Review
Guitar Hero: Aerosmith Review (Xbox360)
Guitar Hero 3 was epic at the time. It was, as I said in my review for GH3, “the quintessential Guitar Hero game. It has everything the previous games had tweaked to peak performance.” It had its flaws as well, but Guitar Hero Aerosmith is the cleanest Guitar Hero yet.
The largest concern with Aerosmith was of course the tracklist. Based mainly around one band and the music they say influenced them, the tracklist is significantly smaller than GH3 and will certainly not be to everyone’s tastes. 30 of the 41 songs (GH3 had 73 songs) are from Aerosmith, and the other 11 range from bands like The Clash, Cheap Trick, The Kinks and Stone Temple Pilots.
Of the 41 songs, only four aren’t master tracks, which compared to previous music games is great. The covers are also very well done. 30 are part of the campaign setlist and the other 11 are bonus tracks. All of the bonus tracks are done either by Aerosmith or Joe Perry.
With GHA, there really is the good, bad and ugly. Fans of Aerosmith will adore this title for many reasons, and those neutral to the band will also find much joy in playing. As expected, if you don’t like the all-American-band, then obviously this may not be high on your list of games to get.
Guitar Hero diehards will want to pick up GHA however, because it successfully takes everything from GH3 and makes it better. The gameplay has been phenomenal; the difficulty level has been lowered so anyone with experience should be able to beat it on hard, the type of music allows for easier yet more active play, and the amount of customization means it isn’t just about strumming.
What’s different about GHA compared to previous titles is that because most of the tracks don’t require the heavy use of chords, which are perhaps the most difficult to play in fast succession. Yes, most people like playing songs over and over again, but being able to properly play a long set of different chords is very difficult. So difficult we rarely see it by professional guitarists. The choice of Aerosmith was a good one because they have many more sections of single notes, perhaps in very quick succession, than differing chords.
In my experience, the most enjoyable guitar gameplay comes when a player is able to hit a long succession of fast moving singular notes. Songs like Reptilia and The Metal were some of the more popular tracks because of this, and GHA features this type of gameplay throughout the entire game. In fact, it’s the non-Aerosmith songs that left me wishing for more while most Aerosmith songs were wholesome and exciting.
The previous visual complacency is nearly gone as well, with a plethora of updates that make the onstage rockers liven up their act. It may be the consistent use of motion capture for all five members of Aerosmith, as well as guest Run DMC, but even the standard characters move about the stage more realistically. It still looks poor compared to the veteran Rock Band, but the drummer is no longer robotic and Steve Tyler makes a great show onstage.
As mentioned previously, GHA is indeed easier to complete on harder difficulties. I myself am no expert on the guitar, and all but managed to complete Guitar Hero 2 and 3 on at least hard, and Rock Band on expert. GH3’s difficulty was very similar to Rock Band’s, with only one song I have thus far been unable to complete: Train Kept-a-Rollin’ (on Rock Band, its Green Grass and High Tides).
That’s all the good, so what is the bad and ugly? The bad is that comparatively, with only 41 tracks GHA is not very close at all to GH3 or the upcoming Guitar Hero: World Tour, which promises 85. Perhaps if it were $50 on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 as it is on the PlayStation 2 and Wii, it wouldn’t feel like we’re being cheated so badly.
The ugly is the big what if: what if you don’t like Aerosmith. From my experience with Guitar Hero Aerosmith, it is the best Guitar Hero title to be made. Phenomenal 2-player online play, exceptionally enjoyable songs that are both challenging and exciting, and it even looks like Aerosmith's in your living room (in a manner of speaking). If you’re impartial to or like Aerosmith, this is a no brainer. But if you absolutely hate Aerosmith’s music…let’s just say if you don’t, any self-respecting Guitar Hero fan owes it to themselves to pick up a copy.
Top Game Moment: Hitting every single note on Walk This Way on expert, only to miss the last note.
The largest concern with Aerosmith was of course the tracklist. Based mainly around one band and the music they say influenced them, the tracklist is significantly smaller than GH3 and will certainly not be to everyone’s tastes. 30 of the 41 songs (GH3 had 73 songs) are from Aerosmith, and the other 11 range from bands like The Clash, Cheap Trick, The Kinks and Stone Temple Pilots.
Of the 41 songs, only four aren’t master tracks, which compared to previous music games is great. The covers are also very well done. 30 are part of the campaign setlist and the other 11 are bonus tracks. All of the bonus tracks are done either by Aerosmith or Joe Perry.
 |
 |
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| Guitar Hero Aerosmith is all about playing as lead guitarist Joe Perry, and looking good while doing it. | When Aerosmith isn't on stage, customizable characters are available with new clothes, looks and guitars. |
With GHA, there really is the good, bad and ugly. Fans of Aerosmith will adore this title for many reasons, and those neutral to the band will also find much joy in playing. As expected, if you don’t like the all-American-band, then obviously this may not be high on your list of games to get.
Guitar Hero diehards will want to pick up GHA however, because it successfully takes everything from GH3 and makes it better. The gameplay has been phenomenal; the difficulty level has been lowered so anyone with experience should be able to beat it on hard, the type of music allows for easier yet more active play, and the amount of customization means it isn’t just about strumming.
What’s different about GHA compared to previous titles is that because most of the tracks don’t require the heavy use of chords, which are perhaps the most difficult to play in fast succession. Yes, most people like playing songs over and over again, but being able to properly play a long set of different chords is very difficult. So difficult we rarely see it by professional guitarists. The choice of Aerosmith was a good one because they have many more sections of single notes, perhaps in very quick succession, than differing chords.
In my experience, the most enjoyable guitar gameplay comes when a player is able to hit a long succession of fast moving singular notes. Songs like Reptilia and The Metal were some of the more popular tracks because of this, and GHA features this type of gameplay throughout the entire game. In fact, it’s the non-Aerosmith songs that left me wishing for more while most Aerosmith songs were wholesome and exciting.
The previous visual complacency is nearly gone as well, with a plethora of updates that make the onstage rockers liven up their act. It may be the consistent use of motion capture for all five members of Aerosmith, as well as guest Run DMC, but even the standard characters move about the stage more realistically. It still looks poor compared to the veteran Rock Band, but the drummer is no longer robotic and Steve Tyler makes a great show onstage.
 |
 |
|
| Locations in GHA are taken much more seriously; the Orpheum theater has exquisite, realistic detail. | At the end of the day, it's all about the music, and having a good time makin' it. |
As mentioned previously, GHA is indeed easier to complete on harder difficulties. I myself am no expert on the guitar, and all but managed to complete Guitar Hero 2 and 3 on at least hard, and Rock Band on expert. GH3’s difficulty was very similar to Rock Band’s, with only one song I have thus far been unable to complete: Train Kept-a-Rollin’ (on Rock Band, its Green Grass and High Tides).
That’s all the good, so what is the bad and ugly? The bad is that comparatively, with only 41 tracks GHA is not very close at all to GH3 or the upcoming Guitar Hero: World Tour, which promises 85. Perhaps if it were $50 on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 as it is on the PlayStation 2 and Wii, it wouldn’t feel like we’re being cheated so badly.
The ugly is the big what if: what if you don’t like Aerosmith. From my experience with Guitar Hero Aerosmith, it is the best Guitar Hero title to be made. Phenomenal 2-player online play, exceptionally enjoyable songs that are both challenging and exciting, and it even looks like Aerosmith's in your living room (in a manner of speaking). If you’re impartial to or like Aerosmith, this is a no brainer. But if you absolutely hate Aerosmith’s music…let’s just say if you don’t, any self-respecting Guitar Hero fan owes it to themselves to pick up a copy.
Top Game Moment: Hitting every single note on Walk This Way on expert, only to miss the last note.
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