Woohoo!

See the picture? What is that thing?

That thing is the drum kit peripheral for...



... this! Coming out October this year! Woohoo!

No doubt this game will cost a fortune to get here, so I hereby declare that I will be willing to chip in for it when it does come out. I just hope that the other controllers aren't sold separately because that would suck quite a bit. I also hope the game will accept the Guitar Hero 3 controller since Ivan already has that one.

I hope the game will have an expanded set list and more moddability. Some of the announced features are quite nice.

While I'm still talking about Guitar Hero games, I was at some guitar forums yesterday and I noticed that many people are still arguing about the merits of the game vs playing an actual guitar.

*Sigh* I know that many internet arguments are in fact retarded but still.... *sigh*

Here's my take on some of the points raised.

Guitar Hero is NOT harder than playing actual guitar. Learning guitar hero and learning guitar are two totally different things. Some people insist that guitar hero players will be able to play real guitar at pro levels if only they devoted the same kind of dedication to the real instrument.

Not true. Whoever said this obviously don't play. Becoming expert in guitar playing takes much more effort than becoming expert in guitar hero.

Having said that I feel playing guitar hero games can help with things like finger dexterity and strength. It also helps with timing and rhythm particularly for those who aren't good at it naturally.

I honestly am surprised at some musicians hostile reactions to this game. What's the problem? Here we have a fun, wholesome game which encourages people to listen to music and to appreciate it more. I've read many threads and posts and articles about how many people who are picking up guitar because of this game. I would love it if this happened to people I know.

I've also read about how guitar sales have skyrocketed and so has demands for guitar teachers. With games like Rock Band and the upcoming GH4, I think the same will go for drums and percussions as well. It's safe for me to say that interest in playing music has spiked because of games like Guitar Hero.

How is this a bad thing? The more musicians, the merrier I say.

I guess that's the problem with any real life hobby or passion. There are always those damn elitists ruining everyone's day. Maybe they want to revel in their own "leetness" and not spend time teaching "noobs"? Maybe.

As funny as it is to read, these arguments make me sad.

I do hope that guitar purists don't scare off aspiring guitar students who started because of guitar hero. It shouldn't matter how or why anyone starts out playing music. There are many others who are happy to share and teach.

This brings me to another thing. I've decided to start playing again. Guitar I mean. There are FOUR guitars in my house and nobody is playing any of them. Especially now that my musician brother has gone to work out of town.

So on Friday I'm going out to get some supplies, wipe my Epiphone acoustic clean and change the strings. I have a whole bunch of new songs to learn.

I should get pretty good by the time Guitar Hero 4 rolls into town...