Once plugged into the USB port, the guitar, previously decorated with a few stickers taken off the two boards provided, is born in hand with a specific class. Whether you are young or old, beginner or professional guitarist, this feeling of being a real rockstar is already felt as soon as we put our hands on this extraordinary controller. But it is once the game has launched, the very offbeat introductory video passed, that the universe of Guitar Hero II assails us from all sides.
Gameplay and Content
The gameplay is based on plucking and strumming the strings. In place of these, five buttons of different color are placed at the end of the neck of the guitar. Each button represents a note that appears on the screen. To validate this note, you will have to keep the right button pressed. Only, to have a real impression of playing the guitar, the designers have thought of adding a central pad serving as a pick that will have to be moved, up or down, to validate the note. The result? We pinch and scratch precisely what it takes to simulate the actions of a real guitarist. However, do not think that you can play the guitar sublimely once your plastic block has been unplugged… You will be able to have the right finger positions and more! Guitar Hero II remains a game anyway and just a game.
But what a game! Taking us through a good number of rock years with a sick playlist, Guitar Hero II allows itself has a stellar song list. Something to make Pulp Fiction fans jump, who will discover here a much quieter and "surf" version of their favorite film music. The playlist is exciting: Nirvana, the return of the Rolling Stones, a magnificent Message In a Bottle or even Rage Against The Machine. Everything is there and much more since, in addition to these flagship titles, other lesser-known groups have volunteered to appear in the menu of bonus songs.
Four difficulty levels are available. Easy, Medium, Hard and Expert. The first uses only three keys, the second four, the third and fourth five. Also, the speed increases exponentially for each level. You're going to hate the Orange key like no other, this one, laid out as low as possible in the row of keys, requires you to slide your fingers fast. It's simple; Expert mode is a real chore! It forces you to know the series of notes by heart, which for many players will quickly be overlooked as too restrictive and less fun.
The game necessarily has its own little personal concepts that you have to learn by heart. The Hammer-On and other Pull-Offs are one of them. Another technique that made the reputation of the first game is the presence of Star Power. This electricity gauge is to be filled via the various bonus notes (represented in a star rather than in the circle) and to validate either with the select button, for the timidest, or in the most beautiful way possible: by lifting his guitar abruptly with a squeaky grin and bonus footwork.
While some may have seen it as a fad, Guitar Hero will continue to live in the memories of many gamers for many years to come.
