Hey folks, long time no see. Yeah I know, what the fuck right? I haven’t written or called in like forever, and you’re pissed. Well, sorry yo, I needed some space. Ya know, a break. But here I am, back and ready to tear into a game that I thought I would love unconditionally, no matter what. That’s not to say I don’t love GUITAR HERO: 80s, with it’s awesomely retro tunes and dated outfits, I most assuredly do. And the play mechanics are as perfect as they’ve ever been, as evidenced by continued insistence of hoisting my gee-tar in the air as visions of rockstardom and hot groupies dance in my head. What I’m miffed about is the fact that this game, which can best be described as an update (or “patch” as some of the old school PC gamers may remember from their 90′s vocab), is being marketed and priced as if its a brand spankin’ new game.

First off, there are only 30 songs to unlock and play, that’s less than half the number found in the PS2 version of GUITAR HERO II (and a little more than a quarter found in the XBOX 360 version of the same game). Sure, a good portion of those songs are bonus tracks, but I never understood the reasoning behind downplaying the value of the bonus tracks offered up in GH2. The fact of the matter is is that even though they may not be licensed/popular songs, that doesn’t make them any less playable (or fun). And that’s the major word here folks, PLAYABLE. Hell, there’s a ton of bonus songs from GH (“Cavemen Rejoice”) and GH2 (The Trogdor and Dethklok tracks) that I play more frequently than the Career mode songs. Then there’s the fact that GH:80s uses the same exact venues as GH2, not to mention that your character is the only one that’s dressed up in retro garbs, making them look like major r-tards or someone that lost a bet. Let’s also keep in mind that the only unlockable character this time out is The Grim Reaper with 3D glasses on. And the final piece of evidence that this game was only given a half-assed effort is the fact that the interface is exactly the same, except maybe for an altered color palette that throws in some very 80s-ish pastels. Oh and one more thing — lets not forget that this is a game being released exclusively for a system that is obsolete. Can you say “Fuckin’ rip-off”? I know I can.

While some may claim that this “Encore” is sort of a “Thank You” or parting gift to the fans from a grateful and departing Harmonix (this is their last GH game, as they now take on ROCKBAND and Neversoft takes over the reins of the now seemingly unstoppable GH wagon), To me it just seems like Harmonix, or Activision, or whoever in charge over there are trying to cash in on the ridiculous popularity of the GH franchise while they can. They should consider themselves lucky that the first two games bought them tons of good grace, coupled with the genuine fun to be had with the few songs that are available, it’s no wonder that this slightly underhanded move has been relatively unnoticed and not talked about. This is the second “fuck you” that Harmonix have dished out on their adoring fans. The first “Fuck You” being a $5 price tag on the three-song packs made available for Xbox Live users. Think about that, 5 bucks for just three songs…that would come out to almost 80 smackeroos if you wanted all the songs from the original GUITAR HERO!

But that’s a rant for another time. My point is, is that I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore! Ok, that’s not really true. I still bought GH:80s, and I still happily play it. I suppose if folks are willing to pay the exuberant price, why wouldn’t a company looking to make a profit charge as much as they possibly could? And sure, folks could wait to pick up the game when it eventually experiences a price drop (even though the original GH and subsequent sequel have yet do so), but what self-respecting guitar hero could wait to pick up this game? I guess I just feel bad for all the fans that have been taken advantage of by a company that got rich off the backs of said fans, and continue to do so with an unfinished rush job of a product. Anyways, end of rant. You probably don’t agree, but that’s ok, not everyone sees things as clearly as I do. Feel free to leave your comments below. If you dare. Until next time, keep those gamer thumbs twitching….

I hadn’t heard of this movie prior to last night. But I rented it out of curiousity. It’s fantastic! Well worth the investment of time, if you ask me. The movie isn’t in english, though even if you don’t like to read subtitles I’d say go ahead and watch it anyhow.

Pan’s Labyrinth website