Cast of Characters

CUSTOMER - A man seemingly interested in some new release titles both upcoming and current. 
 
SALES CLERK - A man who is unfortunately perpetuating misinformation about new current new release titles. 

Act I

 
CUSTOMER: "God of War and that one with Jack Black"
 
SALES CLERK: "Oh yeah.  That's all I'm playing right now.  Brutal Legend.  If you're like me and love the '80s rock like Led Zeppelin it's great"
 
CUSTOMER: "Led Zeppelin's on there?"
 
SALES CLERK: "I haven't unlocked it yet but I know there's some on there"
 
The conversation moves towards being about the real-time strategy style portion of the game.
 
The End
 
 
(the reason I used html to display this off-site image is because Giant Bomb does not let me upload images for some reason dear dave "snide" snider please fix this xoxo)

 

    For almost 20 years now, I’ve been an advocate of video games.   As early as I can remember, they’ve been uncontested for the position of my primary hobby.   Regrettably, I spent most of my high school years marinating in the GameFAQs Character Battle message board, which is aptly referred to as “Board 8” due to its URL.   Spending all of my time playing, reading or talking about video games transformed me into a formidable human archive.   Before the Giant Bomb trivia database became bloated with dumbass questions about specific things in Everquest or new Xbox Shooting Game I couldn’t care less about (which I now imagine is full of Persona 4 questions so maybe I should go back), I was pretty proud of my performance.   You might guess that I inherited the label of The Video Game Guy (Because He Talks About Video Games) in real life.   Unfortunately, you’d be right.   I didn’t mind that label 4 years ago, but it’s wearing a little thin now.   The reasons for this sentiment are partially interconnected.   My own fleeting interest in video games is partially influenced by the face of games in the tail end of this decade.   Despite this, I still advertise them as my hobby and go on this website daily just to check things.

    The loves of my favourite games can usually be attributed to strong personal associations, their artistic impact, pure, uncut nostalgia or a combination of any and each.   Tales of Symphonia is a game that I introduced to and played all the way through with my best friend.   An important part of my life is attached to it. Tales of Vesperia is probably a better game across the board, but I bet I’ll never even touch it again.   Final Fantasy VIII (as you can read in my review of it) left me with a bad taste in my mouth from its gameplay, but a bizarre feeling toward its unique narrative.   I feel it’s a lot more memorable than many other games that are “better” than it.   Being objective, I gave FFVIII a 3 star review and proceeded to evaluate Crackdown at 5 stars a week later because of its price and “fun factor”.   Both of those qualities are existent in Crackdown, but it failed to resonate with me like FFVIII.   My fond memories of games mostly seem to serve as time capsules, though.   UN Squadron’s charm is amplified by my memory of purchasing the cartridge on a weekend trip while listening to Wings’ “Jet” (no pun intended) and these recent weeks will totally be “the time I watched Chappelle’s Show DVDs, went into work sick a few times and gradually played my way through Code Veronica X”.

    The first three games of the Metal Gear Solid trilogy define my mid-teenage years and I am glad that I can still talk about how the boss fight against The Fear is a great (perhaps unintentional) homage to Predator, but the actual games and their pacing bore the hell out me now.   This happens more often than I’d like it to.   Killer7: a masterpiece of a game that I was fascinated with the first time ‘round.   I found it difficult to get into the second time, even years later after most of it was fresh again.   I can still enjoy a few long time staples and even feel the need to dig them out sometimes.   Running Star Fox 64 is a ritual I’ll never tire of, but it’s the rare exception.   This general apathy does not stop at re-experiencing old games, but also to playing most new (or just new to me) games.   Every once in a while, I’ll stumble upon a timeless gem, but Persona 4 is as much of an exception as SF64.   This doesn’t stop me from regularly adding to my collection with games that I would’ve liked to have a few years ago, though.

    Am I done with the hobby?   Have I officially grown out of video games?   The old ones I still enjoy playing and reminiscing about, what they represent and the seldom occurrence of me actually discovering a new game that I enjoy whisper “no”; my disdain for what the hobby of “video games” is perceived as by most people (not just FOX News Idiots, I’m talking most of this site even) as opposed to my version of holding onto key titles from the past and all but ignoring new releases shouts “kind of”.   I like to experience them in my own little world, mostly playing and discussing them with real life friends.   That and they’re really just not fun anymore.   The jadedness has set in.   This brings me to the other half of my issue.   Why overlook new releases?   Answer: I no longer favour the direction and tone of the industry.  

    In one camp, we have the worst incarnation yet of “douchebag gamer culture” further associated with games and marketing everywhere.    In the other, we have things like the Nintendo Wii and Project Natal.   I’ve written about the benefits of achievements and trophies before, so this might sound hypocritical, but their pros outweigh their cons in this case.   I was once asked by a friend if I thought achievements would make games like Silent Hill 2 or Killer7 lose part of their immersion.   My answer now is “yes”.   Of course it’s also the dashboard, planned DLC and communities that spoil the experience.   In my mind, a line has been crossed.   As for the Wii/Natal, I really don’t think unique and exciting ideas can quite flourish there.   I’m not going to think as much about a game’s artistic merit while I’m fucking around with a laser wand.   It also represents Nintendo falling even further from grace with their poorest creative effort yet.   I haven’t been keeping score (so help me if I’m wrong), but the only new franchise I’ve seen Nintendo introduce this generation that hasn’t been Wii stuff/Touch Generation is Starfy (a series that has been in Japan for years and probably only required a quick translation job).

    They’ve polluted the suspension of disbelief in games I might like with more online ties/globalization and shrunken the odds of games I find to be classics even being created.   When I’m already struggling to enjoy the medium, those factors don’t help.   However, I keep playing games because of how much I love the memories and the giant collection I’ve amassed.   I suppose I’ll try to let go of all but the memories once the next generation of consoles arrives, but I’ll keep reluctantly perpetuating my unique angle on the hobby called video games until then. 

~*~*~DISCLAIMER: I've never played Guitar Hero World Tour~*~*~
 
    I've been playing these plastic instrument games for quite a while.  Since not long after the release of Guitar Hero II in fact.  I've never been coy about my preference for the Harmonix developed titles to the Neversoft ones.  Guitar Hero III paled in comparison to its predecessor and World Tour, between even more mocapped musical celebrities/almost 20 recycled tracks already available in Rock Band/things like Beat It and the Tool venue screaming desperation/the inclusion of quite a few obscure  European songs that made the setlist seem even more like a poorly thought out mess/the increase in irrelevant in-game advertising/the game just looking ugly, seemed completely avoidable and a bad job at playing catch-up with Rock Band (especially when compared to the polished RB2 which launched earlier than GHWT).
     
     This changes with Guitar Hero 5.  Right off the bat, I considered this game moreso than World Tour because of its setlist consisting of overall smarter and "cooler" choices.  It has some prestigious choices that Rock Band has not scooped up as of GH5's release (Dire Straits, King Crimson, Queen and David Bowie's famous collaboration "Under Pressure").  Maybe that's just my personal take on it.  After all, WT did have exclusive Hendrix, Ozzy and At the Drive-In.
 
     From what I read and heard, World Tour had a similar career mode to Rock Band, but it was much more poorly integrated.  5 reminds me of earlier games by offering a career consisting of linearily unlocked venues.  Not really having anyone to consistently play the game with, I prefer this progression with its plainly presented information.  Each song has one challenge to go with it.  Whether it be maintain a multiplier on guitar or hit so many bass notes on the drums, they're like mini-achievements.    It also, as always, keeps track of your  "6 star ratings" aka 100%s.
 
     I've only played the guitar mode and haven't even finished the career yet, but the less surrounding bullshit, more great songs/charts that  I have not previously played on another game and Neversoft's decision to chart things that are clearly not guitar on guitar (Superstition everything, Sympathy for the Devil piano, A-Punk flute?) are making this game quite fun to play.  The game still looks "A Little Bit Ugly" - The Mighty Mighty Bosstones and there are still mocapped real (more dead ones this time) musicians, though.
 
     This isn't so much to diss World Tour as it is to say "hey check out GH5 it's good" to anyone else who is like me, which is to say "a huge Harmonix fanboy".  
 
    PS - Now any GHWT DLC you were holding out for is GH5 compatible.
 
    PPS - I'm talking about the Travis Barker remix of Flo-Rida's smash hit "Low".
 
EDIT: also still "fuck everyone who is like 'GOD WHY DO THEY MAKE THESE GAMES EVERY YEAR THEY'RE NOT EVEN FUN' in the forums lol"

Where it's The John DiMaggio Characters Game and it's Wakka/Bender/Marcus Fenix working together in a Kingdom Hearts type crossover setting and you're going through Spira/Futurama/wherever Gears takes place just Doin' Thangs™ involving other characters from each respective franchise and a villain alliance/plot etc.

Y' know,  I don't really rage on the internet too often these days (I prefer to take shots at broad stereotypes through YTMND), but every time I read the comments page for an article about Guitar Hero or Rock Band on Giant Bomb's front page I want to punch someone in the face.  Sentiments of "blahhhhh I'm so tired with the guitar game genre who even likes these games anymore? just end it already everything's so expensive wah" pour in along with people not knowing anything about Rock Band and I just feel like kicking some ass. xxXX~*INTERNET TOUGH GUYE*~XXxx

-  Yes, they make a lot of them.  No, you don't have to buy every iteration from both franchises.

- Yes, if you bought every instrument released alongside each game, that would be a lot of useless money spent.  No, you don't have to buy every new instrument to get most of the experience. I have one  X-plorer guitar (the GH2 one), one Rock Band 1 drum kit and one Xbox 360 headset with which to play all of the applicable games I would want to (although I only play GH2/3/RB1/2), which roughly comes to $160 CDN that could've been spent over like 2 years.  I certainly do not miss having "the awful RB strat" or "the slidy strip on the GHWT guitar".  I know it's not a paralell, but it reminds me of people bitching about Nintendo releasing new console/handheld colours.

- They're always playable because "it's fun to listen to music" and there's usually some new challenge as long as you keep trying new instruments and accomplishments.  Even when I think I'm done with it, there's always new DLC that pulls me back in.  Not only that, but the DLC often introduces me to new great songs that I have never heard.  There's something for everyone as long as you're willing to look past stuff you've heard of.

- There was a guy on the comments page for band list reveal of Guitar Hero 5 who said something along the lines of "man I wish there was some Red Hot Chili Peppers on this game I'd like to play some classic basslines off of the Blood Sugar Sex Magic album".  Hey Remember When The Entire BSSM Album Got Released On Rock Band And It 0wned?  There have been other similar occurances.

So yeah, that's my unstructured string of complaints.