Rocksmith game - Anyone got it and using it?

[CyberFerret]

So, I believe Rocksmith by Ubisoft is now officially released (at least in the US - We here in Australia still have to wait a few weeks).

I'm interested to see if anyone has got the game, and has played it and can give reports on:

* the guitar tone
* any latency issue?
* overall gameplay - does it get you in or do you lose interest fairly quickly?
* screen presentation of notes/strings - does it work for you?
* usefulness as a learning tool

Thanks!

Note: I wasn't sure which section to post this question in, but I figured seeing as Rocksmith basically turns your Playstation/xBox into a modeller of sorts it might be best in this section!

 

[mdme_sadie]

I've played it,

* Don't expect much from the tone, think early Pod or generic PC Amp Sim plugin, variations of fuzz. It's not great but it wont stop you having fun and generally fits in with the song enough to be unobtrusive and in keeping. You can create your own tones too with different amps and FX if you don't like the defaults for the tunes or want to add your own interpretation.

* Yes there is latency and it can get worse when using HDMI unfortunately, it's still "playable" but you have to be prepared for what to me feels like the 20-30ms range.

* There's a bit of a learning curve at first for beginner guitarists, I think if you were there with other people or had a friend to help you when starting out then sure it could be a lot of fun, but if you're starting out from scratch on your own it might be a bit frustrating. Also if you're an intermediate player then the method it uses of starting out with a more sparse score and then slowly adding in notes may be frustrating, and if you thought you were better than you actually are then that will also be frustrating. The game wont punish you for playing every note that's in the actual song even if it isn't yet notated by the way, and it levels up during the song, so if you really do know the song through and through then by the end of the track it may be showing you every note. It's also quite satisfying to play it's "gigs" especially once you've mastered a song and it hides the notation leaving you with just the waving audience (who react to your playing) and backing track to do your stuff. In that way it's the best simulation of playing live yet!

* Takes a while to get used to, and I think it can be messy when there's a flurry of notes as they aim for horizontal strings at the bottom rather than a single line this means that notes can sometimes appear visually in the wrong order due to the perspective, they hit the strings at the right times though, it's just that e.g. two notes one on bottom E string then one on bottom A string played very closely together it can look as if the A note might come before the E. Although to be fair I only tried the standard layout with notes pouring down form the top, there's a horizontal "tab" mode too which might be better. Bear in mind I'm being hyper critical here, it's actually pretty decent for the most part and easy to get along with, but as it's non-standard then it wont teach you how to sight read.

* It's fun and that helps, but sadly it lacks the ability to practice just a specific range of notes, instead the practice modes only offer pre-defined sections "Chorus 1" "Verse 1" "Solo 1" "Solo 2" etc. I do think you could get proficient at playing the songs in the list using it on it's own and it does have a few other exercises in there, chord shapes, scales, slides, bends etc. presented as a series of mini-games. I'd say it's good learning material for a beginner who just wants to play their favorite hits (if they're available for it) and is potentially a decent exercise tool for anyone.

I would just finish up by saying that personally I really enjoyed playing it, and if nothing else it's a good way to inspire you to practice more. I know this because one of my friends got it and it got him so into playing that he went from barely playing or knowing how to play to now having a several hour a day practice routine which has helped him nail some of his favorite shred solos on his own without Rocksmith and on top of that having a pretty nice guitar collection. So I do think it can be a catalyst for other things and it's definitely "real" guitar unlike all those other music games.

 

[Gaetano Capuano]

Hey there
I have a few students who have it and its a decent learning tool. Really kind of a different method of reading music than the traditional or tab. The tone is horrible, there is some slight latency.

 

[CPower]

Have it!! Cant stand it!! Latency the biggest issue. Its fun for about 10 min then it gets very annoying.

 

[chrisjnyc]

I played it a few times... its OK, but more for kids who have never picked up a guitar.

Wait a few weeks and it will be on the clearance rack

 

[Macleod]

Although to be fair I only tried the standard layout with notes pouring down form the top, there's a horizontal "tab" mode too which might be better.

Where and how is the horizontal Tab mode activated? I haven't found that yet.
Now have I found the newer "slow down" feature they added recently.

For those getting latency issues, run the audio not through your TV, but through something else via the RCA plugs on the Xbox breakout box. Stereo system maybe. I run it through the Aux input on my PC speakers.

I can say that it has helped me with my dexterity and memory for some songs. The Dawn or the Chordead game has been helpful as well... I've always had a very hard time with chords.

 

[theelectic]

Hated it. Bad latency, and this was with a CRT. Tracking was suspect too, even on neck pickup (was using a Silhouette) with tone all the way down. Couldn't make heads or tails of the note scrolling thing, it's just so alien to me after years of reading tab and notation. Lower difficulty levels just drop seemingly random notes? Tone was what I thought it would be, mediocre.

I think it would be fine for total beginners who know nothing about guitar. I know a little bit and have too many bad habits so it frustrated me. Caveat, I dislike rhythm games in general, they just feel bizzarro to me, as I like to be able to jam to whatever at will.

 

[rchiav]

There's no horizontal tab mode and the latency is due to the sound system it goes through and not the game. It takes some tweaking to get rid of the latency but I thought it was worth it.

I can see people who have been playing a long time not liking it, but for someone who's still got a lot to learn, it's a great practice tool. It gives you immediate feedback on what you're doing and and makes you want to play even more.

 

[derek_32999]

I will have to revisit. Seemed neat, but latency was a bitch.

 

[cyclerob]

Waiting for the PC version here!

 

[AZG]

I bought it for my PS3 thinking it might be fun. Unfortunately, the latency (even using analog RCA jacks) was annoying. But what I really hated was the game aspect where it randomly added and removed notes. I wanted a fun way to learn new songs, but the constantly changing notes made it a very frustrating way to learn.

 

[rchiav]

they redid the 'accelerator' mode of riff repeater and you can use it to play the same section again and again at any speed you want and at any 'mastery' you want, so you can play all the notes.

 

[pima1234]

So glad to read this. Not all it's cracked up to be. I get so insulted when students (or their parents) come at me with this whole thing. They're just being lazy slackers and they know it. And I'm not one of those teachers who pushed note reading on their students. We often jam, play songs, etc., even though I'm classically trained and have a been a professional instructor going on 17 years.

 

[Noodler]

I think you're getting comments from people who haven't spent enough time with Rocksmith to really learn how to get it setup and how to use it.

The latency issues can be minimized with a proper external audio setup (I bought a special after-market cable to get this done right). The tab mode can be flipped so that it's just like normal guitar tab. The practice drills for many guitar skills are actually quite good. I mostly bought this for my son (12) and what Rocksmith does is keep things interesting - interesting enough that my son doesn't even realize that he's building hand strength and dexterity while playing with the game. Of course you really need someone there to "coach" correct hand/finger position and form, but it's still good practice.

 

[rchiav]

So glad to read this. Not all it's cracked up to be. I get so insulted when students (or their parents) come at me with this whole thing. They're just being lazy slackers and they know it. And I'm not one of those teachers who pushed note reading on their students. We often jam, play songs, etc., even though I'm classically trained and have a been a professional instructor going on 17 years.

I don't know why you'd be insulted or think it's lazy. It's a tool like anything else and what it does better than any other tool I've seen is make kids play the guitar more. It doesn't replace a teacher, but I think it can certianly be used by a teacher to encourage and augment lessons.

 

[pima1234]

It's the tone with which it is often suggested to me, most often by students who almost never even pick up the guitar from week to week, yet continue to attend lessons. I try with them and their parents, but it's objection after objection. I'm guitar instructor, not a salesman!

But, your suggestion is one that I've been rattling around since I first heard about the game. Why not set it up correctly (as mentioned above) and help students to enjoy what is often a grueling internal and external battle for so many guitar students (and many other players too!).

I don't know why you'd be insulted or think it's lazy. It's a tool like anything else and what it does better than any other tool I've seen is make kids play the guitar more. It doesn't replace a teacher, but I think it can certianly be used by a teacher to encourage and augment lessons.

 

[Lacking Talent]

The latency issues can be minimized with a proper external audio setup (I bought a special after-market cable to get this done right).

Which cable was that, Noodler? And how'd you ultimately set things up?

 

[Noodler]

Here's the link to the right cable: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002P35JMO/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00

I'm running the audio via connection to that cable into a separate 3-piece sub-sat system. Turn off the audio on the TV/monitor.

 

[Lacking Talent]

Cool, thanks. I've got the factory version of that cable for xBox, and my A/V receiver's got banks of empty RCA inputs, since everything else running in and out of it -- except the speaker wire, which terminate in a separate 3-piece sub-sat system -- is HDMI, and I never use the TV's speakers.

 

[Noodler]

If I understand "factory" you mean the A/V cable that comes with the XBox? If so, that won't work if you're using an HDMI connection for your video. That cable does not permit you to have both the HDMI cable connected and the A/V at the same time. That's why I bought the special cable.