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A sign of guitars to come?
When it comes to Guitar Hero III, we don't know what's worse -- not being able to hear the game in stereo and surround sound, or not being able to buy another guitar. Yes, the lack of Dolby Pro Logic II just downright sucks. But, we'd still be having a lot more fun with the game if we were able to rock out with our friends locally. Activision has let us know when replacement discs for Guitar Hero will be available, but what about the guitars? All we've heard is "early 2008," which seems to be the company motto. Still, there is hope.Toys "R" Us is now letting shoppers preorder the Les Paul online, listing the peripheral as having a February 26th release date. Since we have no official word from Activision, of course, this can't be taken too seriously. We do see it as a good sign, however, and will let you know as we hear more. [Via GoNintendo]
Guitar Hero replacement disc pre-registration now available online
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/Guitar_Hero_III_replacement_registration_online'; Previously, you had to call Activision in order to pre-register for a replacement Guitar Hero III disc (one containing Dolby Pro Logic II, that is). All you phone-o-phobics can rest easy, though, as the company has finally enabled online pre-registration. Owners of the Wii edition of Guitar Hero can now fill out this form, which will ensure an email and disc replacement package when the new discs are available. Activision explains on the online form how the replacement process will work, but still gives the vague date of "early 2008" for the discs to be ready.
Turntable hero
With the Guitar Hero franchise finally hitting a Nintendo platform, we're so excited to see all of the things people are doing. Heck, even our own Mike Sylvester has had some fun with the Wii's Guitar Hero III controller. Now, we see one individual take the PS2 peripheral and reshape it into a turntable. While not entirely compatible with the game (we can't imagine trying to effectively complete songs on a difficulty higher than medium), we still find the mod to be pretty darn cool. What's next? A Xylophone? [Via Joystiq]
Guitar Hero champ plays Guns n' Roses song with Slash on real guitar
Closing out this year's CES keynote, Microsoft's Robbie Bach invited Guitar Hero champion Kelly "TipperQueen" Law-Yone on stage to play Guns n' Roses' "Welcome to the Jungle" on Guitar Hero 3. Not willing to be outdone, keynote speaker Bill Gates brings out Slash - of Guns n' Roses fame - to play "Welcome to the Jungle" on a real guitar. We'll leave the real vs. virtual guitar debate to you and South Park. Instead, we'll just spend our time wishing for this performance - and The Office parody from earlier in the keynote - show up as online video soon.
Evil Dead custom guitar is like sugar, baby
Most people might think, "Why would someone make a custom Guitar Hero III controller with Bruce Campbell's face on it?" Fortunately, those of us at Nintendo Wii Fanboy are not some of those people. Perhaps it's our unhealthy obsession with Bruce Campbell and the Evil Dead movies that make this guitar delicious to us, but the point is, we love it.This custom beauty was made by Kotaku reader Frank, who is also responsible for the No More Heroes themed Wii we saw last month.Groovy.
Pre-registration available for Guitar Hero III replacement discs
The Wii edition of Guitar Hero III has had some sound issues, which even led to a class action lawsuit against Activision. The company, however, has been working on a re-mastered version of the game that will include Dolby Pro Logic II, as it was meant to in the first place. Owners of the game will have the opportunity to swap out their disc for the fixed one at no cost.But, when will these replacement discs be ready? While Activision hasn't come out with that information yet, you can make sure that you're one of the first to know by pre-registering for one. Check here for details on who to call, or you can sign up to be notified by email instead (although you have to register for a free account at the website first). Of course, if that sounds like too much of a hassle, you can always check back here for future updates.[Via GoNintendo]
PSN Thursday: mostly jammin', a little juking
Today on PSN a double dose of Rock Band tunes finally squeezes its way through the pipeline, bringing with it a mess of Guitar Hero III tracks. If toy instruments aren't your forte, consider investing in some new cars for ProStreet (how can you resist a bimmer for a mere $2.50?) or shed those pads and wrap your arms around a real man in the free NFL Tour demo. That, or sit back and watch be jealous that Japan is actually playing GT5 Prologue. Euro folk can peep this week's "surely not" offerings over on PS3 Fanboy. Full details of the US update are posted after the break.
Best of the Rest: Griffin's Picks of 2007
Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition (Wii)For a port of a two-year-old game, RE4: Wii Edition didn't have a whole lot going for it. It had the same extra features as the PS2 port of the game, not-so-updated graphics, and slightly lower reviews than its original iteration -- and yet, somehow, just by changing how the game is controlled, Capcom created an entirely new adventure. When the peculiar controls for the Wii were first announced, this is the type of interactivity that I imagined from the future games for the system -- responsive, accurate, and realistic. The only way they could have made the gunplay feel any more natural would have been to package the game with an actual gun, which you shot at the on-screen zombies. Once.
GHIII gets some festive downloadable content
The holiday Guitar Hero III content announced earlier this month is now available on Marketplace, and guess what? One of the tracks is free. There is one track pack from Warner/Reprise that will run you 500 MS Points. There are also three single tracks available for 200 points each. The one free track is a rock rendition of "We Three Kings," which Joystiq seems to enjoy. Behold the complete track list below.The Warner/Reprise Track Pack (master recordings) "Pretty Handsome Awkward" by The Used "Sleeping Giant" by Mastadon "No More Sorrow" by Linkin Park Single song downloads "So Payaso" by Extremoduro "Antisocial" by Trust "Ernten Was Wir Säen" by Die Fantastischen Vier Free holiday track "We Three Kings" by Steve Ouimette Anyone going to grab any of these?[Via Joystq. Thanks, Dan \"DeadPlasmaCell\" Garcia]
Stootsi selling GHIII bundle for $80 for 24hrs
We're a bit late getting to this, but we would be remiss if we didn't mention that Stootsi.com is selling the Xbox 360 Guitar Hero III bundle for a dirt cheap $79.99. Now, before you head over there and place your order, you should know that this is an "open box" item, which means it could be a returned item, demo unit, or simply one that has been opened. Stootsi does say that you will get all the appropriate parts (wireless guitar, strap, game, and sticker sheet) along with a 14 day warranty, so it's probably a safe bet. Of course, the fact that it's $20 cheaper than the retail price doesn't hurt either. If you'd like to get in on this deal, you'd better hurry, as the bundle is only available for this price for 24 hours (we're honestly not sure how much time you have left). If you've used Stootsi before, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
Guitar Hero III DLC: The Used Mastadon roams Linkin Park
Well, perhaps the song selection will make more sense to you than the headline. Still not content with the initial track list in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Activision has revealed the contents of the rock 'n rhythmer's next set of downloadable content (but not the price, so no accusing them of pitching a con-tent just yet). Right, on to the content: The Warner/Reprise Track Pack (master recordings) "Pretty Handsome Awkward" by The Used "Sleeping Giant" by Mastadon "No More Sorrow" by Linkin Park Single song downloads (courtesy of "popular European bands") "So Payaso" by Extremoduro "Antisocial" by Trust "Ernten Was Wir Säen" by Die Fantastischen Vier "Free, exclusive rock rendition" of a holiday classic "We Three Kings" by Steve Ouimette In fitting with tradition, you can expect the Warner/Reprise/Wrist Slasher Special track pack to cost $6.25 when it appears on the Xbox Live Marketplace and the PlayStation Network sometime in December. We'll let you know as soon we've confirmed the prices of the individual songs.
Zero Punctuation takes on Guitar Hero III
Love him or hate him, Yahtzee always seems to invoke some sort of emotion with his crudely worded, flash animation reviews. This week, he tackles Guitar Hero III, and guess what? He hates it. It seems that Activision just can't get any love today.Watch him bash the game and defend his heterosexuality in the NSFW video after the break.
Activision sued over sound issues in GHIII
We recently reported that Activision would be issuing re-mastered Guitar Hero III discs to fix the lack of stereo and surround sound in the game. For some people, however, this fix is seen as too little, too late, and now the company faces a class-action lawsuit. The complaint, brought about by plaintiff Sam Livingston, states that Activision's conduct has been "deceptive" and "unlawful" because the game is not compatible with Dolby Pro Logic II, thereby counteracting the label on the game's box. Those behind the complaint feel that Activision needs to pay up for misrepresenting their product, and for continuing to sell the Wii version of the game without warning consumers about the sound issues. The aggregate claims of the plaintiff and the members of the class-action suit amount to $5,000,000, to which we can only say, ouch.Activision refused to comment on the lawsuit, but did state that they were actively working to have the re-mastered discs ready by early 2008, which will be available to owners of the game at no cost.[Via Game|Life]
I am an awesome guitar strap
I am 8-bit, the neato game-art exhibit, has collaborated with Couch Guitar Straps to make some awesome straps designed for Guitar Hero and Rock Band guitar controllers. The straps come in blue or black and feature a neat cascading Space Invader graphic. Since the company makes real guitar straps, and since holding up a fake guitar relies on the same principles as holding up a real one, there's probably no reason you couldn't use one of these for the real thing, so you can look like a huge nerd onstage*. And then you'd at least be getting your $32.95 out of it. If it's even possible to get $33 worth of value from a guitar strap. But quibbling over the price does little to obscure the simple fact that these look cool, and we Wii owners, who are extra-sensitive about controller straps, can appreciate them.*The Couch website warns that the end tabs are not as heavy-duty as those designed for real guitars, and "may not last as long."[Via Joystiq]
Rock out with your block out: i am 8-bit guitar straps
You're a rebel. You don't listen intently for thoughtful gift ideas before hitting the mall months ahead of the holiday shopping season. No, you march to your own tune – a tune, which we should add, is more than likely generated by clicking brightly colored plastic buttons on a plastic guitar – and you wait until the last minute to get your gift ideas from a blog, a video game blog, of all places. Relax, you're amongst peers. Which is why we just had to show you these vinyl guitar straps with that i am 8-bit aesthetic we know you're so crazy about. Yeah, it's really a Christmas present for yourself, but you've been good this year, right? We thought so.[Thanks, Kevin]
Activision to fix Guitar Hero sound issues with new disc
People who bought the Wii version of Guitar Hero III have been (justifiably) annoyed by the lack of stereo and surround sound in Activision's popular music game. However, Wii owners can at least take some comfort in knowing that the problem will soon be fixed.Activision's customer support has replied to many irate users with an email stating that re-mastered discs should be available by early 2008. This means that customers who buy the game after the re-mastered version is available should get the fixed copies, while those who already own the game can get replacement discs at no charge.The last time we announced a disc swap for a glitched Wii game, many of you expressed your desires to have a simple downloadable patch instead. While we agree that a patch would be more convenient, we're still glad that there will be a fix available in the near future.[Thanks, Langst!]
Rock Band "guitar compatibility" patch on its way
Over at the official Rock Band forums a member of Harmonix has made an announcement that a patch for the PS3 version of the game should be arriving imminently. This patch "addresses a number of items related to guitar controller compatibility." Most people on the forum are assuming that this will fix the problems with the Guitar Hero III guitar when used with Rock Band, finally allowing PS3 owners to play the game as it was meant to be played - with four players. The announcement came last night and, sadly, the patch is still not available. HMXSean has posted again to apologise for the delay and to let everyone know that he is finding out what's taking so long. We'll let you know when the patch is finally up and what exactly it does as soon as we find out.[Thanks, Wes!]
Guitar Hero III guitars available individually from early 2008
Activision has announced that the wireless controllers for Guitar Hero III will finally be made available separately in early 2008. Ultimately, this means that if you want to play 2 player this Christmas then you'll need to buy two copies of the game or know somebody else who has one too. Bit of a shame, really, when you consider that this is the time of the year when families are getting together to celebrate stuff. Rock Band is currently suffering from the same problem, especially on the PS3 - the controllers for GHIII and Rock Band are incompatible. At least Rock Band has two other controllers of various types included in the box, making it the perfect holiday party game.
Wireless GHIII guitars to be sold separately at some point in the future
You know what's better than rocking out in Guitar Hero? Rocking out wirelessly. Those of you who've purchased Guitar Hero III for the Wii, though, have sadly been forced to rock without wires by you lonesome (in person), unless you know someone (or know a guy who knows a guy) that also has a GHIII Wii bundle.But, depending on how you interpret the vague term of "early 2008," you won't have to wait too long before being able to buy an official standalone wireless guitar in the U.S. We weren't given any more details on the matter, but we suppose that's better than being told nothing.[Via press release]
Guitar Hero: it shreds, and, yes, it blends
Quick, before some pretentious post-postmodern indie band rips the idea and integrates it into their set: check out the video after the break of the will it blend dude sticking a Gibson X-Plorer's fender into one of their machines. Yeah, we're total suckers for the Guitar Hero games, and we love to see Guitar destruction as much as the next rock fiend, so you can probably guess the result.[Via Joystiq]
