DJ Hero 2 Impressions

We've been itching to scratch this sequel.

June 8, 2010

Last year we needed a hero to come and save us from music game overload. With multiple band games released on every system, we prayed for a savior that would come offering something new; something exciting. That hero came, and it was fittingly called DJ Hero. With an amazing tracklist of all-original mixes that explored genres rarely seen in Guitar Hero or Rock Band, DJ Hero brought music games back to our house parties. We recently got to see DJ Hero 2 in action and are happy to report it looks like our few complaints with the first game are all being addressed.

There will be another 70+ never-before-heard mixes cut and pasted from over 100 songs. We know of three mixes so far:

- Lady Gaga "Just Dance" Mixed With Deadmau5 "Ghosts 'n' Stuff"
- Pussycat Dolls "Don't Cha" Mixed With Pitbull "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)"
- MSTRKRFT "Bounce" Beat Juggle

The artist roster will include Lady Gaga, Deadmau5, Pussycat Dolls, Pitbull, MSTRKRFT, Dr. Dre, Kanye West, Chemical Brothers, Metallica, and Rihanna. Deadmau5 will be a playable DJ and we assume more will be announced.

Get the scoop on DJ Hero 2 straight from the developer.

The original DJ Hero allowed emcees to hook up a USB microphone and freestyle over a mix. Since it wasn't tied into gameplay it was more of a gimmick than a fun feature. DJ Hero 2 integrates vocals into the game so that vocalists can sing or rap along with the mix and be scored on their pitch and accuracy. The lyrics appear at the top of the screen along with a visual pitch indicator, similar to what you find in Rock Band, SingStar, and other band/singing games. In the footage and screenshots we've seen so far, though, the singer's avatar doesn't appear onscreen like the two DJs do. The name for this two-DJ-plus-singer mode is Party Play, and people can hop in and out without interrupting the game.

DJ Hero didn't have a story, but the sequel has Empire Mode, where you'll be working your way through the circuit as an up and coming DJ.

Another improved area is the head-to-head DJ battles. Previously, both players tried to hit the same notes in the same song and battled for the higher score. Now it's more of a call-and-response affair where one DJ cuts it up for a few bars and then the other player takes a turn. It's great, because it feels more like an actual battle. A head-to-head mix is separated into checkpoints and the goal is to win the most checkpoints.

The DJ battle mode is now much more of a "battle."

Freestyle opportunities are now available to scratch, crossfade, and trigger samples how you like. At certain points in a song you'll be able to hold down a turntable button and move the platter back and forth on your own, creating a personalized scratch performance rather than trigger pre-recorded scratches. During these sections you can also crossfade back and forth at will, isolating each record as you please. This time around, the samples have been pulled from the songs in the game, rather than random soundbites – although we are told that familiar air horn is still included.

DJ Hero was fantastic and the sequel is looking even better. This is one of the most impressive E3 games we've seen, yet.
MovieMiguel.com