Guitar Hero [With Guitar Controller] [PS2]

If you had the choice between hopping around to one of Britney Spears' "classics" or strapping on a Gibson SG and rocking out to freakin' Iron Man, which would you choose? If you chose the former, then head over here. If you're like us, though, and would rather watch Ozzy bite the head off of living creatures than watch a scantily-clad blonde... err, hmm, on second thought... Bah, we'll take Ozzy every time.

Music games have a tendency to be great fun for parties and such, but very few of them have ever struck that certain primal chord deep inside all of us -- the same chord that makes you want to kick back with a cold one and eat three pounds of meat hot off the barbeque in the middle of summer while lounging in your backyard in a ripped up t-shirt you've been wearing since high school. Guitar Hero is one of those rare games that does just this, and we even say that it's better than three pounds of meat. Beer? That's a close one. But meat? Hell yeah. It kicks meat's ass.

While Guitar Hero draws very close comparison to Konami's Guitar Freaks, we have yet to see that series hit any console outside of Japan. So while you can head over to an import-friendly arcade for your guitar gaming fix , Guitar Hero is your only option at home. But not only is Guitar Hero the only in-home option, it's the best you'll find there or in a coin-op house. Harmonix and Red Octane have nailed this one in almost every way, and while we can always wish for more (and we want more, now), what's there is nearly perfect.

The Axe The main catch of Guitar Hero is its Gibson SG-based guitar peripheral, and though you can play the game with a standard controller, the SG guitar is essential to completing the experience. If you plan on playing the game's two-player mode, you'll definitely want to pick up a second SG (don't stick your buddies with a regular pad).

The SG features five fret buttons, a strummer (instead of strings to pick), a whammy bar, and is roughly the same size as a travel guitar. It's pretty comfortable to wear, not only because of its light weight but because it's reasonably close to the size of a real guitar - 75% the total size or so is a reasonable guess - so it doesn't feel awkward in your hands as it might if you were holding a toy.

The best part about the guitar is that it incorporates most of the real life techniques and motions that a guitarist would perform on a real instrument. Hammer-ons, pull-offs and up-down strumming all work with this device, making the transition from the real thing to the Guitar Hero SG as minor as moving from strings to buttons. Had the guitar not allowed for conventional techniques that are second-nature in a guitarist's repertoire, it would have been crippling. Smartly, Red Octane has designed the peripheral to not only utilize these techniques in the songs, but to embrace real guitar playing styles and techniques as well. Kudos for that.

For more in-depth analysis, check out the IGN Gear review of the Guitar Hero Mini Gibson SG.