Tod Machover - The Original Guitar Hero

So after a couple of TapeMonkey blogs relating to Rock Band and Guitar Hero of late, it got me curious as to where the technology had come from and what it was actually intended for. It seemed to me a lot of trouble to go to, to develop such a sophisticated computer peripheral, since in the games its only used to attempt to parallel a the series of music co-ordinated 'fret-board sequences' that are displayed on-screen. I figured that the same device could actually be used to create simple tunes and melodies, or to use the midi functionality available on most computer sound cards, to actually compose. Turns out my suppositions are correct, these 'key-tars' (or 'hyperinstruments' as they were originally known) were designed using licenced technology that has a lot more on it's mind... and the inventor of this tech, Tod Machover (along with his MIT research group), is some kind of a genius... Stay tuned 'til the end of the second video where Tod joins the likes of Jack White and Jimmy Page in dissing GH and Rock Band.


So if These games aren't about music so much, what explains their appeal? maybe it's about power:

Science Explains Why We Love Guitar Hero

Andy Chalk posted on 18 Sep 2009 9:42 am

Filed under: andy chalk, guitar hero, rock band, science

Ever wonder why games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero are so wildly popular? New York University professor of psychology Gary Marcus says it's because they give us a feeling of power.

In some ways, Marcus wrote on his blog at Psychology Today, Rock Band and Guitar Hero "seem like the stupidest games on Earth," and with the way he describes them it's not hard to see why. "Colored discs scroll down a TV screen, and eager participants mash colored buttons in time with what they see," he wrote. "You press a red button when you see a red disc, a blue button when you see a blue disc, and hold your fire when you see nothing. Rinse, lather, and repeat; that's about all there is to it."

He acknowledges the runaway popularity of the two franchises, which have grossed over $3 billion between them. But why? "What," he asked, "is the appeal of a game that demands so little of the human mind?" It's not the music, which can be had cheaper and with less work by simply buying a few CDs or hitting iTunes. Nor are we learning anything about making real music or music theory; we're just pushing buttons like a hamster who wants a treat. So what's the appeal?

"It's a lust for power," Marcus said. "Not of the sort that allows one to rule the world, but the sort that allows one to control one's own world."

Simply put, people are happier when they're in control of a situation, but according to Marcus the human mind has a tricky time determining when we actually have that control. Guitar Hero succeeds because it's able to create a "potent illusion of temporal contingency" - we know we're not actually playing the music but when we do well in the game by pressing the right button at the right time to make the right sound come out, a certain murky part of our brain is tricked into thinking we are and we get a small, artificially-induced but very real taste of what it's like to be standing on stage, strutting our stuff.

"When I push the button, I hear Keith Richards," Marcus explained. "When I fail to push the button (or press the wrong button, or press it late), I don't hear Keith Richards. Therefore, I am Keith Richards!"

link

'inferring causality from a potent illusion of temporal contingency' - the same logical rationale could be applied to a lot of gaming enjoyment, but the XBOX nerds aren't going to like hearing that...

Who says gamers are childish? me, but that's kind of why I like them... Some of the stuff they enjoy is just so silly