Release Date: Oct 18, 2011
Game Platforms: Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
This is one of the best guitar games to come out thus far. It is a game that is great for anyone from a beginner to an experience musician. You can play the game using your very own electric guitar or acoustic electric which ever you have.
Rocksmith
Reviewed by:
JackSpades64, on january 11, 2012 3 of 4 people found this review helpful
Game Experience: This game has helped my playing skills tremendously. Before I had "Rocksmith", I would play using the tabs only. I did not try to play along with the CD, and thus I did not really work on the timing for the songs, and even if I did, I couldn't really judge how close I played to the song. This game offered a unique experience for me: playing along in real time with an honest grading system which allowed me to improve my skills. My family members had noticed the difference.
The game does teach good skills, and tabs are not always as reliable. I was able to memorize one song so far, and I am coming close to memorizing more. Personally, I played a lot of "Rockband", and this offered a way for me to play real guitar with a quasi-realistic environment, excluding the fact that the audience seem like zombies at times. Considering how many people attend concerts under the influence of drugs, it could be somewhat accurate.
The game has influenced me to pick up the guitar again, as I had a good six year hiatus in my guitar playing. I quit because I never saw myself making much progress. "Rocksmith" showed me that I was making progress. Before, I would play a song, and people would comment, "that sounds nice." Now people are truly impressed with my skill. // 10
Extras: With the mini-games, I build real guitar skills. "The Ducks" games allow me to become more comfortable playing without looking at the frets. "The Dawn Of The Chordead" allows me to improve my knowledge of chords and work on transitions. Another useful feature is the amp. The amp allows someone who cannot afford all the various types of amplifiers and pedals to become acquainted with them.
While it is not an intended feature, the game allows you to record the music if you have a game capture card. Being able to record the music played in the amplifier mode is handy for sharing my music without having to try and make the money for all the recording software (I am only an amateur, and this is a great money saver for my purposes). Even if you do not have a game capture card, you can plug the guitar into the computer and use a program such as audacity to record the clean guitar. // 10
Impression: I love "Rocksmith". My hands had no calluses when I began. I had to force myself to put down the guitar because my hands were shaking so much, and I cannot put enough emphasis on the word, "force". I developed real skills, such as timing and the mastering of skills that I was mediocre at. If you consider the inclusion of the capturing device, then "Rocksmith"'s usefulness increases even further. While the delay in the music is a common complaint, I don't even notice it. If I do begin to notice it, I will begin following their recommendations for correcting this problem.
There are some flaws in the game. The tuning must be fine tuned. I did have to tune the guitar multiple times because it was a little off, although my guitar has larger frets than the average guitar, so this can be the source of the problem, and not the game.
One of three complaints that I have against the game is that the audience feel like zombies. While I previously joked about this factor, it can seem intimidating at first, although as you grow accustomed to it, it does not feel as unnatural as it did before.
Another flaw is that the chords you are unfamiliar with may bite you in the behind if you aren't expecting them. While it should not be a problem for the majority of the songs, as you can look up the chords in the chord book before learning it, if you begin an encore, and it has an unfamiliar chord, you do not usually have enough time to learn it on the spot, and you can have trouble until the song is done.
The final flaw is that the notes in chords can be hidden at times. This was notable for me during the song Icky Thump, as the chord was behind another chord, causing me to miss the points. I had to wait until the replay to learn it.
Overall, the game has more beneficial factors than flaws, and those flaws are not prominent. The last two flaws are not the common, and unless it is during an encore, can be completely avoided by using the chordbook before playing the song. I would easily recommend this game to anyone, excluding professional musicians. // 10
Rocksmith
Reviewed by:
fhty897, on january 11, 2012 0 of 1 people found this review helpful
Game Experience: "Rocksmith" from best-buy is one of the most thrilling and entertaining games that you will ever play on either the PS3 or the Xbox 360 game console. // 10
Extras: If you have any extra pedals or if you use a pedal-board "Rocksmith" actually registers and recognizes your pedal-board and your guitar so have fun with it. // 10
Impression: My overall impression of this game is that I give it a 10/10 rating for most effective game-play and it also teaches the gamer how to play the guitar. Word of caution though make sure that you own your own guitar. This is the best game ever made in the history of guitar games. // 10
Rocksmith
Reviewed by:
Ten-Ring, on january 05, 2012 0 of 1 people found this review helpful
Game Experience: There are several very positive aspect of this game. It is well suited for beginners. It is also good for someone like me. I have been playing for about 2 years but feel slow to pick things up. I took lessons for a while but had to stop. This game is no substitute for real guitar instruction. It is a fantastic tool for putting the instrument in your hand every day. I feel it will eventually teach me several good habits.
This being said... The user interface is a little clumsy in some respects. I don't need to check my tuning before every single thing I do. The interface also fails to pick up some notes if you bend them a tiny bit by accident. There is alot of room for improvement but overall it is a great start and there is great potential if Ubisoft chooses to develop it further. The worst part is the Lag that the HDMI cable causes. There is a several millisecond delay between a picked note and when you hear it. I am looking into solutions (they offer several) and with my home theatre set to game mode it is minimal but still present. // 7
Extras: The best feature about the game other than a pretty bangin selection of songs is the mini games. Here is where the real learning takes place. The game "Night Of The Chordead" (I think that's what its called) is a game based on chord playing. The zombies come after you. The game asks for a chord to be played. Play it right and the zombies get killed. I can see myself playing this ALOT to get much quicker at both chord changes and knowing chords and chord structure. Simple for a serious musician for sure but good for most everyone else. The other games are pretty good though I haven't explored them as much. They will aid in fretboard navigation and dexterity for sure. // 10
Impression: I love the song selection, the mini games and the fact that this game puts my instrument in my hand more often and for longer streches. I dislike that you can't slow the songs down in rehearsal. It also reverts you to a very simplified form if you miss many notes. I believe this game will allow me to gain skills and look up the songs in the game as tabs to learn them more completely. In the two days I've had it I've probably played it for 4 hours or so. That equals quite a bit of practice even if it's a game. // 9
Rocksmith
Reviewed by:
freedomdemon, on november 29, 2011 0 of 2 people found this review helpful
Game Experience: This is one of the best guitar games to come out thus far. It is a game that is great for anyone from a beginner to an experience musician. It will teach you how to play guitar and techniques as well. You can play the game using your very own electric guitar or acoustic electric which ever you have. It comes with the USB to 1/4in cable that you can plug in to you gaming console. When playing you feel as if you are learning the song faster then having to look at the tab and try to figure out the rhythm all you have to do is play along and keep pace. // 9
Extras: In Rocksmith you can learn to play a song by single notes or by chords, some of the songs also have combos where you can play both singles and chords. The game has no skill level setting because it adjust the game as you play. If you are a beginner it is good. You start out slow and progress. The game also guitar techniques that helps you to progress and get better. It is almost like have a personal teacher to help you. // 9
Impression: I love the game play you can play the song over and over until you feel like you finally got it then you can play gigs or just play other songs. You can learn techniques and play mini games to help you improve you speed and skill. The only thing about Rocksmith is it's playlist. They now have some downloadable songs such as "Freebird", "Smoke On The Water" and a few others. The other thing is everytime you go to play a song you have to make sure your guitar is in tune. Other than that it is a really fun game to play and once you start it's almost as if you don't want to put it down. // 9
Shame that there's no PC Version
It would unlock so many possibilities (atleast they could make so we could add our own music to the game and play our favorite songs)
Shame that there's no PC Version
It would unlock so many possibilities (atleast they could make so we could add our own music to the game and play our favorite songs)
I agree, I'd love to have this on my PC, but then they probably didn't do it for that reason, so we can't put our own songs in, or else they might face all sorts of lawsuits and sh-t.
Why not just jam along with the real song on ur own amp? If u wanna learn guitar, do it the right way. That's why this is a game. Meant to be more fun than useful
Shame that there's no PC Version
It would unlock so many possibilities (atleast they could make so we could add our own music to the game and play our favorite songs)
The PC version was supposed to be released 12/13, but it got pushed back to May next year. I was looking forward to checking it out.
Why not just play a song on your speaker system and play along? With tabs? Guitar pro? Power tab?
sim_1113 wrote:
Why not just jam along with the real song on ur own amp? If u wanna learn guitar, do it the right way. That's why this is a game. Meant to be more fun than useful
Why not learn from a video game? Some people don't have the ear skills to learn by ear, and the timing on tabs isn't always clear. And why play a song and play along with GP if this combines the two in a much more streamlined manner?
Different people learn best in different ways, and maybe this'll help some people get better. Power to them, not to their detractors.
There's more than one "right way" to learn guitar. Self-taught players don't have to get lessons to "do it the right way." Similarly, this game is just another tool people can use.
there's definitely something to be said for the visual component - a lot of people are visual learners, so learning by mimicking what's going on on a screen may be easier for some. while I agree that just learning guitar the old-fashioned way is better, I do feel that this way has its benefits for some people.
Shame that there's no PC Version
It would unlock so many possibilities (atleast they could make so we could add our own music to the game and play our favorite songs)
I agree, I'd love to have this on my PC, but then they probably didn't do it for that reason, so we can't put our own songs in, or else they might face all sorts of lawsuits and sh-t.
That's bullshit. Pirate bay defence a.k.a. "We are not responsible for the content uploaded or integrated by our users"
Shame that there's no PC Version
It would unlock so many possibilities (atleast they could make so we could add our own music to the game and play our favorite songs)
I agree, I'd love to have this on my PC, but then they probably didn't do it for that reason, so we can't put our own songs in, or else they might face all sorts of lawsuits and sh-t.
That's bullshit. Pirate bay defence a.k.a. "We are not responsible for the content uploaded or integrated by our users"
My mistake, sorry boss. Anyway someone has already posted that there will be a PC version, it's just been pushed back until next year apparently. Calm yo' tits.
Can't believe this was only released in North 'Murrica.
If you look in the Rocksmith website it also says there are no plans to release the game outside of North 'Murrica...
So you never took a lesson, watched an instructional video, looked at a tab, asked a friend, watched someone else play, or anything like that? Teaching yourself is basically saying you learned with no help from any outside source, be it book, video, internet.
So what, you re-discovered how to play guitar? How is it the game much different from watching you-tube videos? Its interactive, that's the catch. There is no right way to learn to play, its not like medicine, where if you play the G-Chord incorrectly someones heart will explode.
So you never took a lesson, watched an instructional video, looked at a tab, asked a friend, watched someone else play, or anything like that? Teaching yourself is basically saying you learned with no help from any outside source, be it book, video, internet.
So what, you re-discovered how to play guitar? How is it the game much different from watching you-tube videos? Its interactive, that's the catch. There is no right way to learn to play, its not like medicine, where if you play the G-Chord incorrectly someones heart will explode.
a book is teaching yourself. there's no tutor.
i learned to play by myself by just listening to my favorite artists. they didnt tell me how to play, i just figured out what they were doing and learned how to utilize those things. it's much more difficult than notes on a screen from a videogame.
cool game and all, but i dont want a bunch of kids whipping out free bird when i sat down for years listnening and figuring shit out when they pent two or three months playing rcksmith, only playing what they were taught, and the few chords.
I think for me the coolness of this game lies in being able to explore songs I've never heard of. Play things I never was really interested in playing and just learning in a new way. I think certain aspects of this game are "fun" and certain ones are useful. If I could spend 80 bucks and get 5 percent better I would do it every day in a heart beat. If a kid gets it for christmas and it starts him on the path of being a great player then its a pretty good deal. Its not the end all be all of guitar instruction but I'm having big fun.People that hate this gane would probably hate me because I have a couple of really really nice guitars and I basically suck. Who cares if i don't.
I picked up my copy of the game a couple of weeks ago, I only regret not getting it sooner. It has revived my love of playing. Playing the unfamilar songs is great for me to explore different styles. I guess what I love the most is playing with my two year old daughter watching me play with her toy guitars. Counting the days until she has the fingers long enough to get her own real electric and can pass on my meager knowledge to her.
Ok, I know this sounds a bit cliche, but the fact of the matter is, I picked up a guitar for the 1st time in my life all of 2 months ago, now I can play full songs to perfection. The ONLY downside to the game is that the game levels up and down...in other words you can just get a new addition to the riff, miss it once and its gone again. Other than that, if I can learn the riffs for the House of the Rising Sun and Sweet Home Alabama in a month after picking up a guitar, it's worth every cent. Good hunting y'all, hope this helped.
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