GH3 Wii replacements in 2008

By Robert Purchese Published 7 December, 2007

Goodbye mono woes.

Activision has promised Wii owners of Guitar Hero III that it will replace their fault discs early next year for free.

Problems first arose when fans noticed surround sound failing to play, an issue later clarified by this crafty version being restricted to mono playback only. This prompted page after page of angry customers on the official forums, many emailing the publisher and being told the same thing.

"We recently became aware that some consumers have not been able to enjoy the full audio output in the Wii version of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock," responded Activision, a bit like a robot.

"We are currently working with Nintendo and are planning to issue an improved audio experience in future versions of the game. We expect to have re-mastered discs available by early 2008 and we will be offering consumers replacement discs at no cost once they become available."

Activision was unable to comment on specific European plans at the time of writing, but we expect its policy to be the same for every territory the game is on sale in. Or else. Or else what? Exactly.

Other versions of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock do not have this problem, which prompted us to heap high praise upon it for its most excellent thrills.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (18) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Darren #1 4 years ago

    I knew the Wii was behind the times technically but games with mono sound only!!! /shocked

  • Killerbee #2 4 years ago

    I've got this (yes, the Wii version) sitting in my pile of Christmas prezzies, so I suppose it's good news that they will be sorting out replacement disks. Not that the threat of mono really bothers me that much - I doubt it's really that noticable unless you're wearing headphones....?
    Edited by 1 at 07/12/07 @ 11:04

  • Skeptopotamus #3 4 years ago

    It'll be noticeable if you have the sound coming out of anything but built-in TV speakers.

  • AlvySinger #4 4 years ago

    I thought it sounded a bit rubbish but was foolishly blaming my, actually quite good, telly.

    I've said some bad things about Samsung this week; Activision, I hope you'll apologise on my behalf.

  • [maven] #5 4 years ago

    "Some"?

    /chuckle

  • systems #6 4 years ago

    You do notice if you've got a Pro-Logic II amp with surround speakers. Three of my mates bought it regardless but I held off and will wait for the fix.

    Good news that they're replacing the discs for free. Can't really argue with that as it appears to be a genuine mistake.

  • thiswaynow #7 4 years ago

    I wonder how many people actually use their audio equipment in this way, versus the tv speakers. I only ever use my tv's speakers, but will probably hold off buying this until the new versions have the corrected sound in any case.

  • BadBoyBonner #8 4 years ago

    thiswaynow

    "I wonder how many people actually use their audio equipment in this way?"


    I only use my Dolby Digital amp and surround sound - one of the perks of having no neighbours or kids - most games benefit from it massively - not just from the atmosphere but it is sometimes helpful in locating enemies etc. Plus Sky HD has lots of surround sound on it, Dolby Digital or otherwise.

    Pro-logic II does quite a good job.

    As for when you run out of sugar/milk and the nearest neighbour is over 400 meters away - end up having to drive to the nearest garage!
    Edited by 1 at 07/12/07 @ 11:58

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #9 4 years ago

    I don't want your Mono honey I want your love.

  • Telepathic.Geometry #10 4 years ago

    What a fucking awful statement. First of all, some? All games had the problem. It's just that some of the customers wouldn't have encountered it or noticed if they had.

    Secondly, what a fucking pathetic and roundabout way of admitting that the European version (which has, as far as I am aware, been available at retail for some time now) has the same fucking bug!

    Thirdly, what took them so long to make the announcement? Gah...

    A pox on you Activision, a pox. Fuck ye in your stupid arses!!! >:(

  • Ikari2001 #11 4 years ago

    I just want to know what they're doing about the faulty guitars! :(

  • TheDudesRug #12 4 years ago

    The fact that the Wii version is the one that's mono is not without humour.

  • smelly #13 4 years ago

    They're replacing the games free of charge - cant say fairer than that!

    Stop yer moaning!

  • Telepathic.Geometry #14 4 years ago

    Ya can say fairer than that. Ya can delay the shipment of the European version until the disc has been replaced. Or you could simply announce all of this before the game actually launched in Europe, as it was a known issue at that time... You could be honest and clear in your declarations when you make them too. Any of those would be fairer than that smelly.

  • smelly #15 4 years ago

    meh.. i just think yer whinging unecessarily.

    That said, i havent got this game yet - i'll wait until the stereo version is available.

  • coach_mcguirk #16 4 years ago

    Does anyone know if this is actually a cock-up, or corner-cutting?

    Also, is it summed mono (i.e. L+R summed to a mono channel) or have they just lost one side of the stereo image?

  • DuynFour #17 4 years ago

    "Does anyone know if this is actually a cock-up, or corner-cutting?

    Also, is it summed mono (i.e. L+R summed to a mono channel) or have they just lost one side of the stereo image?"

    It's a cock-up. And I think both channels output the same mono channel.

    Personally, I don't think I can be arsed going to the trouble of sending in my copy for a new stereo version, I'm not that tech savvy so I can't tell anything is wrong. I've played the game a fair bit and had totally forgotten about the news articles that first brought up this problem (admittedly I don't have fancy sound though, just a basic TV). I took the game to my mates and played it on a huge, very expensive HDTV with posh sound, and even my more tech-fetishist mates (including the owner of said TV) who are obsessed with graphic and sound quality above pretty much anything else didn't bring up any problems while playing (I bet they'd have whined if there were aware of it though :p).

    Having said that, for those it would affect its a pain in the arse if they only have one console, sending the disc is a bit of a hassle but at least its free (bar postage). It is stupid that of all things something that applies to the sound quality was the bit they buggered up though.

  • BBIAJ #18 4 years ago

    @ Ikari2001:

    Faulty guitars you say?

    My X-Box 360 one works fine, but my GHII guitar was a big pile of wank, double strumming all over the place, and refusing to rock out...