Guitar Hero Etiquette

It’s been fairly well established that Guitar Hero is around to stay.The game is a near-universally enjoyable way to kill an afternoon or evening with your friends. Oftentimes entire parties are centered around the game, bringing a whole new social slant to playing the game. Whether you’re playing with a partner, against an opponent, or flying solo in front of adoring spectators, I think it’s time some basic rules of etiquette and common courtesy were laid out to make Guitar Hero fun and enjoyable for all involved.

• Establish Order of Turns. This is obvious, and should be gotten out of the way immediately. Especially if only one controller is available. Have co-op partners pair off early, and have Pro Face-Off challengers sign up, a la beer pong. (This really only applies to larger gatherings; groups of 5 or less need not adhere.)
  

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  Limit Re-Tries. No one wants to watch someone fail a song 4 times in a row. Try this as a rule of thumb: If a player fails a song before reaching 50% Completion, allow one re-try. If they fail at 51% or later, that’s their turn.

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  No Repeat Songs. This isn’t Top 40 radio; no one wants to hear a song twice in a row. If a song you wanted to play has already been done, allow a buffer of at least 5 songs before selecting it. If a song you wanted to play has already been done twice, forget it. There are 50 songs to choose from; don’t just play “Jessica” nine times.

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  Don’t Backseat Play. If you know the tricky strumming pattern, or the fact that it’s easier to anchor the index finger on the red for this passage, keep it to yourself. If the player hasn’t asked for your help, they don’t want it. And for God’s sake, don’t drum out the strumming pattern on your lap.

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  Don’t Hog one Guitar. Unless the room is trying one-by-one to unseat a current champion, no one single person should bogart one controller for 3 songs in a row. This includes the host, or whoever owns the game or controllers.

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  Avoid Freebird. Unless there’s only a couple hardcore players left around, or you’ve been playing tourney-style and Freebird is the ominous, looming final round, steer clear of this 10-minute test of the rest of the room’s patience.

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  Showmanship, People! Don’t just stand there like you’re in the Dandy Warhols; Rock out! There’s a reason they made that wonderful little plastic Gibson, folks. Jump around! Bang your head! Get funky.
  

Of course, once Rock Band comes out, all bets are off.