Whether you plan to base your Guitar Hero: On Tour purchasing plans on the track list or reviews, you're likely to be confused. The reviews seem to be as schizophrenic as the compiled tracks themselves, with some outlets loving the game and others hating it. IGN (90/100) thinks the game really works on Nintendo's handheld: "For the Nintendo DS version, you lose the full-sized guitar, but that's pretty much all you're losing because everything else, with the exception of a single fret button, has been placed in rather intuitive locations on the Nintendo DS thanks to a well-constructed peripheral and incredibly tight programming."
GameSpot (60/100) hated the peripheral, and believes that On Tour takes the fun out of Guitar Hero: "While the size of your hands is certainly a consideration, the attachment is functional at best. Given that the game actually begins with two screens that instruct you to keep your wrist straight, take frequent breaks to avoid cramping, try different play styles to find one that's comfortable, and even visit the game's Web site 'for more play comfort suggestions,' it's apparent that someone was aware that the game could present physical problems for people. It would have been nice to be able to play the game with some sort of alternate control scheme, but such an option isn't available."
GameSpy (70/100) was on the fence, finding both negative and redeeming qualities in Vicarious Visions' attempt: "The guitar peripheral doesn't work as well as we had hoped, something that could prove to be a major sticking point (after all, who wants to keep playing a game that hurts you?). Still, it's a solid entry in the franchise and gets points for innovation, so we're hopeful that this won't be the series' last foray into the handheld domain."
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-24-2008 @ 9:13PM
igorponweed said...
I like it, but my hands are REALLY sweaty. :P
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6-25-2008 @ 12:08AM
Lasher702 said...
This isnt a particular comment towards the meta review but rather a comment towards the game. For those who are geeked out at the thought of anything Guitar Hero (like me) you'll love it as it is a good portable GH experience. For those who are new to GH and are looking for an introduction to the GH franchise get one of the console versions. For anyone on the fence about the game I am pretty sure you will hate it as the new periph takes a good long play session to get used too. About the new peripheral; it works very well and is quite responsive (for people with little fingers) part of the problem I was having is I have large hands with long fingers and my hands ended up cramping up pretty bad the first day I had the game. The next day I was fine as my hand became adjusted to the new contortion I had to do to play. As far as song selection I liked them all (except for the Stray Cats song, bleh) as I like anything from Aerosmith to STP to NWA to Maroon 5 to Judas Priest. For the hardcore of hardcore the beggining tracks are a bit in the Top Pop list but gems like Breed and China Grove are worth the pick up of this game if you are already an established fan. For the most part if I were to rate this like an X-play review it is a solid 3/5
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6-25-2008 @ 10:18AM
TheCoats said...
"For those who are geeked out at the thought of anything Guitar Hero (like me) you'll love it as it is a good portable GH experience. For those who are new to GH and are looking for an introduction to the GH franchise get one of the console versions. For anyone on the fence about the game I am pretty sure you will hate it as the new periph takes a good long play session to get used too. About the new peripheral; it works very well and is quite responsive (for people with little fingers) part of the problem I was having is I have large hands with long fingers and my hands ended up cramping up pretty bad the first day I had the game. The next day I was fine as my hand became adjusted to the new contortion I had to do to play." - lasher702
My .02:
I very much agree with this statement!!! When I first bought this game I was somewhat pissed. But by session 2 with it - I liked it alot! - the periphial takes some getting use to but IMO-works very well. it's not the full fledged guitar but what did they expect?
note to anyone with this game - calibrate touch screen alot!!!!
with all the junk made for this system this one can be on the pile "to get". Maybe not choice #1 but it is there
6-25-2008 @ 1:56AM
pakkman781 said...
Picked up my copy tonight. Pretty fun, but I must admit, the screen doesn't quite feel as good to strum as the Rock Band guitar's strum bar thing. Doesn't feel as precise. Although it might be more realistic than the Rock Band guitar too...
Playing is more comfortable if you have something to rest your arm on, such as a table or your leg.
I honestly think that expansion DS cards will come out featuring more songs. When I bought mine, I considered it more of a purchase of the Guitar Grip than the DS card... But maybe I'm just crazy.
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6-25-2008 @ 8:07AM
Tom said...
Yes. Maybe you are.
6-25-2008 @ 10:12AM
TheCoats said...
I think you may be right - depending on the sales - but i am looking more forward to the homebrew scene with this periphial
6-25-2008 @ 10:54AM
bearxor said...
The grip just doesn't work for those of us with larger hands. After about 20 minutes my left hand is cramping and gets sore.
Overall, the song selection is meh. Better than GH3, IMO, but not great. I like the variety they have. I appreciate there is no boss battles, but I HATE the fact that after I've played through all the songs in career mode, I have to play them AGAIN in the career battle mode to unlock the 26th song.
WTH is a Frezzepop song doing in this game anyways? Maybe if it was outsourced to Harmonix to develop the portable version, I could see it, but with two of the three members of Freezepop being Harmonix employee's, it just strikes me as weird. I'd really like to hear the story on how that happened.
The game is WAY to short. I picked it up around 12:30pm yesterday and was done by about 4. At work. In between running various feeds and doing dubs, right before prep for the nightly news taping began. It was maybe only about 2 hours of solid gameplay.
I hate the guitar pick. It's short and so my hand covers the screen while I'm playing and makes it hard for me to glance and look at things like star power and note counts. IMO, the star power bar, the multiplier, and the note count should be moved to the upper screen. I could really care less about the "concert" going on in the background. The scene is too dark to really see anything and the viewable area above the fret board is so tiny that I don't believe it matters. I use the stylus now 100% and am very happy.
Overall - I give it a 2/5. A very decent attempt at a guitar hero game on a handheld, but EBA was a lot more fun to play.
I also saw this purchase as buying the grip over the game. People are already talking about custom GHOT roms with songs and I have a feeling a DS FoF equivalent will come out that will give us all the great entertainment we want.
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6-25-2008 @ 11:11AM
briancstrock said...
The big question, which I haven't seen addressed in any of the reviews yet, is whether or not you can play it as a lefty like you can with the plastic guitars (that is, strumming with the left hand and fretting with the right).
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6-25-2008 @ 11:33AM
nirniva said...
There is a "Lefty Flip" option in one of the menus, so...yeah.
Oh, and don't believe the haters, this game is awesome. Just don't come expecting a full-length Guitar Hero.
6-26-2008 @ 2:52PM
IoNPedro said...
This game is short like hell!
Finished it in 3 hours!
3 stars, as it IS Guitar Hero.
The last songs are pretty nice, actually.
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6-26-2008 @ 10:05PM
wesbdaivs said...
I agree with IGN. I have big hands and I can maneuver them well enough to push four buttons. A great first game that shows a lot of promise and is almost as fun as the console version. Space Invaders Extreme and GH: OT in the same short span of time? Is it Christmas?
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