WikiHero
Register
Advertisement
WikiHero
1,565
pages
StarPower-GH2-gems

Star Power gems as they appear in GH2. The Star Power meter is seen above the rock meter.

Star Power is a game feature that appears in most Guitar Hero game.

Description[]

In all games, the player can receive Star Power by hitting all notes in a Star Power phrase, which are usually identified by their star shape and cyan outline, or by using the whammy bar on sustained notes within Star Power phrases. If all the Star Power notes are hit in the segment then the Star Power gauge will be filled up by 25%. If any note is missed, the Star Power notes will convert to standard notes, however, any Star Power extracted via the whammy bar will not be lost. To use it, the gauge must be filled to at least 50%, however, the higher the gauge is filled, the longer it will last before depletion. It can be activated by two ways. Either by titling the guitar vertically, or by pressing the select button.

Gameplay Effects[]

Mechanically, Star Power doubles the current Multiplier, and raises the rock meter faster than average when notes are hit. Strategically, it is best to use Star Power whenever a 4x multiplier is present, or if the player is in a difficult section of a song. In games prior to World Tour, if Star Power is activated any other Star Power notes won't appear and any Star Power notes that are already present will be converted to standard notes, while in World Tour onwards, Star Power phrases will continue to exist while it is activated, and completing the phrase will still fill the gauge, potentially prolonging the Star Power.

On Stage/Visual Effects[]

In Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero II, and Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s, activating Star Power caused player characters to perform crazy motions and actions with their guitars. For example, upon activation, Pandora vertically spins her guitar around her outstretched ankle; Johnny Napalm horizontally spins his guitar around his neck; Clive Winston performs windmill motions with his strumming arm; etc. In Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock, Guitar Hero Aerosmith, and Guitar Hero World Tour, and all Guitar Hero games that follow, activating Star Power causes lightning and special symbols to shoot from the neck of the characters' guitars, symbols that relate to the genre of music that character represents or the characters themselves. For example, Johnny Napalm's guitar shoots the "anarchy" symbol out of its neck representing the themes of rebellion in his particular genre, Punk Rock; and Midori's guitar shoots butterflies out of its neck representing Midori herself.

In all Guitar Hero games, activating Star Power turns all notes cyan and causes cyan electricity to emit from the sides of the highway.

Audio Effects[]

While active, Star Power applies a reverb effect on guitar and bass, being much more noticeable on guitar. The reverb became less intense in World Tour and even less intense in Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero. Star Power seems to have no audible effect in Warriors of Rock. In all games, Star Power throws the crowd into a frenzy of cheering, often clapping along with the rhythm.

Star Power in other games[]

Guitar Hero: World Tour[]

In Guitar Hero World Tour, Star Power is used with the new Vocals and Drums game modes. It is obtained the same on drums as it is on a guitar. For Star Power to be activated on a drum set, both cymbals have to be hit at the same time. Any notes missed while activating Star Power will be auto-played, and won't cause a multiplier loss. For a vocalist however, Star Power can be obtained in other ways. While singing, a hype may appear. This appears as a group of the crowd's hands with the Star Power glow. Simply sing while in this section to obtain it. The player can also hit Star Sequences that appear as standard notes but with the usual glow, or singing phrases perfectly and obtaining "solid" or "excellent" ratings will grant the player Star Power. To activate it on a mic either press the square button on the controller, tap the top of the mic, or blow a rush of air into the mic.

Guitar Hero 5[]

In Guitar Hero 5 Star Power is different on the microphone. Not all notes grant Star Power, and hypes aren't available anymore. Star Power can only be gained by obtaining an excellent rating on a phrase which glows with energy.

Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock[]

In Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock the same aspects is applied from Guitar Hero 5. In the new Quest Mode, the player can gain powers which affect Star Power, those are:

  • Star Power Amplifier, which grants the player more Star Power by completing a Star Power phrase.
  • Star Power Nova, which increases the multiplier of Star Power.
  • Star Power Generator, which grants a small portion of Star Power for every ten note streak.

Guitar Hero Live[]

Main article: GHTV#Hero Powers

So far, Guitar Hero Live is the only Guitar Hero game without Star Power. In Guitar Hero Live, Star Power is replaced with Hero Power. The standard Hero Power in the offline Live mode acts like Star Power but is accumulated differently than in other Guitar Hero games. In Guitar Hero Live, there is no meter to accumulate Hero Power, but rather, the player collects a Hero Power unit when he/she successfully clears a Hero Power section without breaking a combo. However, the whammy bar becomes useless as it doesn't accumulate additional Hero Power on long notes. When using Hero Power in the offline Live mode, Hero Power acts like Star Power, where multiplier is doubled, temporarily doubling the score, as well as increasing crowd appeal.

In GHTV mode of Guitar Hero Live, there are different types of Hero Powers that are unlocked at certain levels. However, each Hero Power in GHTV has limited use and can only be bought with in-game coins or Hero Cash. The default Hero Power in GHTV is Clear Highway, which destroys all notes currently on screen, and has infinite uses. Other Hero Powers (that have limited usage and must be purchased) include:

  • Dial Up - Temporarily increases difficulty level but has no effect on Expert.
  • Dial Down - Temporarily decreases difficulty level but has no effect on Casual.
  • Double Multiplier - Temporarily doubles multiplier, just like Star Power.
  • Safety Net - Temporarily protects your multiplier and note streak.
  • Invincibility - Temporarily hits all notes, and missing notes do not register.
  • Score Chaser - Temporarily raises multiplier cap by twice the amount.

Guitar Hero Mobile & Backstage Pass series[]

Star Power in Guitar Hero Mobile series works the same as they do in their console counterparts except there is no whammy feature to acquire more star power energy from sustained starred notes and in Guitar Hero 5 Mobile and Guitar Hero 5 Mobile: More Music, the player acquires 50% Star Power energy from completing Star Power phrases rather than 25%, allowing the player to activate Star Power right away.

GH3 Backstage Pass - Fret Frenzy (Star Power note)

A green gem with a Star Power unit attached to it in the Fret Frenzy minigame of Guitar Hero III: Backstage Pass. Two Star Power units are already stored earlier in the minigame.

In the Backstage Pass subseries, Star Power units can be acquired during minigames at a gig. In Guitar Hero III: Backstage Pass, Star Power is only used during the Finale minigame, which gives a boost of energy towards the player's Rock Meter per Star Power unit acquired in the previous gig minigames. In Guitar Hero World Tour Mobile: Backstage Pass, Star Power units can be used in any gig-based minigames, increasing the user's efficiency in the minigame they activated Star Power in until their Star Power units completely deplete.

Band Star Power[]

Star Power differs slightly while playing in a band. In pre-Guitar Hero 5 games, Star Power is shared equally meaning anyone could trigger Star Power if there is any available. For larger scores, Star Power can be used simultaneously. This achieves an even greater band multiplier.

Band Moments[]

Similar to Star Power, another type of power-up exists in Guitar Hero 5, and later games. This is the band moment. Band moments appear as fiery notes on the highway. Obtaining a band moment is the same as obtaining Star Power. Each member of the band must hit all notes in the sequence. Doing so will add a 3x to the band multiplier. If each member has a 4x multiplier, another 4 will be added, and another 4 for each having Star Power active thus achieving an 8x. All together the multiplier would be comprised of an 11x. In Guitar Hero 5 and Band Hero if any members make a mistake in the sequence a "Band Moment Failed" notification will appear on the screen. In Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock if any members make a mistake in the sequence a large X appears over their respective highway.

Star Power Overload[]

Existing only in band play, there is an occurrence called Star Power overload. With this members of a band can achieve Star Power from one person. Unlike in earlier games, each person has their own Star Power meter. If one player has a full meter, and gains more, then the newly gained will be divided between the other members of the band, should they not have a full meter.

v · t · eGameplay features of the Guitar Hero series
Difficulty levels
Beginner/Basic · Easy/Casual · Medium/Regular · Hard/Advanced · Expert · Expert+
In-game features
Achievements/Trophies/Awards · Calibration · Cheat Codes · Lefty Flip · Multiplier · Notes · Rock Meter · Scoring · Star Power (meter · phrases · paths explained) · Star Rating · Whammy
Instruments
GH Guitar iconGuitar · GH Bass iconBass · GH Lead alt iconLead · GH Rhythm alt iconRhythm · GH Drums iconDrums · GH Vocals iconVocals
Cheats
Hyperspeed · Large Gems · No Fail · Performance Mode · Precision Mode
Note types
Guitar/Bass Chords · Hammer-ons and Pull-offs · Long notes / Sustains (extended sustains · reverse extended sustains) · Open notes · Slider notes / Tap notes
Drums Accent notes · Bass drum notes · Drum swells · Ghost notes
Vocals Vocal notes · Spoken notes · Freeforms
Game Modes
General Career (Quest) · GHTV (songs) · Mii Freestyle · Quickplay(+) (Gig Challenges · Star Challenges) · Party Play · Practice · Rock Star Creator / Rocker Creator · Tutorial
Multiplayer Band · Battle · Cooperative · Face-Off · Pro Face-Off · Roadie Play (Roadie Battle · Roadie Quickplay+ · Roadie Setlist Manager) · RockFest (Do-or-Die · Elimination · Momentum · Momentum+ · Perfectionist · Streakers)
Music Studio / GHStudio GHTunes / GHTracks · Recording Studio / GHJam · GHMix / GHMix 2.0
Advertisement