I had never played a Guitar Hero game until last year when I first played “Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.” While I am by no means an expert, I picked up how to play and got decent at it pretty quickly. I pretty much consider myself a “hard” level player. I can play expert, but it typically becomes a sad, sad mangling of the songs. If I put as much time in now as I did when I first got the game, perhaps I would be getting much better. Guitar Hero, truly, is a game that the player gets better with over time and practice, much like really learning to play an instrument. While the funny looking plastic toy guitar is by no means a real likeness of thrashing on the real deal, it is a good learning experience for those uninitiated (such as myself) into the discipline of music; if you put the thing down for two months and go back to it, you'll look rusty.

Given this, I was somewhat hesitant to really delve into “Guitar Hero: On Tour” for the Nintendo DS. While I thoroughly enjoy DS games, I had a hard time coming to grips with the idea of a Guitar Hero game made for a handheld. Thankfully my worries were put to rest after about twenty minutes of playtime.

The first and most important thing to know about “On Tour” is how different it really is, while somehow remaining the same as it's console brethren, made known by the use of the guitar grip, provided with the game cart. One must connect the guitar grip into the GBA slot in their DS system (it comes factory standard for DS Lite users, but has a separate adapter (included) for those of us who still use the DS Phat). Finding the right positioning for one's hand, as well as comfort level with the Velcro strap comes with time, but I can suggest that the player either hold their DS systems against a flat surface or against oneself, as holding the system aloft while playing can and will lead to serious pain in the wrist. Once you've got your guitar grip connected, you are ready to rock...or so you think.

The physical mechanics of playing are, to be honest, perfectly logical, but baffling for the first song or two you will play. You must turn your DS on it's side (“Brain Age” style), and watch the cascading notes coming down the pike on the left hand side, all the while “strumming” across the guitar on the touch screen. Of course, it will take the player a few songs to realize they don't have to strum in a realistic fashion, just as long as the player drags the stylus across in some manner. Likewise, it could take a few songs to realize you don't actually have to grab the whammy bar to whammy long notes; simply rubbing the stylus across the touch screen works just as well.

While other Guitar Hero titles asked you to tilt your guitar controller to activate star power, this one does something a little different (and, personally, I think easier). You have three options to execute star power, the first being to tap the star power meter, which I found to be the most difficult. The second was to hit any button or direction on the D-pad, which was tricky, but doable. The final, and best, is the option to use the DS microphone to set off star power, either by yelling (talking did set it off at times) or simply blowing into the mic.

One point to consider is this: there are only four fret buttons on the grip, rather than the five on the traditional guitars. Those who don't like playing on hard because of the orange button on the console versions have no excuse now. To be perfectly frank, I found little difference between hard and expert up until the latter portion of the game where, admittedly, the expert difficulty got a little tricky, but not unbearable. In the end, Hard is, by and large, my favorite difficulty level to play on. It gives some challenge to some tricky songs, but also is really fun to play without being aggravating.

Of course, what would a Guitar Hero game be without a rocking set list, right? Well, the jury is still out on just how rocking this selection of tracks is. While I happen to enjoy some of the artists included in the game, I also happen to feel as though the people over at Vicarious Visions were listening to their oldies and light rock stations when they came up with the track lists. Included in the game are the expected rockers, such as Santana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Ozzy, but it also features the likes of Los Lonely Boys, Maroon 5, and Smash Mouth. I have never been a fan of Smash Mouth's “All Star,” but the song is fun to play. Likewise, the same is true for Los Lonely Boys “Heaven.” Some nice surprises (and my personal favorites) are Twisted Sister's “We're Not Gonna Take It,” Nirvana's “Breed,” and Skynard's “I Know A Little.” A full list of tracks can be found on Guitar Hero: On Tour's Wikipedia page.

Visually, the game does surprisingly well. I wouldn't compare them to the console versions simply because of the DS' limitations, but they're quite detailed, with good lighting and solid framerates. I really can't complain. Of course, you don't see them much if you are concentrating on the notes, but if given a free moment, they are worth look at. Likewise, the audio is amazing. The DS has always been great for sound and this was no exception. Truly a pleasant experience to listen to, look at and play.

Kevin McGinnis