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I recently tried Guitar Hero World Tour on an XBox 360 the other day and am considering buying a Guitar Hero game for the Wii, my only console. My question is since the Wii does not match the hardware specs of the XBox 360 (or Playstation 3) will game play be affected negatively?

The reason I ask is because in the past I've overheard or read the Wii is a poor choice for Guitar Hero because it's 'under powered' but I have no idea how founded these opinions are.

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    I don't know many of the differences, but I do know that unless you plan on being VERY serious into Guitar Hero or Rock Band, it's not worth considering buying a new console just to play it. If all you want to do is enjoy some GH/RB, Wii should suit you just fine.
    – Dan Lew
    Nov 1, 2010 at 18:27
  • @Daniel, Yeah, that's the thing. Chances are I'm not going to get obsessed with it so buying a console just for it isn't going to make much sense. But even if I play casually I want impeccable game play. Nov 1, 2010 at 18:34
  • The Wii is rather under-powered graphics-wise, but I don't think that it'd affect your gameplay much. I don't have any Guitar Hero game though, so I can't really answer your question. Nov 1, 2010 at 18:59
  • Just an update: I picked up a copy of RockBand 3 and a guitar controller which, interestingly enough, does not require a Wii controller to operate. Game play so far has been hitch free. Nov 28, 2010 at 18:53

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The Wii is simply not capable of the same level of graphics that you'd expect from an Xbox 360 or PS3, so the effects, models, audience, etc. will all be toned down to different extents. Do consider, however, that most people don't play Guitar Hero primarily for the graphics. The actual gameplay is pretty much identical.

Earlier versions of the Wii Guitar Hero and Rock Band games had issues with the lack of DLC (Downloadable Content) which made the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions far more desirable. I believe that this has mostly been rectified now.

Also note that the Wii suffers greatly from the lack of a real multiplayer (online, not offline) implementation. You will find far less people playing any game online with the Wii than you would on its Xbox 360 or PS3 counterpart. The other consoles make it more seamless and integrated to communicate and play online.

Ultimately the Wii offers an inferior experience. Whether or not this will impact your enjoyment is reliant on how you plan to play the game. I own Guitar Hero 3 on the Wii -- also my only console at the moment -- and have enjoyed countless hours of fun with friends.

If you foresee yourself purchasing another console any time in the future, I'd just wait until then. You're probably going to be spending a lot of money on instruments, so I would say it's best to have them compatible with your favourite console for future versions of the games. If you're sticking exclusively to Wii, however, and like the franchise, then go for it.

On a related note, if you haven't yet tried the Rock Band series and like Guitar Hero, it's definitely worth doing so before you purchase Guitar Hero. They're very similar games, and the instruments are mostly cross-compatible, but Rock Band 3 has some noteworthy additions that aren't to be found in the current iterations of Guitar Hero.

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  • Thanks for your answer @Jamie. To be honest graphics were the last thing I was thinking about while playing so that's not a biggie for me. Nov 1, 2010 at 19:25
  • Is there any online summary of DLC for Wii? Nov 1, 2010 at 19:27
  • You're welcome. Take a look at the Guitar Hero (or Rock Band) Wikipedia page for the version you're interested in. That should clear up any DLC issues, as it points out when a song is not available on Wii. Example for Guitar Hero World Tour Nov 1, 2010 at 19:34
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    One thing to note -- you need one wii-mote per guitar on the wii version, whereas for the 360 and ps3 versions, you only need the guitars. Nov 1, 2010 at 20:00
  • @Raven, ahh you beat me to the bunch with the hardware Nov 1, 2010 at 20:08
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The Wii version is "under powered" in regard to its online component. The offline components are identical between any of the console versions. Online multiplayer and song dlc will be vastly different experiences depending on your console.

Hardware wise, the instruments are exactly the same between consoles except their interfaces. A 360 drum set is not compatible with the Wii game for instance. You also need a Wii-mote for each instrument for the Wii version because the instruments connect through them. For the 360 and PS3, you don't need a controller for each instrument.

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I have guitar hero warriors of rock for wii and i have realise from youtube that the only negative wii guitar hero has, is some effects .. such as while hitting notes... I have also upload a video on you tube where you can see the graphics.. :)

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