Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rock On and On and On, March 29, 2003
Amplitude is a music game which is unique in the fact that it uses songs from established artists - some you most certainly have heard. If you are familiar with music games you would be at home here - the music plays and you perform a part by "playing" the controller while the "music" moves by on the screen. It is the sequel to a game called Frequency and some of this review compares this game to that one.The game also allows you to remix songs but I did not get into that on Frequency and again fail to find it enjoyable. Also the head-to-head mode of this game is kind of strange - the single player is much more enjoyable in my opinion. One of the best parts about Frequency was getting introduced to groups I hadn't heard before and hopefully some of these artists will turn out the same. The music in Amplitude is a mix of familiar and unfamiliar artists. Strangely it seems to be harder to play the songs that I know (Weezer - Dope Nose or Blink 182 - Rock Show) than songs I haven't heard before. Some of my favorite songs on Amplitude are Baseline by Quarashi, Cherry Libs by Garbage, and Urban Tumbleweed by the Baldwin Brothers. Ultimately I feel like somehow these artists were picked to promote them for Sony - I wish there were more variety of tracks. Amplitude is easier to beat than Frequency was - there are 4 difficult modes (Mellow, Normal, Brutal, and Insane) and I started on Brutal when I first got it and played through in about 2 1/2 hours. The expert mode of Frequency was much more difficult. Easy mode is easy enough for my 6 year old to play. I would have been happy with the Frequency base game with new music - what Sony needs to do in the future is modify this game with new music every 3 to 6 months and rerelease it for $20 or so. Much of the effort in the sequel seems to have gone into the system that allows you to create your own "guy" and as you play you unlock new clothes - whatever. Your guy sort of plays along with you - if you are on a guitar track he plays guitar and when you play drums he switches to drums. A final word about the music. I love 4-letter words in my music as much as anybody but while I enjoyed playing Frequency with my kids, some of the songs in Amplitude have bleeped out words and are about mature subjects - and some words that in my opinion should be bleeped aren't.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A great game for any music fan, August 21, 2005
Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars
Musical fans will really get into Amplitude. Modern songs are pulled apart, and the game is actually playing out the various parts of the song, in time.
Sometimes you don't realize just how much intricacy there is to a song until you start to listen to each track separately. Look at how the drums counterpoint the rhythm guitar. The voice interweaves perfectly. It's fascinating to play along with a given part, to see just how well it fits into the mix.
The downside of any game like this is always going to be the music mix. For example, Amplitude includes songs by Garbage, Quarashi, Chris Child, Run-DMC, The Baldwin Brothers, Weezer, and more. If these bands appeal to you, you'll have a blast. If you really hate these bands, you might enjoy the game, but it will madden you to have to listen to the songs over and over again.
I fell somewhere in the middle. I really enjoyed some songs, but just didn't like others. Luckily, I only had to win through a given song once before I could put it behind me :)
Graphics are reasonably good, but really the sound is key here. You barely notice the graphics that swirl around you as you focus on the song, the track markers, and the notes you're aiming to hit.
The game has great difficulty progressions so you could literally play this game for a year or more before you master some of the more difficult levels. If you have any interest at all in being a musician at all, those skills aren't wasted, either. Being able to master those complex rhythms are a real life skill that will serve you well.
Highly recommended.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great improvements!, March 21, 2003
I had a chance to play Amplitude at this year's Game Developers Conference and I must say I was quite impressed.The gameplay is very similar to that of it's predecessor, Frequency, with some minor changes here and there to have it play smoother. The graphics look a lot brighter and cleaner than Frequency. The little FreQ avatar is no longer just an icon but a 3D model that break dances and plays different instruments depending on what trpe of track you are currently on. On the music side, Ampitude keeps it kickin' with popular artists such as blink-182, Garbage, Weezer, David Bowie, Run-DMC, and Pink. There are also quite a few returning artists from Frequency such as Freezepop and SymbionProject. Multiplayer has had quite a bit of change. The play field is no longer divided into 4 squares when 4 people are playing. Instead, everyones is on the same screen and the tracks are laid out in a semi circle (as opposed to the "tunnel" in Frequency). There is also a new power-up: Slow-Mo. Which (obviously) slows down the music for a short period of time. There is built in net play for all of you with the network adapter (perfect for those times when you don't have anyone to play against). I only got to play multiplayer at GDC, but from the limited time I spent with it I was hooked. The only disapointment came when I heard it wouldn't be realease till the end of March.
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