Let me start this off by saying that this game showcases the exact reason why me and my people wanted to start a web site for game and movie reviews. It’s pretty clear that there are plenty of people dogging this game, I don’t get it…of course everyone has their own opinion but damn, just because I’m not into rock so much doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy Guitar Hero (I love Guitar Hero & Rock Band). I’ve heard people say it isn’t accessible, it’s too hard, the turntable is too foreign. F@ck that! I remember the first time people played Guitar Hero…nobody was good at it, there WAS a learning curve there as well.

Their are certain people who think everyone grew up doing air guitar performances to Metallica and White Snake…sorry to break it to ya but I grew up “fake” scribble scratching on the side of my mom’s couch to Jam Master Jay (R.I.P.) and Jazzy Jeff. There is a whole world of people out there who know and respect what a DJ does and this game is for them…just like the fake guitar and drums gave people a new found respect and love for rock this fake turntable is poised to do the same thing for Hip-Hop, Dance & Electronica.

Let’s move on…I’ll get this out the way now…this game is hard. Not because it doesn’t “sink up” or whatever other crap excuses people are making for sucking at the game. It’s hard because you have to pay attention to A LOT of stuff at once. Here’s an example, I’m playing the game on medium and already have to do complex cross fades, add special effects, scratch, time up button presses, distort sound and “rewind” the music…also the button for the euphoria effect (star power) is separate so you have to take your hand off the fader to hit it. On hard they ramp up the speed, add more button presses, as well as incorporate directional scratches and other little touches that bring a frustrating amount of difficulty to an already difficult game.

That being said the game is still fun as hell! The sound track is a banger…comprised of over 90 “mash-ups” ranging from the Jackson Five, Eric B. & Rakim to Blondie & Gwen Stefani. The sound track is live enough that you could easily play the music at a party and get it popin’. I have been enjoying the soundtrack in this much more than any other rhythm game I’ve played. There has never been an opportunity to have such diverse music in one game…I hope Activision supports this game with DLC to really help DJ Hero fully mature.

Everyone is probably wondering about the turntable controller. Don’t worry its built well and doesn’t feel like it’s going to break after 5 minutes of use…even the crossfader (which you’ll be slamming back and forth often.) slides and clicks the way it should…The only gripe I have with it is that your fingers have a tendency to slide off the turntable during intense scratches. The turn table itself is fairly small compared to the other fake instruments out there. After my 4th guitar and second drum set I had to relegate a lot of my fake instruments to the garage…they were taking up way too much space. The turntable isn’t much bigger than a large book so you shouldn’t have any trouble stashing it in a closet or in a cabinet when you’re done.

There are quite a few things that were taken directly from guitar hero…of course the colored buttons but there are also sections where you have to perform perfectly to build up euphoria. Euphoria is DJ Hero’s version of Star Power. There is also the freestyle mode that is similar to the Drum Fills in Rock band…one thing about the Freestyle mode is you’ll have to have some natural rhythm to really make it sound good. With the freestyle you have to choose what effect you are going to use, then insert the effect into the song at specific moments. If you are rhythm deficient or choose the wrong effects it’s going to sound like crap. On the other hand if you do it right you can set the track off with a little personal creativity that will make you feel like you’re really rockin’ the crowd. If you get real good at it you can change effects mid freestyle and really set the track off.

All-in-all the game is well done, there is definite room for improvement but DJ Hero is undoubtedly a breath of fresh air in the rhythm game genre. There have been a lot of great reviews for the game but there has been an awful lot of hate as well…unfortunately hate always seems to be louder than love (damn that sounded corny). If you’re unsure go to your local Best Buy and give it a spin I’m sure they have a kiosk running the game. Be sure to play it on easy though for your fist time…you will definitely have to go through the training to get a handle on all the techniques…and that’s something you just can’t do with a 5 min sit down at your local game store.

Pros:

• Great/Addictive Gameplay
• Bangin’ Sound Track
• Innovative new controler

Cons:

• A little unforgiving
• Multiplayer could use a little work
• Fingers can slip off turntable

Rating: (8.5/10)

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