Battle of the Bands: Rock Band 4 vs. Guitar Hero Live

Guitar simulators are back to rock out just in time for the holiday season. It’s been a few years since I picked up my guitar and partied with my friends, so it’s time to check if the fun is still there or if it’s time to move on.

How Do They Look?

I really groove on the new look for Guitar Hero. The first person band feeling is nice, and a little reminiscent of classic games running live action video’s instead of computer graphics. It really feels like you’re on stage, but this can be a little distracting from the gameplay.

How About Guitars?

I really like the Rock Band guitars since they use the more traditional color patterns. Guitar Hero uses two sets of 3 keys, with the harder keys pinching across the neck. While this is more like a real guitar, it’s definitely harder to learn, and more of a challenge for those who are familiar with the original designs.

Rock Band Drums

The newer series drums have a nice thick rubber base to absorb a lot more of the pounding compared to the predecessors. These are a definite improvement over the older 360 pads I have at home, and a lot quieter for those planning to start the band in the den or apartment.

Console is Broken? No Problem?

Guitar Hero is taking it one step further by offering the ability to continue to rock out via the Apple IPad, IPhone and Apple TV. Sorry no Android yet. Connect the guitar through Bluetooth directly to your tablet to keep on rocking.

Set List

It’s important to think about the music coming with these games, too. While both have songs I love from bands I like, let’s just compare numbers. According to Guitar Hero, their total song count with 128 with more than 120 in DLC, while Rock Band ships with 65 songs on the disc. Users on the same platform can import songs from previous Rock Band games. Rock Band also plans on having a library of over 1,700 songs. For those metal heads out there, Guitar Hero does seem to have more Metal music than Rock Band.

Graphic Bars

The new graphic bars representing the guitar strums are hard to read on Guitar Hero Live. The guitar pick symbol makes it hard to determine when to strum. It takes a little more to get used to it than the standard bars in Rock Band.

Who Wins?

For me Rock Band is the overall winner. I like the new live feeling of Guitar Hero, however the instruments on rock band just feel easier to use. Guitar Hero has always felt a little more difficult for me. I think it really comes down to how you like to have fun. Guitar Hero makes me feel like I’m playing for myself while Rock Band has a group feeling. It just makes me want to invite some friends over for casual fun. If you’re trying to impress your kids with your classic skills, then Rock Band may be the one for you. If you’re getting the band back together then Rock Band seems, again, to be the better choice. If you prefer to go solo and want more metal in your set list then Guitar Hero might be more for you.

What’s your favorite rhythm or music game? Let us know in the comments below.