Guitar Hero IV details emerge
Next month’s Game Informer is spilling the beans on Guitar Hero IV, and a few details have emerged. Not only will Neversoft try to beat Rock Band by adding more instruments, there’s going to be a bigger focus on customization and content creation as well.
As mentioned before, more instruments are being added. Guitar Hero IV will feature a guitar, a bass, drums, and vocals. The game will also add much more customization than previous outings, not only will you be able to create your own character, you’ll be able to create your own guitars and drums. Neversoft is also adding content creation by allowing users to create their own songs. User created tracks will be limited however, vocals won’t be available due to storage space and possible copyright issues. Created tracks can be uploaded to GH Tunes where they can be downloaded by other players. Initially, players will be limited to 5 uploads but the cap can be raised if fellow players like your songs and rate them high enough. The song sharing mode will be available in all versions of the game although the Wii and PS2 outings will see a watered down version of the feature.
Another detail from the article that is sure to please fans is that Guitar Hero IV will feature master tracks for all songs in the game. Neversoft was tight lipped in regards to songs that would appear on the game for fear of seeing them snatched up by Harmonix, but they did confirm four bands that would make an appearance, Van Halen, The Eagles, Linkin Park and Sublime. GI also saw see through notes and were told that it was a new input mechanic that Neversoft was trying to patent. Red Octane has also designed a new guitar that will “impact the way you play GH in the future”. Whether the game will be able to out do Rock Band won’t be known for some time, but it’s certainly going to be an interesting year for fans of the series.