Hori - Guitar Life: Lesson 1 for Nintendo Switch - Black

My kids have been asking for guitar lesson for a while and trying to learn on their own but struggling. This honestly seems like a far better solution to recurring payments to apps or tutors as it is a one-time payment and they can learn at their own pace. *What’s included?* The guitar comes with a game download card that is compatible with the Switch and the Switch 2. It is important to note that this guitar is only compatible with the original Switch right-side joycon. We have both and wanted to use the guitar with the Switch 2, so we had to find all of our old joycons to find working ones, recharge them, and then found out the left-sided ones are incompatible. Luckily, we managed to find a working right-sided control after some trial and error. *Construction and Function* The guitar is lightweight with an almost a hollow feeling. Its shape closely mimics the feel of a real guitar, and it is easy for young hands to hold but sligthly small for adults though still usable. The “strings” are highly sensitive to touch, and the strum closely simulates the feel of strumming a real guitar. Because this is like a real guitar, having long nails will be problematic. *Game* The game could use some improvements. It is great at teaching, and we have already learned from it, it is slow and visually easy to understand. The problem we have from it is that it shows the fingering as you would see it if the guitar was flipped in front of you. That is, the strings that are the top for me when I hold the guitar are visually at the bottom on the screen. This throws us off and it has made it hard to advance. My kids outright gave up after their initial frustration whilst I have persevered but had to repeat the same level many times. I am hoping that the game could get an update that allows a setting to change this according to learning preference. *Conclusion* Overall, this is a great idea and a fun game for kids and adults to gain real life skills using the Switch. The guitar itself is sensitive and simulates a guitar very well, but the game could use a learning preference update in my opinion. This may not be an issue for everyone and just something my family has trouble with though so I don't feel right detracting too much based on this. It is still pretty fun to use and learn with.

📦 UNBOXING: Inside the box, you will find the guitar, a manual, a thick guitar pick, and a redemption code for Guitar Life: Lesson 1 on Nintendo Switch. 💪 BUILD: Right off the bat, it’s important to note that the guitar controller requires a Nintendo Switch Joy-Con (R) controller. This game is not compatible with a Joy-Con 2 (R) controller. If you’re using a Nintendo Switch 2, you will have to use a Joy-Con (R) for Nintendo Switch or Nintendo Switch OLED. The guitar controller itself is largely plastic. A Joy-Con (R) slides into the controller, so no additional batteries are required. The fretboard (where your left hand goes) uses a silicone or rubber material as the strings. This makes it easy for your fingers to press down strings. The bridge area (where your right hand goes) also uses this same material as strings for strumming and picking. In my experience, you ought to pick fairly firmly for it to register, while the fretboard doesn’t need you to press down terribly hard in order to register your finger placement for a chord. There are also two bolts on the guitar in case you want to use a guitar strap, but one isn’t included in the box. With that said, I did all my testing without one, and found that it was comfortable enough in my lap—something I can’t say about a lot of real guitars that surprised me about this “toy” guitar. 🛠️ SETUP: You will need to use the included redemption code to download Guitar Life: Lesson 1 from the Nintendo eShop. One quirk about this game is that they require you to pair both the left and right Joy-Con as a controller. Even though you won’t actively use the left Joy-Con, it must remain paired or else the game will prompt you to re-pair it. This means the left Joy-Con’s battery will drain even though it’s not actively being used. So if the battery is low and the left Joy-Con dies, you will need to keep it charging in order to keep playing. The box and manual only mention that the Joy-Con (R) is required. So from that perspective, I think Hori should be a bit more transparent about this requirement. ⚡ LATENCY: If you’re using your console docked to a TV with an external sound system, there is a chance that there will be additional latency that is really not great for a game like this. For most games, that added latency is not an issue, but for a game like this where audio feedback is critically important to the performance, that added latency can be a dealbreaker. Even with Low Latency modes enabled on my TV, I found the added audio latency in my home setup was simply too much. Undocking the Switch from my TV and playing in tabletop mode was not ideal, but quickly demonstrated how much better the latency was. So for some folks who cannot get lower latency, this might end up being the best way to play. I’d recommend trying undocked first so you understand the intended latency, then try docking the Switch to see if the latency that your system adds is tolerable. For me, it was not tolerable, but this is not Hori’s fault. Despite this, it could be a challenge that Hori has to overcome due to the nature of this being a rhythm game. 💿 LESSONS: The game itself has different modes, but the primary one will be the Lesson Mode. Lessons will introduce newcomers to guitar on the basics like frets, strumming, chord charts, and learning to play actual chords. A typical lesson will have you play chords against a song, following the rhythm. It will have you play the song 5 times, but each time it will remove some assistance. For example, the first time you play a lesson, it will have Automatic Strum Input, Simplified Strum Mode, Display Chord Fingering, and Mini Chord Diagram. Once you complete your first playthrough of the song, the second playthrough will remove Automatic Strum Input, so you’ll be required to strum. The third playthrough will then additionally remove Simplified Strum Mode so there will be more strumming and you’ll be required to match the rhythm and upstroke/downstrokes in the song. The fourth playthrough will then additionally remove Display Chord Fingering, so you will no longer have a diagram showing you how to orient your fingers to play the chord; you’ll need to rely on the chord diagram. And lastly, the fifth playthrough will additionally remove the Mini Chord Diagram, so you’ll need to remember the chords by their name in order to play them. To move onto the next playthrough within a lesson, you’ll need to reach a certain level of proficiency, so you won’t be rushed onto the next playthrough until you’ve had a sufficient number of hits. Lessons whose songs introduce new chords will typically have you first learn the name of the chord, and show you both the chord diagram and fingering, and have you practice strumming the chord correctly before you begin your playthroughs of the song. This helps make sure you’re not just walking in blind. The lessons and songs are simple and repetitive, but that’s by design. Learning to play guitar requires you to get good at memorization, be quick with your finger placement, and develop a good sense of rhythm and strumming. I have been playing guitar for about two decades, so I decided to have my partner (who is completely new to guitar) play the game as well. Interestingly, she found that using the mirrored chord diagrams was very helpful, as she found the conventional diagrams to be unintuitive for her. This is something that never crossed my mind, so it’s great to see that Hori added these options to accommodate different players who find that mirroring what they see is more intuitive than looking at the conventional “top-down” representation of the guitar fretboard. With that said, are lessons fun? I think “fun” is subjective, but for my partner and I, I think Guitar Life: Lesson 1 can be considered “educational software” rather than a “game”. While it tries to be somewhat visually interesting, I think the focus here is mostly for learning purposes rather than as a game that anybody should want to pick up. 💿 OTHER MODES: Guitar Life also supports a few other game modes like Musical Performance where you can learn and play a number of songs, Free Play where you can openly play the guitar however you like, Chord Run to help you practice and quickly transition between chords in a rhythm style game, and Rhythm Riff which lets you bypass learning chords entirely and lets you just play entire chords simply by holding a single note on the fretboard. 🧐 CONCLUSION: Overall, I think Hori Guitar Life: Lesson 1 is educational software that is best suited to someone who has genuinely expressed interest in learning to play guitar. While the lessons aren’t going to be as thrilling as most popular rhythm games, the fact that you can learn to play real guitar in a structured way from your Nintendo Switch makes this a worthy pickup for someone who is genuinely interested in learning how to play. The lessons you will experience won’t turn you into a pro, but can genuinely get you off the ground and teach you how to read chord charts. And while it doesn’t teach you music theory, such lessons aren’t necessary to learn the basics of playing a guitar. I think Hori Guitar Life: Lesson 1 can help get a complete novice off the ground and push them to keep learning beyond what is included in the software.

I’ve always wanted to learn how to play the guitar, I’ve started multiple times using different methods but each time I never stuck with the method as motivation quickly left. I thought that if I could gamify the process, I could most likely stick with learning long enough to learn how to play. I saw that there was a Guitar Life: Lesson 1 by Hori for the Nintendo Switch, which comes with a Guitar like controller that connects with the switch. I decided to give it a go. Pros: - Easy to get playing. - Guided lessons are easy to follow for beginners. -Controller matches real guitar finger placement and pressure. Cons: - Requires a Switch 1 Right Joycon to work with Switch 2. - Game and Lessons could be more engaging for the player. Out of the Box: Included in the box is the Guitar Joycon compatible controller, a guitar pick, and a code for downloading the Guitar Life: Lesson 1 game. The Guitar Controller requires a Switch 1 Right Joycon to be slotted into the controller to work, a Switch 2 Joycon will not work. Luckily, the Switch 2 is backwards compatible with Switch 1 controllers. You will just need a separate charging stand if you only have a Switch 2. Initial setup is very simple. Make sure the Joycon is paired with your Switch before starting the game, startup the game up and slot the Right Joycon onto the Guitar controller then strum the Guitar to proceed to the main menu. Game/Lessons: From the main menu, the options are; Lesson, Musical Performance, Free Play, Cord Run, My Data, Guide, and Options. All can be easily accessed by navigating over via the Joycon attached to the Guitar controller and pressing the A button. Lessons contains most of the game & learning; you unlock additional lessons as you complete each lesson and more levels with the full completion of all lessons within that level. Each Lesson teaches you the placement of a Chord, showing you your finger placement on screen while playing, then has you play the Cord at timed intervals along with strumming. A score is provided at the end of the Lesson, if you succussed you can progress or repeat if you didn’t quite get it. Building on each learned Chord and stumming technique, until you can complete a full song. The main gamification is done through completing lessons, which earn you points and those points level your account up. I was hoping for a bit more “gamification” within the actual lessons to help provide additional drive to play and learn. The lessons are easy to complete, and build on each previous lesson, but the overall motivation is just a linear path of learning more not so much gaming. The progression is very basic; complete the lesson to unlock additional lessons and finally a song which you can play with the accumulated lessons knowledge. Completing a full lesson a song will unlock additional Lesson levels; completing Beginner unlocks Intermediate, which unlocks Advanced and finally Expert. Musical Performance provides guided performances on 13 songs, which is a great way to practice once you’ve completed the required lessons. I wish there was a larger selection or a way to add additional songs. Free Play is just that, it provides the ability to play the Guitar controller like an actual Guitar without any guidance. Cord Run kind fits the mini games I was hoping to see in the lessons to learn the different cords. You’re tasked with hitting the different cords at the right time as a character run across the screen, providing some level of “gamification” to the challenge. It is very basic, though I’ve only started the initial sets, so it might become more challenging as you unlock additional cords later. My Data provides a summary of all your activities within the game, a nice “report” card on your progress. Guide is helpful if you want to look up specific cords or other inputs for the controller or a guitar in general, it’s a helpful tool to review how to play. Options provides adjustments for playing the game. Build & Feel: The Guitar Controller is made of a black matte plastic, which is light weight but solid enough to play on without concern of breaking it. The light weight made it easy to play for a duration without feeling fatigue in my hands or wrists, as there is not over the shoulder strap for the controller included but adding one wouldn’t be too difficult. For being a game/toy, the Guitar Controller felt good in hand as an adult, I could see the controller might feel tiny for a larger adult or slightly big for a child. But in both cases, because the size of the controllers’ inputs (frets and strumming fins) matches that of a standard Guitar, the experience would be the same as using an actual Guitar. I found the Guitar controller to be way more comfortable of a learning experience than using an actual Guitar, as the fins and strings are a rubberized material, instead of metal strings that can hurt your fingers if you don’t have calluses built up. Which most beginners would not have, I’d recommend being cautious when switching from the game controller to an actual Guitar, as your fingers will probably not have the calluses from playing an actual Guitar yet. Conclusion: Overall, I found the Guitar Life: Lessons 1 by Hori to be a fun and easy way to learn the basics of playing the Guitar, I’ve been playing it for an hour or so each day since I got it, progressing slowly but steadily. I’m already further along than any of my other attempts at learning the Guitar, so I’ll keep at it for now. I do wish the Lessons were more gamified but have been keeping up with the step-by-step building of knowledge. It will be a while before I can actually play, but one Lesson at a time.

I have, essentially, 0 knowledge of playing guitar. Each time I've tried to learn in the past, I've bounced off of it, because it just doesn't make sense to me. I play keyboard instruments better, because there's a clear, linear progression of notes. The way the strings on the guitar are all different feels like too much to keep track of to me. After playing this for a few days, I'm mildly ashamed to admit that nothing has changed. I don't know guitar any better than before whatsoever. Now, I'm certain this is more my fault than that of this... game? I'm not sure how to categorize it. Whatever the case, I think this is an excellent starting point for people who want to learn guitar. To start with, the controller. The "strings" you strum are these rubber fins that are quite sensitive to touch, and the "strings" on the fret board are strips of rubber that you press down to change the pitch of the associated "string" you strum. While it's not a perfect replication of an actual guitar (the strumming fins are a little too sensitive to touch, so if you try to rest your fingers on one string to play the one above or below it, it will register as a strum instead), it's good enough to get the basics down. I will say, however, that the included pick is rather necessary to avoid accidentally strumming strings you don't want to play. One aspect of the controller I'm not fond of is that there's absolutely 0 recourse if you like to play lefty. The shape of the controller is oriented exclusively for playing righty - if you try to play it lefty, it's uncomfortable and awkward to hold, not to mention that the Joycon is facing down. You'll have to avoid pressing the buttons if it's against your leg, and you'll have to either flip the controller around to navigate the menus, or feel around and hope you're pressing the proper buttons. The instructions in the game only tell you how to play it righty, and I couldn't find an option to flip the guitar strings for lefty, although I admittedly didn't spend a ton of time searching for it. Still, though, it's frustrating as someone who plays guitars "the wrong way" not to be able to orient it to my needs. The actual software itself is nice. In the box is a redemption code you enter into the Eshop on your Switch, which you use to get the software. It's not massive, so it doesn't take long to download. There's a lot of different features in the software - you can go straight into learning chord basics, to understand how chord progression works, or you can go into the lessons, where you'll be taught everything from posture to playing real music. You can jump into just about any point in the lessons, so you don't have to start at guitar 101 if you already know some stuff. There's also free play mode, where you can just mess around with the guitar and play what you want. It's great. I think this is a fantastic starting point for people who want to learn guitar, without committing to purchasing an expensive instrument, much less lessons. It won't be a 1 to 1 of playing guitar, but it'll be close enough that you can definitely apply what you learn to the real instrument.

It is quite the interesting premise for Hori Guitar Life. Basically, you learn basic guitar playing with this game. I am not new to this idea, as I have tried the iconic rhythm guitar games and the ones that a real guitar is needed. This is more in the middle of both camps. The guitar feels and looks like a toy as it is made of plastic and rather small. Still, it actually has some decent ergonomics when held as recommended and while seated. The other difference from past gaming guitars is that this one actually has “strings” simulated on the body. The strings do a decent job of allowing finger placement but still feel odd. The guitar comes with a rather large pick and also feels a bit forced on the strings. Once I got used to the feeling, and started going through the lessons, it started to feel more natural. The lessons are very basic and focus on basic chords. The instructions for finger placement on the fret board are confusing, especially if you have no experience with guitars. They show it from the player’s point of view, but they never really explain it well, and seem counter intuitive. The strings can be very sensitive, so one only needs a light touch, which goes against a real guitar’s strings feel. Strumming is the one thing that feels great. There are sections, exercises, and games that help the player get better, but again, one must get the basics down first. In the end, this can be a fun way to learn some basics, albeit with a somewhat deep learning curve. If you really get into it, I can see this being an entry point for the real deal - Just wished the software was more robust.