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Zen and the Art of Guitar Hero
An anonymous reader writes "Julian Murdoch over at GamersWithJobs.com has what can only be described as a piece of liturgy, proclaiming a religious experience at his local Best Buy as he watches someone beat 'Through the Fire and the Flames' on Expert in Guitar Hero 3. 'At 6 minutes in, a small crowd has formed, perhaps 15 of us. His sravaka — his disciples — look nervously at us, absorbing the distractions, protecting him a bubble of calm. There is complete silence. Even my son is staring slackjawed, like he does in church during communion, not understanding the content of the ritual but understanding the tone and sacredness of the space.'"
... in 3... 2... 1...
You realize DDR and Guitar Hero are basically the exact same game with different interfaces right? Both games ultimately boil down to hitting a button (with your foot or with your finger) in time with the music.
All you have to do is press the right buttons at the right time.
All the best games have simple objectives.
Post-rock/Ambient/Drone and other noise.
Let me translate for you:
Kid who is very skilled at a game decides to play the game on the demo unit at the store. Kid does very well. A few people stop for a few seconds to watch him play, as people tend to do when others are playing the demo units, especially if they're doing well. Kid finishes playing, one or two people clap briefly, people leave.
The rest is just storytelling. The author was impressed by someone who was obviously far better at the game than he could ever be, but he was being a little melodramatic about it.
I realize that. But it's much more exciting to watch somebody with that kind of coordination with their feet, than it is to watch someone do the exact same thing with large buttons laid out on a stick. Actually using your feet, rather than your fingers, makes the game a lot more interesting.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
I too felt that way. The strange part is watching (the game looks retarded) but playing with all that mystery of "air guitar" and being a rocker it really brings it to life... now as you watch you say wow.. red and green same time then move to blue.. that doesn't look hard at all.. its just a pattern. Then you play... realizing your fingers do not listen to your brain. and it gets a lot more exciting.. The next time you watch someone pull off some insane finger combo's you understand how hard it really is and you appreciate their talent for dexterity and coordination. Again I agree you look stupid playing it and it looks like a boring game.. my only recommendation is give it a try for a couple of songs... .you may not go out and play at best buy, but you might just end up adding it to your game collection for playing in your house.
love the taste, hate the texture
I've been thinking about giving one of those Guitar Hero games a spin but I don't want to drop a crapload of money on a new console (or video card for the windows port) plus the cost of the game and controller. It turns out that there is a pygame project called Frets on Fire that uses your computer keyboard as your axe. It's GNU gpl and cross-platform though I can only vouch for Windows myself.
The only downside is the lack of licensed songs. There looks to be a pretty good community with lots of user-created songs for it, and there is some sort of way to import GH songs if you own the games.
All you have to do is press the right buttons at the right time.
Isn't that all any video game is really?
But we see the exceptions if we think about it and that's why there is a current trend in gaming. Namely the Wii and Guitar Hero. We're use to the game pad or WASD controls. The Wii and Guitar Hero leads us to a different style of play that is exciting to people. For Guitar Hero it's people's chance to play on a "real" guitar without the years of practice it would take to play these same songs for real.
In the case of the Wii people are all up on a different controller style too. The idea of waving one's hand and making something happen on-screen is a form of magic to most people.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
Come on people. It's a damned game.
Tell yourself that the next time that it's ESPN or ESPN2 or The NFL channel or any other number of sports channels that guys gladly pay money to see people playing a game. It's a big business.
Granted, the story is a bit gonzo but every game has it's fans that are going to make it out to be more than it is. Why not let the geeks be happy about it for a minute.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
I've noticed something that Guitar Hero players and real guitar players have in common. Guitar Hero players think you're lazy and suck if you play on medium, real guitar players think you're lazy and suck if you don't play guitar. And unless you're damn amazing absolutely neither of them will get you laid.
Who remembers the crowds that used to form around the one-on-one fighting games? People cheering and booing and complaining about cheap moves and whatever made the game a blast to play. I own most of the home ports of the Capcom and SNK fighters but nothing will beat the times I played Marvel Super Heroes (the only one I was any good at) for over an hour straight on $0.50. I played person after person and then I thought everybody had gone away. I ended up beating the game and realized that everyone else was still back there watching. It was kind of a cool feeling.
I get that it's fun, I get that it's challenging. What I don't get is why anybody would want to watch it be played. I think it would be fun to play. I don't think it's a fun game to watch.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
Stop being so mean to him. He's probably around here somewhere and he may have mod points. We should go to some less dorky forum and make fun of him there.
Free the Quark 3 from asymptotic confinement! Bring your charm! Don't get down! All colours and flavours welcome!
I would equate it more to lip syncing. To be good at Karaoke, you still have to know how to sing. To be good at lip syncing, you just have to move you lips in time with the music.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
Oh, yeah? According to this, some guys can get laid just by having a guitar near them and never taking it out of the case!
http://www.craigslist.org/about/best/pdx/105596028.html
Watching someone play DDR is definitely more fun.
Especially if said someone is a cute girl (or guy, depending on how your attractions lie).
But, then again, most games weren't meant to be watched, they were meant to be played.
Prince of Persia is an exception.
http://www.explosm.net/comics/897/
Taking guns away from the 99% gives the 1% 100% of the power.
[[In the time it takes to get that good at GH, you could learn to play the guitar for real.]] It's really easy to say that, but I don't think it's true. I five-star songs here and there on expert (none of the insanely hard ones) and I've only been playing for a month or two. Unlike a real guitar, I don't have to spend time learning songs by playing sections over and over, I can just pick up the controller and shred. It's a lot of fun, and very satisfying.
As somebody learning to play the guitar, let me tell you... It is much harder to learn to play a real guitar with any decency than it is to be fairly good at guitar hero. At least for me it is... You can do quite well at guitar hero after a couple tries. It can take months, or years to be any good at all at a real guitar.
But that's not the point, anyway. The reason people play guitar hero is because it's fun. It's fun like karaoke night at your local bar, and a party video game all at once.
But TFA reminded me of this piece.
Tennis is also a "damned game," but fans of the sport know it can be a venue for people to do amazing, humbling things. I don't play Guitar Hero, so I wouldn't appreciate the performance in the Best Buy. I expect that as a GH fan, the author had the same experience that millions of tennis fans have had watching Roger dominate the men's tour for the last half-decade. Think about the last time you were wowed at a concert, or at an art museum. Think about touring one of Europe's beautiful cathedrals. There's a reason that they build them that big, and that beautiful. The architecture, and the art all around you, helps people find God. Tennis and Guitar Hero can be art too, and can have the same effect if you know what you're seeing.
I learned to play guitar hero reasonably competently in about an hour. After that hour, I was good enough that I could enjoy playing some of the harder songs, and pretend for just a moment that I was a rock star. That's what the game is about, and it serves its purpose very well. And if you give Rock Band a try with some friends, you'll see even more potential there.
Comparing playing GH to learning a real instrument is missing the point.
One time I threw a brick at a duck.
Strangely, I do not feel the same about boxing...
Stupidity is the root of all evil.
If you take the time to get good at something, why not enjoy the benefits? It's not hurting anyone, it might drive interest in the game (good for the manufacturer and for the resailer) and if people enjoy watching, it's good for them too. As long as he doesn't develop his self-worth around how well he plays Guitar Hero, I don't see a problem with it
psmylie's dictionary: Godzillion (noun) Any number large enough to destroy Tokyo
was he deaf, dumb, and blind?
"In America, first you get the sugar, then you get the power, then you get the women..." -H. Simpson
Taking guns away from the 99% gives the 1% 100% of the power.
They're two completely different things. I've played guitar for 20 years and I can play most of the tracks in Guitar Hero on a real guitar. I've also five starred every song on expert in every Guitar Hero game (with the exception of Jordan and TTFATF).
Guitar Hero is fun. It's not the same as playing a real instrument, nor will it give you the skills you need to play a real instrument. It's a blast in itself and great fun if you have friends over (or play online). When playing at expert level, most of the songs are actually way more difficult to play on Guitar Hero than they are on a real guitar (granted, to someone who can already play) because of the limited button interface, this just serves to make it even more satisfying when you pull it off.
I suggest you try it with an open mind before you knock it - you might just find you enjoy it. Just see it for what it is - an excellent piece of entertainment.
>All the best games have simple objectives.
Including the game that is woman. I know the objective but have yet to score.
To tell you the truth, I don't even understand the rules.
Certain very insecure dorks need to put down anything others think is cool, in order to try to look big and important, like they've seen it all and nothing can impress them. They only end up looking cool to other insecure dorks who will then put them down behind their backs. Adults don't give a rats ass what talkers say, we care about what doers do, and insecure jaded cynical children don't usually do much of anything.
You know what's cooler than jaded cynicism? Enthusiasm. We don't want to hear how you could have done it better. Show us. We don't need you to point out that it's "been done." Do it, or don't, but don't shit on our graham crackers and call it a s'more.
- None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton
Thanks for the translation, Captain Miserable.
Shoppers are not commuters. Commuters have trains to catch. Shoppers are just killing time.
When I am trying to catch a train it wouldn't matter *who* was playing - if I miss my train and am late to work it'll matter a whole lot more.
An operating system should be like a light switch... simple, effective, easy to use, and designed for everyone.
Seriously, you people are starting to sound like a broken record. Why bother to post a comment like this when what seems like half the internet has already said it?
And it's a poorly thought-out thing to say in the first place. Why don't Tony Hawk players go out and actually skateboard? Why don't DDR players just go find a real dancefloor? Why don't Madden players grab a real football?
Because the video games are FUN, so SHUT UP.
Music is very easy, it's only a matter of hitting the right keys at the right time.
J.S. Bach
No, you can't "get good" at an instrument in a few months. If you think you're good after that short a time, then you're just "wearing the juice" or you're a virtuoso.
I started playing my instrument in 1989. I'm now pretty good, but I'd still consider myself a "B-list" player. There are people who are far superior than me. (I play the euphonium. Technically, I play the Baritone Horn, but if I say that, people always say, "the sax?") I can still play the full range of my instrument, get higher than most other players, and I can circular breathe. I can also sing reasonably well. None of my musical talent was gained over a few months. It takes YEARS of dedicated practice to get good.
My brother started playing bass guitar at about the same time. He's been able to land a few paying gigs. He's quite talented but has spent almost all of his time in the last decade playing guitar.
Guitar Hero (like almost any other game) is an escapist fantasy game. That's all there is to it. And when you really get down to it, it's really just Simon with a really slick wrapper.
---
ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
"There's nothing remarkable about it. All one has to do is hit the right keys at the right time and the instrument plays itself"
Johann Sebastian Bach
and 1000+ hrs on rhythm games... Simply put, you're wrong. And you're full of yourself too. Rhythm skills transfer to all instruments. If you can play Guitar Hero on expert, all you've got to learn is the fretboard and NOTES to play guitar; in terms of the rhythm, you've already learned. Of course, I did it backwards. 10+ years of guitar playing, THEN guitar hero. Got through 80% of songs in "HARD" mode in 1 try. I still got the rhythm, and 5 buttons is extremely easy compared to a guitar. The point being: If you learn rhythm, you're about 1/3rd of the way there to playing ANY instrument, not just guitar. (P.S. I drum too.)
-Clio
Karma: Bad (mostly from not giving a fuck)
Blog: http://clintjcl.wordpress.com
If by "a little melodramatic" you mean "cloyingly fawning like some kind of loser who probably needs therapy," then yes, by all means, his interpretation was a little melodramatic.
Slashdot quality declines as the number of hot grits posts decreases. - Provolt's Law, Apr-09-2005
Deleted
A guy goes out fishing. He catches a marlin. As he is bringing it home, sharks eat it.
The rest is just storytelling. The author was clearly being melodramatic.
Culture is more than commerce
On the other hand, very few people ever get to seriously take up a sport. I can understand why someone would want to pretend they made it to the NFL, whereas pretending to play guitar at some random party seems much more like being too lazy to learn to really play guitar at some random party.
Then again, being a dancer with good speaking and singing voices, I guess I may have underestimated the level of inborn talent needed to form a competent musical group. Well, here's the thing: Nobody can do everything for real. There's just no time. People choose the things they're gonna do with their life: and once they've filled that schedule of stuff, they can't necessarily add more stuff, no matter how easy it is to learn. "Oh, learn some Assembler. It's not that hard." Sure, but if you're already busy doing a dozen other things...
Don't think of Rock Band as a substitute for starting a real band - think of it as what it is, a game. People play it and they have fun. What a concept, huh?
Bow-ties are cool.