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Image courtesy IGN
Microsoft caves into the demands of RedOctane, gamers

Microsoft has finally loosened its grip on its proprietary wireless standard used for peripherals on its Xbox 360 console. Peripherals ranging from the Xbox 360 Wireless Controller to the Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel take advantage of the standard -- they also of course are official Microsoft accessories.

After some internal wrangling, RedOctane has become the first third-party company given access to Microsoft's wireless technology. As a result, the highly anticipated Guitar Hero III for the Xbox 360 will include a wireless "Les Paul" guitar sans wires or adapters.

According to IGN, the button layout for the guitar has also been changed to closely mimic that of the PS2 version. There is now dedicated start/select buttons which join the Xbox 360 guide button, 4-way directional controller and five main buttons.

Guitar Hero III is due to be launched this fall, so for those itchin' to strum along to some killer tunes and pay for high-priced song packs; your day will soon come.

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They had no choice...
By Etsp on 6/1/2007 5:27:19 PM , Rating: 5
If Microsoft wants to compete with the Wii, and even PS3, it needs to make these kind of compromises.

Especially since I get the feeling that the guitar for the Wii may be significantly cheaper, due to the fact that if they did it right, it would not require any form of power, motion-sensing, or wireless tech. All it would need to do is provide a place to put the Wii-mote into the guitar, and let the Wii-mote take care of that stuff...

And yes, I am kinda biased toward the Wii, I own one, but I do not own an Xbox360 or PS3 =P




RE: They had no choice...
By thebrown13 on 6/1/2007 5:31:26 PM , Rating: 4
You'll get a 360 when you turn 13.


RE: They had no choice...
RE: They had no choice...
By KaiserCSS on 6/1/2007 5:42:12 PM , Rating: 2
This is like... the very definition of irony.

I haven't laughed this hard all week.


RE: They had no choice...
By Locutus465 on 6/1/2007 5:48:26 PM , Rating: 2
Ditto, first thing I thought when I read the OP was "holy crap, someone didn't just seriously say that..."


RE: They had no choice...
By corduroygt on 6/1/2007 6:29:47 PM , Rating: 2
Some people are only members here for its amazing variety of Ballmer pix, you know :)


RE: They had no choice...
RE: They had no choice...
By gzubeck on 6/1/2007 10:25:45 PM , Rating: 2
With a little make-up and eye-liner he could replace jackie coogan as Uncle Fester of the Addams family...LOL :>)))


RE: They had no choice...
By CollegeTechGuy on 6/2/2007 1:13:46 PM , Rating: 3
I love how he doesn't even know the proper way to wear those headphones. Its like he is oblivious to new technology.

Bwah ha ha ha ha


By Brandon Hill (blog) on 6/2/2007 1:36:19 PM , Rating: 3
HAHA, I didn't even notice that until you said something. At first I thought you meant that they were too small for his head, then I saw that they are the behind the head type :)


RE: They had no choice...
By drebo on 6/1/2007 5:49:09 PM , Rating: 2
Too bad for Microsoft that numbers and experiences don't lie.

Though, Guitar Hero 3 will be a nice title and selling point for the 360. I know Guitar Hero 2 is more fun than crack. Can't wait for the 80s expansion pack!


By therealnickdanger on 6/2/2007 2:06:35 PM , Rating: 2
quote:
Can't wait for the 80s expansion pack!

As long as they don't charge $2.12/song like the last three packs. Geez, I was so excited to download all the tracks from the first game for $20 or something, but the asking price is exhorbent - and that's to get song packs that only contain one song each that I actually want. Either go ala carte or bundle them all for cheap! C'mon!


RE: They had no choice...
By vitul on 6/2/2007 5:33:56 PM , Rating: 2
the only problem is as of now the 80's edition is only for the ps2 and the speculations of the 80s pack being available on xbox live there has yet to be any word so it doesnt seem likely to happen.

as for gh3 its coming out on every system so there is no advantage points for any system.


RE: They had no choice...
By Etsp on 6/1/2007 6:32:45 PM , Rating: 3
OR... I'll get a 360 when I can afford one on top of upfront fees for college(I try to use as few loans a possible), My car insurance, rent, and cell phone bill, food and other such necessities...

The reason I got a Wii is because I was hyped up enough about it that I saved money so I could afford it when it came out.

I do want a 360... (cause all my friends have one ;P) but I have other stuff I need to pay for first =/.


RE: They had no choice...
By Saist on 6/2/2007 4:39:53 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
You'll get a 360 when you turn 13.


Don't worry. You'll get your Wii when you turn 20.

Seriously, slinging comments around that Nintendo is for kids harks back to the days of the N64. At this point, it's just pathetic for somebody to fall back on age jokes in any shape, form, or fashion. The sales numbers simply don't support it. Get over it, Microsoft's Xbox was dead last in sales worldwide. 4 years in a row Microsoft had to restate sales numbers to trade authorities, constantly playing the original Xbox behind the Gamecube, a story that much of the press neglected to comment on outside of niche sites like Gamenikki and Gamesindustry.biz. The sales numbers also indicate that large numbers of women are buying into the DS and Wii, many of them in the age bracket of 25-45.

Nintendo finally got the point. More people play games than the 13-25 young male segment. More people are out there to sell to than people who think Halo is a great game. It isn't, get over it. Please rejoin reality. That is why Nintendo is creaming the Xbox 360 and Playstation3 in sales.

Graphics do not matter. Shader Models do not matter. Processor Power does not matter. What matters is gameplay. Can you pick it up and figure the controller out? Nintendo figured that out. Microsoft probably won't ever get the chance, and Sony... well, Sony will be Sony.

Now, the "hardcore" segment can whine all day that the Wii is underpowered and no competition to their precious High Resolution Consoles. The Hardcore gamer can post forum post after forum post that the Wii can't handle the next Unreal Tournament or the next Quake. The Hardcore gamer can rant until their blue in the face that the Wii is for young kids. The hardcore gamer will fuss and fuss and fuss when they see their favorite developers ignore their chosen hardcore console and focus on a simpler title for what they see as kids.

It doesn't change the fact that Nintendo is profitable. Microsoft and Sony are not.

It also doesn't change the fact that Wii owners have Metroid. Xbox 360 owners get Halo... and I think that puts into perspective exactly how bad the gaming situation the Xbox 360 really is.


RE: They had no choice...
By noirsoft on 6/2/2007 10:40:27 AM , Rating: 3
Graphics and hardware capabilities _do_ matter when existing game developers have to do more effort to port a game to the wii than for other consoles.

Also, some of us like 720p and good graphics. My biggest complaint with the wii zelda is how poor the graphics are. Yes, it was a gamecube port, but my point stands.


RE: They had no choice...
By chick0n on 6/4/07, Rating: -1
RE: They had no choice...
By Locutus465 on 6/1/2007 5:46:49 PM , Rating: 1
Is it really better to have a wii-mote dangling from your guitar hero controller? That's precisely the reason why I'm using game-cube controllers with my Wii v. the "Classic Controller". I think the attached wii-mote would be annoying!


RE: They had no choice...
By Brandon Hill (blog) on 6/1/2007 5:53:29 PM , Rating: 3
It wouldn't be dangling. I think he means more integrated like this:

http://i8.tinypic.com/6bbeaus.jpg

Or this:

http://i10.tinypic.com/63w5l5y.jpg


RE: They had no choice...
By slashbinslashbash on 6/1/2007 6:21:34 PM , Rating: 2
Exactly. There's more than enough space in a GH controller to fit a Wiimote entirely, whether by inserting it into the side or down into the front surface so that it sits flush. The OP makes a good point, the GHIII controller wouldn't need power or the motion sensor at all, it'd basically be the Classic Controller in a big, guitar-shaped form factor, with the Wiimote somehow integrated inside.

BTW the white "Les Paul" is fugly! Real LP's are beautiful guitars (I've got an Epiphone LP in honeyburst) but the transition to plastic is more than a bit underwhelming. I much prefer the original PS2 SG, third-party Flying V or the Xbox360 X-Plorer models. If I get a GHIII LP then hopefully they will have some nice decals for the front, or maybe I'll just paint it.

Anyway, back to the topic of the article, I'm glad that MS finally caved and let them use the wireless. That ought to make things a lot easier.


RE: They had no choice...
By MattCoz on 6/1/2007 7:32:55 PM , Rating: 2
The faceplate is removable, just another way for them to drain more money out of you.


RE: They had no choice...
By Alexvrb on 6/2/2007 3:48:14 PM , Rating: 2
How is a removeable faceplate a bad thing? It makes it easier to paint. If you're lazy and don't want to do prep work you can either paint it with Krylon Fusion or replace the whole faceplate. If you're cheap and think they're just doing it to "drain more money out of you", then don't remove the faceplate. The only thing bad here is your logic unit.


RE: They had no choice...
By chick0n on 6/4/07, Rating: -1
RE: They had no choice...
By Brandon Hill (blog) on 6/1/2007 7:33:42 PM , Rating: 2
BINGO!


RE: They had no choice...
By Brandon Hill (blog) on 6/1/2007 7:37:13 PM , Rating: 2
BTW, here's the original article:

http://wii.ign.com/articles/783/783421p1.html


RE: They had no choice...
By Etsp on 6/1/2007 8:06:38 PM , Rating: 2
Oh wow, I completely forgot about the built in speaker! Talk about immersion, now you will be able to hear yourself screw up from the guitar itself =D!


RE: They had no choice...
By feelingshorter on 6/2/2007 12:06:48 AM , Rating: 2
Thats quite nice. I don't have a wii but looking at the pictures, i believe the nintendo wii has the connector on the controller for the nun chuck, meaning it can fit in to peripherals without the need for proprietary wireless. Quite ingenious of Nintendo now that i think about it. So like others have predicted, the Nintendo wii version of this game will definitely be cheaper. Makes sense since the wii is the cheapest console and they can just use the controller's wireless.


RE: They had no choice...
By tuteja1986 on 6/1/2007 9:04:32 PM , Rating: 2
how is the Wii compromising... They don't even let the 3rd party developer have tools for Online and lets its 3rd party use Mees in there games. Also i don't see Nintendo letting anyone make 3rd party controller.


RE: They had no choice...
By hrah20 on 6/2/2007 12:31:51 AM , Rating: 3
You might be right about the controller thing, but still, not all people are wii crazy, I don't care how cheap they are, or how difficult it is to find one.


PC Compatible
By MattCoz on 6/1/2007 7:38:15 PM , Rating: 2
So this means that I could use it with my PC if they released a PC version of the game.




RE: PC Compatible
By noirsoft on 6/2/2007 10:38:13 AM , Rating: 3
The existing GHII controller is PC compatible, and the free "Frets on Fire" game can work with it.

Or, maybe you meant something else...?


Fat guy on a tricycle
By Egglick on 6/1/2007 5:33:53 PM , Rating: 2
Yet another guitar designed for midgets and children under 9.




RE: Fat guy on a tricycle
By Hare on 6/1/2007 6:59:05 PM , Rating: 2
Yeah. I prefer my Les Paul and Schecter C1+ with Native Instruments Guitar Rig II ;)

Seriously. It would be nice to get a bigger guitar for this game.


Planned from the start.....
By peritusONE on 6/1/2007 7:22:59 PM , Rating: 1
I still stand in the camp that Microsoft and the Guitar Hero II developers did this on purpose to generate more revenue. Microsoft had nothing to gain by withholding the wireless protocol for a guitar peripheral.

Also, here we are, a scant 2 months after release of GH2, and now Microsoft is all buddy-buddy with Neversoft, complete with wireless guitar for the 360. The guitars aren't priced $60 a pop for no reason.

So now I've fell in this trap, and have two guitars at home for the 360 that would do me well to replace. Do I fully mind? Not really, as I'm having a blast with the game right now. I find it more worth the money to pay now and have fun now, than to wait until the wireless guitar comes. But a lot of people are like me, who have dropped atleast $90, maybe $150 for this game, and now are looking at a vastly superior wireless version of the guitar.

Oh well, I'm not bitching, just commenting. I'm sure I'll spend the money on the wireless guitars when they get here :).




RE: Planned from the start.....
By CuJoRulzz on 6/2/07, Rating: 0
.
By IceTron on 6/1/07, Rating: -1
RE: .
By mAdMaLuDaWg on 6/1/2007 9:03:20 PM , Rating: 3
What about Guitar Hero II?


RE: .
By shaw on 6/2/2007 8:43:38 PM , Rating: 2
Fags plays Guitar Hero.
Girls play Guitar Hero 2.
Men play Guitar Hero 3.

I guess.


"If they're going to pirate somebody, we want it to be us rather than somebody else." -- Microsoft Business Group President Jeff Raikes

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