The first Guitar Hero made any other music game look instantly obsolete and geeky. Sorry but banging on bongos, shaking maracas, hitting taiko drums, dancing, singing bad karaoke...I mean, come on. You have to admit, Red Octane and Harmonix really knocked one out of the park with the original. Now the second game has been announced and its 55 secret songs are as closely guarded as the colonel's 11 herbs and spices (hint: 10 of the herbs and spices are salt!).

We do know that the 7 songs that will be playable at E3 are:

• KISS - "Strutter"
• Drist - "Arterial Black"
• The Butthole Surfers - "Who Was in My Room Last Night"
• The Reverend Horton Heat - "Psychobilly Freakout"
• Black Sabbath - "War Pigs"
• The Kinks (the Van Halen version) - "You Really Got Me"
• RUSH - "YYZ"
  

Promised in the sequel is multiplayer co-op mode, where players can choose to play either the lead, rhythm or bass. You gotta love that. I wonder what kind of low self-esteem you have to possess to pick up a guitar controller as a "player 2" and play the bass! I'm kidding.

When the second installment hits stores later this Fall (November) you can bet the wicked will once again, not be resting. Rock out!

Press:

Get ready for a rock encore! RedOctane® announced today that Johnny Napalm and friends will begin touring the US again this Fall in the new videogame “Guitar Hero II™”. Picking up where Guitar Hero™ left off, Guitar Hero II arrives with a new track list, new venues and additional play modes – including the ability to transform the original Gibson SG Guitar Hero Controller into a rhythm, lead or bass guitar.

“Guitar Hero has proved phenomenally successful! Guitar Hero veterans will be able to plug in their Gibson SG Guitar Hero Controllers and rock GH II straight out of the box,” said Kelly Sumner, CEO of RedOctane. “We will really push the envelope with Guitar Hero II. Despite the fact there are many months until release, we’re already implementing exciting features and innovations. This fall we’re going to rock everyone’s world all over again.”

The top-secret sequel song list remains firmly in the rock domain, pulling from a mix of classic rock, ‘hair’ metal, heavy metal, modern rock, and alternative titles. More than 55 songs will be featured in the next installment.

Veteran music videogame developer Harmonix® Music Systems has been busy in-studio, enriching this rockstar experience with more features and multiplayer modes. In addition to the traditional head-to-head competition, Multiplayer Co-op Mode allows players to collaborate in order to beat songs, with each guitarist playing a separate guitar track. Available guitar tracks include lead, rhythm or bass tracks, depending upon the song. The Guitar Hero SG Controller used in the first installment will also be compatible with the new game.

Guitar Hero II is the follow-up to 2005’s award-winning release, “Guitar Hero,” which rocked the game industry and garnered a stack of awards including: “Best Offline Multiplayer Game 2005” and “Music Game of the Year 2005” from IGN.com, and “Best Soundtrack 2005” at the Spike TV Videogames Awards. Recently, it picked up five awards at the D.I.C.E. Summit's Interactive Achievement Awards including Outstanding Innovation in Gaming and Family Game of the Year.

By Vaughn Smith
CCC Site Director