Freestyle!
I really enjoyed the original DJ Hero, but when the sequel came out I wasn’t sure if I was going to get it. Between Guitar Hero 17 and Rock Band 36, I wasn’t sure what music game I’d get this fall season. I used to get all the music games, but with less time these days and less interest, I figured I was going to buy only one. I ended up deciding to pick up DJ Hero 2, and I’m glad I made that decision. Guitar Hero and Rock Band are starting to feel been there done that, and I already know how to play the real guitar and keyboard so Pro Mode has nothing to offer me, so I went for the fresher experience – DJ Hero 2.
New Features
DJ Hero was a pretty solid experience. The button presses don’t feel legitimate, but everything else feels like you’re being a DJ. Gameplay wise, the same features return – you press buttons on the record, scratch, fade between tracks and turn an effects knob. As I mentioned in my DJ Hero Review, it’s a lot of multitasking which provides for quite a challenging experience.
The game also includes some new features which improve the gameplay experience. There are now freestyle sections: freestyle scratching which allows you to scratch in whatever you want, and freestyle fading, which is my favorite new feature in the game. During the freestyle fading sections, you get the chance to fade between the two tracks that are being mixed together in any way you want. It’s pretty awesome, and gives you the feeling that you are really in control of the mix (you are). You can fade to the lyrics of one song and then back to the lyrics of the other song, and then you can get both tracks going at once. I get excited any time one of these sections comes up.
There are some other additions: now you have to hold some of the button taps, and one or two other things, and they just serve to round out the experience. The gameplay is still a lot of fun, and I really am enjoying it. But as with any music game, it’s all about the music. So how does it stack up?
New Soundtrack
Music often comes down to personal preference, but for what it’s worth, I absolutely love the DJ Hero 2 soundtrack. The songs feel more like club mixes as opposed to some of the plain old mash-ups that were in the first game. There is a remixed version of California Love, some Lady Gaga for the kids, and some Grandmaster Flash for the old school heads. The remixes are good and feel organic – the DJs who mixed the songs definitely have some skills.
Added to the mix are new “megamixes” that feature in each club (level) – these megamixes are three or four songs in a row including the transitions between the songs. It sounds like something you would hear at the club. I’m way too old for the club, but it’s cool to listen to the music.
Anyway, overall, I am really enjoying DJ Hero 2. It helps that I received the turntable as a gift last year – it’d be tough for me to spend 100 bones on the game. Then again, the experience is a lot more fresh and more fun than band games right now, so maybe I would. Luckily, I don’t have to worry about that. DJ Hero 2 is definitely scratching my music itch!
