Guitar Hero Arcade based on Guitar Hero 3
by Justin McElroy 
{ Dec 9th 2008 at 3:50PM }
MTV nabbed some details about the machine from Raw Thrills, including the game's reliance on the Guitar Hero 3 engine. There's also some information about Konami's involvement in the deal, still, in our opinion, the oddest pairing since Bing Crosby and David Bowie.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
StLouisRibs7734 @ Dec 9th 2008 3:55PM
A local arcade has a 360 with guitar hero controllers that will only turn on if you put in $5, and they have GHIII
Dirty @ Dec 9th 2008 3:56PM
If I want to handle a plastic peripheral that some snot nosed brat had his grubby filthy paws all over Ill head to my local best buy.
Rob Accomando @ Dec 9th 2008 4:08PM
yeah, can't wait to play with a dirty, smelly, sticky guitar.
Dirty @ Dec 9th 2008 4:16PM
Look at that... I've contracted strep throat just thinking about it.
Young_Nastyman @ Dec 9th 2008 4:01PM
I can't wait to hear the first 5 seconds of Through the Fire and the Flames over and over again while I'm playing Initial D and Wangan Midnight at my local Gameworks!!!
/sarcasm
Haggard @ Dec 9th 2008 4:05PM
Sad but true.
Burritoclock @ Dec 9th 2008 4:13PM
Off topic, but did anyone else notice Dragonforce has been nominated for GRAMMY's, ridiculous!
Roto13 @ Dec 9th 2008 4:14PM
I didn't realize TTFAF was such a key part of the GHIII engine.
Vcize @ Dec 9th 2008 4:28PM
5 seconds? They must be pretty good. I can barely get 2 notes on that song.
Haggard @ Dec 9th 2008 4:38PM
@Roto
Well they're obviously going to put it on. Even if they put in lots of exclusive songs to give people an incentive to play it - TTFAF is still going to be what motivates nubile idiots to drop all their coinage.
KingTorres @ Dec 9th 2008 4:41PM
even if it was sarcasm, for the initial d reference alone i voted you up !
Courtney @ Dec 9th 2008 4:12PM
Rather than arcades, I would see this as more successful in bars, right next to the virtual golf, hunting and bowling machines. I can see drunks dropping in dollar after dollar.
Heh (Mr. ESC, living in the hearts of us all) @ Dec 9th 2008 4:24PM
I'd rather not. It's been harder and harder to find small gigs these days, what with the small hole-in-the-walls closing/etc.
samfish @ Dec 9th 2008 4:25PM
Sadly, machines stashed away in the corners or bars and bowling alleys ARE what arcades have become in the US today.
Having now been to some of the legendary Japanese arcades, that makes me want to go to a bar, order a beer and cry in it while watching fat drunks in tight flannel play a shitty hunting game.
mirage @ Dec 9th 2008 5:02PM
I would certainly rather watch fat drunks in flannel play this as opposed to some crappy hunting game!! Who knows, I might even be one of them!?
samfish @ Dec 9th 2008 4:22PM
Is the Bing Crosby/David Bowie thing becoming like a meme or something? I heard people being surprised at it this morning on the radio, too.
Or is Mr. McElroy a fan of Mama & the Mooks, too?
dvnt @ Dec 9th 2008 4:56PM
You are aware that arcade versions of Guitar Hero have been around since GHII, right? My local theatre has had a GH3:LoR unit for a year now.
Hafk @ Dec 9th 2008 5:04PM
Those are not official machines.
There have been many unofficial arcade builds but they just run modified versions of the game's code, fit for coin operation.
dvnt @ Dec 9th 2008 6:20PM
I dunno, it was a custom cabinet that looked made specifically for the game. Using licensed artwork on the cabinet and everything. If it's not official, as you say, then why have I seen identical ones elsewhere and why has the manufacturer not been punished for selling and distributed copy-written software?
BPMOmega [gamertag] @ Dec 10th 2008 12:14AM
Bootlegs, man. Happens all the time.
Have you ever seen a "DDR MegaMix" cabinet? That's a bootleg. Sure, it may LOOK official, complete with Konami logos and all, but it isn't. The ROM is a pirated version of DDR Extreme with the title screen and warning screen changed. And, according to a friend of mine, the dance pad is thinner than an official Konami one.
This here is the first, and only, official Guitar Hero arcade.
SicTransit2 @ Dec 9th 2008 5:29PM
good call using the GHIII engine. its much more solid than the GHWT engine.
Haggard @ Dec 9th 2008 5:54PM
It's more likely to be because most arcade machines these days are technically PC's (very powerful and expensive ones for massive resolutions of course, but still the same thing).
Since GH3 has been around on the PC for a while, they have an easier base to modify from rather than World Tour, which still hasn't been confirmed (but has been rated by the ESRB) for PC/Mac. From that you can judge that at the very best it's still in development.
SicTransit2 @ Dec 9th 2008 6:42PM
yeah i understand that. i was just commenting on the fact that the GHIII engine felt a lot more precise than world tour did.
Dartmerc @ Dec 9th 2008 6:48PM
I think Konami's involvment stems completely from the fact they own the GuitarFreaks IP, and probably have a patent on arcade games using guitar shaped controllers.
KeenCommander @ Dec 9th 2008 5:59PM
This would only be worthwhile if it was either (a.) $.25 (I can dream) or (b.) had thousands of songs. Neither of which is likely.
BPMOmega [gamertag] @ Dec 10th 2008 12:15AM
While you're right on the price... you might be wrong about the song selection. Looks like Konami/Activision is looking to do song updates for the cabinets via the Internet.
Bryan @ Dec 9th 2008 8:02PM
I played the demo of this at IAAPA. It's not just based off of Guitar Hero 3, it pretty much IS Guitar Hero 3 but with less features.
KeegdnaB @ Dec 9th 2008 8:03PM
Great, and I bet every Brunswick Zone in Chicago will throw 'em right next to the ITG machines that for the love of god, some of us like to keep in decent condition. Well music games, its been a good run....at least it was before the "mainstream" caught on. Goodbye forever.
and btw, Konami...really? (said itaicized in the are you f-ing kidding me sence)
so how'd that whole rock revolution thing where you retroactively ripped yourself off go?
Fourdee3 @ Dec 9th 2008 9:14PM
I'd like to see what they do to the guitar to make it "arcade safe" meaning it can take abuse.
chronomaster.k @ Dec 10th 2008 12:23AM
I'm seeing a distinct lack of Technika vs. GH Arcade going on here.
I for one do not welcome our Actiblizzion overlords. Konami is late to the party. :V
JohnHeist @ Dec 10th 2008 8:20PM
1> About 10 years too late for the Arcade scene
2> About 2 years too late to be relevant
Also, thankfully the bars I go to don't have shitty Hunting games or Bowling...those are what are known as "Chad Bars", or "Douche Bars", and are to be avoided.
Guess I'll have to go to Dave & Busters, The Bowling Alley or the Casino to play this.
Oh, and it'll be at least $1.00 per play, if not $2.00