Rocksmith

[vicariousviper]

I saw that this came out and after debating it for a few minutes decided on getting it instead of paying on two other preordered games. Brought it home jacked in my Fender Squire and gave it a run. I got about ten minutes in and my wife came by, saw what it was and promptly took it over for the next hour and a half. I'm very impressed with the way the game is crafted. There is no difficulty setting at all. It automatically changes with you as you get more comfortable and more skilled. granted that I've only seen a bit, but if anyone is like me( love of the guitar and hates playing with plastic click-clack controllers) or has had the patience to slowly get the high skill level with those plastic controller just to realize that they could have learned the real thing in that time, this is highly recommend. At this time I would rate this little gem at 4/4.5 out of 5. the point five to full point not so much for gameplay as some odd menu interfaces that just get in the way. Hopefully there will be some good support from Ubisoft on this title.

[zorba]

I found out about it two days before release and am really enjoying it so far. I thin the game is really well done and everything seems to run fairly smoothly.

I am still trying to figure everything out, and it may be on there but I just don't know about it, but is there a place you can go and just have all the notes come at you instead of having to go through it slowly (note by note and building up that way)?

I altered the difficulty setting in the menu screen, but it still went back to the note by note thing. I am not an advanced guitar player, but I would like to have all the notes come at me, especially in the practice areas.

It is really amazing how they have worked this out and the different amps and tones are really cool. I definitely recommend this game.

[Fidget]

Good feedback....keep us posted. I have zero skill here but have always been jealous of the big haired rockers so might consider picking it up.
So let me know how you progress here and what the learning curve would be for a total novice.
Thanks

[zorba]

I have some experience in playing the guitar so I can't speak as a total novice, but I definitely think this game will give you a great start into playing. It doesn't progress beyond where your level is at, and the notes they chose to put in the game for you initially make you feel like you are playing the song.

I have spent more time playing my guitar since I got this game than I had in the previous month, so any time spent on your instrument is going to make you better. I feel like I am improving and the mini-games that help me learn scales are a fantastic way for me to work on them without getting bored.

I highly recommend this game for all levels, and probably tend to think it is better for the novice. The more experienced, guitar players might be annoyed with the slowish progressions, but there is enough in the game to keep them happy I would think (although I am not sure, because I am not one of them!).

Get it. You won't be disappointed.

[Fidget]

OK positive feedback....
Now lets say you've talked me into getting the game...I still need a guitar. Any recommendations on what a total noob should get that won't break the bank or put me holding something I don't need given my skill level.

Will any guitar work or does it need a special port / configuration?
Thanks in advance

[Admiral Trogdor]

Fidget - We have a local classified called Kijiji. I'm not sure how far reaching it is, but there are always a lot of instruments for sale there. You'll know an entry level guitar by its price - used should be under $100. Fender Squier comes to mind. Great guitar, but made with components that don't stack up to the $1500 American made Fenders.

I just got an Epiphone SG for $125 on Kijiji. I would have paid about $350 brand new at the music store. If you find a used guitar in your area, post the ad here and let us critique the choice.

Back to the game for a minute - Is this only for six string guitars? Can I play bass?

[Admiral Trogdor]

Here's an example...

http://halifax.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-s...AdIdZ328512028

[vicariousviper]

as of right now it's only six string, but the developer has made mention of wanting to expand to bass with DLC.
(if you hit the link and click the FAQ it's bout halfway down)

Any guitar can be used with the game, you can even use an acoustic and put a pick up in it.
if you dont have a guitar sitting around they are offering a bundle pack for $200 that has a Gibson Epiphone Jr. but I find that one too small for me.

you can also troll their forums to see how other people think about everything

http://rocksmith.ubi.com/rocksmith/e...dle/index.aspx

[Admiral Trogdor]

I just picked it up. I'm kind of excited to see how it plays out. I'm really looking forward to some bass inclusion, but in the meantime it will force me to practice my guitar a bit more.

[Admiral Trogdor]

OK- I like it.

I'm a little frustrated with the delay (but that seems to be a feature of home electronics and USB as opposed to the game). I was running HDMI from my XBOX to my TV and having the link feature of the TV send that audio through to my theater decoder.

The game came with an insert that showed the best connection would be to send video to the TV and audio to the theater decoder independently. So I rummaged through my old gear and got the XBOX cable that has the tri-coloured RCA jacks.

The result is less audio lag, and less video quality. Because of the nature of the game, audio lag trumps video quality. The graphics are nothing to rave about anyway. The hassle is getting behind the hardware and rewiring everything when I want to switch from HDMI (Call of Duty) to Analogue (Rocksmith). I really hope audio-video synchronicity gets addressed with the next wave of technology.

The game, on the other hand, is pretty fun. I struggled with some of the eighth notes strumming. The easy version gives you quarter notes (or whole notes even) which gives plenty of time for the complete novice to change finger positions. When it went to eighth notes, my strumming hand had a hard time keeping up - and keeping up cleanly.

I do find this to be a pretty good mix of game and tutor. If I could tweak it for myself, I'd put a little less game and a little more tutor in it. By that I mean that I sometimes felt I was being less musical for the sake of keeping score. For example, I scored better by playing six of the eighth notes sloppily than I would have dropping back to quarter notes and absolutely nailing the timing. To my musical ear, I'd rather nail a simpler arrangement than botch a complex one - but maybe the game is forcing me out of my comfort zone.

I did notice a few arrangements had some preludes to soloing - as a drummer turned bass player turned guitar wannabe, I gravitate towards rhythm. I don't like being past the 12th fret (and don't particularly like the b and high e strings). Thumbs up to the game for making me try things that I normally wouldn't.

There are a few little interface issues - When I'm holding my guitar I lose track of where my XBOX controller is, so navigation is sometimes weird. It's also a bit of a pain to check tuning so often. I just played a total of 15 notes since I last tuned; you can't seriously think my guitar is out of tune already? The combination of these two items makes it SLIGHTLY less enjoyable. Although I'm completely willing to overlook this for the sake of the ground breaking innovations that it offers. This trouble is most notable when I want to go through a series of technique/skills training. Show me a slide technique, then a hammer on, then a palm mute. The exercise is only 30 seconds long, but to have to reach for my controller, accept that I finished an exercise, scroll down and over to pick up the next one, then tune my guitar before the next 30 second piece. It would be nice if I could select a group of three, four or five techniques/skills like putting together a set-list, and let me repeat them.

I also found that some of the notations showed up in songs before I had a chance to see them in the skills - that was weird. Maybe I wasn't paying attention to the fact that I had unlocked a skill, or maybe there was a tip about a new notation that showed up while I was adjusting my strap and checking my hand positions or something.