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Guitar Hero 3 for Wii is Mono sound only, Activision embarrassed

guitarhero.com — What started out as faulty Dolby Pro Logic II sound has turned out to be even more embarrassing for Activision. They released a music game with only mono sound. Definitely a bug, and definitely not acceptable for the year 2007. Even though you may hear sound from 2 stereo speakers, you're still just hearing single channel mono sound from both.

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  • bloodwings, on 11/13/2007, -1/+353visual proof.
    what its supposed to look like: http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff187/kurtywii/ ...
    what it really looks like: http://i239.photobucket.com/albums/ff187/kurtywii/ ...
    • mb3581, on 11/13/2007, -73/+4Proof? who needs proof? Its on the webz, it HAS to be true.
      • defectDS, on 11/13/2007, -4/+44You fail at making a point. That's what you say when there ISN'T proof.
      • Goombellaofgoom, on 11/13/2007, -11/+4When it's on the web, you need extra proof, not less. Especially if it's presented in a discussion forum.
        • kawahee, on 11/13/2007, -4/+2Here comes the sarcasm train, last stop is you.
    • DarkXanthos, on 11/13/2007, -11/+3I never noticed and I never heard of anyone else noticing either. If this is just oh so obvious where were the stories when GH3 came out?

      I admit that this sucks but I also admit I played through the whole game rocking out none the wiser.
      • therightclique, on 11/13/2007, -0/+5what? GH3 DID just come out. the stories are now, man.
    • shodanx, on 11/13/2007, -15/+4stero is overrated, why do you need positionnal audio for MUSIC ??
      stereo is just an old 70's marketing trick that didn't die off
      • Kishoba, on 11/13/2007, -0/+7I'ld have to disagree, but more to the point, you just made the audiophiles of the world cry! (or pissed off, one or the other)
        • snyperr2s, on 11/13/2007, -5/+1yeah, my crying turned into anger, so i pwn3d him
      • Gerz1219, on 11/13/2007, -2/+9talkies are overrated, why do you need audio in a FILM ??
      • snyperr2s, on 11/13/2007, -9/+2wow, your an idiot
        • dg10050, on 11/13/2007, -0/+10Hey, that's my idiot, not yours. :)
      • snyperr2s, on 11/13/2007, -4/+1it ddnt let me edit

        Stereo= 2 or more, each with a different perspective
        Mono= one ( in the audio world this means one sound coming from all speakers, no matter the position)

        i am an audiophile, and trust me, ANYTHING is better in stereo.
        • ispeakasian, on 11/12/2007, -3/+2its even better, though, in 7.1 surround.
        • snyperr2s, on 11/12/2007, -0/+4lol, almost nothing is in 7.1
      • JustinTense, on 11/12/2007, -0/+1Stereo = headroom to play with in the mixdown.
    • Nerfdude, on 11/13/2007, -3/+7well played. and i came THIS CLOSE to buying it... good thing Call of Duty 4 looked so tantalizing that i sold my wii.
    • christianw, on 11/13/2007, -26/+4YOU

      ARE

      FAGS!


































      (see the guitar hero south park episode if you dont get the joke)
  • Step1Mark, on 11/13/2007, -3/+220I'm hoping for a recall
    • BillyParks, on 11/13/2007, -1/+31Almost seems like they would have to have one! With out good sound this game isn't nearly as good!
    • Psythik, on 11/13/2007, -6/+90Recall? Why can't they just release a patch? Does the Wii not support game updates???
      • joshuagor44, on 11/13/2007, -7/+27Probably not.
      • grumbel, on 11/13/2007, -0/+73So far Nintendo hasn't given any indication that they will allow patches.
        • iofthestorm, on 11/13/2007, -1/+29Actually, I think they did say something to the effect that with the internal flash storage they could have patches. Of course, Iwata also said ages ago that you could plug in any old USB drive for storage and that still hasn't happened...
      • TiMMY8765, on 11/13/2007, -15/+73why should a console support patches? I thought one of the console gamer's main arguments was "We don't have to install patches to our games". of course that all changed with the xbox and the "release now, fix later" mentality that has plagued the pc for so long.
        • ScionX, on 11/13/2007, -2/+24They may not like what you said but it's true. That was one of the main points that would always get brought up in the console vs PC argument. " I dont need to worry about having to patch my games, I can just put them in & play"

          Of course now that consoles are getting this treatment it's ok though........
          Right?
          • Blacula, on 11/13/2007, -7/+12Why are patches a bad thing?
          • Satertek, on 11/13/2007, -0/+31Generally, they're not, but they sometimes have a side effect of discouraging thorough testing of games. (Why spend money testing the game when there'll be millions "testing" it after release, we can always release a patch later on.)
          • potp, on 11/13/2007, -0/+30when patches are as big as 300 too 400 ***** MB it is a bad thing. The CnC3 patch sizes are just ***** insane.
          • dinostabOMG, on 11/13/2007, -0/+8No, I don't think it's okay - I'll stick to my guns on that one. I'd rather see a recall, if that's what Activision earned by making such a mistake with this game. Especially considering that a patch would be sitting there on your 512... screw that.
        • sadilak, on 11/13/2007, -21/+2Please, It is the Wii, It does not make any difference. GH3 is a fantastic game, Wii folks should be happy that they got this game for their console. If you really want to enjoy this game, play it on the XBOX 360 or PS2/PS3. I am not bitching about the Wii here, Super Mario galaxy for the Wii is good. It is just that the Wii not meant for games like Guitar Hero 3 or Rock band.
          • RxDaniel, on 11/13/2007, -1/+10Was that sarcasm, or are you really that stupid?
      • actionscripted, on 11/12/2007, -10/+5Games should always support patching.

        As will all software, it's rarely perfect the first time. I think Nintendo should have a public SVN dir and dev tools so that all licensed games can be built from source as the developers update their code.

        Bonus points for a ticketing system.
        • dinostabOMG, on 11/12/2007, -4/+2Yeah, I'll just play on my PC if I want to deal with patches.
        • Mrstupid7, on 11/13/2007, -0/+7Again I reiterate.

          Quality Control. Why do people seem to think it's ok for a game to be released with MAJOR FLAWS?
          • Korexz, on 11/19/2007, -0/+1Microsoft set the standard ;) Why can't everyone follow it?
      • Mrstupid7, on 11/13/2007, -0/+14It's called quality ***** control. It's apparently a lost art.
        • Korexz, on 11/19/2007, -0/+1It's called Quality Assurance. Believe me the video game industry isn't the only vertical that just doesn't get it.
      • wesw02, on 11/14/2007, -1/+6The problem is with the game, not the Wii system. The games themselves are not patch-able as they are read-only media, you could potential provide the system an update that would resolve the bug with this specific game, however its just not a good idea to fix a game problem by updating the system. Its Activision's fault, they should be the ones responsible for the fix, not Nintendo.
        • Psythik, on 11/14/2007, -1/+1Umm, last time I checked, XBOX 360 game discs are also read-only, and yet I see patches/"system updates" come out for my games all the time (I think the PS3 has a patching system as well, but I wouldn't know since I don't own one). If Microsoft can do it, why can't Nintendo?
        • supdawg, on 11/26/2007, -0/+1The wii doesn't have a hard drive.
    • berb, on 11/13/2007, -15/+7You're hoping for a recall now that this is brought up, yet you didn't even notice the quality difference when you were playing it before?
      • Smwbigboss, on 11/12/2007, -5/+14My TV only supports mono anyway, but I don't think many people can tell the difference unless they are audiophiles. Activision still needs to to get some quality control though.
        • defectDS, on 11/13/2007, -5/+23Telling the difference between 5.1 and dolby digital is for the audiophiles. Any human ear can hear the difference between mono and stereo (with allowed equipment).
          • fjc8, on 11/12/2007, -1/+9??
            Dolby Digital (AC3) is a compression algorithm most commonly used to transmit 5.1 audio over DVDs, digital cable/satellite, HDTV, and from video game consoles..
          • mywhitenoise, on 11/13/2007, -1/+8Maybe he meant Pro Logic, even then anyone who has the ability to hear can tell the difference between pro logic and real 5.1
          • nicktheawesome, on 11/13/2007, -0/+4Not true. Any human PAIR of ears can tell the difference. A single ear won't help you.
          • defectDS, on 11/13/2007, -1/+1Oh, hehe. Yeah, I meant Pro Logic.

            Just goes to show how much I don't care for filling up my ceiling with 7 different speakers for the "perfect" sound.
        • MikeCI, on 11/13/2007, -3/+21Having stereo sound is also quite important for multiplayer mode
          • Cl1mh4224rd, on 11/13/2007, -9/+5Uhhh... not really, no.
          • Renton, on 11/13/2007, -1/+10In the Wii version, missed note sounds come out of the Wii remote's speakers. So stereo isn't that important.
        • Eallan, on 11/13/2007, -0/+2Actually even played notes come out of one side in face off.
      • NnyCW, on 11/13/2007, -4/+9Considering I would expect a vast majority of those with a Wii are using it on an SDTV with sound ouput on the default TV speakers, you're most likely right that most people probably didn't notice.
        However, anyone using an HDTV with surround sound probably noticed something didn't sound quite right compared to everything else. Be it movies, broadcasts, games, etc.
        • quakeIII, on 11/13/2007, -2/+7A recent worldwide Wii poll showed that almost 50% of people play Wii on non-SDTVs. Of course, these are people that have their Wii connected to the internet, but it is still a huge percentage. Assuming that people buy Wii because they are thrifty/poor is a joke. They buy it to appreciate the good gameplay.
        • robbh66, on 11/13/2007, -0/+13Good point: because surround sound did not exist before HDTV. Idiot.
    • mrfreeziexp, on 11/12/2007, -12/+3I hope they recall the guitars as well. They don't work at all.
    • Fritzed, on 11/12/2007, -1/+1Providing the ability for game patches is the worst thing that Microsoft has done to the console industry. There is no need for quality control anymore.
  • rprince, on 11/13/2007, -3/+226I just picked this game up yesterday. I wish I hadn't already opened it. A music game with no stereo sound. ***** brilliant...
    • consoneo, on 11/13/2007, -43/+14If you don't have a speaker system set up for your Wii, then you can just stop bitching. You're not going to hear a bit of difference coming from your TV speakers.

      Now, if you have a surround system set up for your Wii to go through, then yeah, you'll hear a bit of a difference...

      But come on man, you're pushing buttons on a plastic guitar... how perfect does it need to be?
      • ScionX, on 11/13/2007, -3/+5I understand where your coming from. I though GH had to be one of the most lame things I've ever seen & couldnt imagine playing something so stupid.... Then my friend forced me to play it.........

        Then had a hell of a time getting the guitar away from me. Damn that game is addicting.

        • AriaStar, on 11/13/2007, -0/+2I was broken in this afternoon. Didn't want to give it up.
      • robbh66, on 11/13/2007, -2/+3Mono sound on a music game...how perfect does it have to be?

        I guess the jump button didn't have to work in super mario brothers- how perfect did that have to be- not like both games revolve around singular themes...
        • CCoe, on 11/13/2007, -1/+1No... The jump button not working in Mario would relate more to the sound not working at all in Guitar Hero.
      • mywhitenoise, on 11/13/2007, -2/+3Almost all TVs made after the 80's have stereo, no TV being made in recent year has Mono only.
        You don't need surround sound for stereo (stereo = 2 channels, surround is 3 or more).
    • centerblack, on 11/13/2007, -0/+117Acoustic Guitar Hero FTW.
      • Cooperfan, on 11/13/2007, -18/+1Makes me think of the Guitar Queer-o, where the dude plays buckethead on a GH guitar in a restaurant....
    • rprince, on 11/13/2007, -20/+12My Wii has been at my girlfriend's house since I got the game, hooked up to a 19 inch TV. When I take it home, it will be hooked up to my stereo, which is quite a beast. Believe me, I will hear the difference, especially considering my speakers have about 8 feet of separation. I paid nearly $100 dollars for a MUSIC game, so the sound better be in ***** stereo.
      • actionscripted, on 11/12/2007, -9/+15Gee, thanks for bragging about your stereo? Why don't you just go compare dicks with some of your friends and stop wasting my screen space with your self-fellating comments?

        Mine's bigger than yours, in case you were wondering.
        • rprince, on 11/13/2007, -2/+10Actually, I meant to respond to consoneo's comment who was implying that I would not even notice the lack of stereo sound. The stereo was actually a hand-me-down and is pretty old, but it still has power. No need to be so sensitive.
    • mywhitenoise, on 11/13/2007, -9/+2"considering my speakers have about 8 feet of separation."

      ...that's not good. Who the hell has their speakers only 8 feet apart? That's going to sound like *****.
    • maverex, on 11/13/2007, -22/+2Don't you guys understand? The Wii Can't process so much at a time with its cheap processcor so they had to cut out the stereo sound XD

      Oh and go ahead digg me down because you like the console thats targeted at small children and old people.
      • nayr, on 11/13/2007, -2/+3...And the 360s and PS3s aimed at white college nerds with a lot of money.
        • maverex, on 11/19/2007, -0/+1Exactly, Like Me!!
          • Korexz, on 11/19/2007, -0/+1nayr didn't finish his sentence:
            ... who never get laid.
      • lonnieh, on 11/13/2007, -1/+7its a bug you retard. RTFA
        • maverex, on 11/19/2007, -0/+1Obviously, Take a Joke and a ***** chill pill.
  • maisp, on 11/13/2007, -1/+85We at least deserve an official response and plan of action from Activision. As it stands, they're just trying to ignore the problem.
    • clickwir, on 11/12/2007, -1/+9Ignore or just haven't heard of it yet? This is just a link to a forum post, there's no response from Activision there.
      • joshuagor44, on 11/13/2007, -0/+7People have been aware of this problem for awhile. I'm sure Activision heard the day it was first reported.
      • sofaKing812, on 11/13/2007, -0/+4Actually, a lot of people in the forums have posted responses they received from Activision.
  • Frybread, on 11/14/2007, -2/+192Reviewers were too cowardly or too deaf to report it as well.
    • MatttK, on 11/12/2007, -0/+6I find bugs, installation issues, etc. are never covered in reviews. Look at all the problems people had at the launch of Bioshock - it was never mentioned in any review I read!
      • smoger, on 11/13/2007, -1/+1funny because i bought BioShock on day 1, and had 0 issues with it. is it unfathomable that the people who were crying about all those problems were a vast minority, and those of us who have halfway decent computers were just spending our time playing the game?
        • fohf, on 11/12/2007, -0/+1played it on the 360 and there definitely were bugs and glitches
    • jaytea90, on 11/14/2007, -0/+9Can't trust the big reviewers, they can be easily swayed. Yahtzee on the other hand...
    • JEAA, on 11/12/2007, -0/+3And sometimes they only play one game. Like they probably just played the 360 version since their all pretty well the same.
    • nshady, on 11/12/2007, -0/+3Cowardly? I doubt it - what sort of reviewer wouldn't mention this if they knew about it? Too deaf, or in too much of a rush with all the other releases at the moment to notice.
    • blizake, on 11/13/2007, -0/+3I covered it on GamePro.
      Low Fidelity Taints An Otherwise Rocking Guitar Hero III
      http://www.gamepro.com/nintendo/wii/games/reviews/ ...
  • Frybread, on 11/12/2007, -11/+5Proof:

    http://www.gpforums.co.nz/thread/290985/?s=30e1fdf ...
  • h0ly, on 11/13/2007, -5/+130They took one of the most awaited games of the year, and transformed it into a piece of ***** with mono sound and PS2 graphics on the wii. Thanks Vicarious Visions!
    • KevinRoseMustDy, on 11/13/2007, -32/+5PS2 graphics on the Wii?

      Unlikely.
      • refreshers, on 11/13/2007, -5/+25actually its highly likely
      • YuriSakazaki, on 11/13/2007, -24/+10Yeah, I don't think the Wii has the power to do PS2 level graphics :P
      • Blacula, on 11/13/2007, -1/+28Meh, the graphics in Guitar Hero are pretty much irrelevant. Stereo sound, on the other hand, is vital.
    • Smwbigboss, on 11/12/2007, -0/+33There's a bunch of ***** going on with this game
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar_hero_iii#Techn ...

      The game also froze on me a few times.
    • KingGoonie, on 11/13/2007, -10/+2Gotta love that a game getting pretty great reviews across the board is called a piece of *****... they made a mistake, maybe a HUGE one... but WITH IT, its still being called a great game, maybe it could have been better if they didn't have this problem... but piece of *****? Um... no.
    • Renton, on 11/13/2007, -4/+4I heard the PS3 version has PS2 textures also. Can anyone confirm this?
      • derkmerkin, on 11/13/2007, -1/+1confirmed with a big fat thumbs down
    • SharkyTech, on 11/12/2007, -5/+4Actually, I would have thought the Wii games would usually have graphics around the level of the PS2. Now having read that last sentence I realise if I'm going to get dug down I may as well go all out: I'm glad I own a 360 and bought GH3 for the 360 now, the other two systems are either too hard to develop for or the destination for cut-down, underpowered ports due to the companies attitude that the games are all about the controller.
      • rusty123jimi, on 11/12/2007, -1/+1Dude the sound could of been improved, but since its the wii...I don't think you should every expect to connect "mind blowing graphics" with the wii! Its the wii for got sakes!
        • 0x00, on 11/13/2007, -0/+4But still, the graphics are sub-par even by Wii standards. Many more Wii games look magnitudes better. The Wii version of Guitar Hero III looks absolutely _terrible_. It's still fun to play but I'm honestly distracted by how bad the visuals look at some points when playing it.
    • fognozzle, on 11/13/2007, -2/+7WGAF about graphics in Guitar Hero
      • gmprunner, on 11/12/2007, -0/+3It's more about the principle of the thing. Wii games almost always get sub-par graphics, with little to no effort to bring them up to next-gen levels, meaning the extra capabilities of the Wii (which are relatively small but still significant) are wasted.
  • doshindude, on 11/14/2007, -3/+304Damn it Activision. Harmonix called, they want their franchise back because you're too stupid.
    • Switchnig, on 11/12/2007, -0/+28they ***** up this game in so many ways
    • jjremy, on 11/12/2007, -1/+19I couldn't agree more.
      GH3 just feels dirty compared to the previous ones. :(
    • HappyScrappy, on 11/13/2007, -3/+12Agreed. It's called Rock Band. It comes out in 9 days.

      GH3 just doesn't have the right feel.
      • firechill, on 11/13/2007, -0/+1I agree. it's called buy an actual guitar.
    • mattyice11, on 11/13/2007, -10/+2Neversoft and Activivison are to blame, but it's hard not to partially blame Nintendo as well for not including an optical output on the console. The PS2 had it 7 years ago, and it would have cost Nintendo almost nothing to include it on the Wii.
      • lilbitmoreslyk, on 11/13/2007, -0/+6Please don't bring that ***** up for no reason, Activision ***** UP. Its a completely different story if we're to argue about Wii capabilities/ports.
      • HappyScrappy, on 11/13/2007, -0/+6What? Like putting on an optical port would have made it so Nerversoft didn't write their code wrong?
      • Soave, on 11/13/2007, -0/+6Optical ports aren't required for stereo...
    • AmICoolNow, on 11/12/2007, -0/+1The nineties called. They want their joke back.
      ...Though I do agree.
  • mastersquirrel3, on 11/13/2007, -111/+14What did you expect it's on the wii.
    • j4nj1m3n3z, on 11/13/2007, -9/+45thanks for the ignorant comment.
    • Cdog923, on 11/13/2007, -6/+9That made absolutely no sense. Congrats on being an idiot.
    • bonk2k, on 11/13/2007, -0/+14Considering the Wii has left and right speaker outputs (as does nearly every system minus some of the earlier ones) I was expecting at least stereo sound.
    • perryjoyce, on 11/13/2007, -2/+9You are a disgrace to squirrels everywhere.
  • honeymustardn, on 11/12/2007, -10/+56I would have never even noticed this. Maybe I'm just a butthead.
    • NeoCortex, on 11/12/2007, -1/+23If only you were a buckethead, you could ace expert.
    • bastardo, on 11/12/2007, -0/+3Well, perhaps your sound system is not very good =)
      • honeymustardn, on 11/13/2007, -2/+1My TV is actually a mono TV, but that's not the point. And I don't have Guitar Hero anyway.
        • BearinG, on 11/13/2007, -0/+2Yes, that's the whole point. Even if you had GH3, you COULDN'T tell the difference
          • honeymustardn, on 11/13/2007, -0/+1No it's not - even if I had a stereo TV, I wouldn't be able to tell the difference.
  • serrebi, on 11/13/2007, -8/+43Maybe all the reviews are used to bad 56K rips of there fav songs and never noticed. Seriusly something like that sticks out for me, hugely.
    • Velirno, on 11/12/2007, -2/+10I was playing for a good 2 hours and never noticed it. I suppose I'm not able to concentrate on the music while I'm having fun.
    • Klarth, on 11/13/2007, -2/+23I wasn't aware 56k was a standard bitrate for music files...

      Also: *reviewers, *their, *seriously
      • joeym, on 11/13/2007, -1/+7Don't forget "Hugely". For someone proclaiming to have such an affinity for catching the finer details... 4 errors in 2 short sentences is a whoa moment.
  • bonds, on 11/13/2007, -3/+14There will be a fix for this I'm guessing, possibly an updated release? If that's the case, hopefully they'll do a replacement by mail.
    • teamparadox, on 11/12/2007, -1/+4Sure they will update all future releases of the game, maybe even have retail send back whats in the channel now but for all current owners who knows? You cant patch a wii game, and the chances of a full recall are slim. Its very possible they will do a disk replacement but will everyone who bought the game know about it? Doubtfull.
    • EmailAddress, on 11/13/2007, -1/+4Yep, it's called Guitar Hero 4.
  • davidhildreth, on 11/13/2007, -36/+5It sounds fine, get over it.
    • shortarabguy, on 11/13/2007, -1/+3It's mono. I haven't had to deal with mono sound since the NES, I'm not going to deal with it now, over 20 years later.
  • adammharvey, on 11/12/2007, -18/+13well I'm glad i have not spent close to $100 on that piece of crap
  • drizzlelicious, on 11/13/2007, -51/+6Unless you're an audiophile, you really shouldn't care. Don't be a hypocrite.
    • rojano17, on 11/13/2007, -3/+28i am certainly not an audiophile, unless we are talking about 56kbps i probably won't mind but really man, mono is just...
      I'll assume you are not a videophile but i'm sure you wouldn't be happy if you paid for dvd and you got Betamax quality
      • drizzlelicious, on 11/13/2007, -14/+4I'll probably get dugg down ever further for this, but I've done recording in mono, and it's not that bad.
        • rojano17, on 11/13/2007, -1/+20i trust you haven't been selling those recordings for 100 bucks telling people they can get surround sound
    • Kurisuku, on 11/13/2007, -1/+31Audiophile? Stereo? What? Stereo was on SNES. Cassette tapes are stereo.

      This is just about keeping up to standard quality, that's all. Maybe in another game no one would care, this is true... But it's a MUSIC game.
      • androothebear, on 11/13/2007, -0/+4not just casettes... vinyl albums are mostly in stereo... and im pretty sure that was early 60's technology.......
  • Kurisuku, on 11/13/2007, -10/+79... And you guys told me I was wrong when I said months ago that Neversoft would ***** up this franchise. It was pretty obvious before it even came out.

    They even screwed up hammer-ons/pull-offs, and the 'natural' feel of the notes, nevermind how the notes register, and even the guitar battles are painfully lame... The ramped up difficulty would be more acceptable if the phrasing was so poor. Oh yeah, and the guitars probably have response issues as well, so even those have defects.

    I can't wait for Rock Band. I love you Harmonix.
    • modix, on 11/14/2007, -5/+9You may want to try a different version than the Wii. The Les Paul's are MUCH better and 2x more responsive than the old ones.

      The HO/PO are no longer just by proximity, they're by whether the actual musician is strumming or slurring. It matches, trust me. It's more a matter of what songs they picked, not the phrasings.
    • jasmus, on 11/14/2007, -6/+16"Oh yeah, and the guitars probably have response issues as well, so even those have defects"

      Probably? wow, way to make up a problem.
      • Kurisuku, on 11/14/2007, -0/+1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar_Hero_III:_Lege ...

        Technical issues

        Users of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 wireless Les Paul guitar controller have reported issues surrounding fret buttons not registering when pushed, wrong fret buttons registering, and the tilt sensor always registering tilt. These apparently stem from the quality of the electrical connections between the pins on the guitar body and the contacts on the detachable neck[51]. Cleaning the contacts and firmly re-seating the detachable neck seems to remedy these problems in some cases.[citation needed] There has been no official statement from Activision, RedOctane or Neversoft addressing these reported issues.

        The 'probably' was a grammar error, honestly.
    • MentalV, on 11/14/2007, -2/+10Harmonix penis + your mouth = this statement
    • crashingechelon, on 11/14/2007, -2/+5I have to agree with modix. The Les Paul is the best GH guitar to date, the strummer is quieter, the whammy bar has more support and bounce and the frets have more response.
    • Evazan21, on 11/14/2007, -1/+1It is extremely obvious from your comment that you have never played gh3.
      • Kurisuku, on 11/14/2007, -0/+1Tell that to my credit card of which it is billed on. :|

        The phrasing is so disjointed that sometimes it doesn't even MATCH the guitar track.
  • cwl157, on 11/12/2007, -5/+16It sounds fine to me, but its the principle of it. I expect some sort of update / exchange to fix this
    • HiddenLYNX, on 11/12/2007, -0/+2It sounds fine coming out of the tv because you hear the necessary music. When you play against people, sometimes you cant hear your guitar or their or when they screw up, you know when you screw up because it comes out of the wiimote.
  • morgrar, on 11/13/2007, -4/+57I thought stereo was SNES-gen. I love the "next-gen" era. Mono sound for the win.
    • andnever, on 11/13/2007, -14/+8why are people complaining about mono sound but not about it being in 480p? honest question.
      • hassanchop13, on 11/13/2007, -3/+19its a sound game, graphics dont really matter as long as its useable
      • DoctorIan, on 11/13/2007, -3/+25Because nobody gives a ***** about high definition.
        • KMartSheriff, on 11/13/2007, -12/+3And by nobody you mean Wii owners and people that can't afford a HDTV.
        • Syphon8, on 11/13/2007, -1/+11Yes, that would be the majority of people on the Earth.
        • BabyWookie, on 11/13/2007, -0/+1Nintendo should have saved even more money and made the Wii output Black & White only. No one really gives a ***** about color either.
      • nicko68, on 11/13/2007, -0/+12People should complain because GHIII isn't high def on a non high-def platform?
      • indiancompanion, on 11/13/2007, -0/+2it is the wii, what did u expect, nice progressive scanning for the game? I thought graphics didnt matter for all the nintendo fans.
  • TorontoJays, on 11/13/2007, -5/+59I play mine on a 20" tv in my tiny room at university. surround sound is a distant dream.
    • Chetyre, on 11/12/2007, -3/+4My room mate and I actually set up surround sound in our room this year, and we keep getting noise violations :P
    • DaSuHouSe, on 11/13/2007, -13/+3You bought a Wii and Guitar Hero III and you can't afford speakers? You know they're not that expensive, especially if you get them used.
      • Hartley1942, on 11/13/2007, -1/+4Idiot. hes saying theres a space issue.
        • DaSuHouSe, on 11/20/2007, -0/+1That's ***** we had speakers in my tiny ass dorm room
    • mojotooth, on 11/12/2007, -0/+1Meaning, you don't think you'll ever graduate?
  • clickwir, on 11/13/2007, -4/+140"Activision embarrassed" ? Really? Because this seems like a forum post that doesn't mention any kind of Activision response.
    • gfunk84, on 11/13/2007, -5/+25He could be using embarrassed as a verb instead of an adjective.
      • mhuggins, on 11/13/2007, -6/+1So who did Activision embarrass?
        • thaeastsida, on 11/13/2007, -0/+3activision *has been* embarassed
      • mhuggins, on 11/13/2007, -2/+1Those of you digging gfunk and burying me clearly don't understand what a verb is.
    • bastardo, on 11/13/2007, -0/+2Well, now that they're on the Digg frontpage with 3000+ votes, I'd say that's sort of embarrassing...
  • String, on 11/12/2007, -8/+3wow, just wow...
    I wanted to pick up this game for christmas... maybe not...
    =(
  • fugi, on 11/13/2007, -27/+13Wow kiddies just stfu i guaranteed 90% of you guys didn't even notice untill you herd it on the internet. =/ QQ more
    • h4rdcor3, on 11/13/2007, -2/+4Ya, but what about the other 10% of us who are ***** pissed that the games is advertised as pro logic and we are stuck with ***** mono sound. Your logic fails considerably. Just because the masses can't tell doesn't mean you don't fix it. It's a quality control. If something as simple as stereo sound gets ***** up, whats next?
      • fugi, on 11/13/2007, -7/+2Firstly, surround sound is far from simple. Also, I said nothing about not fixing it, it's rediclous the ammount of ppl blowing it way out of proportion and constantly QQing.
        • h4rdcor3, on 11/13/2007, -0/+4i'm not saying surround is simple i'm saying stereo is simple.
          "If something as simple as stereo sound"
  • adrianmonk, on 11/13/2007, -31/+11Don't get me wrong: releasing a music oriented game without stereo sound is, as we used to say in the 1980's, weak.

    But on the other hand, stereo sound is, I hate to say it, kind of a gimmick. Not just for games, but in general. There's a general consensus among musicians that, basically, if you're focusing on the equipment more than the music itself, you're probably not a very good musician. The point isn't to call people bad musicians; it's just to say that things like this are side issues. The real enjoyment of music comes from playing well or doing something musically interesting. Just like the real enjoyment of a video game comes from the game play, not the particulars of the graphics or the audio.

    Once again, I'm not saying Activision shouldn't deliver everything that is expected out of a product like this. They certainly should, and as consumers, you should not let them off the hook on cutting corners. But as for whether it ruins the game, I don't think it has to.
    • ExSlashdotter, on 11/13/2007, -3/+20*stereo* is a gimmick?

      Uhh, sorry, but thanks for playing. Part of what gives instruments their separation in the mix is how you slightly pan instruments left and right. This has nothing to do with masturbating to a Musicians Friend catalog as we usually say. Stereo sound is just a staple of how mixing works in general.
    • YuriSakazaki, on 11/13/2007, -1/+4Yes, this decades old technology that is a STANDARD in sound recording is a gimmick.
    • h4rdcor3, on 11/13/2007, -0/+4Guitar hero is about the immersion in to the game and making you feel like you are really playing the guitar. Sound is a big thing when it comes to this. When i'm dueling a friend and he has a solo lick that plays out of both the left and right channels it just sounds wrong, The part should be played out of the side they are on. It adds to the immersion.
    • HappyScrappy, on 11/13/2007, -0/+4When you're playing two player on PS2, PS3 or 360, player #1's sound comes out the left speaker, player #2 comes out the right. That way you can hear your own mistakes separate from the other person's.
    • fandyboy, on 11/13/2007, -3/+2My God you ignorant fool, stereophonic recording revolutionized music, Sgt Pepper anyone. You utter, utter idiot!!!!!! Stop talking now!
  • xadamxwaltonx, on 11/13/2007, -4/+15Lame... Oh well, Rock Band here I come.
    • exomni, on 11/13/2007, -10/+6There is no Rock Band for the Wii, dumbass.
      • xadamxwaltonx, on 11/11/2007, -0/+1It has been rumored... a man can dream, right?
        If not, then I will just pick it up for the 360.
      • KMartSheriff, on 11/13/2007, -2/+5When did he say there was?
      • Syphon8, on 11/13/2007, -0/+6Yet.
      • bluesdealer, on 11/12/2007, -0/+1Your point?
  • spiffyfitz, on 11/13/2007, -0/+48I met some of the animators from Vicarious Visions once. They are responsible for the godawful drummer model and animation on the Wii version.
    • Cl1mh4224rd, on 11/13/2007, -0/+33> "They are responsible for the godawful drummer model and animation on the Wii version."

      It's not just the Wii version, trust me.
    • twigboy, on 11/12/2007, -2/+1well yes... thats what animators do, right?
    • slicedoranges, on 11/12/2007, -1/+1That animation owns. It's the only one I don't skip past when I start up my game.
    • joegibes, on 11/12/2007, -0/+1Did you kick them in the face?
    • nksoccer13, on 11/13/2007, -0/+3Is Vicarious Visions also responsible for the slack-jawed retard singer?
  • Flamekebab, on 11/13/2007, -18/+4Is it just me who doesn't really care about stereo sound that much?
    • danjwray, on 11/13/2007, -4/+16do you only have one ear?
      • neonix, on 11/13/2007, -3/+4well said
      • Flamekebab, on 11/13/2007, -5/+2danjwray, well my father only has one ear, if that counts. No, really.

        The only time I can really appreciate surround sound is if I'm wearing earphones and the sound in each channel is VERY different.
        • Cl1mh4224rd, on 11/13/2007, -2/+5> "The only time I can really appreciate surround sound is if I'm wearing earphones and the sound in each channel is VERY different."

          Stereo != surround sound
        • Flamekebab, on 11/13/2007, -2/+1Maybe I should have said "multi-channel audio"?
          Surely you understand what I mean?
    • theexitwound, on 11/13/2007, -1/+7Probably.

      When playing multiplayer, having distinct channels in which to "find" your guitar part makes it much easier, as well as feel more like you're in charge of that specific instrument. Having both channels mixed into one reduces the ability to pinpoint your instrument inside the song, separating it from the other instruments.
      • Flamekebab, on 11/13/2007, -3/+1I really struggle to single out individual instruments even when it's in stereo. Hell, I can't single them out when I'm listening to a group play live.
        • danjwray, on 11/13/2007, -1/+1maybe you should have your hearing tested? seriously, unless you're exaggerating.

        • Flamekebab, on 11/13/2007, -1/+1My directional hearing is fine, I was just never really taught to pick out the different instruments. I hear the overall tune, rather than the components of it. If it's a really, really obvious bass-line, I can tell, for example, but beyond that I struggle. It just didn't seem something overly important to learn.
          • theexitwound, on 11/13/2007, -0/+3It actually does take some practice. It took me a few months to be able to extract the drums from the rest of the material. And now, after nearly 15 years of playing the drums, it's second nature. Playing Guitar Hero, I'm relearning how to separate guitar tracks. And to be honest, it's far easier than the drums were. I don't struggle listening to *just* the guitar anymore. Stereo tracks makes it much much easier to begin learning how.
  • dunezone, on 11/12/2007, -3/+9This isn't the only issue. The wireless controller for the 360 and PS3 have issues. Since the connection between the guitar base and the neck uses pins sitting on a metal connector, no actual snapping connection. The neck also tends to bend while your playing and because of this you will start to miss notes.
    • Jorge777, on 11/12/2007, -0/+3I have the connection problem on my guitar and would appreciate any ideas on how to remedy the situation. Having to reconnect the controller so often takes away from the fun, even though it's been a little better with the use of duct tape. Metacafe, get to work!
      • dethsesh, on 11/11/2007, -0/+1i beat the game with the x-plorer controller and just returned the game to toys r us and got my money back, stupid broken wireless guitar
      • Jorge777, on 11/12/2007, -0/+2http://forums.xbox-scene.com/index.php?showtopic=6 ... It sort of sucks to have to do extra work, but my other options are trying to do the warranty thing and not having it for a month and I refuse to buy a wired controller because of their shoddy craftsmanship and bad ideas. A detachable neck was a horrible idea in the first place.
        • Jorge777, on 11/11/2007, -0/+1... It worked. I'm sorta taken back by it. It's tighter in there now and just more solid now.. no bull.
    • fandyboy, on 11/12/2007, -2/+0Do strings "snap" on a real guitar?? (answer, yes they do, but in the real sense, not a click sound when you press them)
    • joegibes, on 11/13/2007, -0/+1Tighten your truss rod...
  • alvination, on 11/13/2007, -16/+4I can't tell the difference. I have the Wii version. I have no issues!
  • neonix, on 11/12/2007, -4/+7lol, failure
  • sark666, on 11/13/2007, -4/+41I agree this is a deal breaker as well (patch/recall), but some people think of stereo influencing audio quality when it's really a positional effect. Ignoring compression, stereo takes twice the data, but is not 'twice the quality'. I'm not a big audiophile, but some people fail to realize that distinction.

    If you think about it when a sound is recorded in a studio, everything is obviously recorded from a mono source (one mic for the singer, one mic for the guitar etc) and then 'positioned' in stereo to simulate hearing the band live in the sense that the base is over there, the drummer is there, the singer is here'. So really it's various mono sources mixed together in this two channel format.

    Actually, I was reading about the history of stereo and initially they tried for a 3 channel format with a center channel. It was proving cumbersome, and they realized they could simulate the center channel by placing the sound equally on the left/right channels. This became known as a phantom channel.
    • sark666, on 11/13/2007, -2/+11Too late to edit. Just wanted to add an article I just found on some history on stereo and a little quote.

      http://www.tvtechnology.com/pages/s.0065/t.1349.ht ...

      "The difference between these two systems is both simple and profound. In Fletcher's three-channel version, the center of the stereophonic illusion is "solid" in that it is represented by an actual sound source. In Blumlein's version, the center of the stereo illusion is "phantom," which is to say it is "inferred" by the human auditory system. How the human auditory system does this is fascinating and remarkable to me. I have spent the past 20 years observing and studying it.

      Reduced to its essence, the phantom image is a brain-generated perceptual construct based on similar signals having (very roughly) similar amplitudes and (quite precisely) similar times of arrival at our ears. To perceive a phantom image midway between two loudspeakers, the identical signals must arrive at the ears within .2 milliseconds of each other. Otherwise, the phantom begins to migrate toward the earlier speaker. What this means is that for two-channel stereo, if the listener is more than six inches off the median plane (i.e. equidistant from the two speakers), the phantom will migrate to the nearer speaker."

      That was another thing I wanted to mention, position is everything with stereo (even more so obviously with a 5.1 setup for movies or whatever).
    • Drax0n, on 11/13/2007, -0/+5Yes but in two player mode the sounds will come out their respective side in stereo. in mono it will blend them and send them out both speakers.
    • Kier, on 11/13/2007, -0/+5No, guitars are often recorded with two mics, especially acoustic guitars. Or one cable goes directly to line and another goes to a mic'd amp. Never mind the drums.
      Songs are always panned to let each instrument have its own audible 'space' to the listener.
  • lacosanostra008, on 11/13/2007, -15/+1who cares. do you really care that much about your GH that you NEED it in surround sound. get a life.
    • aldableep3, on 11/11/2007, -0/+1stereo isn't surround sound.. and yeah its a pretty bad error on their part because this game is missing sound technology that was revolutionary to games in 1991. hell, it even misses technology that a nintendo ds and psp have in almost all their games
    • YuriSakazaki, on 11/13/2007, -0/+8There's a difference between surround sound and STEREO. A game that CENTERS ITS GAMEPLAY AROUND SOUND without stereo is inexcusable.
    • m00nstone, on 11/13/2007, -0/+5I have a home theater and GhIII for the 360. When you get star power and the audience cheers start pumping out the rear speakers. It freaking rocks.
  • ExtremeRyno, on 11/13/2007, -8/+1471,000,000! You're a Fag!
  • skyfire1, on 11/13/2007, -12/+4It's about gameplay, not about sound.
    /whining voice
    • stevey5036, on 11/13/2007, -0/+12the gameplay pretty much RELIES on the sound.... very dumb comment
    • YuriSakazaki, on 11/13/2007, -0/+11A game without stereo sound in today's age is inexcusable, but a music game without stereo? Where was the quality control?
    • WazzaInc, on 11/12/2007, -0/+2Too bad its a music game.
  • dashdingo, on 11/12/2007, -7/+1I still think it's a badass game. I usually don't have my TV up so loud that I can hear the difference, anyway.
  • Schmapdi, on 11/12/2007, -0/+11wow, that's some good testing right there.
  • aldableep3, on 11/12/2007, -4/+11i think it's safe to say anyone playing it with the sound coming from the tv will not miss stereo. The two speakers on a tv are so close together that the sounds are indistinguishable anyway (even on a big tv). The only real way to recognize it is if u have separate speakers (surround sound or otherwise) and the speakers were properly placed. It's still not an excuse though, the developers should've been more careful.
  • graemee, on 11/12/2007, -1/+3I'd like to know why I can find piles of PS/2 & WII versions, but no Wireless Xbox combos. Still waiting for the explorer wired versions to sell off before you ship more, eh Activision *****?
    • Megatog615, on 11/12/2007, -0/+2Cool! Is there a serial version and USB version too?
    • dasdef, on 11/12/2007, -0/+1check toys r us. I was able to pick up a copy for the 360 on the launch date. before checking TRU, i went to WM, BB, EB and FS (future shop in canada). and as a last ditch effort i went to toys r us, which was FULLY STOCKED for all systems.
  • Dan2552, on 11/13/2007, -2/+12How many people actually noticed before things like this came up? Sure people noticed the surround sound, but I doubt anyone thought "hey... This game's playing in mono!"
    • eclipxe, on 11/12/2007, -0/+12When connected to certain surround sound setups, mono signals are ONLY played through the center channel speaker which makes it PAINFULLY obvious that there is something wrong.
    • strumer, on 11/12/2007, -0/+3I noticed right away. The only sound that the game produces comes out of the center channel - so you can barely hear the game at all. So, I have to play with my receiver on stereo mode - although the same sounds comes out of each speaker.
  • pumacub, on 11/12/2007, -7/+2I used to work for a major game publisher... a majority of the testers would play the games without sound so I'm not surprised.
    • crpndeth, on 11/12/2007, -0/+14I'm pretty sure you'd have to play this game WITH sound to be an effective tester.
    • Cdog923, on 11/12/2007, -1/+14Yea, but how the blue hell do you play a music-themed game with no sound?
    • kajoob, on 11/12/2007, -0/+2Are you getting a kick out of most of these replies?
  • Ub3rg33k, on 11/12/2007, -3/+6I don't see how anyone playing on a standard TV would even notice. The only people effected would be those using surround sound systems for audio reinforcement. I have Wii GH3 as do others I know and none of us have had any problem playing the game and enjoying it.
    • Kier, on 11/13/2007, -2/+3People with POS TVs wouldn't care, but those of us with $500+ systems are gonna be pretty pissed when our $100+ music game doesn't even use our system properly.
    • bastardo, on 11/12/2007, -0/+2So just because it doesn't affect you it doesn't matter?
    • thomascj, on 11/29/2007, -0/+1you're wrong.

      in co-op mode, for instance, each players notes/screw-ups come out of the speaker on their respective side. if you try playing co-op mode in mono, one of the players will not hear themselves, and won't hear their screwups. It's DEFINITELY noticeable. I'm speaking from experience, as we tried to play GHII on a a tv with only mono speakers, and a projector with a crappy receiver -- it was glorious except that one player couldn't hear what they were playing. Solution? play the mode where both players play the same thing.
  • Cdog923, on 11/13/2007, -5/+2I can't notice it, but I'm getting rid of this game the say the Wii version of Rock Band is announced anyways.
  • Zapita, on 11/12/2007, -2/+0oh oh... i guess now i'm glad the wii version hasn't been available in Mexico yet
  • cavie2002, on 11/12/2007, -1/+30iv never heard a video crowd cheer like that before
  • rjett, on 11/13/2007, -2/+3Haha.. I just thought that Guitar Hero had a weird mix of these songs to emphasize the guitar parts more. Lack of stereo sucks, but I didn't notice it too much or care.
  • hipnotyq, on 11/12/2007, -0/+6lol how could they ***** this up so bad?
  • MarkusGarvey, on 11/12/2007, -11/+2hmmmm....last time i checked, the guitar, acoustic or electric, is a mono instrument.....and yes i do play REAL guitars...
    • IEatEmoKids, on 11/12/2007, -2/+6Hmmm.
      Last time that I checked, we weren't playing with REAL guitars.
    • YuriSakazaki, on 11/12/2007, -1/+11What does that have to do with songs that have multiple channels of audio?
    • bonk2k, on 11/12/2007, -2/+3Last time I checked stereo sound has been standard since SNES
    • MarkusGarvey, on 11/12/2007, -1/+1last time i checked....YOU WERE FAGS!!!!!!!!!!
  • londubh, on 11/12/2007, -2/+2fnord.
  • ryan83189, on 11/12/2007, -4/+5People keep saying that you cant even notice it on a normal tv. This is not true it becomes obvious when you are using mono (even with both speakers on).I chalenge you to play a FPS with mono on. You would lose . Alot of rock songs play with the stereo, alternating channels etc. They often have the guitar and vocals on the left and bass and drums on the right, or vise versa. It gives you a realistic concert experince without it sounds so differnt.
    • JenadaeXX, on 11/12/2007, -3/+1FPS with mono on? I'm sorry that is only for Halo fags. The rest of us have at the very least 2.1 systems on our computers.
      • vocalyouth, on 11/12/2007, -0/+1Both of the posters above me are total morons. Also, I play plenty of Halo, with the SOUND OFF and music playing from my computer, I guess that means I slurp mansicles and always lose. Right guys?
  • Gerchak, on 11/13/2007, -1/+13Developers are getting far too lax with not completing a game before it's released. Case in point being the games for the 360 and PS3 that get patches that fix bugs. I'm not saying games should be completely perfect upon release, but games shouldn't be so bad as to lack sound channels before getting released. That's completely ridiculous.
    • mattyice11, on 11/13/2007, -0/+3At least the PS3 and 360 games are getting patched when there's a problem. Wii owners are out of luck here, and anyone waiting for a recall will be waiting forever.
    • h4rdcor3, on 11/13/2007, -1/+5They've been doing this to us pc gamers for years. Look at the battlefield series, BF 2 didn't get playable until 2142 came out
  • EnderMB, on 11/13/2007, -0/+21I can see a certain QA team getting fired...
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