The Guitar Hero franchise is, to use the
parlance of the day, bananas. The long-running idea not only morphed into the
incredibly awesome Rock Band (and soon, Rock Band 2, not to mention Guitar
Hero IV),
it's now responsible for a couple of fun but semi-rickety spin-offs, Guitar
Hero: Aerosmith
and Guitar Hero: On Tour. Think of them as Laverne & Shirley to the original games' Happy
Days—still
fun, but not quite on the same level. Aerosmith's conceit is pretty
obvious: It's Guitar Hero featuring mostly Aerosmith songs. Huge Aerosmith
fans will no doubt be excited, while the rest of the world thinks up bands
they'd rather dedicate an entire game to. (Here are three to start: Metallica,
Led Zeppelin, and Rush.) Still, new songs are new songs, and GH junkies don't need to love
the tracks to enjoy play-shredding to them. Plus, it isn't actually all
Aerosmith. Bands that have opened for Aerosmith get a little play, too: The
Clash, The Kinks, Ted Nugent, Cheap Trick, Run DMC, and more are all
represented.
The handheld DS version of Guitar Hero
(called On Tour)
offers a pretty amazing design: It comes with a guitar-button expansion pack
that plugs into the unit, then straps to your hand. A special pick/stylus
offers strumming action, and the song selection is pretty great considering the
diminutive DS' size: Nirvana's "Breed," Bloc Party, Ozzy, ZZ Top, Kiss. One
major-ish problem: It kinda hurts to play this little thing. Turn the game on,
and warnings about wrist rest pop up. Still, it's an ingenious piece of
technology that means addicts never have to leave Guitar Hero at home.
Beyond the game: In Aerosmith, there's video of the
band members telling the story of their success, from a tiny gig in a high
school to halftime at the Super Bowl. It's incredibly skippable. In On Tour, when it's time to launch
"star power," the game suggests you shout "Rock!" at the DS microphone. Worth
playing for: The
new songs, basically. And for the DS version, just for the novelty of the
little thing. It's a long way from those tabletop Pac-Man games they once sold at
Spencer Gifts.
Frustration sets in when: When playing On Tour, it's when your wrist
locks up. When playing Aerosmith, when you realize your next song is another minor
track you've never heard of.
Final judgment: Because they build on the
greatness of the Guitar Hero concept, both Aerosmith and On Tour offer plenty of
time-killing fun.