Vicarious Visions

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  • Guitar Hero: Aerosmith at a crazy, amazin' price

    by 
    JC Fletcher
    JC Fletcher
    10.31.2008

    Looking for more songs to complement that Guitar Hero: World Tour purchase you just made? Probably not for several months, but maybe you can do some shopping in anticipation of that -- especially (only) if you really like Aerosmith. Amazon's Deal of the Day knocks half the price off of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, to a perfectly reasonable twenty bucks. The Xbox 360 version is also on sale, if you would prefer (though obviously we can't endorse such a decision!)This is the game only, and doesn't come with any guitars or anything, but provided the song list meets with your approval, 41 new Guitar Hero tracks for $20 isn't bad at all. %Gallery-19372%

  • Schooled: 'Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades' track list

    by 
    James Ransom-Wiley
    James Ransom-Wiley
    10.29.2008

    Let's get one thing straight: Guitar Hero on Tour: Decades is not the equivalent of "playing through the history of rock 'n' roll," as Activision puts it. And even if you could embody this history (which didn't begin in the 1970s, by the way) in just 28 master recordings, the unsubstantial collection wouldn't feature many, if any of the tracks Activision has licensed for its portable sequel. But we digress. You just wanna see the list, right? Head on down!

  • Full song list for Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades revealed

    by 
    David Hinkle
    David Hinkle
    10.29.2008

    We've finally got the details on the final song list to be included in the upcoming sequel, Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades for the DS, and while it's got a lot more modern songs than those proposed classic tracks, it's still a good mix of songs that would be fun to play, we think. Enough of us blabbering on, though. You want the goods! To get at the list of 28 songs you'll be jamming to next month, check out the list past the break.%Gallery-29876%

  • First Guitar Hero: World Tour DLC announced, priced [update]

    by 
    Chris Greenhough
    Chris Greenhough
    10.28.2008

    Will the first round of downloadable content for Guitar Hero World Tour leave you convulsing and writhing around your living room, in the manner of the youths in the footage above (1:04)? Possibly, but hopefully you'll be a bit more coordinated, and a little less chemically assisted.As you may have already guessed, a trio of Jimi Hendrix tracks will kickstart the Wii's great Guitar Hero DLC adventure on November 13th. "If 6 was 9," "Little Wing," and a live version of "Fire" will all be available for 200 Nintendo Points each. A week later, on November 20th, we'll be getting three tracks from Jack White's other band, The Raconteurs: "Salute Your Solution," "Hold Up," and "Consoler of the Lonely" will also be going for 200 Points apiece.Hendrix: awesome. The Raconteurs: don't know anything about them. If you're as desperately out of touch with modern music as this blogger, you can get more in touch past the break.Update: Uh oh: re-reading the press release, there seems to be a good chance Wii owners won't be getting the Hendrix tracks -- thanks, Moleculo!%Gallery-23491%

  • Guitar Hero World Tour: it's a Wii game

    by 
    JC Fletcher
    JC Fletcher
    10.24.2008

    Guitar Hero trailers are usually about capturing the authentic feeling of rocking out -- so much so, that, say, Slash erupts from your body. But for the trailer for Guitar Hero World Tour's Wii version, Activision rented out that same fake apartment set that everyone seems to use and made an ad that basically could be for any Wii game: friends hanging out in front of the couch, just having a party, while an obsequious, super-friendly announcer describes the features of the game.There also happens to be rather a lot of in-game footage to see here, including a brief look at the GHTunes custom song selection menu. Gather up some friends and have a Guitar Hero trailer watch party! High five!%Gallery-23491%

  • Rumor: Guitar Hero Half A Setlist Tour

    by 
    Chris Greenhough
    Chris Greenhough
    10.20.2008

    Go Nintendo reader Marcoboy spied this screenshot ... somewhere on Guitar Hero World Tour's official site, and immediately sparked panic over the Wii version's DLC. According to this solitary image, the full version of Metallica album Death Magnetic will be available to PS3 and Xbox 360 owners, but only three separate tracks are listed for the Wii. The full record contains ten tracks.This could mean one of a few things: The missing seven songs might just be tucked away in another menu, in which case everything is fine and we can all get on with our lives. Alternatively, it means we do only get three songs from Death Magnetic, but this is a one-off case, and every track from other albums is available for download. The worst case scenario? We'll only be getting selected singles from all of Guitar Hero World Tour's albums, rather than the full records. We honestly don't know, but we dearly hope it isn't the latter. Can somebody hold us?%Gallery-23491%[Via Go Nintendo]

  • Vicarious Visions talks Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades

    by 
    David Hinkle
    David Hinkle
    10.17.2008

    We were able to conduct a Q & A with David Nathanielsz, executive producer, Jesse Booth, producer, Greg Oberg, lead engineer, Jeremy Russo, lead designer, and Matt Helsom, lead artist, from the Vicarious Visions team responsible for Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades for the DS. They answered a lot of questions about the upcoming DS game, including fielding a question or two about the Nintendo DSi. So, head past the break for our write-up and see what the fine folks had to say about the upcoming title!%Gallery-29876%

  • Activision files trademark for Guitar Hero: Modern Hits

    by 
    David Hinkle
    David Hinkle
    10.16.2008

    Much like Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80's, Activision is planning another Guitar Hero game to focus on an era of songs. That era? Modern, as the U.S. patent office revealed a trademark for Guitar Hero: Modern Hits. Filed on the 3rd of this month, the trademark sadly doesn't give us anything to go on aside from the name. We're going to assume it's post-2000 songs and the like. So, any requests? [Via Kotaku] I want to read about Guitar Hero all ni-i-ight, and eat Guitar Hero cake!

  • Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades shreds retail November 16

    by 
    Jason Dobson
    Jason Dobson
    10.06.2008

    Fuelled by the uncomfortable stares of those sitting close by, Activision has heard your cries for more on-the-go rocking, confirming that Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades will return to the portable stage on November 16. First announced during E3, the encore performance will include a collection of master tracks pulled from the last 40 years, including Fall Out Boy, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Queen, as well as support wireless connectivity between both it and the original On Tour for competitive and co-op play. Not much else has been revealed, though something tells us that this November bus rides to work just got a little more awkward. %Gallery-33843%

  • Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades now dated (in more ways than one)

    by 
    Chris Greenhough
    Chris Greenhough
    10.06.2008

    For the first time in ages, we're actually intrigued about Guitar Hero on the DS. It's less to do with the games, and more about how Activision plans to squeeze the franchise and Guitar Grip onto the GBA slot-less Nintendo DSi (and squeeze it on they will, believe us -- those sales figures can't be ignored).Still, it's not an immediate problem. While Activision scratches its head over a solution, there are still 80 million or so GBA slot-equipped DSes out there that can accomodate Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades and its lumpy, hand-torturing peripheral. We imagine there'll be no shortage of takers for this sequel, which Activision has just confirmed will launch November 16th. One day less to wait, then!%Gallery-29876%

  • Guitar Hero: Screenshot Tour

    by 
    JC Fletcher
    JC Fletcher
    09.29.2008

    We find the latest screens (in our gallery) of the Wii version of Guitar Hero: World Tour a bit visually disjointed, but at least they prove that Vicarious Visions has their priorities straight: while the characters are kind of jaggy, the note charts are silky-smooth. We've never cared about the graphics in a Guitar Hero game before, and we're not about to start now. It could look like an Atari 2600 game and we would like it just as much. Maybe more, actually.The screens do include a quick look at the music creation mode, which shows chords being assigned to button combinations. That is super-cool.%Gallery-23491%

  • Guitar Hero: World Tour devours your storage space

    by 
    Chris Greenhough
    Chris Greenhough
    09.24.2008

    If your Wii's teensy amount of storage space currently resembles an overflowing suitcase, then Guitar Hero: World Tour isn't about to make life any easier.According to Vicarious Visions' Karthik Bala, the game allows you to download songs to an SD card, but you'll still require "about 200" free blocks of memory to be used as a "content cache" for the song you're playing through. Once you've finished with that track, you can clear the cache and transport another of your downloaded songs to your 200 reserved blocks. Transferring songs, explains Bala, happens "pretty quickly."It sounds like a workable solution, but 200 blocks? That's the equivalent of six Mega Man 2s or three Super Metroids, and is bigger than some N64 games; we're also curious about Karthik Bala's personal definition of "pretty quickly." Protip, Nintendo: if you were thinking of announcing a storage solution in the next decade, next week's Japanese Media Summit would be the ideal time.%Gallery-23491%[Via Go Nintendo] I want to read about Guitar Hero all ni-i-ight, and eat Guitar Hero cake!

  • Amoeba Music in Guitar Hero: World Tour and vice versa

    by 
    JC Fletcher
    JC Fletcher
    09.23.2008

    Activision has made a deal with Amoeba Music, an independent California music store chain, that instantly imbues Guitar Hero: World Tour with indie cred that would otherwise be hard for a massively marketed corporate product to come by. Of course, this is part of that massive marketing effort, so maybe it could be seen more as Amoeba selling out than Guitar Hero gaining indie cred. In either case, it seems pretty cool to us: an Amoeba location will serve as an in-game venue, allowing players to pretend they're rocking out in a record store.The promotion extends into the real world as well: if you preorder the game from one of the real Amoeba Music stores, you will receive a free t-shirt when you go in. It's not a free guitar, but it's also not nothing.%Gallery-23491%[Via GoNintendo]

  • Amazon places Guitar Hero: On Tour into the Gold Box

    by 
    David Hinkle
    David Hinkle
    09.23.2008

    Amazon is running another Gold Box promotion, as it is want to do, and featured right now is Guitar Hero: On Tour. The entire bundle is being sold for the low price of $29.99, which is around $20 less than the MSRP. If you've been waiting to test out the portable Guitar Hero waters, this just might be your chance. You can see the sale for yourself by clicking right here. %Gallery-19362% [Thanks, supa_s!]

  • Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades launches November 17 alongside standalone On Tour

    by 
    JC Fletcher
    JC Fletcher
    09.15.2008

    There hasn't been an announcement or anything, but GameStop now lists a November 17 release date for Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades, both in its Guitar Grip bundle and alone. In addition, Activision will ship a standalone version of the first On Tour for people picking up the Decades bundle. These standalone games will cost $34.99 each, which is almost as painful to say as it would be to spend. At least the slightly reduced price of the standalone cards will make collecting both games a bit less damaging to household finances than forced bundles, for those among us in single-DS homes.

  • Guitar Hero contains a rich layer of Nugent

    by 
    JC Fletcher
    JC Fletcher
    09.11.2008

    Another classic rock icon will appear as a weird, exaggerated 3D model in Guitar Hero: World Tour, though the transition should be easier for this one since he's a weird, exaggerated person in real life. Ted Nugent, menace to deer, right-wing radio host and, oh, also world-class musician, will appear as a guitar duel participant in World Tour. Players will be able to face off in duels, or play as the Nuge. In addition, the classic "Stranglehold" has been added to the roster of playable songs. Is Guitar Hero going to go further down the "classic rock" track to compete with Rock Band? Except ... Rock Band also has a bunch of classic rock.%Gallery-23491%

  • New Smashing Pumpkins single to debut in Guitar Hero: World Tour

    by 
    JC Fletcher
    JC Fletcher
    09.02.2008

    Actiblizzion has announced that '90s fixture the Smashing Pumpkins have recorded a new song, "G.L.O.W." specifically for release as a Guitar Hero: World Tour download, marking the first time a new song has debuted in a music game under those specific circumstances. The track, which will be included on an album later, will be released as part of a three-song DLC pack, along with "1979" and "The Everlasting Gaze." The first in-concert performance of the new song is above, thanks to some dude who took a camera to a Pumpkins show!The deal isn't just for DLC, however: Billy Corgan will appear in-game -- and as a playable character in career mode, even -- and the wonderful "Today" will be included on the disc. We hope it introduces the Pumpkins to some of the youngsters who may be surprised to learn that a long time ago, guitars had strings on them and could be used to play any song.%Gallery-23491%

  • Who put 'Wii Music' in my Guitar Hero?

    by 
    Randy Nelson
    Randy Nelson
    08.21.2008

    Hoping to somehow diminish our aversion to the sight of Miis playing musical instruments, Vicarious Visions is working the user-created, er ... "avatars" into the Wii version of Guitar Hero World Tour in a so-called unique way. In an interview with IGN, the developer explained how the recently revealed Mii mode, known as "Mii Freestyle," will work.Using the guitar or drumkit peripherals (or, if you're crazy so inclined, the Wiimote and Nunchuck for "air drumming") the mode lets you and a friend jam in a variety of music genres, laying down single notes, chords, and beats as you wish. According to Vicarious Visions, it'll all sound good because, well, it's programmed to clean up what you do. Take that, years of practice! [Via Wii Fanboy]

  • On Tour Decades looks a lot like Guitar Hero: On Tour

    by 
    Alisha Karabinus
    Alisha Karabinus
    08.21.2008

    Something magical happens when a game's sequel is released only a few months after the original: they tend to look exactly the same. When those games are part of a franchise that pretty much always looks the same (look, there are guitars and dudes playing them; what more do you want?), then, well ... you really can't expect anything different.There are legwarmers to sign, though. And platform shoes. That's how you tell the decades apart. Genius. Guitar Hero: On Tour Decades is set for release before the end of the year. %Gallery-29876% I want to read about Guitar Hero all ni-i-ight, and eat Guitar Hero cake!

  • The DS Life: Guitar Heroics

    by 
    Eric Caoili
    Eric Caoili
    08.20.2008

    No, the above clip isn't our primary subject for this week's The DS Life, but it is related and, not to mention, totally awesome.Looking for a more console-authentic experience with Guitar Hero: On Tour, Hack A Day reader Eric Ruckerman modified a wireless Guitar Hero PS2 controller to fit a Nintendo DS and wired the peripheral's buttons into the system. He also added a transmitter to play the game's sound through his home sound system.Pretty slick, but how can he see the notes coming down on the screen? A mirror would help! Anyway, step past the post break for a shot of Eric's setup and a photograph of someone playing Guitar Hero: On Tour with more traditional controls.See also: The DS Life: While My Guitar Grip Gently Weeps