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The Elusive Music Game Fanboy

by July 29th 2008 5:38 PM CDT0 Comments

We all hate fanboys. They are dumb, obsessive, and usually lack the ability to use punctuation that's does not include an exclamation mark. I've ragged on the gaming community's hive mentality before, and if there's one thing I'm good at doing, it's calling out fanboys when they surface, showering them in woe and humiliation.

Recently however, one subspecies of fanboy has slipped through the cracks of scrutiny. They have become commonplace in our community. Dare I say, it is even acceptable to be seen as this type of fanboy more so than any other. I speak of the Music Game Fanboy my friends, and they come in two types.

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Though they both need to be wiped off the face of the internet, overzealous Rock Band fanboys annoy me more so than Guitar Hero Fanboys. Rock Band fanboys tend to troll Guitar Hero news like they are on a crusade to convert the heathen masses from their sinful ways. Check out any comment section on a Guitar Hero article and you won't go three posts without spotting something like "Guitar Hero sucks", "money-grubbing bastards!" or "I hope the greedy a-holes at Activision rot in hell!".


Recently when it was announced that Hendrix will be making an apperance in a new Guitar Hero, fanboys cried on his exclusivity, proclaiming Jimi was rolling in his grave. I guess the issue is right to complain about, but maybe they should remind themselves that AC/DC is exclusive to Rock Band 2.

Guitar Hero Fanboys are a different breed. They roam in packs, snickering at Rock Band fanboys behind their backs in the cafeteria. I'll give you an accurate description of these creatures entirely by using a post that was on the Guitat Hero forums:

"The Rock Band gameplay is so ****ing bad i cant even play it for longer than an hour. Same with GH2 (Which was also made by Harmonix... coincidence?). GH3 was the only one i liked. It has the best songs, best gameplay, and it is much more fun to play, even though it doesnt have other instruments. Now that Activision and Neversoft have gotten rid of Harmonix, they can improve on GH3 even more, which means that GHWT will be the best music game in the history of anything, and that rock band 2 will be a crappy inferior game."

See? At the very least they're more entertaining in a retarded childish way. Aww, look: he censors himself with asterisks! How cute.

Of all games you shouldn't take sides on, music games are number one. More music games means I get to play more music. When Harmonix is releasing a steady stream of DLC Neversoft must match. If Neversoft announces a song creator or signs a major band, Harmonix has to respond. Both games improve as a result of the competition. Rock Band 2 has already been announced to have sturdier instruments and a Band World Tour that adds an unprecedented amount of customization and micromanaging.


Guitar Hero: World Tour is revamping the boss mode, adding more instruments, and adding a player-creator. This is not even bringing up all of the innovative new features that are coming to both like RB's new Drum Trainer or GH's song creator.

Calling for the demise of either is about as counterproductive as it gets, yet the fanboy rivalry is easily the most vicious of any two games out there and can appear to be extremely lopsided in either way depending where you look. They're like nerd gangs.

I assume it's because of the price of the games themselves (which are considerably more expensive due to the added peripherals). The more people pay for something the more attached they become to it and less open they are to criticism or buying the competition. This is why we have such avid console fanboys and why you don't see heated discussions between Geometry Wars and Asteroids Deluxe fans. I don't expect everyone to go out and buy both games, I only have Guitar Hero 3 myself. But root for the competition instead of domination, as in the end the former is what benefits the consumer.

Gamers need to do a better job of calling out these fanboys like we do all others; whether it be in blog comments, Digg, or in message boards. Brand preference is one thing, rabid brand attack and defense is annoying and unsightly. If you are one of these fanboys, I think you should tone it down a little. Realize that both games appeal to people for different reasons, and don't make a point to troll news for the other title. Instead of shooting down new features in the rival game, be positive and vocal so your game will hopefully get these features. Even if you own just one of the games like most of us not allowed into Club Money Bags, you will benefit from their being another game out there.