be compatible with your game.
MarkHawk @ Aug 30th 2008 2:27PM
To Activision credit you do have GH: On Tour. What other game to I get to yell Rock Out to activate star power?
supakoopa @ Aug 30th 2008 2:34PM
Sex?
why not the LS2LS7? @ Aug 30th 2008 3:54PM
You can tell "Rock Out" to activate Overdrive (Star Power) in Rock Band if you'd like, it'll work just fine.
phoenixavatar2 @ Aug 30th 2008 2:16PM
I think I am going to pick those up, assuming the re-map is correct. I don't want to hit the hi-hat and hear a tom come out. I'm also hoping that if you have the cymbals then you can play GHWT with five inputs too.
Oh yeah and Neversoft? Congrats on bashing a company for copying a game idea when that's the whole concept of GHWT!
SHAZAM! @ Aug 30th 2008 2:23PM
I heard the re-map of the kit works well. It obviously only works during fills and Big Rock Endings, when you're making your own noise, but still good.
But I'm also really hoping you can tune up the Rock Band kit to have 5 inputs with world tour, because I don't want another drum kit around.
John Perkins @ Aug 30th 2008 2:30PM
Well, as it is now, the sound that comes out from the color of pad you hit is based on the song. So if it calls for a high-hat, and you hit the blue pad, it will be a high-hat sound. Only now you can actually hit an approximation of a raised cymbal to make it "feel" more realistic.
I believe I also read somewhere that even though they're duped, they can tell if you've hit a cymbal or not. So, in drum fills you'll get a different sound from the cymbals than the correlating drum pad. At least I thought I read that somewhere, I'm just too lazy to look it up right now.
SHAZAM! @ Aug 30th 2008 2:20PM
"He also dismisses them for being a panicked copycat reaction".
HAHAHAHA!!!
Has he seen the game they're making now? It IS Rock Band! If there's anything worse than bashing other game creators, it's uninformed bashing...
copa @ Aug 30th 2008 2:21PM
"We knew the feud between Harmonix/EA's Rock Band 2 and Neversoft/Activision's Guitar Hero: World Tour would reach critical mass."
This isn't a feud so much as a one-side bitchfest. Brian Bright has been talking shit all week. Here's what Harmonix's Dan Teasdale said this week on his blog:
"[At PAX] I challenge any members of the Guitar Hero: World Tour, SingStar, and Rock Revolution development teams to a manly hug/complement off. First person to pull away or stall on a compliment loses."
You tell me who's being classy, and who's too insecure to let his product speak for itself.
MarkHawk @ Aug 30th 2008 2:26PM
Guitar Hero 4: Rock Band Edition
also, boo that man.
Sam @ Aug 30th 2008 2:34PM
Guitar Hero?
Calling out another game for panicked copying?
Gee. Thats not ironic or anything.
*COUGH*GUITAR HERO 4: ROCK BAND*COUGH*
Jakka(Naked Peach Brigade) @ Aug 30th 2008 3:17PM
As a general rule, if the same joke appears twice in the same news, it's common enough to be unfunny.
Stop it.
VaultICEE @ Aug 30th 2008 2:34PM
What a dick.
David @ Aug 30th 2008 2:35PM
I love irony.
Vegnagun bwf @ Aug 30th 2008 2:37PM
Bright, you are a hypocritical fellow.
Cesaria (www.cesariatic.wordpress.com) @ Aug 30th 2008 2:44PM
Why do people jump to defend Harmonix so quickly? Sure, this guy is an idiot for saying this, but it's not like Harmonix invented everything they use. Stop the brand loyalty crap.
emotaku @ Aug 30th 2008 2:54PM
come again
OMGOMG @ Aug 30th 2008 3:03PM
Oh, like your brand loyalty with Nintendo?
Colin @ Aug 30th 2008 3:09PM
What are you smoking? They invented Guitar Hero in the first place!
Jakka(Naked Peach Brigade) @ Aug 30th 2008 3:15PM
"come again"
Rock Band ripped off Guitar Freaks and Drum Mania, now have a lawsuit because of it.They're not new or original and Guitar Hero is not "copying them", they're both copying Konami's Arcades.
Also, HMX fanboys and RB = Good GH = Evil bias will always be there no matter how many Rock Band's hypocrisies I have to point out.
why not the LS2LS7? @ Aug 30th 2008 3:58PM
Keep going with the hypocrisies please, I want to test your hypothesis.
Harmonix added a lot to Guitar Hero and Rock Band that wasn't in Guitar Freaks. Star Power/Overdrive, for starters.
Go ahead and play Guitar Freaks or Rock Revolution and tell me how much of the greatness of GH/RB comes from Konami.
x silence x @ Aug 30th 2008 4:50PM
Who cares.
Most fools will buy both anyways....
Including myself.
Jakka(Naked Peach Brigade) @ Aug 30th 2008 5:08PM
"Keep going with the hypocrisies please, I want to test your hypothesis."
Shit, I'm only gonna list a few right off my mind.Bear in mind I'm really tired so there's probably many openings and counter-arguments that could be used to this.It's only for reference so please don't just steamroll me with your HMX love and when I wake up and see this tomorrow, I don't want to see so many replies that writing a comeback would take an eternity.
Guitar Hero rips off Rock Band: Covered already - Rock Band isn't a completely new idea either.And what about their rumored Music Creation project? Sound kinda similar to GHWT Create-a-song, isn't it?
Guitar Hero note charts are overcharted:
RB's Expert = GH's Hard. If anything, Rock Band's charts are oversimplified. Some players like to have a challenge and if anything, the charts should always be as hard as they can get.
Harmonix cares for their customers unlike Neversoft/Activision who don't give a shit: Oh, is that why they released Rock Band in EU at $375 for the full set and tried to blame the double price on 17.5% VATax? Or should I mention the faulty launch instruments?
Guitar Hero forces you to buy a new game and a new instrument each year while Rock Band is a one buy set that's fuelled by a supply of DLC:
DLC, Check. One-time-buy...wait a second, isn't Rock Band 2 coming out barely a year after the first one with new instruments that like...you know actually work? Now with better registering and non-snapping drum pedal it's a must-buy for all those Expert Drummers pissed-off because they're on their nth broken Drum Set.I'm pretty sure that GH which introduces simply introduces a new guitar model doesn't "force you to buy it" as much as RB which introduces it as New and Improved(ie: Fixed!).
MarkHawk @ Aug 30th 2008 6:36PM
SHUT THE HELL UP AND PRESS START ALREADY! I WANT TO PLAY!
Cesaria (www.cesariatic.wordpress.com) @ Sep 1st 2008 1:53PM
I forgot that you knew me in person OMG. I guess that Xbox and PS1 that I have are case modded Nintendo systems.
Stu @ Aug 30th 2008 2:59PM
Can they really claim Rock Band ripped them off when Guitar Hero's "new look" is ripping off Rock Band entirely?
Slayer @ Aug 30th 2008 3:20PM
@Red Leader
Why do you even care if other people buy rock band and guitar hero? It really sounds like you just want something to bitch about. Not everyone one has the time or is willing to dedicate their time to learning the guitar or the drums. What's so wrong with wanting to play a game simulating the real thing? Last I checked call of duty 4 does the same damn thing. Would you say that game needs to die too?
Your either trying to look cool by saying guitar hero and rock band needs to die, or your just an elitist prick who thinks everyone should "go out and play the real thing." Congrats man, you sound like a real douche bag.
Nmaster @ Aug 30th 2008 3:41PM
"We have a lot of expandability. You can plug in any drum kit and play it; if you want to use a keyboard and play the right notes for drums you can do that; you can use one of those hand sonic drums. You can use any input device that transmits on MIDI channel 10 in our game to trigger the drums: it could be a Power Glove."
PowerGlove Hero = PURE EPIC WIN
Alan @ Aug 30th 2008 7:25PM
ye i wanna know if this means we can use our own electric drums...
Shade @ Aug 30th 2008 9:50PM
LOL, I see NF users have found their way to Joystiq. :awesome
mewoks @ Aug 30th 2008 3:42PM
Yeah, just like how Rock Band copied the "full band" concept off of Guitar Hero World Tour!
...wait...I think I messed something up here...
elmersglue @ Aug 30th 2008 4:06PM
as much as you guys have a point about whos being the REAL copycat, the fact of the matter is, adding cymbals and remapping them to existing pads does seem pretty frivolous. I guess this is what competition is all about. World tour is undoubtedly a direct copy of rock band, however, that doesn't stop it from seeming like the better game at this point.
Spartacus @ Aug 30th 2008 4:08PM
I find this whole rhythm game craze rather curious.
The point of the game is to over-simplify the actual instrument it mimics making it suitable for any joe blow to "play".
Now, in a series of one-upmanship, game companies are making these instrument controllers more complicated and life-like. To what end?
Either the product is a fun and simple game or a complex instrument simulator. But trying to blur the line is only going to cause problems.
People are already claiming that Rock Band is teaching them how to play drums. My answer to that, both as an experienced percussionist and as a rational human being, is no- no it's not.
Rock Band and Guitar Hero are NOT simulators- not even close. But even if they WERE, being a pro at Forza or Gran Tourismo doesn't translate well into driving real cars. Adding a steering wheel, some gauges and a shifter add-on to the game experience doesn't improve that translation, it just makes you feel cooler while doing it.
elmersglue @ Aug 30th 2008 4:16PM
well to that i say, its definitely not gonna proficiently teach you how to play the drums. However, it's a step up in realism to what the guitar peripherals offer. You can't deny that if you're able to play a song on hard using the drums, then you're likely going to be able to at least play a simple beat on an actual drumset. I don't care if you can get 100% on expert using the guitar, it undoubtedly isn't gonna translate to being able to play anything on a real guitar. Thats the difference.
Jakka(Naked Peach Brigade) @ Aug 30th 2008 5:11PM
Well, according to somebody who's a real Guitar Player, playing TTFAF on Expert is apparently a good warm up.