Today’s rockstars do not need a music contract or expensive equipment. All they need is an Xbox 360 or Sony PlayStationâ II or III and one of the newest addictions for video gamers, Guitar Hero and Rock Band. With these games and some extra room, anyone can be the rockstar they dreamed about becoming.
In Guitar Hero there are a few ways someone can play — they can start their own band and play “shows” to unlock new songs, and play with friends. In Rock Band, however, four friends are needed to be a guitarist, drummer, bassist and singer. They work together to get the “crowd’s” approval.
In both games the play is the same though, the players hit color-coded buttons on their “instrument” as the same color comes into the designated area to play a chord. This play is similar to the interactive dancing game, Dance Dance Revolution.
Senior Dan Bourque plays anywhere from half an hour to and hour a day to relieve stress. Where freshman Lauren Hawkins and senior Troy Wendell play only a few times a week.
“But you can’t play it for long periods of time, cause your eyes begin to water and your fingers hurt,” said Bourque. “Then there is the always fun Guitar Hero effect in which you stop playing, look at something other than the TV and for a minute or so everything in the room is moving downward.”
Guitar Hero and Rock Band are two of the most popular games of 2007 and 2008. They even made it on to GameTap’s Top 5 videogames of ‘07 with Guitar Hero III at number one and Rockband at number three. These games are popular with just about everyone — from little kids to teens and from teens to adults.
“I think what makes it popular is the sense that when you play it makes you feel like a rockstar and that it s not really complex,” said Bourque. “Anyone can just pick it up and go. It’s one of the easier videogames.”
Hawkins and Wendell both agree the songs are what make the games popular.
“I think that everyone likes the aspect of being a rockstar and Guitar Hero gives a sort of leeway into that world.” said Wendell. “It is a way for people to jam out to their favorite songs and learn new ones along the way.”
The main and possibly the most important part of these new games is the music. Most of the bands and musicians you hear on the games wanted to be in it.
The band Living Colour re-recorded “Cult of Personality” specifically for Guitar Hero when the master tape could not be found. Another band, the Sex Pistols, re-recorded “Anarchy in the UK” with a newly extended guitar solo for the game.
Also, Tom Morello from the group Rage Against the Machine, also wrote and performed an original solo for Guitar Hero III, where he and Slash, from Guns and Roses, are bosses to beat in the game.
The master tapes of the songs are very crucial parts of the process of making this game. If they cannot be found, a cover band records the song for the game. Not every song is deemed worthy of being a legend, but those that are worthy become legends again through Guitar Hero.
“Well the game is called ‘Guitar Hero’ so I believe that the main aspect in choosing a good song would be how challenging the guitar in a song is,” said Wendell. “Having a good song with a lame guitar wouldn’t be much fun, would it?”
Hawkins agrees with Wendell on Guitar Hero and said everyone’s part in the song needs to be fun for Rock Band. She also said that it is a song’s popularity that makes it a candidate for the games and that the games in turn are making them even more popular.
“I know I have every song from Rock Band and all the Guitar Heroes on my Ipod,” said Hawkins.
Bourque and Wendell agree on Hawkins’ opinion on the songs and their popularity.
Bourque said hearing a song on the game makes people want to “investigate” and listen to more songs by the group, though the featured bands were popular before these games existed. Wendell was already a fan of Senses Fail, Guns and Roses, Slipknot, Disturbed, Foo Fighters, Weezer, The Killers and Coheed and Cambria.
“I was a big time fan of all these groups before Guitar Hero or Rock Band was ever even a concept.”
These new interactive games are expanding the world of music even further. They give people who normally would not or could not play an instrument the chance to play music by some of the greatest music legends. With this expansion, the people are now beginning to have a deeper appreciation for music.
Carmella Dantimo