Blue's News: Comments - Out of the Blue

Out of the Blue

[Aug 20, 2008, 12:00 am ET] - Share - Viewing Comments

The trip to Manhattan I made yesterday was to accept an invitation to check out Rock Band 2 at the offices of MTV. This was sort of a proof of concept to see if I could update from the road while attending such an event, though my stated affection for the game was a huge draw, while I was also curious to see what I could of the current state of MTV, where I once worked (this curiosity went unsatisfied, as we just saw elevators, a hallway, and an office). Unsurprisingly, there was nothing revealed about the game that has not already been announced, though it was interesting to see the interface changes they've made to better accommodate their ever-larger library of songs. We did get to play, however, and I have to say that the fine tuning to the code and hardware was evident: The guitar I played had a smoother feel on both strumming and button presses than previous Rock Band and Guitar Hero pseudo-axes. The new drum surfaces have actual rebound as well as sound deadening for an, I don't know, million percent improvement over the first-gen drums (not to mention a metal reinforced bass pedal that will last through more than one Who song). And nearest to my own heart, we were told the vocal recognition engine has been entirely re-written, and that broken "talkie" segments should be less of a nightmare for singers. We didn't play any songs from the original game for contrast, but it was still obvious during Rock Band 2 songs that pitch recognition is a good deal better in Rock Band 2 than the original. I can't wait.

Rocking Links:	Thanks Ant and Mike Martinez.
Play:	Snowparty.
Links:	How to win a fight against twenty children. Where was this when I needed it? 10 most unbelievable lines of dialogue from Too Human.
Stories:	Lawsuit says eatery to blame for 9-foot tapeworm. Where's my cracker? To college freshmen, GPS has always been there. Thanks xXBatmanXx.
Science:	Sizing Up the Universe as It Expands. Thanks j.c.f. Confused sea turtles march into Italian restaurant. Music and memory: How the songs we heard growing up shape the story of our lives.
Images:	Windows It's a Windows Window! Get It?
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32.	No subject	Aug 21, 2008, 22:49	Tanto Edge
	I play COD4 so I can experience a fraction of the tension without the risk of getting shot. I'm not looking to be a soldier, I'm looking to experience a story and effectively enjoy a World War movie like no Hollywood experience. I play DiRT, Gran Turismo 5, NFS and Grid with a G25 and a PS3 for maximum simulation with minimal set up time. For absolute simulation, you can always rely on Live for Speed or rFactor. These games give you as much simulation as you can get, without the burning of expensive tires, the risk of destroying a few body panels or outright killing yourself. Finally there's sports games. I don't play these. I can afford the time to go and kick or throw a ball. I also don't play music games. If I wanted to play an instrument, I would pick up a damned instrument. I play DDR, but I actually do this instead of skipping rope as I practice kick boxing and this works Very well. Show me where a music game will help somebody with their guitar skills? I imagine there are a few parents out there who have been suckered by this one. Thinking if they buy little Johnny a Guitar Hero, then he'll WANT to learn. Too bad the skills don't carry over. As a side note, the reason I don't play MMORPGs: They never end.




	_________________________________________________ http://www.technocraftonline.com - My online repository of portfolio elements. Web design, 3D Characters for XSI, and game levels.

31.	Re: No subject	Aug 21, 2008, 11:28	Frost
	I dont know why so many people who play in bands/guitar get so bent out of shape over geeks with plastic instruments.




	-Frost

30.	Re: No subject	Aug 21, 2008, 09:56	nin
	------------------------------------------------ http://theslip.nin.com/ "The Bellic boys! Taking over your town, assholes!"




	http://www.ninja2009.com/

29.	Re: No subject	Aug 21, 2008, 09:51	InBlack
	Nin if it teaches you how to Samba, then Hell Yeah!




	I have a nifty blue line!

28.	Re: No subject	Aug 21, 2008, 09:12	nin
	If that wasnt the case I would be singing praises for these kinds of games, but until they get some controllers and content that has musical instruction value, they are just simple arcade games. So is this more your speed of game then? http://kotaku.com/5039700/you-seem-to-have-got-ulala-in-my-samba-de-amigo-plus-final-tracklist-details ------------------------------------------------ http://theslip.nin.com/ "The Bellic boys! Taking over your town, assholes!"




	http://www.ninja2009.com/

27.	Re: No subject	Aug 21, 2008, 03:20	InBlack
	So you don't play any games that simulate things that can be done in real life? I see you said you were planning on trying the GRID demo. Why don't you put some effort into learning how to drive a real race car? And then there's CoD4... I hear the army is recruiting. Just sayin' That analogy is somewhat false, the problem with Guitar Hero/Rock Band, is that unlike other simulations they have absolutely no ties to their respective real instruments. It is impossible to learn even the basics of playing any real instrument (except for drums maybe, but that is debatable) from these games. That was my entire point. Flying sims are extensively used by Air Forces around the world. Driving sims although arguably unrealistic actually function on the same principles as the real thing. Even FPS shooters like Arma are being used for training purposes by armies. If that wasnt the case I would be singing praises for these kinds of games, but until they get some controllers and content that has musical instruction value, they are just simple arcade games. A good instrument is probably cheaper than your average PS3 + game + controller, and a far better investment in the long run. A real race car on the other hand....:(




	I have a nifty blue line!

26.	Rock band / Guitar Hero	Aug 21, 2008, 01:01	Creston
	Just out of curiosity, which of these games is better? Which has the better controllers? Played GH for the first time a couple of weeks ago and have to admit it was a lot more fun than I thought it would be. (though getting my ass kicked by a ten year old girl who then trash talked me was pretty hard to swallow. Little punk.) Creston

25.	Re: Video Cards	Aug 21, 2008, 00:58	Creston
	Due to my financial situation I went a bit on the budget side with a Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3R (generally I've been an ASUS guy for more than a decade now), I'll have to wait and see if this turns out to be a good decision... I have that board and it's awesome. Best board I ever had. 90 bucks and none of all the extraneous crap that I never used jacking the price up to 180 dollars. As for the 260 vs the 4870, it's just my opinion but I'd buy one generation older and save yourself 130 bucks or so. Everything runs at insane speeds on my 8800GT. so unless you're going to play at 2560x1800 resolution with 8xFSAA and 16xAF, you're never going to notice that extra power. (though some people claim to notice a difference between 120 fps and 160 fps.) Creston

24.	Re: Video Cards	Aug 21, 2008, 00:54	Creston
	Just bought a 9800 GTX for 150$ at newegg Are you serious? A 9800? You paid 150 dollars for a card that's... four (five?) generations old??? Do you realize you can buy an 8800GTS for that money? Which is approximately, oh, let's not exaggerate, 50 times more powerful? Or if you want to stay ATI, why not get a 3850 or 3870? I mean, really? A 9800GTX? On a side note : Walsh and May with the gold! China has put in a petition with the IOC to have beach volleyball become a sport where a jury determines who wins, since they do so much better with (bought) juries. Creston

23.	Re: Video Cards	Aug 20, 2008, 16:23	shul
	Just bought a 9800 GTX for 150$ at newegg, you should consider it if you are going to be using resolutions of ~1200x~1200 or less and/or going to use linux (ATI are still not up to nvidia in that regard)

22.	Re: No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 12:23	kxmode
	Wow! The army teaches you to respawn after dying? Cool! Sign me up for that. Don't forget about the communication lag. ----- http://www.gamemusicjukebox.com/ Game p/reviewer for http://www.gameindustry.com/




	end-of-line

21.	Re: No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 11:48	Blue
	Wow! The army teaches you to respawn after dying? Cool! Sign me up for that. Although I'm actually on your side for this Blue, that was a terrible analogy. Well that was sort of my point -- taking that jibe about Rock Band in this direction you could say people playing CoD4 are "pretending to play soldier."




	Stephen "Blue" Heaslip Blue's News Publisher, Editor-in-Chief, El Presidente for Life

20.	Re: No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 11:28	xXBatmanXx
	Fixed that for ya'. Thanks! I caught a tiny bit of one of the interviews and the guy asked, "Are you doing this to make money" and one of the morons said, "of course". heh. The cause of all these evils was the lust for power arising from greed and ambition; and from these passions proceeded the violence of parties once engaged in contention.




	In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.

19.	Re: No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 11:22	Mr. Tact
	No follow-up ~~bigfoot hoax~~ on the two idiots trying to con stupid people into giving them money story? Fixed that for ya'.




	Truth is brutal. Prepare for pain.

18.	No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 11:19	xXBatmanXx
	No follow-up bigfoot hoax story? The cause of all these evils was the lust for power arising from greed and ambition; and from these passions proceeded the violence of parties once engaged in contention.




	In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.

17.	Re: No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 11:17	deadgoon
	...I play in a real band... "Sticking feathers up you butt does not make you a chicken." I sang and played bass in a couple of punk rock bands about 15 years ago but that didn't stop me from picking up the sticks to try out the drums on Rock Band. That is some hard ass work and it's a damn good game.

16.	No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 11:17	Mr. Tact
	Wow! The army teaches you to respawn after dying? Cool! Sign me up for that. Although I'm actually on your side for this Blue, that was a terrible analogy. Entertainment is entertainment -- it's all pretty superfluous.




	Truth is brutal. Prepare for pain.

15.	Re: No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 10:39	Blue
	How about putting some effort into learning to play an instrument, instead of pretending to play one? So you don't play any games that simulate things that can be done in real life? I see you said you were planning on trying the GRID demo. Why don't you put some effort into learning how to drive a real race car? And then there's CoD4... I hear the army is recruiting. Just sayin'




	Stephen "Blue" Heaslip Blue's News Publisher, Editor-in-Chief, El Presidente for Life

14.	Re: No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 10:29	InBlack
	It amazes me you know enough people that can be around you for more than 5 minutes without kicking your ass....or maybe they do and that is "warmup".... Now what prompted that little bit of verbal abuse? Maybe the fact that I was making fun of a game? How about putting some effort into learning to play an instrument, instead of pretending to play one?




	I have a nifty blue line!

13.	Re: No subject	Aug 20, 2008, 10:26	Blue
	My GH2 controller is the worst one of my 3. Same here -- it sometimes fails to register button presses.




	Stephen "Blue" Heaslip Blue's News Publisher, Editor-in-Chief, El Presidente for Life

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