Plastic Rock Stars
Since the release of Guitar Hero and its guitarlike controller in 2005, the world has been inundated with music emulations and their increasingly numerous peripherals. These days, to get the band back together, you have to drop roughly $500. That number is the total of what you would need to play Rock Band 3 (MTV Games) to its full capabilities. Here’s the math: game ($60) + keyboard ($80) + pro drums with cymbals ($130) + pro guitar ($150) + standard guitar played as bass ($60) + two microphones, one for background vocals ($60) = cluttered living room. Luckily for the season’s gift givers, most people either already have some of the peripherals or would rather not jump into the deep end of music gaming. For the veteran faux-musician, a pro drum set or guitar might be nice assuming they have the game already. Noobs might just want the game, a standard guitar, and a microphone. Either way, the price tag makes this strictly for the people on the nice list.
DJ Hero 2 (Activision, $60) improves on the engrossing original by adding a freestyle function that lets players crossfade, scratch, or add samples in certain areas for extra points. This takes an already invigorating experience even deeper as the party relies solely on your skills on the wheel of steel (or plastic in this case). If you already have a first-generation turntable there’s no need to purchase another, since there have been no changes from the original. The game/turntable bundle runs $100, or you can go for bonus points with the two-turntables-and-a-microphone combo for $150. In terms of quality and unadulterated thrills of the roaring electronic crowd, RB3 and DJ Hero 2 are cut from the same superlative cloth.
Lower on the hip-hop music game totem pole is Def Jam Rapstar (Konami, $60), a sing-along game for those who like their karaoke extremely difficult. If you haven’t been humiliated by trying to perform that rap song that you think you know in public, be prepared to do it here. The somewhat meager and awkwardly censored 45-song track list covers the bases well with “Run’s House” on first, “Gin and Juice” on second, and “A Milli” playing third. Try your hand at freestyling over one of the 15 instrumental tracks if you dare. (I dared once. Never again.)
Last and least is Power Gig: Rise of the SixString (Seven45 Studios, $180) complete with a working electric guitar. That’s right – when you’re done with the game, you can plug into an amp and start a real band. Too bad the game itself is so embarrassingly bad that music purists who revel in their finger calluses will be quickly disappointed. The game was likely rushed to beat Rock Band 3 to the shelves, evidenced by the lack of guitar lessons with a game that has you paying for an instrument no one would be seen playing on stage. – J.R.
Also recommended:
Michael Jackson the Experience (Ubisoft, $50)
More gift ideas – including a wrap-up of notable downloadable games and a review of the locally developed Epic Mickey – can be found online at our Screens blog, Picture in Picture: austinchronicle.com/pip.
This article appears in December 3 • 2010.
