Report: Some Guitar Hero World Tour peripherals not functioning properly

It's a good thing barely anyone got the Aerosmith guitar, I bought it just for the guitar then I was just planning on selling the game for like 30 after finishing it.

Well, I bought it and noticed that the strum bar couldn't go down at all. Well, it did, it just didn't register. So I tried fixing it by hitting it downwards very hard and it sorta worked sporatically then....

I took it back and got a brand new game and guitar. So I got to sell the game for 30 bucks to a friend, still in the case. My new guitar hasn't had problems but when you down strum it just makes a squishing sound, not a click, so I think it may stop working eventually, might just be in my head.

Long story short, I like the feel of the les paul, but I'd rather have the reliability of the Strat.

Went to best Buy at 11am to get my first set:

1. On the first set, everything worked fine except the yellow cymbal. The cymbal would register most of the time, but you'd have to hit it really hard. The orange cymbal was very responsive.

2. The second drum set was completely messed up. Both cymbals had issues, and the red drum wouldn't register very well either.

3. The third set was by far the best; however, like the first, the yellow cymbal didn't work very well. If you hit the top part of the yellow cymbal, it worked almost 100% of the time. However, that's still really frustrating, and the really fast sequences of notes would never come through 100% of the time.

Luckily, Best buy just refunded my money at that point. I saw about 8 returned GHWT boxes that were behind the return counter, and someone was in the return line next to me, returning his copy on the Wii because of the same drum issue.

On a positive note, I really, really like the GHWT drums. They definitely feel more sturdy than the RB drums. The drum parts are more fun to play on GHWT (in my opinion) than they are in Rock Band. I also didn't have any issues using them with Rock Band 2 (well, except for the flaky yellow cymbal). True, the pressure sensitivity thing is messed up, and the cymbals in RB don't map... but you can still use them for both games, in the event you don't want 2 sets of drums in your living room!

I also took apart the yellow cymbal to see if I just needed to rejigger something to make it work; however, there was just a bolted-on motion sensor underneath - so I wouldn't expect any type of DIY fix for the cymbals.

Also, it should be noted that the Activision RMA procedure SUCKS! If you have a defective drum set, you first have to mail in your busted yet (you also pay shipping). Then activision takes 2-3 weeks to TEST your defective drum set. Then they mail you a replacement. They said the entire process should take about a month. Now, this brings to light the whole "guitar and drum" fiasco with Rock Band last year. However, EA, unlike Activision, immediately sent out a replacement guitar, and then they gave you the return label and box to ship back the defective guitar. then, on top of that, they gave you a FREE game because of the issue. Now that's what I call customer service!

So, after a highly frustrating Sunday, I've decided to not purchase this game for a few months, until Activision admits to the issue and corrects it. I unfortunately don't have the stamina to keep making trips to Best Buy.

I submit, I can't top that long of a story.

The new Rock Band 2 kit has it's problems again as well. A lot of the drums register "phantom" hits on the green pad, making using them impossible. My drums stop working after a while of play and I have to take out the batteries and put them back in to get it to start working again. And I've heard of some guitar issues as well.

But the mics seem to work. Unless you have a PS3, and then the wiggly arrow problem is still there from time to time.

"On a positive note, I really, really like the GHWT drums. They definitely feel more sturdy than the RB drums."

Didn't you just say that you returned THREE sets before deciding to get your money back? What, did the Rock Band ones blow up and light your house on fire when you played them?

Just wanted to say thanks to Jason. It was a good read. Now to find some info on how the ION drum kits are working.

I just got GH WT this weekend as a gift. The drums feel great BUT--the left cymbal has a plug sticking out of it with nothing to plug it into-can anyone explain this one to me? Is this a defect?

The one review I read said the finished studio songs sounded like crap, which would be disappointing. Are there any samples of finished tracks online?

Bluebrake, basically imagine a slightly higher than normal quality midi. It DOES sound bad.

Actually I really shouldn't be saying that... I've only heard one at my friend's, but that was my initial impression of the one heard.

There are vids on youtube of "featred sogns" from ghtunes and it really sounds like something off a cheap midi keyboard or soundcard. The composition was fine, but the samples are just not good, not convincing. The music studio is wasted effort that could have gone into improving a game that needed it.

You can't expect freaking masterpieces the first day it comes out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_zm52wlX78

This was the best example I could find on Youtube. Everything but the guitar sounds great. Unfortunately, the guitar is kind of important...

I'd planned to get this game, but now I'm torn. The reasons I wanted it over Rock Band were the music creator and the superior drum set, but now both those things are sounding a lot worse. I guess I'll wait and see a little longer. The instrument problems, at least, will probably be resolved after a little bit...

I didn't expect a masterpiece but I expected my guitar to WORK. I also expected the one I got when I took it back to work, let alone be MORE DEFECTIVE. I've been a fan of Guitar Hero and still am, but I can't justify spending my money on sloppily manufactured equipment.

EA didn't make you do that. And that's saying something, since IT'S FRIGGIN' EA!

Activision really is the new EA...

@MowDownJoe

Untrue. People who bought the game at launch, myself included, and had failures immediately were charged $20 to get the replacement and return box.

Speak for yourself. My launch guitar and drums stopped working within a week, I was sent replacements for both at no charge (including no charge to ship back the malfuntioning units)

Mow that is funny and true as hell

Really? The Xplorer? That's easily the cheapest feeling / worst playing official guitar. Les Paul or Strat all the way brother.

Really.

Xplorer owns all

One more vote for the Xplorer.

Ok then. Was not aware the Xplorer was so beloved.

I learned something today. Good times.

My guitar of choice is the Xplorer. Then again, I haven't seen the GHWT controller. I'm hoping that it's good (a fully functioning one that is).

Yes, yes they were.

The sweet taste of irony.

Here's the exact quote:

"They can pick up the standalone version of World Tour and use those instruments, and when they break they can buy ours."

Neversoft is the anti-King Midas.

that's what really got to me. I bought the RB2 band kit last weekend, and I got the Guitar Hero World Tour game only today. I was very unimpressed with Guitar Hero World Tour as a whole. It wasn't really a full band game. It's like Activision redeveloped Guitar Hero 3, and then at the last minute realized they needed to put other instruments in.

I was wondering what someone with experience with both thinks about just buying the GHWT disc. Having been burned by GH3 and GH:A, I figured I'd wait this out. Thanks for your insight, you probably just saved me $60. Is it true that you can't save bandmates who are failing?

you are correct sir.

heck, we were playing on XBL and we couldn't even tell WHO was failing out.

That's a problem.

Thanks for the good news. I've got my Wii guitar bundle pre-ordered cause it aint out here in Australia yet. Couple more week....

Im just keen to rip up Satch Boogie on Expert.

Yes I remember. The instruments were horrible. I had to send my drum pads back 6 times! But you know what's the difference between GHWT and the rockband instuments?

I don't have to fucking pay to send my rockband drums back.

@ roto13

you got OWNED brotha.

*head desk*

Yeah, because all the Rock Band instruments worked perfectly for everybody.