DJ Hero 2
Encyclopedia
DJ Hero 2 is a rhythm video game
and a sequel to DJ Hero
, a spinoff of the Guitar Hero
series. DJ Hero 2 uses a special turntable-controller, the same as introduced in DJ Hero, to simulate turntablism
, the act of creating a new musical work from one or more previously recorded songs using record players and sound effect generators. The game is developed by FreeStyleGames
and is published by Activision
, and was released worldwide in October 2010.
Similar to DJ Hero, players in DJ Hero 2 follow specific actions on the turntable controller in time to marked scrolling indicators on the game's screen, earning points for correctly performing actions in time. The game includes a new freestyle mode, giving the player the chance to freely crossfade
between tracks, scratch
a section of a mix, or add sample effects during marked sections. The game features 83 mixes on disc comprising over 100 different songs, with further mixes available as downloadable content
. Most mixes have been assembled by FreeStyleGames, but other professional DJs, including David Guetta
, deadmau5
, DJ Qbert, Tiësto
and RZA
, have providing both their mixing skills and character avatar
for the game. Players can challenge these mixes at any time in a Quickplay mode, progress through them in the single-player Empire mode, or play cooperatively or competitively with a second user in offline and online game modes. A third player can also participate through singing the mix' vocals.
DJ Hero 2 was well-received by critics, receiving praises for maintaining and improving upon the core elements of the first game, and for a soundtrack featuring a wide selection of genres. However, sales for the title were low, failing to reach similar numbers as DJ Hero from the previous year. In conjunction with poor sales from the Guitar Hero
franchise, Activision announced the cancellation of further development in February 2011, leaving DJ Hero 2 as the final multi-platform iteration of the DJ Hero franchise.
mixing one or two songs using a special turntable controller. The controller, the same unit as shipped previously with DJ Hero, includes a rotatable turntable to use for recording scratching, three "stream" buttons to match notes from the two music tracks and an effects track, and a slider to control the crossfade between tracks. These actions are presented to the players through on-screen notation that scrolls in time with the music. Players score points by performing the actions correctly, but are not penalized otherwise. By successfully completing a consecutive set of actions, the player can increase their scoring multiplier up to 4x; the multiplier returns to 1x should they miss any actions. Certain marked sections, when played correctly, fill a "Euphoria" (the "Star Power" for this game) meter which can be unleashed using another button on the controller and will temporarily double the scoring. The player can also earn the ability to rewind a song by a few seconds by playing a long string of consecutive notes. They can rewind the song by quickly spinning the turntable in reverse; the rewind effect can be used to either correct a mistake or further boost one's scoring.
Small changes have been made in the turntable playback within DJ Hero 2: freestyle effects samples, previously based on game-wide preselected "effect packs", are mix-specific, and the game does not penalize the player for small variations in fast scratching sections as long as it follows the general beat of the song. Specially marked freestyle sections, previously limited to only added sample effects over the track, allow the player to freely mix between the two tracks, use their own scratch effects, or add effects hits while within these sections. The display for these freestyle sections shows marks where switching between the tracks would achieve a strong audio effect, and the player is graded on how well they hit these markers after the end of each mix.
In addition to using a turntable, players have the option to sing or rap to the mixes' lyrics, similar to vocal parts in current Guitar Hero
or Rock Band
games using a compatible microphone controller from most previous rhythm games. The game will score vocals based on the matching of pitch, beat and rhythm.
DJ Hero 2 features an improved single-player career mode called "Empire". Empire provides more structure for the player to proceed through the game than the simple set lists used in DJ Hero. Through Empire mode, the player works though a number of pre-determined setlists and boss battles (as described below) with the celebrity avatars and fictional DJ's at one of six different venues, earning stars that unlock additional venues to play at. Completing certain setlists or battles unlock new characters, outfits for those characters, and virtual turntable decks for the player. Five of these decks are "power decks" that slightly change the scoring mechanism or play style of the game; one increases the maximum multiple to 5x, while another one increases the rate that notes are displayed but increases the base scoring system.
The primary focus of DJ Hero 2 has been the social aspects, according to FreeStyleGames' creative director Jamie Jackson; as such, many of the games' new modes feature multiplayer considerations. The game supports the "Party Play" mode introduced in Guitar Hero 5
, allowing players to jump into a song, alter the difficulty during gameplay, change between turntable and vocals, and leave at any time, while the game continues to run in a jukebox mode. Several new competitive modes engage two DJ players against each other; some modes have both DJs performing alongside each other but with competitive edges such as a "Checkpoint" race where each DJ attempts to earn the best score within a section of a song. DJ Battles see two DJ's performing call-and-response style along with open freestyle sections. The online mode includes a simple role-playing game mechanic whereby participating and winning battles with other players earns the player DJ Points that lead to level increases and additional perks.
The game does not include "DJ vs Guitar" mode that was featured in DJ Hero, where a second player could use a compatible guitar controller to play alongside the DJ player.
has stated that he was set to work on the game's sequel, to arrive late in 2010. Activision CEO Bobby Kotick stated that despite low sales of DJ Hero, they are committed to continuing the series, with the sequel due in 2010. The sequel, DJ Hero 2, was further confirmed during an Activision investors report for 2009, citing it as one of only 2 major Guitar Hero titles to be expected from Activision in 2010, with an expected late-2010 release date.
Work on DJ Hero 2 started some months after the first game was completed, as the development team had endured heavy working hours to meet the release deadline. FreeStyleGames' creative director Jamie Jackson said that DJ Hero 2 took about seven months to complete. While they were able to easily build on the existing framework for DJ Hero, FreeStyleGames wanted to do more than just include new mixes, and sought to include additional features such as the Battle Mixes into the game. Many of the game's new features are a result of feedback from players, including the game's social modes and improvements in the game's interface to provide a cleaner look and instantaneous visual feedback to the player. The team also worked at improving the game's graphics; the appearance of DJ Heros graffiti-based menus gave the impression of being a hip-hop game, but FreeStyleGames wanted to distance DJ Hero 2 from that. They also wanted to clean up the gameplay's interface, providing better feedback to the player and making it easily to tell when they were winning or losing. While DJ Hero 2 does not use Kinect or PlayStation Move motion-sensing technology, Jackson had not ruled them out for a future iteration of the game.
Another step to move the game from the apparent hip-hop nature was through its song selection. Jackson felt the first game was weighted too heavily to the genre, with about 60% of the songs being hip-hop. The songs in DJ Hero 2 represent a wider variety of music, including dance, drum and bass, and techno, along with some contributions from hip-hop. Jackson noted that they were able to work better with artists and publishers for DJ Hero 2, after the successful launch of the first game; with artists and publishers now knowing what to expect, "there is more understanding, so it has opened the doors to us in terms of getting more popular music", according to Jackson. However, licensing for such music remained a difficult barrier. Mixes for DJ Hero 2 are made first through computer-aided mixing of the two song tracks combined with effects noises, with simultaneous authoring of the gameplay markers. Noise for the scratching sections are filled in by recording the sounds of the tracks actually scratched on a DJ deck.
Usher
contributed his song "OMG
" featuring will.i.am
for DJ Hero 2, which he and will.i.am performed live at the 2010 Electronic Entertainment Expo. Usher had previously been approached by Kotick before the release of DJ Hero for future projects for Activision. Usher found, after following the success of DJ Hero, that the game was "very interesting" as a means of connecting younger gamers to music such as his that they would not be able to experience live at a club, leading to his desire to be a part of the sequel.
FreeStyleGames found that by selecting mix artists such as Deadmau5
and Tiësto
who are more widely known than some artists in the first game, they were able to give DJ Hero 2 a different feel, embracing the theatrics of these artists. FreeStyleGames had tried to include Tiësto within the first game, but could not do it within the deadline, but instead was used as part of the first game's promotion, and later would be used as Activision's "ambassador" for the game to Europe. Furthermore, the game's soundtrack has been selected to include more dance and pop tracks taken from European artists to make the game more Euro-friendly.
featuring Busta Rhymes
- "Don’t Cha" vs. Pitbull - "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)
" and Lady Gaga
featuring Colby O'Donis
- "Just Dance" vs. Deadmau5
- "Ghosts N Stuff
". The mix Estelle
featuring Kanye West
- “American Boy
” vs. Chic
- "Good Times" was used as a tutorial and the mix MSTRKRFT
featuring N.O.R.E.
- "Bounce" (Beat Juggle) could be heard in the menu background.
A browser game
viral DJ Hero 2 Mix 2Gether was released on October 17, 2010. The viral game was made by digital agency
Fish in a bottle
and features a cut down version of the full game product. Three mixes are included in the viral and are all playable: Lady Gaga
featuring Colby O'Donis
- "Just Dance" vs. Deadmau5
- "Ghosts N Stuff
", Blakroc featuring Pharoahe Monch
and RZA
- "Dollaz and Sense" and Tiësto
and Sneaky Sound System
- "I Will Be Here
" vs. Tiësto
- "Speed Rail". Unique to the viral game is a "Create A Mix" mode which allows players to create their own mixes, share them and challenge friends through email
, Twitter
, facebook
and Myspace
.
DJ Hero 2 was sold with various promotional items. Within Europe and select stores in North America, players that purchased the game in one of two bundle packages (either with one or two turntable controllers) received the predecessor DJ Hero free. Other North American stores offered carrying cases for the turntables, MP3
versions of selected mixes, or redemption codes for in-game customization options.
The music video for Tiësto's "Speed Rail" is composed only of footage from DJ Hero 2 including the Tiësto avatar.
stated that the game's soundtrack still strongly represents the genre of hip-hop, but adds more elements from electronica, pop, and dance. David Guetta
, Deadmau5
, DJ Qbert, Tiësto
and RZA
are playable avatars within the game and they will help create mixes for the game.
DJ Hero 2 supports downloadable content
in the form of new mixes that can be purchased from the consoles' respective online stores. In addition, through an additional free add-on released in November 2010, players will be able to purchase existing downloadable content from the first game to use within DJ Hero 2. Activision's February 2011 decision to shutter their Guitar Hero development initially stated that no further downloadable content will be forthcoming for the title, but due to "continued support" from their fanbase, Activision has since decided it will continue to release downloadable content for the game through at least March and April 2011 with packs that were in the works prior to the closure of Guitar Hero.
noted while there was very little overall change to the gameplay, "it's the minor tweaks that make it a definite improvement over the original". Keza MacDonald of Eurogamer
believed that DJ Hero 2 was "much slicker, clearer and more tasteful" with changes in presentation and interface that quickly allows the players to jump into the game. Ben Kuchera of Ars Technica
called the title "the best kind of sequel" as it retained the best features of DJ Hero and added further improvements atop of those. Matt Wales of IGN
noted that the early difficulty levels of the game were much more suited to beginners "to make for a more convincing DJing experience, without sacrificing that all-important accessibility".
Critics praised the new freestyle features into gameplay, citing the overuse of the Flavor Flav
default sample in the first game. MacDonald favored how FreeStyleGames transformed the limited freestyle sections of the first game into "an integral part" of the sequel. Matt Helgeson of Game Informer
stated that the nature of DJ Hero 2s freestyling made him feel that he was "helping craft the mix, not just hitting buttons in time". While the addition of new multiplayer modes was well-received, many felt the vocal track addition did not work out well. Chris Watters of Gamespot
noted that "the singing evaluation doesn't feel as slick as in other games", and unless the player knows the music from both tracks of a mix, singing the back-and-forth mix "isn't all that fun". Helgeson commented that attempting to sing lyrics from two separate songs "feels like playing karaoke game in the grips of a seizure".
Reviewers found the soundtrack to provide a wider range of genres, moving away from hip-hop and into house and dance
genres, to appeal to more players. Helgeson considered that the mixes were "uniformly great", and balanced popular artists with skilled DJ mixers. MacDonald stated the soundtrack was "faultless" and that while featuring a large number of songs from the club scene, the soundtrack is "still a powerful draw if you don't know or even like the music". Official Xbox Magazine
UKs Mike Channell believed the "mashups also feel even more playful this time around", creating new interpretations of the lyrics of songs through the mixing. Cian Hassett of PalGN
called the setlist "the most incredible fusion of contrasting genres known to man". Some critics commented that they felt the first game's tracklist was better; Damien Hatfield of IGN
felt there was "more variety" in the original game's mix and better representation within certain genres, while Brown favored DJ Heros set for "how it mixed together frequently disparate tracks" and that many mixes in the sequel favored too much of one song in the mix.
The NPD Group
's North American sales estimates for DJ Hero 2 during its launch month were 59,000 units. Combined sales in North America of DJ Hero 2 and Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock
were below one million in 2010, 63% below the total sales of Guitar Hero 5
, DJ Hero
, and Band Hero
from 2009. As a result of faltering sales for its Guitar Hero series, Activision shuttered its Guitar Hero division, cancelling at least one planned game for 2011. The closure also affects the DJ Hero series, as Activision has stated that they do not expect to publish a music game during 2011.
Rhythm game
Rhythm game or rhythm action is a genre of music-themed action video game that challenges a player's sense of rhythm. Games in the genre typically focus on dance or the simulated performance of musical instruments, and require players to press buttons in a sequence dictated on the screen...
and a sequel to DJ Hero
DJ Hero
DJ Hero is a music video game, developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision as a rhythm game spin-off of the Guitar Hero franchise. It was released on October 27, 2009 in North America and on October 29, 2009 in Europe...
, a spinoff of the Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems and published by RedOctane for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It is the first entry in the Guitar Hero series. Guitar Hero was released on November 8, 2005 in North America, April 7, 2006 in Europe and June 15, 2006 in...
series. DJ Hero 2 uses a special turntable-controller, the same as introduced in DJ Hero, to simulate turntablism
Turntablism
Turntablism is the art of manipulating sounds and creating music using phonograph turntables and a DJ mixer.The word 'turntablist' was coined in 1995 by DJ Babu to describe the difference between a DJ who just plays records, and one who performs by touching and moving the records, stylus and mixer...
, the act of creating a new musical work from one or more previously recorded songs using record players and sound effect generators. The game is developed by FreeStyleGames
FreeStyleGames
FreeStyleGames Ltd. is a British video game development company with approximately 100 staff based in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire. The company was originally formed by Ex-Codemasters and Ex-Rare staff in late 2002, and has developed over the last 5 years into a well-respected development...
and is published by Activision
Activision
Activision is an American publisher, majority owned by French conglomerate Vivendi SA. Its current CEO is Robert Kotick. It was founded on October 1, 1979 and was the world's first independent developer and distributor of video games for gaming consoles...
, and was released worldwide in October 2010.
Similar to DJ Hero, players in DJ Hero 2 follow specific actions on the turntable controller in time to marked scrolling indicators on the game's screen, earning points for correctly performing actions in time. The game includes a new freestyle mode, giving the player the chance to freely crossfade
Fade (audio engineering)
In audio engineering, a fade is a gradual increase or decrease in the level of an audio signal. The term can also be used for film cinematography or theater lighting, in much the same way ....
between tracks, scratch
Scratching
Scratching is a DJ or turntablist technique used to produce distinctive sounds by moving a vinyl record back and forth on a turntable while optionally manipulating the crossfader on a DJ mixer. While scratching is most commonly associated with hip hop music, since the late 1980s, it has been used...
a section of a mix, or add sample effects during marked sections. The game features 83 mixes on disc comprising over 100 different songs, with further mixes available as downloadable content
Downloadable content
Downloadable content is official additional content for a video game distributed through the Internet. Downloadable content can be of several types, ranging from a single in-game outfit to an entirely new, extensive storyline, similarly to an expansion pack. As such, DLC may add new game modes,...
. Most mixes have been assembled by FreeStyleGames, but other professional DJs, including David Guetta
David Guetta
Pierre David Guetta , known professionally as David Guetta , is a French house music producer and DJ. Originally a DJ at nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s, he co-founded Gum Productions and released his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster and Pop Life...
, deadmau5
Deadmau5
Joel Thomas Zimmerman , better known by his stage name deadmau5 , is a Canadian progressive, electro, and house producer based in Toronto...
, DJ Qbert, Tiësto
Tiësto
Tijs Michiel Verwest, , known as Tiësto , is a Dutch musician, DJ and record producer of electronic dance music. Although he has used many aliases in the past, he is best known for his work as DJ Tiësto...
and RZA
RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
, have providing both their mixing skills and character avatar
Avatar (computing)
In computing, an avatar is the graphical representation of the user or the user's alter ego or character. It may take either a three-dimensional form, as in games or virtual worlds, or a two-dimensional form as an icon in Internet forums and other online communities. It can also refer to a text...
for the game. Players can challenge these mixes at any time in a Quickplay mode, progress through them in the single-player Empire mode, or play cooperatively or competitively with a second user in offline and online game modes. A third player can also participate through singing the mix' vocals.
DJ Hero 2 was well-received by critics, receiving praises for maintaining and improving upon the core elements of the first game, and for a soundtrack featuring a wide selection of genres. However, sales for the title were low, failing to reach similar numbers as DJ Hero from the previous year. In conjunction with poor sales from the Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems and published by RedOctane for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It is the first entry in the Guitar Hero series. Guitar Hero was released on November 8, 2005 in North America, April 7, 2006 in Europe and June 15, 2006 in...
franchise, Activision announced the cancellation of further development in February 2011, leaving DJ Hero 2 as the final multi-platform iteration of the DJ Hero franchise.
Gameplay
DJ Hero 2 follows from its predecessor in simulating the performance of a disc jockeyDisc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
mixing one or two songs using a special turntable controller. The controller, the same unit as shipped previously with DJ Hero, includes a rotatable turntable to use for recording scratching, three "stream" buttons to match notes from the two music tracks and an effects track, and a slider to control the crossfade between tracks. These actions are presented to the players through on-screen notation that scrolls in time with the music. Players score points by performing the actions correctly, but are not penalized otherwise. By successfully completing a consecutive set of actions, the player can increase their scoring multiplier up to 4x; the multiplier returns to 1x should they miss any actions. Certain marked sections, when played correctly, fill a "Euphoria" (the "Star Power" for this game) meter which can be unleashed using another button on the controller and will temporarily double the scoring. The player can also earn the ability to rewind a song by a few seconds by playing a long string of consecutive notes. They can rewind the song by quickly spinning the turntable in reverse; the rewind effect can be used to either correct a mistake or further boost one's scoring.
Small changes have been made in the turntable playback within DJ Hero 2: freestyle effects samples, previously based on game-wide preselected "effect packs", are mix-specific, and the game does not penalize the player for small variations in fast scratching sections as long as it follows the general beat of the song. Specially marked freestyle sections, previously limited to only added sample effects over the track, allow the player to freely mix between the two tracks, use their own scratch effects, or add effects hits while within these sections. The display for these freestyle sections shows marks where switching between the tracks would achieve a strong audio effect, and the player is graded on how well they hit these markers after the end of each mix.
In addition to using a turntable, players have the option to sing or rap to the mixes' lyrics, similar to vocal parts in current Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero
Guitar Hero is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems and published by RedOctane for the PlayStation 2 video game console. It is the first entry in the Guitar Hero series. Guitar Hero was released on November 8, 2005 in North America, April 7, 2006 in Europe and June 15, 2006 in...
or Rock Band
Rock Band
Rock Band is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems, published by MTV Games and Electronic Arts. It is the first title in the Rock Band series. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions were released in the United States on November 20, 2007, while the PlayStation 2 version was...
games using a compatible microphone controller from most previous rhythm games. The game will score vocals based on the matching of pitch, beat and rhythm.
DJ Hero 2 features an improved single-player career mode called "Empire". Empire provides more structure for the player to proceed through the game than the simple set lists used in DJ Hero. Through Empire mode, the player works though a number of pre-determined setlists and boss battles (as described below) with the celebrity avatars and fictional DJ's at one of six different venues, earning stars that unlock additional venues to play at. Completing certain setlists or battles unlock new characters, outfits for those characters, and virtual turntable decks for the player. Five of these decks are "power decks" that slightly change the scoring mechanism or play style of the game; one increases the maximum multiple to 5x, while another one increases the rate that notes are displayed but increases the base scoring system.
The primary focus of DJ Hero 2 has been the social aspects, according to FreeStyleGames' creative director Jamie Jackson; as such, many of the games' new modes feature multiplayer considerations. The game supports the "Party Play" mode introduced in Guitar Hero 5
Guitar Hero 5
Guitar Hero 5 is a music video game and the fifth main entry in the Guitar Hero series. The game was developed by Neversoft and published by RedOctane and Activision, and released internationally in September 2009 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, 3 and Wii consoles...
, allowing players to jump into a song, alter the difficulty during gameplay, change between turntable and vocals, and leave at any time, while the game continues to run in a jukebox mode. Several new competitive modes engage two DJ players against each other; some modes have both DJs performing alongside each other but with competitive edges such as a "Checkpoint" race where each DJ attempts to earn the best score within a section of a song. DJ Battles see two DJ's performing call-and-response style along with open freestyle sections. The online mode includes a simple role-playing game mechanic whereby participating and winning battles with other players earns the player DJ Points that lead to level increases and additional perks.
The game does not include "DJ vs Guitar" mode that was featured in DJ Hero, where a second player could use a compatible guitar controller to play alongside the DJ player.
Development
DJ Hero 2 was officially announced in June 2010 for release in the last quarter of 2010. Prior to the game's announcement, Activision revealed a month before the game's release that it is actively seeking artists for downloadable content and a sequel to the game. David GuettaDavid Guetta
Pierre David Guetta , known professionally as David Guetta , is a French house music producer and DJ. Originally a DJ at nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s, he co-founded Gum Productions and released his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster and Pop Life...
has stated that he was set to work on the game's sequel, to arrive late in 2010. Activision CEO Bobby Kotick stated that despite low sales of DJ Hero, they are committed to continuing the series, with the sequel due in 2010. The sequel, DJ Hero 2, was further confirmed during an Activision investors report for 2009, citing it as one of only 2 major Guitar Hero titles to be expected from Activision in 2010, with an expected late-2010 release date.
Work on DJ Hero 2 started some months after the first game was completed, as the development team had endured heavy working hours to meet the release deadline. FreeStyleGames' creative director Jamie Jackson said that DJ Hero 2 took about seven months to complete. While they were able to easily build on the existing framework for DJ Hero, FreeStyleGames wanted to do more than just include new mixes, and sought to include additional features such as the Battle Mixes into the game. Many of the game's new features are a result of feedback from players, including the game's social modes and improvements in the game's interface to provide a cleaner look and instantaneous visual feedback to the player. The team also worked at improving the game's graphics; the appearance of DJ Heros graffiti-based menus gave the impression of being a hip-hop game, but FreeStyleGames wanted to distance DJ Hero 2 from that. They also wanted to clean up the gameplay's interface, providing better feedback to the player and making it easily to tell when they were winning or losing. While DJ Hero 2 does not use Kinect or PlayStation Move motion-sensing technology, Jackson had not ruled them out for a future iteration of the game.
Another step to move the game from the apparent hip-hop nature was through its song selection. Jackson felt the first game was weighted too heavily to the genre, with about 60% of the songs being hip-hop. The songs in DJ Hero 2 represent a wider variety of music, including dance, drum and bass, and techno, along with some contributions from hip-hop. Jackson noted that they were able to work better with artists and publishers for DJ Hero 2, after the successful launch of the first game; with artists and publishers now knowing what to expect, "there is more understanding, so it has opened the doors to us in terms of getting more popular music", according to Jackson. However, licensing for such music remained a difficult barrier. Mixes for DJ Hero 2 are made first through computer-aided mixing of the two song tracks combined with effects noises, with simultaneous authoring of the gameplay markers. Noise for the scratching sections are filled in by recording the sounds of the tracks actually scratched on a DJ deck.
Usher
Usher (entertainer)
Usher Terry Raymond IV , who performs under the mononym Usher, is an American singer-songwriter, and actor. He is considered around the world to be the reigning King of R&B. Usher rose to fame in the late 1990s with the release of his second album My Way, which spawned his first Billboard Hot 100...
contributed his song "OMG
OMG (song)
"OMG" is a song by American recording artist Usher. The song features will.i.am, who also wrote and produced the song. It uses the auto-tune effect in several lines, as well as Jock Jams-esque sports arena chanting. It was released on March 22, 2010 as the first worldwide single off his sixth...
" featuring will.i.am
Will.i.am
William James Adams, Jr. , better known by his stage name will.i.am and occasionally by his other stage name Zuper Blahq, is an American rapper, musician, songwriter, singer, actor and producer...
for DJ Hero 2, which he and will.i.am performed live at the 2010 Electronic Entertainment Expo. Usher had previously been approached by Kotick before the release of DJ Hero for future projects for Activision. Usher found, after following the success of DJ Hero, that the game was "very interesting" as a means of connecting younger gamers to music such as his that they would not be able to experience live at a club, leading to his desire to be a part of the sequel.
FreeStyleGames found that by selecting mix artists such as Deadmau5
Deadmau5
Joel Thomas Zimmerman , better known by his stage name deadmau5 , is a Canadian progressive, electro, and house producer based in Toronto...
and Tiësto
Tiësto
Tijs Michiel Verwest, , known as Tiësto , is a Dutch musician, DJ and record producer of electronic dance music. Although he has used many aliases in the past, he is best known for his work as DJ Tiësto...
who are more widely known than some artists in the first game, they were able to give DJ Hero 2 a different feel, embracing the theatrics of these artists. FreeStyleGames had tried to include Tiësto within the first game, but could not do it within the deadline, but instead was used as part of the first game's promotion, and later would be used as Activision's "ambassador" for the game to Europe. Furthermore, the game's soundtrack has been selected to include more dance and pop tracks taken from European artists to make the game more Euro-friendly.
Promotion
A demo for DJ Hero 2 was released to the PlayStation network and the Xbox Live on September 7, 2010. The demo contains four mixes, two of which were playable: Pussycat DollsPussycat Dolls
The Pussycat Dolls are an American pop girl group and dance ensemble based in Los Angeles; currently consisting of Lauren Bennett, Vanessa Curry, Kristal "Lyndriette" Smith, Tiffany "Taz" Zavala, Kia Hampton and Paula Van Oppen. The Pussycat Dolls were founded by choreographer Robin Antin in 1995...
featuring Busta Rhymes
Busta Rhymes
Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr., better known by his stage name Busta Rhymes ,Smith is an American rapper, producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the alias Busta Rhymes after NFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes...
- "Don’t Cha" vs. Pitbull - "I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)
I Know You Want Me (Calle Ocho)
"I Know You Want Me " is a song by rapper Pitbull released as the second single from the album, Rebelution. The song samples "75, Brazil Street" by Nicola Fasano versus Pat Rich, which itself samples "Street Player" by Chicago. The core is from a song by Dominican rappers El Cata and Omega. The...
" and Lady Gaga
Lady GaGa
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...
featuring Colby O'Donis
Colby O'Donis
Colby O'Donis is an American-Puerto Rican pop and R&B singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer and actor. In 2008, he released his debut album Colby O, and his single "What You Got" featuring Akon reached #14 on the Billboard Hot 100...
- "Just Dance" vs. Deadmau5
Deadmau5
Joel Thomas Zimmerman , better known by his stage name deadmau5 , is a Canadian progressive, electro, and house producer based in Toronto...
- "Ghosts N Stuff
Ghosts N Stuff
"Ghosts 'n' Stuff" is a house song produced by progressive house and electro house artist deadmau5 featuring Rob Swire from Australian drum and bass/electronic rock band Pendulum...
". The mix Estelle
Estelle (musician)
Estelle Fanta Swaray commonly known as Estelle, and formerly as Est'elle, is an English R&B singer-songwriter, rapper and record producer.-Early Life:Estelle was born 18 January 1980 in Hammersmith, London, England...
featuring Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
- “American Boy
American Boy
"American Boy" is the second single from the album Shine by British R&B singer Estelle and features American rapper Kanye West. The song is her first international single...
” vs. Chic
Chic (band)
Chic was an African American disco and R&B band that was organized during 1976 by guitarist Nile Rodgers and bassist Bernard Edwards. It is known best for its commercially successful disco songs, including "Dance, Dance, Dance " , "Everybody Dance" , "Le Freak" , "I Want Your Love" , "Good Times"...
- "Good Times" was used as a tutorial and the mix MSTRKRFT
MSTRKRFT
MSTRKRFT is a Canadian electronic music duo from Toronto, Ontario. The group was started in 2005 by Jesse F. Keeler of Death from Above 1979 and Al-P formerly of the Mississauga, Ontario electropop group Girlsareshort...
featuring N.O.R.E.
N.O.R.E.
Victor Santiago, Jr., best known by his stage name N.O.R.E. or Noreaga , is an American rapper of Puerto Rican descent...
- "Bounce" (Beat Juggle) could be heard in the menu background.
A browser game
Browser game
A browser game is a computer game that is played over the Internet using a web browser. Browser games can be created and run using standard web technologies or browser plug-ins. Browser games include all video game genres and can be single-player or multiplayer...
viral DJ Hero 2 Mix 2Gether was released on October 17, 2010. The viral game was made by digital agency
Digital agency
A digital or new media agency is a business that delivers services for the creative and technical development of internet based products. These services range from the more generalist such as web design, e-mail marketing and microsites etc...
Fish in a bottle
Fish in a bottle
Fish in a Bottle Limited is a creative digital agency based in Leamington Spa, United Kingdom specialising in browser game development , website development and social network design and development...
and features a cut down version of the full game product. Three mixes are included in the viral and are all playable: Lady Gaga
Lady GaGa
Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...
featuring Colby O'Donis
Colby O'Donis
Colby O'Donis is an American-Puerto Rican pop and R&B singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer and actor. In 2008, he released his debut album Colby O, and his single "What You Got" featuring Akon reached #14 on the Billboard Hot 100...
- "Just Dance" vs. Deadmau5
Deadmau5
Joel Thomas Zimmerman , better known by his stage name deadmau5 , is a Canadian progressive, electro, and house producer based in Toronto...
- "Ghosts N Stuff
Ghosts N Stuff
"Ghosts 'n' Stuff" is a house song produced by progressive house and electro house artist deadmau5 featuring Rob Swire from Australian drum and bass/electronic rock band Pendulum...
", Blakroc featuring Pharoahe Monch
Pharoahe Monch
Pharoahe Monch is an American hip hop artist. He is known for his complex lyrics, complex delivery, and internal and multisyllabic rhyme schemes.-Biography:...
and RZA
RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
- "Dollaz and Sense" and Tiësto
Tiësto
Tijs Michiel Verwest, , known as Tiësto , is a Dutch musician, DJ and record producer of electronic dance music. Although he has used many aliases in the past, he is best known for his work as DJ Tiësto...
and Sneaky Sound System
Sneaky Sound System
Sneaky Sound System are a Sydney-based Australian dance music group consisting of guitarist and producer Black Angus and vocalist Connie Mitchell.-Early Years:...
- "I Will Be Here
I Will Be Here
"I Will Be Here" is a song recorded by Tiësto and Sneaky Sound System with vocals from Sneaky Sound System's Connie Mitchell. Released on July 28, 2009, the song is the first single off the album Kaleidoscope.-Chart performance:...
" vs. Tiësto
Tiësto
Tijs Michiel Verwest, , known as Tiësto , is a Dutch musician, DJ and record producer of electronic dance music. Although he has used many aliases in the past, he is best known for his work as DJ Tiësto...
- "Speed Rail". Unique to the viral game is a "Create A Mix" mode which allows players to create their own mixes, share them and challenge friends through email
Email
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
and Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
.
DJ Hero 2 was sold with various promotional items. Within Europe and select stores in North America, players that purchased the game in one of two bundle packages (either with one or two turntable controllers) received the predecessor DJ Hero free. Other North American stores offered carrying cases for the turntables, MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
versions of selected mixes, or redemption codes for in-game customization options.
Post-release
A glitch was observed by players on Xbox 360 where, if they were playing while online and had exactly 100 friends attached to their account, the game would freeze and/or they would be unable to play online. Activision issued a patch to correct this a few days after release.The music video for Tiësto's "Speed Rail" is composed only of footage from DJ Hero 2 including the Tiësto avatar.
Soundtrack
DJ Hero 2s setlist includes 83 mashups from nearly 100 songs from about 85 different artists. Game InformerGame Informer
Game Informer is an American-based monthly magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of popular video games and associated consoles. It was formed in August 1991, when FuncoLand started publishing a six-page magazine, free in all its retail locations...
stated that the game's soundtrack still strongly represents the genre of hip-hop, but adds more elements from electronica, pop, and dance. David Guetta
David Guetta
Pierre David Guetta , known professionally as David Guetta , is a French house music producer and DJ. Originally a DJ at nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s, he co-founded Gum Productions and released his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster and Pop Life...
, Deadmau5
Deadmau5
Joel Thomas Zimmerman , better known by his stage name deadmau5 , is a Canadian progressive, electro, and house producer based in Toronto...
, DJ Qbert, Tiësto
Tiësto
Tijs Michiel Verwest, , known as Tiësto , is a Dutch musician, DJ and record producer of electronic dance music. Although he has used many aliases in the past, he is best known for his work as DJ Tiësto...
and RZA
RZA
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA , is an American Grammy-winning music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, emcee, and occasional actor, director, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in Hip Hop, RZA is the de facto leader of the Wu-Tang Clan. He has produced almost...
are playable avatars within the game and they will help create mixes for the game.
DJ Hero 2 supports downloadable content
Downloadable content
Downloadable content is official additional content for a video game distributed through the Internet. Downloadable content can be of several types, ranging from a single in-game outfit to an entirely new, extensive storyline, similarly to an expansion pack. As such, DLC may add new game modes,...
in the form of new mixes that can be purchased from the consoles' respective online stores. In addition, through an additional free add-on released in November 2010, players will be able to purchase existing downloadable content from the first game to use within DJ Hero 2. Activision's February 2011 decision to shutter their Guitar Hero development initially stated that no further downloadable content will be forthcoming for the title, but due to "continued support" from their fanbase, Activision has since decided it will continue to release downloadable content for the game through at least March and April 2011 with packs that were in the works prior to the closure of Guitar Hero.
Reception
DJ Hero 2 was well-received by critics, who felt the game was a significant improvement in both gameplay, presentation, and song selection from its prequel. Michael Brown of 1UP.com1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
noted while there was very little overall change to the gameplay, "it's the minor tweaks that make it a definite improvement over the original". Keza MacDonald of Eurogamer
Eurogamer
Eurogamer is a Brighton-based website focused on video games news, reviews, previews and interviews. It is operated by Eurogamer Network Ltd., which was formed in 1999 by brothers Rupert and Nick Loman. Eurogamer has grown to become one of the most important European-based websites focused on...
believed that DJ Hero 2 was "much slicker, clearer and more tasteful" with changes in presentation and interface that quickly allows the players to jump into the game. Ben Kuchera of Ars Technica
Ars Technica
Ars Technica is a technology news and information website created by Ken Fisher and Jon Stokes in 1998. It publishes news, reviews and guides on issues such as computer hardware and software, science, technology policy, and video games. Ars Technica is known for its features, long articles that go...
called the title "the best kind of sequel" as it retained the best features of DJ Hero and added further improvements atop of those. Matt Wales of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
noted that the early difficulty levels of the game were much more suited to beginners "to make for a more convincing DJing experience, without sacrificing that all-important accessibility".
Critics praised the new freestyle features into gameplay, citing the overuse of the Flavor Flav
Flavor Flav
William Jonathan Drayton, Jr. , better known by his stage name Flavor Flav, is an American rapper and television personality who rose to prominence as a member of the rap group Public Enemy...
default sample in the first game. MacDonald favored how FreeStyleGames transformed the limited freestyle sections of the first game into "an integral part" of the sequel. Matt Helgeson of Game Informer
Game Informer
Game Informer is an American-based monthly magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of popular video games and associated consoles. It was formed in August 1991, when FuncoLand started publishing a six-page magazine, free in all its retail locations...
stated that the nature of DJ Hero 2s freestyling made him feel that he was "helping craft the mix, not just hitting buttons in time". While the addition of new multiplayer modes was well-received, many felt the vocal track addition did not work out well. Chris Watters of Gamespot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
noted that "the singing evaluation doesn't feel as slick as in other games", and unless the player knows the music from both tracks of a mix, singing the back-and-forth mix "isn't all that fun". Helgeson commented that attempting to sing lyrics from two separate songs "feels like playing karaoke game in the grips of a seizure".
Reviewers found the soundtrack to provide a wider range of genres, moving away from hip-hop and into house and dance
Electronic dance music
Electronic dance music is electronic music produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered upon dance-based entertainment...
genres, to appeal to more players. Helgeson considered that the mixes were "uniformly great", and balanced popular artists with skilled DJ mixers. MacDonald stated the soundtrack was "faultless" and that while featuring a large number of songs from the club scene, the soundtrack is "still a powerful draw if you don't know or even like the music". Official Xbox Magazine
Official Xbox Magazine
Official Xbox Magazine is a monthly video game magazine which started in November 2001 around the launch of the original Xbox. A preview issue was released for E3 2001, with another preview issue for November 2001. The magazine is bundled with a disc that includes game demos, preview videos and...
UKs Mike Channell believed the "mashups also feel even more playful this time around", creating new interpretations of the lyrics of songs through the mixing. Cian Hassett of PalGN
PALGN
The PAL Gaming Network is an Australian based video game news and reviews website that focuses on the videogame industry and culture in PAL territories, particularly Australia and the UK. It was launched in 2003 by a group of PAL forum members on the IGN message boards who were disenfranchised by...
called the setlist "the most incredible fusion of contrasting genres known to man". Some critics commented that they felt the first game's tracklist was better; Damien Hatfield of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
felt there was "more variety" in the original game's mix and better representation within certain genres, while Brown favored DJ Heros set for "how it mixed together frequently disparate tracks" and that many mixes in the sequel favored too much of one song in the mix.
The NPD Group
NPD Group
The NPD Group, Inc. is a leading North American market research company. The NPD Group consistently ranks among the top 25 market research companies in the independent Honomichl Top 50 report, which the media and the research industry acknowledge as a credible source of information on the market...
's North American sales estimates for DJ Hero 2 during its launch month were 59,000 units. Combined sales in North America of DJ Hero 2 and Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock
Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock
Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock is a music video game and the sixth main entry in the Guitar Hero series for the PlayStation 3, Wii, and Xbox 360 consoles. The game was released September 24, 2010 in Europe, September 28, 2010 in North America and September 29, 2010 in Australia...
were below one million in 2010, 63% below the total sales of Guitar Hero 5
Guitar Hero 5
Guitar Hero 5 is a music video game and the fifth main entry in the Guitar Hero series. The game was developed by Neversoft and published by RedOctane and Activision, and released internationally in September 2009 for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, 3 and Wii consoles...
, DJ Hero
DJ Hero
DJ Hero is a music video game, developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision as a rhythm game spin-off of the Guitar Hero franchise. It was released on October 27, 2009 in North America and on October 29, 2009 in Europe...
, and Band Hero
Band Hero
Band Hero is a spinoff video game as part of the Guitar Hero series of music video games, released by Activision on November 3, 2009, for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Nintendo DS consoles...
from 2009. As a result of faltering sales for its Guitar Hero series, Activision shuttered its Guitar Hero division, cancelling at least one planned game for 2011. The closure also affects the DJ Hero series, as Activision has stated that they do not expect to publish a music game during 2011.