Here it is folks, my first review, and a potentially odd choice of game to start off with. Wasn’t DJ Hero recently killed off? I hear you ask, well yes, it was somewhat recently axed by the smug suit types at Activision, along with its parent franchise, Guitar Hero, for failing to meet sales criteria. This fairly controversial decision makes it the perfect time for me to discuss the game though. That all sorted? Good.
DJ Hero was originally released around late October of 2009, and went on to become the biggest new intellectual property of the year in North America. Not shabby for a game many initially panned, including myself; I must admit. The concept seemed so alien at first. A plastic turntable, to add to the pile of other lumps of plastic gathering dust around my room… Pretending to be a DJ? I could understand the appeal of wanting to be a rock god, but not a DJ, by any means. Months passed, and as the game’s release drew ever closer, more and more was seen from the game. The track-listing sounded top rate, some of the unlockables (Namely playable characters such as Daft Punk and DJ Shadow) were also a massive hook for some consumers. Not to mention, now the game had been seen and demonstrated, gamers were beginning to get to grips with how the game would work.
The game was released across platforms, receiving incredibly high review scores across the board. It was new, it was fun and exciting, and most importantly, it worked brilliantly. But this isn’t about what other people thought of the game, it’s about what I think, right?
In terms of gameplay, DJ Hero offers a unique, fun and fresh take on the admittedly stagnating rhythm genre. It didn’t completely re-invent the concept of rhythm games; essentially pressing the right buttons at the right time with another action or two thrown in. Yet, it varied enough from the standard of gameplay the preceded it, to feel new, yet satisfying and comfortably similar. The game offers a wide variety of songs to play through, with over 100 varied and contrasting songs compiled into 93 mixes to play through, but more about that later. There’s almost definitely enough content to keep you satisfied for a long time, considering the four difficulties you potentially playable as you increase in skill. Furthermore, there are also the multiplayer and online modes to keep you entertained, and to offer a new challenge if you see fit. The peripheral included with the game, the turntable controller, also feels sturdy and satisfying to use. It’s well built, has a fairly pleasing design, is adaptable for both lefties and righties and has some great finishing touches, such as an illuminated button alerting the player of available ‘Euphoria’ [Similar to Star Power in the Guitar hero games] It’s easy enough to learn your way around the controller, but it takes a relative level of experience and time to fully master the turntable, only adding to the satisfaction factor of the game.
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| Daft Punk provide some of the best mixes in the game, as to be expected |
The forced lack of ability to fail might make the game seem disappointingly easy at first glance, yet you’ll hardly progress without a sufficient star rating on each song. It also has the added benefit of persuading those that would not usually consider even trying to at least have a go, without a fear of failing. Overall though, the single player aspect of the game is one of the more entertaining efforts into the genre for a good few years, if not, one of the best around. The multiplayer portion of the game may fall short for some people though, with local multiplayer requiring a second, relatively expensive, turntable controller present for DJ on DJ battles. In terms of multiplayer battles as well, rewinds, one of the features of the single player area of the game, are disabled due to the fact that it would destroy the multiplayer element of the game. Furthermore, when battling another DJ, you’ll either take it in turns, or merely both be playing the same sections of the tracks simultaneously, which, whilst fun at first, tends to becoming stale relatively quickly.
DJ Hero has an amazing visual style, something it would later lose a lot of for a slicker (or blander, take your pick) look in the sequel. Vibrant, bright and attention grabbing, in a genre of game that doesn’t necessarily even need to focus heavily on visuals, DJ Hero gives a stellar performance. The playable venues provide a real sense of the lifestyle that FreeStyleGames attempted to portray to the gamer. Furthermore, the unlockable characters all look fantastic and act as a worthy tribute to the various artists that feature throughout the game. The only minor complaints in terms of graphics are some pretty appalling design choices when the camera pans out to the crowd, where it’s clear minimal effort was placed in areas. A real shame, considering the slick, tight style otherwise consistently applied throughout; from the fantastic opening CGI cut-scene (Something that’s otherwise indescribable) through the menu screens to actual gameplay. Other minor complaints include the choice of lighting effects, such as harsh flashes that make it hard to focus, and the occasional in game advertisement… but, whatever brings in extra funds, right?
In terms of audio and the soundtrack, the game sounds utterly amazing. To those not aware of the concept of mashups, the large portion of the mixes of the games consist of two well-known songs (for the most part) These songs are then taking and mixed together, with elements of either song played over the other, or removed entirely to create an entirely new experience or take on the song. It’s probably easier to think of it as a re-invention of a song in one sense. For the large part, the mixes in the game all work incredibly well, and the people working on the sound design of the game, including the unlockable characters themselves, did a near perfect job in crafting the sound of this game. The variety of genre is wide enough for almost everyone to find something they recognise or at least enjoy, with hip-hop, dance, electronic, pop, and forms of rock music all featuring in the set-list. The only place the game really falls down in terms of audio design are the occasional DJ mix that doesn’t work out so well, and for the most part, the Guitar and DJ mixes, played using a turntable controller and a Guitar Hero controller [another multiplayer element, although without a friend on guitar, the computer ably takes over]
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| Even turntablist legend 'DJ Shadow' lent his skills to the Soundtrack |
You’ll instantly find your favourite mixes that you’ll want to play repeatedly, or even discover a new style that you would never have even considered listening to before playing DJ Hero, and that’s one of the great things about the game. It takes elements of such a wide variety of genres and whilst not only presenting them in a slick, great sounding package, will also introduce a wide variety of people to new, interesting and great music, which the game can only be commended for. Another minor complaint, however, would be the over usage of particular songs, in place of different or new songs that could have ensured the whole game sounded brilliant a solid 100% of the time. That’s right Rihanna, I’m looking at you. There’s also been the occasional grumble that the soundtrack may be too heavily influenced by Hip-hop, but it’s down to personal discretion. I personally found myself not minding to a great enough extent that it bothered me.
The time to pick up the game has never been better, or potentially more vital, what with FreeStyleGames unfortunate closer, only increasingly the likelihood that the game will be harder to track down at a later date. Not to mention, it’s massively fallen in price since release, one of the original problems many had with the game, though I personally felt the game was worth every hard-earned penny. Heck, even pick up a turntable edition of the sequel, which I have yet to pick up myself, and get the first game free, for minimal extra cost!
In summary, DJ Hero is a brilliantly designed debut entry into the stagnating rhythm genre, personally reigniting my love for the genre, and proving the flogged horse wasn’t quite dead yet. From the concept, to the soundtrack, to the multitude of features throughout, even to the visual aspects, the game has a highly polished feel, and is simply incredibly satisfying from start to finish. Seeing physical progress and unlocks awarded for improvement over the course of the game feels rewarding, and the difficulty never seems to spike at any point. Ranging from manageable, to fiendishly difficult at times, but never impossible, the game also presents itself as a challenge, something new and intuitive for gamers. Nothing feels quite like achieving a five star rating on the harder songs on the game, whilst having so much fun playing through the mixes. Building on this is the knowledge that you have relative control over what you hear, including the option to drop a selection of samples during certain points of songs, or even the inclusion of the rewind mechanic, that allows you to replay a few seconds of a song to rack up even more points.
-An overwhelmingly staggering achievement in Rhythm game design and execution.
-A solid, incredibly fun experience, that lasts for hours beyond the single player aspect.
-Sounds phenomenal, the soundtrack needs to be heard to be truly appreciated.
-Decent unlocks, that act as a great incentive for some.
-Some weaker elements that hinder the game from true excellence.
-Multiplayer can be a little shallow at times.
