OXCGN’s Rocksmith Review

Posted on 18 November, 2012 by belgavion

OXCGN’s Rocksmith Review

For those to (realistically) rock

by Gav Ross

©2012 Gav Ross

“Imagine how good you’d be if you spent all that time playing a real guitar instead of a plastic one.”

It’s a line that has been haunting Guitar Hero and Rock Band tragics for years.

Being able to five-star hundreds of songs in either game’s Expert mode or nail a Dragonforce solo close to perfection is an admirable feat, to be sure, but even the most ardent defenders of the rhythm genre would have, at some point, had that nagging feeling deep in the recesses of their mind that maybe, just maybe, the naysayers are right.

The skill of being able to proficiently flex your digits across a few coloured buttons on a Fisher Price-like neck to match corresponding notes on a TV screen – what use does that serve in the real world, especially when there’s a realistic alternative?

Ubisoft’s entry to the rhythm game race is somewhat late, since the peripheral-based market effectively bottomed out almost three years ago, leaving sets of dusty, battery-draining drums and guitars hidden under beds and destined for landfill.

Rocksmith is a game-changer; the evolution of the genre we all imagined might one day be possible.

It’s just a shame it’s a tad tardy; if it dropped sometime between the second and third Guitar Hero releases in 2007/8 it would have changed the landscape completely.

Rock this way

Filed under: 3rd Party Games, Console gaming, Game Impressions, New Xbox 360 Games, Xbox 360, Xbox 360 Game Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Crying Doom for Call of Duty

Posted on 12 July, 2012 by ncapozzoli

Crying Doom for Call of Duty

Activision’s Flagship Franchise is not Long for this World

by Nicholas Capozzoli

©2012 Nicholas Capozzoli

In the fall of 2007 I was just beginning my first semester of grad school. Following a new friend’s suggestion one night, we ventured over to a nearby dive bar for a few pitchers, and to play a video game that the place was featuring as part of their nightly special.

The game was Guitar Hero.

My friend, as it turned out, was well versed with plastic instruments, blasting through Blue Oyster Cult‘s Godzilla as I plinked and plunked my way through alongside him. But as each new track went by I found myself rapidly improving, upping the difficulty and powering through tough solos with aplomb.

A passion was born that night, one that followed through to the release of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. I beat Metallica’s One to the cheers of classmates in studio. I remember the desperate relief and aching fingers that came from surviving Slayer’s Raining Blood.

But in the span of just a couple years my plastic guitars collect dust under my TV. Literally, they’re dust magnets. The most activity that they see is when they occasionally fall over and scare my dog.

The problem is self-evident: the instrument rhythm genre suffered from profuse over-saturation.

A staggering twelve games were released under the Guitar Hero name for consoles between 2005 and 2010, and that doesn’t include portable titles or mobile apps. There was far more than even the most devoted gamer could possibly want, and when the players found themselves sated, the bubble burst hard.

Two years out from the rhythm game implosion, and the genre is a radioactive wasteland.

Mutants like Rocksmith and BandFuse sift through the rubble, looking for scraps. Harmonix, maker of the original Guitar Hero and the Rock Band series, was sold for $50, and that’s not even a joke.

Is the end nigh? See for yourself…

Filed under: 3rd Party Games, Console gaming, Editorial, Game Impressions, New Xbox 360 Games, Oxcgn Special feature, PC News, PS3 News, Xbox 360, Xbox 360 3rd Party Games, Xbox 360 News | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

OXCGN’s Rabbids: Alive & Kicking Review

Posted on 5 December, 2011 by belgavion

OXCGN’s Rabbids: Alive & Kicking Review

by: Belgavion

©2011 Gav Ross

A Rabbids mini-game collection on Kinect is so obvious it’s a wonder Ubisoft didn’t push for it as a launch title over a year ago, much the way Rayman Raving Rabbids was a close-to-launch release for the 360 console.

The manic, beady-eyed, near-toothless little creatures and their WarioWare-like party games were decent fun back in 2006, so it makes sense for a similar Kinect offering to be an even more enjoyable experience?

Right? Not quite, it seems.

Ravin Rabbids create havock . . .

Filed under: Console gaming, Game Impressions, Kinect reviews, Microsoft Games, New Xbox 360 Games, Xbox 360, Xbox 360 Game Reviews | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

OXCGN’s Guitar Hero: Van Halen Review

Posted on 9 March, 2010 by


by I Commentator I

© 2010 Declan S

Get your copy of Guitar Hero: Van Halen now!

Guitar Hero; Van Halen joins the ranks of Guitar Hero: Aerosmith and Guitar Hero: Metallica as the next Guitar Hero installment that focuses on a particular band.

Having played all the renditions of both Guitar Hero and Rockband on the Xbox 360, it is hard to mask my initial disappointment at Van Halen.

Whilst both Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero have used the flashy new career mode system, which includes challenges that encompass all instruments and play styles, it is clear that Van Halen was produced before either of those games, because it reverts back to an old style which is similar to the other band specific games.

Whilst one set is full of Van Halen songs, the other is filled up with bands from other songs which include the likes of Queen, Tenacious D, The Offspring, The Clash, Yellowcard and more.

Eddy, Wolfgang, Alex, David . . . all here>

Filed under: 3rd Party Games, Console gaming, Game Impressions, New Xbox 360 Games, Xbox 360 Game Reviews, Xbox 360 News | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

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