Matt Litten:Are you surprised by the overwhelmingly positive reaction many bands/musicians, especially those not featured in the first game, have had playing Guitar Hero? And did the first game's tremendous success lead to more bands/musicians clamoring to get their songs into Guitar Hero II?

Ted Lange: Definitely, the response we have been getting since the release of Guitar Hero has been astounding. Recently we went to the Warped Tour and found out that most of the bands have Guitar Hero on their tour busses. It's really great that real musicians love the game just as much as all of the gamers do. Since the release of Guitar Hero, we have had many bands contact us. Some of the bands that we were in talks with instantly started announcing that they were in the game before any contracts were even signed. It's pretty crazy!

ML: How tough is the song-choosing process for a game of this magnitude, and what factors ultimately lead to a song either making the final cut or getting the axe?

TL: It takes a lot of work to make up a solid song list for Guitar Hero. We take a lot of time listening to tons of music searching for what will sound and play the best in-game. The main thing we look for when picking out songs is playability. A song that is just constant strumming doesn't turn out to play as good as a song with some real good solos and lead parts.

ML: When picking songs for the game, what were the discussions like during the staff meetings? I wouldn't be surprised if things got a little heated on occasion with staffers making their argument to get favorite bands and songs into the game…

TL: Hahaha…yeah you can say that things can get a little heated at times. We actually have two song selection teams, one at Harmonix and one at RedOctane. When you have teams from different coasts of the country picking songs, you start to really see the different musical tastes. In the end the songs that we at RedOctane aren't sure about and the ones that Harmonix aren't in complete agreement about all turn out to be great choices. Sometimes you don't know until you actually play them in the game and then it all becomes clear.

ML: How many songs in total will Guitar Hero II feature, and what will the balance be between tracks from well-known bands opposed to those from indie bands, as well as the actual original songs versus re-recordings?

TL: On Guitar Hero we had 47 songs. This time we are crushing you with 64 songs. Guitar Hero II will feature 40 licensed tracks and 24 unlockable tracks.

ML: Also, can you let us in on some more songs on the game's track list that haven't been officially announced as of yet? We're crossing our fingers for some Tenacious D (please, please, please…)

TL: We have some real exciting tracks on our unlock section, and it doesn't just feature indie bands this time around, but some big names as well. While it would be killer to let you in on some of these songs it'll take away from the excitement of unlocking them and we certainly wouldn't want to do that.

ML: Punk rock was able to get a few songs in on the first game but so far it doesn't seem like it'll have as much of a presence in the sequel. Why not as much punk rock love this time around? Though, if the rumor about the Descendents possibly making the game is true, it would shut us up.

TL: Punk Rock is great, don't get me wrong. Some of the problem with Punk goes back to gameplay. Most punk is pretty standard power chord driven songs which sound great, but translated into gameplay it doesn't play as good as it sounds. We are always going to try to include all genres of rock music, so for all of the punk fans, don't worry, we won't forget about you.

ML: For a lot of people who played it, the first game gave players a new appreciation for songs and bands they normally didn't listen to, or in some cases had never even heard of. Guitar Hero II is posed to continue that trend with its even richer, more varied mix of rock. How does it feel to know that this series is turning into a torch-like tool, passing onto the younger generation "classic" rock that usually can't be heard on popular radio, seen/heard on MTV, etc.?

TL: That's exactly what we want. We treated the music selected in Guitar Hero as a sort of Rock Education. Think of Guitar Hero as lesson plan #2. There is so much classic music that hasn't been heard by the kids today and also so much new music that hasn't been heard by the older gamers. I love it when I see either group rocking out to music that they wouldn't normally listen to.

ML: Of all the modes for the game, Survival has had the least amount of info released on it. Is there any chance we can glean some new info from you on it? Also, briefly recap the other game modes the game will offer if you could.

TL: This was a game mode that didn't end up making it into this version due to lack of time. One of the new modes we do have however is Practice Mode, which we know everyone will love. Practice Mode lets you select a song or even just a section of a song and slow it down so that you can practice those really tough parts and with the songs we've selected in Guitar Hero II you're going to need it. Think about how helpful this would have been on the solo for Bark at the Moon.

ML: Like most music/rhythm-based games, the first Guitar Hero didn't really showcase anything that fancy as far as presentation goes. Will we be seeing any improvements in this area, and if so, how do Guitar Hero II's production values improve upon what was seen in the original?

TL: Guitar Hero II looks ten times better than the first. Graphically it is really improved. One of the first things you will notice is that the lighting effects have been completely revamped. Each song has its own lighting that goes with the music like it would if it was a real concert. The venues have also been completely redone and they look amazing. A lot of care was put into the game to not just give you a new song list but really a completely new version. The game also has a progressive scan option now to get a real clean look on that expensive TV you just bought.

ML: Just this week a 360 version for Guitar Hero II was officially confirmed. I'm sure info on the 360 version is being kept under tight wraps at the moment, but is there any dirt you can give us about it, such as how will it compare/contrast to the PS2 version, downloadable content features, new guitar controller ideas, when we can expect to see it on store shelves, etc?

TL: One of the biggest things to come with the 360 version is the X-plorer guitar controller. It looks great and will play just as good as the SG controller that everyone is familiar with. Obviously the biggest difference you will see between the PS2 and the 360 version will be the graphics. This is a next-gen version of Guitar Hero so we will be giving the next-gen look that everyone expects. Downloadable content is also another thing we are really excited about exploring. The potential for downloadable content is huge and we see it as a great way to keep the game fresh and provide what people want, which mostly is more music.

ML: As for future "next-gen" possibilities for Guitar Hero, what are the chances of seeing some kind of "create-a-song" feature in which players could maybe import their own songs to play in the game, or something along those lines?

TL: There are a lot of licensing issues when it comes to importing your own songs into the game, but we are exploring all of the potential that comes along with next-gen hardware. The future of gaming is huge and we want Guitar Hero to keep growing as a brand.

ML: Rumors have been swirling about the Guitar Hero franchise branching onto all of the major new platforms - does this mean we can look forward to PS3 and Wii versions down the road, or maybe even portable spin-offs? I know you probably can't speak on any of this right now, but I have to at least try and squeeze something out of you. Any hints?

TL: We are really excited about the release of a new Sega system. That's the system we want to bring Guitar Hero onto next. ;) In all honesty though, we see a really bright future for Guitar Hero and there is so much we can do to improve this franchise and so much more rock music to bring to the masses.

Previewed by Matt Litten for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).