FSU vs. WSSU preview-Just win please!

Remember when.....

FSU vs. Winston-Salem State Preview:

The Bulldogs will finish out their road trip with a game in North Carolina versus the Rams of Winston-Salem State. This will be the two teams second meeting in as many years, the Bulldogs beating the Rams 85-63 on November 10, 2006. The Rams are in their 3^rd year of the 5 year transition to Division 1 Basketball. They are competing in the Mid Eastern Athletic Conference but cannot compete in the postseason tourney until year 5.

WSSU Coming in:

The Rams enter with a 1-3 overall record and enter on the heels of a loss to Wake Forest 73-53. They were led by Brian Fisher’s 18 points and 8 rebounds. The Rams were dominated in the paint by the much bigger and more physical Demon Deacons.

The Rams are averaging 57 points per game and have only one player in double figure scoring in 6’2” sophomore guard Brian Fisher. Surprisingly, Fisher also leads the Rams in rebounding at 3.8 per game which doesn’t bode well for WSSU.

As far as team statistics go, they tell a very distinct story of why the Rams have a 1-3 record and also what the Bulldogs need to do to exploit WSSUs weaknesses.

-Rams shoot 32% from the field
-Rebounding deficit of 10 per game
-Average 17 turnovers per game
-Assist to turnover ratio of -7

The Rams do shoot the three quite effectively at a 36% clip and are actually outshooting themselves from 2.

The Bulldogs coming in:

FSU enters off of a tough road loss at the hands of the Sam Houston State Bearkats 68-57. The Bulldogs put forth a terrible shooting effort which did not allow them to stay in the game late. When you shoot 28% from the field and 3-24 from three you just aren’t going to win many games at all, especially road games. Couple that with being outrebounded by 10 and there just isn’t a way a team can stay in a game that way.

The Dogs were only able to stay around 10 because they were able to force 24 turnovers and get to the free throw line 24 times which was very promisining for a perimeter oriented team. The Bulldogs were led by Kevin Bell’s 16 points and 7 assists and Hector Hernandez and his 17 points and 9 rebounds.

For the season the Bulldogs are scoring 70 points per game, shooting 42% from the field, 31% from three, and 70% from the free throw line which is very repectable. The issues are the -7.3 rebounding margin and only 12 assists per game as a team which isn’t going to allow the team to be very successful unless those two areas show marked improvement.

Whats at stake:

Self respect. The Dogs cannot trip up against an opponent like WSSU. This team is on the schedule as a sure win. After a dismal 1^st road effort the Dogs must find a way to improve road shooting and get the job done. With a shorthanded roster with many holes, every game is going to be a fight so Cleveland and staff must find advantages anywhere they can and exploit them. This team just needs wins against whoever and wherever because they are going to be hard to come by all season long.

MBs Take:

The Dogs continue to struggle but force enough turnovers and make enough 3s to come home with a W.

Dogs Return home-FSU v. MSU preview

Gut check time? You bet your a** it is!

Fresno State vs. Montana State Preview:

The Bulldogs return home to the Save Mart Center Wednesday night to host the Montana State Bobcats of the Big Sky Conference, tipoff set for 7pm. The Bobcats and Bulldogs played twice last season with the Bulldogs winning both, highlighted by an overtime win in Bozeman. The Bobcats are coached by Brad Huse who is in his second season at MSU.

Montana State coming in:

The Bobcats enter on the heels of a very impressive home win against Boise State 86-84. MSU led by 13 at halftime but did enough to hold off the Broncos. The Bobcats hold a 2-1 overall record with the 2 point win over Boise State, an 18 point victory over Long Beach State, and an 11 point road loss against UNLV.

They have 3 double figures scorers in their three games-Guards Casey Durham (13.3 ppg, 6 stls) and Carlos Taylor (13.7 ppg) and Center Divaldo Mbunga (10 ppg, 7 rpg). As a team they are averaging 75 points per game, shooting 46% from the field, and 32% from three point range.

What to expect from MSU:

The Bobcats feature a very experienced backcourt and will rely on them to carry a fairly young team outside of their trio of guards. They have a very defensive oriented system and coach Huse stresses excellence on that side of the floor. They also have a true center in Mbunga, a facet they have not been accustomed to. Expect him to cause problems on the interior for a thin and weak Bulldogs frontcourt.

Fresno State coming in:

The Bulldogs enter off of a painful and embarrassing loss down in Bakersfield at the hands of first-year D1 team the CSUB Roadrunners. Not only was it a road loss against a very winnable opponent, but during the game Junior Guard Dwight O’Neil fractured his wrist and will miss at least 8 weeks. Senior forward Alex Blair was limited because of a very nagging heel issue. Couple this with the indefinite suspension of Rekalin Sims and there is definite reason for worry in Fresno.

Guard Tyson Parker will give up his redshirt and make this his senior season as he felt it was best for the team. Both Tyson and Coach Cleveland wanted him to come in as an experienced guard in 08-09 to be a leader on what will be a young team, but he has elected to play now.

The Bulldogs are averaging 70.5 points per game, including 4 double figure scorers in Kevin Bell (19.3 ppg, 6 apg), now injured Dwight O’Neil (13.4 ppg, 2 spg), Eddie Miller (11.8 ppg) and Bryan Harvery (11 ppg). With the loss of O’Neil for an extended period of time, these three need to increase their scoring load, moreso from Miller and Harvey who will see increased minutes.

The obvious issues for the Bulldogs are the 7.5 rebound deficit per game, the 61% team free throw shooting percentage, and yielding 44.5% field goals to their opponents. The fact remains this shorthanded team needs to find ways to win and must do all of the little things to stay competitive. They must make a concerted effort on the boards and improve the overall defensive effort.

What to expect from the Bulldogs:

There isn’t really such a thing as a “must win” this early in the season, but the Dogs need a win to stop the bleeding not only following a 2 game skid, but to help ease the tension surrounding the program both on the court with injuries but also off the court with suspensions.

It is up to Kevin Bell and the guards to lead this team over the Bobcats. Coach Cleveland needs his team to come out with energy and show a spark on both ends of the floor, getting the positive vibe going. They will be forced to motivate themselves most likely, due to what will be a sparse crowd at SMC. This is a role where freshman Ned Golubovic could really help his team.

Its gut check time for the Bulldogs, how will these players and coaches react when their backs are inching ever closer to the wall?

MBs Take:

The Dogs find a way to win and grit one out, but they will struggle and may even be sluggish early, in fact I expect it. They key is to keep the deficit under 10 and not allow momentum to grow for the Bobcats.

Dogs win 71-66.

Random Thoughts

Push through the Crowd, Altair

Assassin's Creed came out last week, This week we see the releases of Mass Effect(XBOX 360) and Rock Band(PS3/360). Assassin's Creed is not what it appears to be on its surface. All of the screenshots show you as the "main" character, Altair, but the first moments of the game reveal that it is actually set in the year 2012, and your name is Desmond. You use a machine to assume the roll of Altair. I won't even try to explain. With its engrossing story that leaves you wanting more throughout, Creed is one of the large titles that can live up to the hype.

The game at first seems repetitive, and for the most part, it is. But the further into the story you get, the better you get at sword fighting, counters, and silent kills, the more fun there is too be had. Just running across the rooftops and killing guards has taken up alot of my time lately.

I am sure I won't get around to Mass Effect for a while, Creed is a long offline game(something the highly touted Call of Duty 4 is not, online only there). But Rock Band releases tomorrow, and I am crossing my fingers I can get a bundle for PS3.

LA AUTO SHOW

Picture above in the Orange, this is a coupe version of the Genesis Sedan Concept we saw way back at the New York Auto Show. The car is overall not bad, and looks close to production ready. Supposedly the E46 M3(previous gen M3) was used as a benchmark. That was one hell of a car, and if they got anywhere in the ballpark, there could be some wonderful things to come from Hyundai... Wait what? I guess....
Our old friend the BMW 135i is back, now priced. It has not our friend any longer, now it's a distant cousin that comes to visit and wants to have deep conversations with you when you're just trying to play video games. Starting at $35,675, and fully optioned at or around $52,000, Why wouldn't you buy the 335i? Give yourself the extra leg room(lord know I need it). The still competent 128i will start at a slightly more reasonable $29,375.

The Battle of the Valley-FSU v. CSUB

The leader of this group searching for answers

FSU @ CSUB Preview:

The Fresno State Bulldogs will make the trip south down the 99 Freeway to play new Division 1 entrant the California State University Bakersfield Roadrunners at Rabobank Arena. This will be Bakersfield’s first home game as a division 1 team, and it will be the teams first meeting since 1978.

Fresno State coming in:

The Bulldogs come into Bakersfield winning two of three games in the World Vision Invitational in Fresno, losing in the would-be championship game to San Diego State 89-72. They were never able to find their stride during the tournament and are still looking to define roles and find an adequate rotation, especially in the frontcourt.

The Dogs will also be without forward Rekalin Sims, who was set to play Saturday coming off of an academic suspension. Sims was involved in an incident early Monday morning and arrested on robbery and conspiracy charges. He is suspended indefinitely from the team and will most likely never play a minute for the Bulldogs this season.

The Bulldogs enter with 4 players in double figure scoring led by Senior point guard Kevin Bell (19.3 ppg, 6 apg), Dwight O’Neil (15.7 ppg, 3 rpg, 3 spg), Eddie Miller (13.3 ppg, 50% 3pt) and 6^th man Bryan Harvey (11.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg). One issue may be Kevin Bell leading the team in shot attempts. Coach Cleveland alluded to the fact that he didnt like that stat from his distributor, and although he has been effective, its all about shot selection and that must continue to be emphasized.

On the inside, the Dogs have not found much success at all in three games. Senior Hector Hernandez had an abysmal tournament, shooting 27% from the field, and was very disappointed in his own play. He needs to pick things up on both ends of the floor because if he isn’t providing an offensive spark, how many minutes can he get? Sean Taylor has played sparingly and will look for increased minutes where he has two purposes: defense and rebounding. Alex Blair (6 rpg) will continue to get the start.

CSUB coming in:

The Roadrunners enter Saturdays matchup coming off of two losses (92-75 @ CSUF, 94-66 @ SMC). Junior guard Terrence Johns led the way in the first two averaging 22.5 points and 5.5 rebounds. The other two in double-digit scoring is Junior Forward Santwon Latunde (10.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg) and Freshman Center Cory Brown (12.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg).

One issue for the Roadrunners has been their ability to take care of the Basketball. They have 24 assists to 36 turnovers in their 2 games. CSUB is also having to deal with replacing the bulk of their scoring from last season as they lost the top 3 scorers from last years team. This early part of the season will be important for the Roadrunners in establishing who will be the complimentary players to go with Johns and where the secondary scoring will come from.

What to expect from the Dogs:

The Bulldogs will need to establish themselves early, especially this being on the road against a winless, hungry opponent, and an arena full of fans looking for a big upset for this new D1 program. Coach Cleveland will need to have his team on an extremely short leash over the first 3-5 minutes. The opening 3 games for the Dogs have featured slow starts highlighted by stagnant offense, poor shot selection, and an inability for anyone to step up and make a play on the offensive end. They cannot continue to dig themselves a hole every time out.

Another key will be on the defensive end of the floor. CSUB has shown they are turnover prone early in the season. The Bulldogs need to keep the pressure on the perimeter constant to make entry passes that much more difficult. They must continue to work on interior defense and rebounding, this is most important for Hernandez. This may also be a good opportunity to get the Freshman Brandon Webster into the mix. Since Cleveland has decided not to redshirt him, it would make sense to get him 6-8 minutes per game. Also look to see Ned Golubovic get into the mix, he has provided a spark off the bench early in the season and brings a cerebral game with him.

Another facet the Bulldogs need to establish is some scoring while attacking the rim. Bryan Harvey has a tendency for too much east-west dribbling, he needs to turn the corner and get to the rim. Dwight O’Neil will need to do much of the same, but he needs to cut down on his team-high 11 turnovers. Eddie Miller needs to shoot more than 8 shots per game, especially when he is shooting threes at a 50% clip.

This looks to be a good opportunity for the Bulldogs to go on the road and work on defective parts of their game, continue to develop new wrinkles, and to get minutes for young players. Coach Cleveland must take a very cautious approach to the development of his team, this will be an extremely delicate early season for him and one where he earns his money. He is dealing with a team that undoubtedly lacks confidence and is fragile in its mindset.

2007 World Vision Classic Preview

Games that actually count on the W-L record are here!

This Friday night will be the tip of the 2007 World Vision Classic presented by Pape’ at the Save Mart Center. This years field includes host Fresno State, San Diego State of the Mountain West Conference, Portland of the West Coast Conference, and Liberty of the Big South Conference. Each team play all three opponents in a round robin style tournament. Below we will give a brief overview, who to look for, and what to expect from these 4 teams.

Portland:

Portland comes in from the West Coast Conference led by second year coach Eric Reveno. Last season the Pilots posted a 9-23 overall record (4-10 WCC). Reveno played for and coached for Mike Montgomery at Stanford, and he is trying to employ much of what Montgomery utilized and succeeded with during his tenure as Cardinal head coach. This is an extremely difficult rebuilding job for Reveno, Portland’s last winning record was during the 94-95 season.

Guard Jamie Jones would have been the leading returning starter for the Pilots, but he was ruled academically ineligible and left school. They will also feel the loss of All-Conference guard Darren Cooper who exhausted his eligibility during a superb senior season.

Portland will come in with one statistical lead over their tournament opponents, 10 of their 13 players on the roster are freshman and sophomores. The early development of this young team will be critical to their success, just how quickly can this team adapt to Reveno’s system and playing at a high level?

The Pilots areas of success will be rebounding and solid interior defense and overall defensive toughness. Robin Smeulders, who was ineligible last season, and Kramer Knutson will be the inside presence and rebounding force the Pilots need. Add freshman Luke Sikma, son of former NBA star Jack Sikma, into the mix on the inside.

Areas of weakness include outside scoring, a lack of a players that can create, and overall athleticism. If the inside game isn’t on or teams force Portland into shooting jumpshots they could be in for a long night. They were the worst 3 point shooting team in the WCC last season.

Taishi Ito will return to point guard duties after starting his freshman season. Ito averaged 7 points and 3 assists per game. At the other guard will be Walter Thompson (4.6 ppg .276 3 pt %). At the small forward will be Sherrard Watson (9 ppg, 3.8 rpg).

Off the bench look for Luke Sikma and guard Nik Raivio, brother of last seasons West Coast Conference MVP Derek Raivio of Gonzaga. Nik isn’t quite the shooter his brother was but he is a smart player who may be starting early into this season for Portland.

Liberty:

Liberty participates in the Big South Conference and comes into this season off of a 14-17 overall record (8-6 conf) with new head coach Ritchie McKay, who was fired from New Mexico. He brings experience and name recognition to Liberty which boasts the conferences largest athletic budget. They Flames are picked sixth in the Big South’s preseason poll.

Liberty lost leading scorer Larry Blair (20.4 ppg). Blair left Liberty as the conferences all-time leading scorer. The guards must pick up the scoring in his absence, but maybe the scoring by committee will be more beneficial for the Flames as unselfishness will equal greater success.

The backcourt will be led by TJ Bannister, a Virginia transfer with one season of eligibility left. He will be one of the top point guards in the Big South and will be hungry with one final year to prove himself. As he goes, so go the Flames, but can he add the scoring punch this team needs since he never showed that ability at Virginia? Joining Bannister in the backcourt will be Anthony Smith (11.4 pp, 39.3 3pt%), who is also a defensive stopper. Look for BJ Jenkins to come in at times and allow McKay to employ a three guard attack.

On the inside will be Forwards Armon Jones and Rell Porter, and Center Alex McClean (14.9 ppg, 8.9 rpg). Jones and Porter will be very inexperienced and the lack of depth behind them is a real concern for the flames. McKay had to scramble to fill the roster because of the late hiring and lack of opportunity to recruit regionally.

The Flames have a challenging non-conference schedule and the depth concerns will be very difficult to overcome. This team is in flatout rebuilding mode with 3 talented players coupled with question marks at the forward spots and a bench that may not provide much help at all.

San Diego State:

Steve Fisher is entering his ninth season at San Diego State (127-117 at SDSU) and coming off a 22-11 overall record (10-6 MWC). Will the departure of guard Brandon Heath and Forward Mohamed Abukar mean the door is closing on Fisher to make another NCAA run?

Another issue is the dismissal of Jerome Habel, the loss of his 10.9 points and 6.2 rebounds will be felt, Habel was to be a main cog in the Aztec attack. Couple that with the fact that point guard Richie Williams may be suspended for the tournament and you have quite a few early season issues. Habel, Abukar, and Heath accounted for 61% of San Diego States scoring last season.

Junior Forward Lorrenzo Wade (10.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 39 blks) is a very talented player. Fisher will count on Wade to shoulder a much larger load this season and take his game to a new level with all of the departures. The Aztecs will also need guards Richie Williams (7 ppg) and Kyle Spain (6.6 ppg) to step up. They will need to elevate their perimeter accuracy and show the ability to score from the outside to compliment the Aztecs inside game.

They will also look for contributions from newcomers F Ryan Amoroso (Marquette), G Kelvin Davis (UTEP), F Tim Shelton (Local product from Clovis West), and PG DJ Gay right away. They must establish themselves early and gain experience in the non-conference. Gay was a prolific scorer in high school (29.4 ppg).

The Aztecs will struggle in the early going as Fisher tries to solidify a rotation and players fight to establish themselves and for minutes. There is talent on this team but it is unproven and lacks experience so the speed of that development will be key for the Aztecs.

Fresno State (Season Preview):

Steve Cleveland enters his 3^rd season with the Bulldogs on the heels of a momentum building season in which the Bulldogs finished 22-10 overall (10-6 WAC) and lost in the first round of the NIT on the road against Georgia.

The Bulldogs main challenge will be replacing the contributions of Forwards Quinton Hosley (13.9 ppg, 8.9 rpg) and Dominic McGuire (13.5 ppg, 9.8 rpg, 3 apg, school record 114 blocks), who entered the NBA after his junior season. Although the Bulldogs have yet to find a true inside presence under Cleveland, Hosley and McGuire provided defensive intensity, rebounding, and a tenacity on both ends of the floor that will be difficult to replace.

First mention will be the fact that FSU will be without transfer Forward Rekalin Sims for the tournament because of academic reasons. Sims should be back Monday, but his absence will provide an opportunity for players to get extended minutes and minutes they may otherwise not have accrued. This may be valuable early in the season.

This team begins and ends with Senior point guard Kevin Bell (9.6 ppg, 5.6 apg). Bell enters as the favorite to be 1^st team all WAC as he is the conferences leading returning assist man. Bell will be looked towards to distribute to an outstanding perimeter shooting team, disrupt opposing PGs, provide some scoring punch, and not to mention be the emotional leader of the Bulldogs. Bell is in phenomenal shape and even looks to have added a few pounds of muscle which can only help as he will be called on to play extensive minutes, partly due to the loss of USC transfer Kevin Galloway who fell behind on classwork and transferred to a JC.

At guard with Bell will be Eddie Miller (10.5 ppg, 87 3pt Fgs). Miller led the team in 3 pointers made last season and will pick up where he left off. Coach Cleveland expects Miller to make 4 3 point field goals per game. Miller will be asked to help on the defensive boards with his athleticism, and will need to improve his on the ball defense. Hopefully, his confidence off the dribble has improved and he is more willing to put the ball on the floor when opponents fly out at him. His confidence is of the utmost importance and he must be mentally strong all season.

At the third G/SF spot will be Dwight O’Neil. He is coming off of a redshirt season and will provide instant toughness for the Bulldogs. He will be asked to penetrate and slash to the rim, backup Bell at PG, play tough defense, and help on the glass. He seems to have improved his shooting touch which if true could be deadly for an already perimeter oriented team, and also open up more lanes to penetrate.

The Forwards will be Alex Blair and senior Hector Hernadez (11.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg). Blair will fill in for Sims while he is suspended and until he earns his spot back. Blair is an energy player that has defined and narrow roles-rebound the basketball on both ends, play solid defense, and finish when afforded the opportunity to score. Hernandez got valuable experience playing with the Mexican National team in the FIBA Americas tournament. He is in the best shape of his career and will be called on more than ever to provide some semblance of a post presence. He will continue to be a solid three point shooter, but he will be asked to rebound and defend the post also as the Bulldogs are thin in the frontcourt.

Off the bench on the perimeter will be Bryan Harvey, the Louisville transfer, and there may be very minimal minutes for backup PG Myles Green. Harvey brings size to the wing at 6’5” and very solid perimeter shooting. He will have to show an ability to get to the rim and be versatile on an FSU team that needs all players to expand their roles to fill in for obvious shortcomings in multiple facets of the game.

Frontcourt reserves include senior Sean Taylor, freshman Brandon Webster, and fellow freshman Ned Golubovic. Taylor needs to step up in his last season, he will be asked to show improvement in post defense, rebounding on both ends of the floor, and in his general court savvy. Another welcome addition would be Taylor’s ability to hit the jump hook occasionally and show some sort of post game with his back to the basket. His roll is very defined and not much is asked of him. Webster is a long term project who has the ability to become very good. He needs to continue to get in better shape and adjust to the physical nature of the college game. Any court experience he can gain in the early going can only be beneficial as the season progresses. Golubovic was thought to be redshirting but that may not be the case as he has shown the ability to step out and shoot to go with his size.

Lastly, we will focus on who may be the biggest key to the season in Rekalin Sims. Kalin is a transfer from Kentucky with one season to play. He is considered more of an old school player who will not wow opponents with his athleticism but uses his skill around the basket and court sense to make things happen. He is crafty around the basket and possesses the ability to step out and knock down the open jumper. He will have to come up big on the boards and also be able to step inside and show the ability to post up and shoot the jump hook with both hands. He should be extremely focused and hungry as this is last opportunity to leave his mark on college basketball.

Of Note:

Fans attending the tournament games are asked to bring new or gently used basketball. There will be storage bins provided by Papé and World Vision at each of the entrance and there will be one big storage bin collected all the basketball at the end of the day.

The Bulldog Football team will be on the Islands to play undefeated Hawaii, lets keep this thing respectable and get home without any more injuries, this team has suffered more than enough in this season. Ball control, forcing turnovers, winning the special teams battle, and an off night by Colt Brennan and Hawaii will be the necessary recipe for an upset.

Guitar Hero III, The Simpsons Game reviews..

The Simpsons Game is out for all Major Systems(PSP this week), and reviews have been generally around the 7 out of 10 range. I have the game, and tend to agree with the reviews for the most part. It is one of those games that doesn't have the best gameplay, can be repetitive, but overall is very fun. The Simpsons TV show writers were used, as opposed to some of the past Simpson console games, and the humor is great.

If you are as big a Simpsons fan as I am, and play video games as well, there is plenty to like in the Simpsons game. At the very least, I would say give it a rental, because there is alot to like here.
When it was revealed that Harmonix(Frequency, Amplitude, Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero II) was no longer apart of the Guitar Hero franchise, alot of people wondered what would happen with Activision's hit. Activision put Neversoft(Tony Hawk Series) in charge of development for Guitar Hero III, and many people, such as myself, were a bit nervous with the decision.

Guitar Hero is a franchise that really can't receive a bad review. Take the same game, put new songs in it, and there you have it. The song list is obviously extremely important, and that's where this game falls short for me, even with 70+ songs.

The New Guitars (Gibson Kramer for PS2, Les Paul for PS3/360/Wii) are great. Can be tough to hold at times while standing, but the buttons feel great, the strum feels equally impressive.

The Boss Battles Suck. The Multiplayer battle mode sucks. I won't elaborate, they should have stuck with ALL encores, not thrown in Boss Battles.

It's not that the Songs featured are overall BAD(although sections 3-4-and 5 are pretty weak), it's that alot of the marquee songs are songs I can turn the radio on and hear on a daily basis. I like Welcome to the Jungle as much as the next guy, but do I really need to hear it more than I am already subjected to in normal life?

The real gems are Cult of Personality by Living Colour, Raining Blood by Slayer, Stricken by Disturbed, Cliffs of Dover by Eric Johnson, and OF COURSE, One by Metallica. Everybody's musical tastes differ, but overall these songs are challenging and FUN. And the Dragonforce song, Through the Fire and Flames, is freaking impossible. Alot of people considered Jordan on GHII hard, and it was, but Dragonforce is harder, longer, and doesn't have an easy loop to recover from the hard passages.
Going back to little old Harmonix. They have this game, called Rock Band, coming out in less than 20 days, I have talked about it before. They have MTV and EA behind them, and they have a nice little track list of almost 60 songs, and they have promised some lofty downloadable content in the way of Whole Albums, and many other songs. They have the better Metallica Song, better Weezer song, Better Queens of the Stone Age song. They have Soundgarden! STP, Bon Jovi, Blue Oyster Cult.... ALOT to look forward to playing.

And you won't just have a guitar, you have the EXTREMELY fun drum set, and a microphone as well, and you have a fresh series that may have something going for it. Check your local Best Buy for the demo, it releases Novemeber 21st. I will post impressions when this one is out, because the demo units I was banging on have alot of wear on them.

P.S. Rock Band went gold. It is so close....