DJ Hero: Suck/Counter-Suck

When I play any game, my enjoyment is always dependent on a balance of two variables. 1) How much do I suck? And 2) How much does the game suck? Griffin the Younger has been reviewing DJ Hero and I sat in for a few sessions, and was able to answer both questions in a short amount of time. The game is brought to us by them Guitar Hero fellas. I've been playing their games since GH1 and I have seen them become more and more difficult. Thank goodness for Rock Band or I would have given up on music games all together.

Now here's the thing, a game being challenging does not make it bad. Everyone enjoys a challenge and I am not looking for a cake walk. I play every instrument on Rock Band at the highest difficulty I can and I just try not to fail in some cases. But there always needs to be training time, and that's what "easy" is for. For the record, there is a "beginner" mode in DJ: Hero. The problem is, it becomes the equivalent of a game for 3-5 year olds. Then, comes the MASSIVE jump in difficulty between beginner and easy. I've been playing video games for as long as I can remember and if it had been possible, I would have failed out on "easy".

It is not the game mechanics themselves that tripped me up, they are easy enough to figure out. The problem comes from the relentless tracking. I feel like "easy" should apply to both the number/variety of obstacles and the room for error. I was not confused during the song, but I also was not pinpoint perfect in my execution. Like a harsh German headmistress, the game is unforgiving.

All that aside, the song selection is incredible. The normal format is one recognizable song with one funky beat song that most people will not recognize right away. All of the mixes are well executed and interesting. It's one of the few rhythm games (besides DDR) that is more fun to watch someone play than to play myself. The problems comes when the observers start to pile up. What is fun for one person to watch, becomes boring around 3 or 4 people. The multi-player modes are obviously tacked on. The game is not a party game; I see it as a game more for the hardcore player who is also a music lover.

I would say this game is 63% I suck and 37% it sucks. If you are rockin' at rhythm/music games then most likely you will dig this game. If, like me, you are more of a "medium" or "hard" kind of player, be ready to get pretty damn frustrated. Make sure to play it before you spend $120 bucks on a game that might not be your cup o' tea.