Be Excellent To Each Other

My post has arrived. The Live points that I ordered to replace, err, the points I've already blown on songs was in it, but the game wasn't.

There is no Dimlie to express my emotions. So I think I'm going to have to go with a selection.

Oh, poo

my mother gladly woke me up to tell me my game had arrived at half 8 in the morning, which was lovely if the postman didnt usually come around at 1pm. managed to get some more kip, and fuck me how big is the box, if play can charge 95 quid and pay delivery for that thing surely shops can sell it for 75 quid or something and still make a decent profit.

Instruments are here, and after a quick dash to Asda, so's the game. When the other copy arrives in the post I'll take it back with the old "Present For Someone Who Already Had It" gambit.

Woo and indeed, hoo!

Yes, they are sent out by Parcelforce 24, which is 'from £18.99'. even assuming they are getting some kind of business discount, it must cost a bit.

I am a bit worried at the size of the box people keep talking about. I am not exactly extensive halls and giant rooms, here.

Its about the size of a 3 or 4 year old child, if the child was a big box shape. I havent opened mine yet I hope its got the instruments in because it weighs a similar weight to a child aswell.

Oh, I had a three year old child running all over the place here yesterday. He successfully fit in my flat.

Here's a totally un-needed and indulgent picture of said three year old child, taken yesterday, just because he's super-cute



Awwwwww

oh the box is bigger than that, maybe a five year old.

If the drums don't arrive, resist the temptation to use the child as a drum kit.

Hmmm, a five year old is pushing the boundaries of 'room'

Nah, I've got enough room to set it up, etc, its just a lot to store when not in use.

I'll just have to use it all of the time...

My old Topway drum kit (for use with Drummania) stood idle for ages before I got fed up with it being in the way and sent it off to Scotland.

I'd hope that Rock Band is a little more addictive than Drummania though.

I just created my Rock Band stage persona, trying to ward off the boredom of awaiting my drums! (and other instruments!). I gave her the 'goth' attitude though because I liked the 'ooh, spooky' dance moves

By being in the chan islands., play don't pay VAT.

oh aye, also my postman didnt bring rockband, fucking great i wait 3 hours when I could have went into town and bought it myself, fucking arsewipes.

My instruments arrive and all is funky doolie.

Play's address on their address stickers is in Oxfordshire, which is where they appear to have been sent from, also. I think that they used to actually send the stock out from the Channel Isles, but don't seem to now (or maybe that's only new releases?)

It's 150 quid in Zavvi for the game and the instruments.

I managed to resist... for now...

I traded some games in at Blockbuster and got Rock Band. Hoorah!

And I had enough credit left over to FINALLY get Call of Duty 4. Hoorah!

So after a run of dark days I thought things were finally looking up for a good, happy relatively stress-free long weekend.

Two minutes after I got back to the office after getting Rockband my mobile goes and it's my wife in tears telling me that one of the diamonds has disappeared from her wedding ring. We'll get it sorted - we'll go to the local jewellery places tomorrow morning to get money/time quotes on a replacement diamond and a repair - but I don't think she'll be in a rocking out kind of mood tonight and I don't know how we're going to find the cash to get the ring repaired. We will, somehow, because it's incredibly important, but it's something else to worry about, just as I thought I had everything on pause for a few days.

So, Rockband HOORAY, but life BOO.

Sorry.

Just needed to vent somewhere.

Ouch. Nightmare.

Two things.

1 - You must have traded in a TON of stuff to get nigh on 200 quid worth of exchange.

2 - You will now be sucked in to the world of CoD4... there is no escape.

I got £80 trade in. I haven't got the Rock Band instruments, because I didn't want to spend any cash over and above my store credit.

We'll be using the GH3 guitar and headset mic for now. (My wife's planning on holding a Singstar mic while wearing the headset, because it will feel better than just using the headset on its own.)

That sucks, mate.
My wedding ring only cost a couple of hundred pounds but it's by far the most precious thing I own.

I've just traded in almost everything I have for a copy. It's fucking awesome on a stick, but the kick feels a little twitchy, and I think I've hurt one of the pads already.

How? I need to hit them harder than I do because it is not quite registering my strikes.

Um. Back up north, when pubs have jam nights, they're sometimes leery about letting me play their kits. I hit drums like they just called my pint a puff.

Seeing as you don't drink, your pint IS a puff.

BE GLAD YOU ARE NOT A DRUM.

having never really played a drum before the pedal does ache ya leg a bit and half, its like learning to drive again but twice as painful. pain for joyful gain, tried a expert song, one of the easiest songs and got 3 stars, score.

I'm averaging 97% on the Medium tour, I'm suffering because I know a lot of the songs well and keep trying to play them properly...

Grohltastically, I've already broken the stand after an hour, the bits at the bottom shot out during the Strokes song. I'm going to have to hit the kick a little more delicately.

I do not know many of the songs. I know the Blur song, Nirvana song, Stones song and one I can't admit to knowing, so those I don't know I am finding difficult, which is most.

I got 98% on Blur a minute ago, which was OK.

I have been looking around the ninnynet for a couple of things so if anyone knows, works out or comes across the answer to these could the just post and let me know and I'd be ever so grateful.

Firstly, can you play a career as a band over XBlahLive? or do you have to be in the same room?

Also, to play downloaded track with someone over Live, do both parties need to own the song?

Thankingyousomuchloveyoulongtime.

Well, I can't invite you in multiplayer tour, so I assume it's local only...

RAGE

I have the instruments and not the game! Bah. Am currently ringing the local supermarkets. If I can get it for £40 I will buy another copy and return the play.com one when it turns up. It will probably be here tomorrow, which isn't too bad... but if it's not it'll be Tuesday. I'm not waiting all weekend!

Oh, OK - thanks Davyyd. That's a bit of a shame I guess, I would like to have had a little online band.

Oh, Richard Happywood, that's poo-ness. I dare say it'll be there tomorrow, though - most people's arrived today and they were all sent out together, probably just your sorting office having a slack day. Fingers crossed.

I'll gleefully play some online stuff, but I am pretty vexed that an online career is impossible.

Everyone! Try 'Hysteria' by Muse on expert, while singing! It's ace.

Hmm. Tesco's up the road has 3 copies in for £39.71. I think I'm going to go buy one. Play.com will issue a refund on the return, I'd be out of pocket to the tune of about £3.50.

Go, go, go!

Yes, I've had a couple of online songs with Craig, seems to work well, but would have been nice to have had an online career mode. Also, watch out. If you register a band the head of that band always has to be present for that band to play, but, also they are stuck with the instrument that you registered with, I believe.

I'm off to Asda! Three minutes beating on the drums swung it for me

You could always pick up one of the Tesco copies, but don't open it until the postman comes tomorrow. Then if your Play copy turns up, you can take back your unopened Tesco copy (I'm assuming that Tesco's will accept it back in whatever condition they sell it to you). If the Play one doesn't turn up, then you've still got the rest of the weekend to play it.

Edit - Of course, a much better idea would be to return your play copy to wherever you get a copy from tonight.

And this occured to me on the way down to Asda. I got a copy from there and will seek a refund from there for my (unopened) Play copy tomorrow.

'Maps' on Expert is properly, properly awesome.

Asda won't usually give you a refund on games. They do have a sign up saying so, (but, if it's like my local store then that sign is displayed below knee height and under an overhang on the game shelves). Kick up a fuss and say you are going to complain because the information is not properly displayed and they will give you back your money. I had this problem taking back a game I bought for my brothers that they already had, and it is one of teh few times I have asserted myself in one of these situations, and I won. Hurrah!

#exchanges" class="postlink">Asda exchange policies

Oh, perhaps I will have to be an arse tomorrow then. Even if I return it to play I'm only out a few quid so it's OK.

Also: argh my leg hurts! I need a stool, my sofa is too low and the kick drum is killing me.

If it's clearly unopened I really can't see them having a problem.

Oh, they do. it;s just their policy and they stick to it - it's only lackies being told what to do, but you can't blame them for not taking the goods back if they've been told not to. the game I was returning wasn't opened, but a LOT of them are not sealed (mine was, but it never helped).
It took nearly 45 minutes for me to get my cash back in my pocket.

I've done the first tier (Boston) + one song from New York on medium drums with two four star performances and my right leg has turned to jelly!

I've been looking throught the downloadable songs, there's some good stuff in there; I'll be having the NIN stuff and 'Blinded By Fear'.

And 'Still Alive' is free!

My leaving present from work (today was my last day) was 4200 XBLAH points. Guess where they are going!

I know! Awesome!

I am currently trying the mic, which is a nice easy alternative to drumming, but it seems a bit too easy on as mode. I mean, I have got 100% on every song I have tried so far, and I have never heard the songs Oh well, I want to complete easy before knocking it up a notch, but it is good fun ads teh new songs start to open up but really I'm trying trying to get to Bowie and a song I know the tune of

The kids and I have spent the last two hours banding it up (annoyingly but predictably, Wyld Stallyns was taken so we've gone with The Red Winkiez, after our collective favourite monsters from Dragon Quest VIII). Enormously, incredibly good fun although the vocals to Wanted Dead Or Alive may have actually killed me. I had to give it 20% more welly when I realised the crowd were singing along.

Downsides - the first two tiers of the guitar on Medium are insultingly simple. The drumkit keeps trying to run away across the floor. And it's impossible to pick songs up as I go along - if I don't know it already, I'm boned.

Oh man.

Wife was feeling better about life when I got home, so we set up a band with me on guitar and her on vocals and started playing our World Tour.

It's awesome stuff. I've been really enjoying it and so has she, except for the time a 2-song random set list threw up a French song followed by a German song.

I enjoyed them both immensely.

HEIR! KOMMT! ALEX!

It's brilliant. It's the Singstar/Guitar Hero combination we've always dreamed of.