Perfect video for this Jason. Please do more video essays like this!

Trombone Champ of course.

The one thing missing from all these indie games is the whole character system. I love seeing the characters/avatars from the old Guitar Hero and Rock Band games. I know it's much more complicated than just making some notes go down a land, but man, that's where a lot of charm of the old games comes from.

Loved the video Jason! FretSmasher looks WAY more appealing than the last time I saw it, it's wild the devs have got so far with it

I love rhythm games so much. No other genre of games is fueled so much by the fans, whether it's making custom songs, making entire games to replace old or regional arcade titles, to even making custom hardware. Modded plastic guitars, DDR platforms and whatever other weird controllers we need. For a genre that often feels incredibly niche, the people that care put in so much love and effort and I love it dearly.

I love that you added the clip from me working on the pause menu for downbeat, definitely have talked about keeping it as a cheat as well 🤣

In all honesty i am so happy this video exists, especially when get to learn that alternatives exists that is not just being on Clone Hero only Thanks for making this video dude!

Missing a big piece of history with FoF, FoFiX, and Phase Shift (and the unwritten drama behind their Steam release). Good work for your first video essay!

Jason's laugh is so contagious, I actually started doing it.

Incredibly well done Jason. Your narration and formatting throughout the entire video was done so well. Keeping what matters most as the focus throughout the video was excellent, and showing off everything in the future to come is really eye opening. I can tell all the work went to good use with this video. Absolutely fantastic job! Also, I made a quick joke during the premiere, but I would genuinely love an e-book narrated in your video essay voice. That shit was SMOOTH. LOL

Excellent video, Jason! I’m a big fan of video essays, and would love more of this kind of content if it’s something you wanna create

JasonParadise got a good voice for long form content like this.

It's very interesting to watch this in a post-festival world and right after the un-aliving of ScoreSpy.

This video is amazing. I spent most of my childhood playing GH3 on my brother's Xbox 360, which he one day just sold. When I discovered a few years ago that people were STILL playing GH/RB styled games despite the lack of official titles, I was blown away. I downloaded clone hero and my favourite tracks from GH3 and I was hit with nostalgia as soon as I started "strumming" with my keyboard. Knowing that whatever happens to Clone Hero/Strikeline, there are passionate and dedicated people that are ready to do everything they can to keep this community alive fills me with unbridled joy. Thank you Jason for randomly popping up in my youtube recommendations when you did.

❤ need more essays

You have a great voice and cadence for video essays. This was really well done. I got into Clone Hero watching your videos years ago. I hope we get some kind of update on what's going on with that game soon but it's good to know that there are alternatives out there to explore.

Fantastic video, Jason. I just recently got into Clone Hero (Put 1000+ hours in almost every GH & RB game back when they were relevant), so I've still got a lot of great stuff to play and stream. One thing I would say is really important to me going forward, would be the presentations going on in the background. Although having 3D models synced up with every single custom would be amazing (just not realistic), even things as simple as a music video go a very long way for me. Some of my favorite downloads are anime OPs with video backgrounds of the openings. I think GH WT DE did a good job reminding everyone how fun the little things besides the 5 fret gameplay were. Creating your custom characters, making your instruments, earning $ while playing to buy new clothes, venues, etc. All of this stuff was always a blast to mess around with. I really hope we see this again in a future game.

I've only been a part of this community for 2 and a half years and it's cool to see where things started, and how they have progressed. I started when Clone Hero already existed and never played GH3 with customs, but I'm glad to be a part of it now. This video is great dude, would love to see more!

Amazing video Jason, a very nice summary of the situation regarding the 5 fret scene, very tightly constructed and easy to understand. Thank you for this kind of video

Fantastic video, really well done, hope to see more like it soon!! ❤

Jason you totally nailed the format, topics and pacing of this video! Please do more essays! This was so well done 🤘🏼

i honestly found this really cool, i honestly had no idea for these other games that were either in the works or out. this was super enjoyable, good stuff man

Excellent video, would love to see more essays! Rock on

Videos like this are amazing Jason! Thank you so much

Late to commenting, but as I said during the premiere, this was an exceptional video essay! As an outsider, someone who is just entering the rhythm game scene, this is a great way to be introduced to what's going on in the community, as well as to help be excited for what's to come when you join the community, too. You never stray from the main topics at here, staying consistent and tightly fixed into just letting everyone know everything going on. The editing feels oddly comforting, it's very obvious this video came from the heart, it's a topic you have a lot of care for, and the effort you put into this video reflects that heavily, which is something I personally enjoy in this kind of content. It helps a bunch that this is really the only video of it's kind, too. It feels extremely personal, and it's not something we get to see from you a whole bunch on the KZfaq side of things. You've said it yourself in your latest streams, that while the playthroughs are still so much fun and helps showcase other talented individuals in the community, you never really get the chance to show off YOU, YOUR personality, YOUR humor, YOUR charm. It's only really apparent during streams, which I bet most people here probably don't get to catch half the time. Whether it's video essays, other games, or simply just you at a camera talking about shit like you sometimes get to do on the streams, I think I can speak for all of us by saying that we NEED more personality-driven content from you, man. Wonderful video, Jason. Cannot wait to see where not only the channel goes from here, but the guitar-game community as well!

I'm so glad to see this genre still alive and (mostly) well. The Guitar Hero, and later Rock Band, series of games have been a huge influence on my music taste. I still vividly remember going to the mall with my grandpa back in 2007 to pick up a shiny new guitar + game bundle of Guitar Hero: Rocks the 80's after watching a friend play it. I didn't have a PS2 before that, but as luck would have it a friend gave his old PS2 to me so that I could buy and play the game. I remember competing against a friend every weekend, we were both at about the same skill level, and neither of us improved drastically over the other, which made our competitions so fun and intense. Some of the best memories I have. I fell in love with the series and that style of game, and that's a love that lasts to this day.

I love the way this was formatted! You do excellent research!

Great video, I really enjoyed it and it was honestly very informative. Props to you!

Awesome vid Jason, keep it up, I had no idea bout any of the future past clone hero. Super informative!

Great video, love this format! You nailed it

That was a really good video essay. It was informative and entertaining to listen to. Great presentation. I think you got a thing for this style of video.

10/10 would watch again. For your first time I thought it was really well made and your topics of conversation articulated fantastically.

This is some banger content Jason. You can really feel your passion for this community, and desire to drive things forward

This was an awesome video, you brought forward a lot of info, spoke it well and unbiased!

you got the perfect voice for this kind of video, looking forward to more

i immediatly asked for fret smasher access after this video, thanks alot for the wonderful info jason!

I love listening to these types of videos, and you do a fantastic voiceover

Holy fucking shit. I just recently got back into the scene with Clone Hero. I had no idea how far they've come with this series!!!!!!!!!

Love long format videos like these, keep them up Jason! Also, thanks for showing other alternatives for Clone hero, I wasnt aware of them and probably wouldn't even try to find them if CH were gone.

Please do more video essays, this is fantastic

Nice piece, very thought filled and thought out. Cheers man, more uploads of you playing please - your, infectious, laugh makes my partner so happy.

Somehow really late to watching this, but just wanted to all the positivity about this video. For your first video essay I'd say you knocked this out of the park. Silky slick presentation, one heck of a narration voice and frankly a really engaging story to tell. I hope you do more of these in the future. And on the content side, it's good to see the genre isn't going away any time soon.

Fantastic video, enjoyable and informative all the way through. Loved it and hope you're able and enjoy making more similar content!

I extremely loved this video ♥️ I'm really looking forward to more videos like this!

really well made video, i didn't know about a lot of the alternatives to clone hero and I am excited to see what the new games offer

Love it, really well done Jason. Thanks for keeping someone like me, who is not really active in the GH/CH scene in the loop. Keep up the good work!

absolutely fantastic video, opened my eyes to a lot of things that i never knew existed. it's healing to see just how passionate so many people are about keeping this genre alive!

Great video dude! I loved guitar hero back in the day and after discovering Clone Hero this year it’s been a game changer!! Excited to see what the future holds!

Yo Jason, loved this video / format dude! I don't normally consume your CH content, but this was interesting af. Thanks a lot for making!

This video is very well made. Nice job Jason

This is the most thorough and current information I've seen about the state of RB/GH style rhythm games all in one place. Excellent video, I'll be linking all my music gamin' friends!

And here we are, one year later, with the biggest update (I know of) is the fortnite rhythm game from harmonix..

Simply beautiful vid Jason. Keep up the outstanding work man. Very proud of you and this community as a whole 🤘

This was quite insightful. I don't play rhythm games because I don't have the equipment, but I love watching people like you and Acai playing them.

This was a very interesting video to watch, thanks Jason!

As someone who made a song that's a part of the official Fret Smasher setlist, I got early access to the game, and I gotta say it's a really interesting game and a great alternative to Clone Hero. Id definitely recommend it to those that wanna try something new!

Yo this was super entertaining! I would love to see more content like this from you Jason, you have the voice for it too. :D

This essay was great, Jason. Thanks dude :D

I've always observed Clone Hero from afar exactly because a controller is so tough to get, even though the game looks cool and the community's content creators always find new ways to make it interesting to watch, like you, Acai and charters/mashup creators and even composers like CosmicLatte, Jarvis and others. That's kind of why I also hope for an eventual, more accessible reboot of GH. Either way, great essay!

Okay, I absolutely LOVE your voice during this, and the funny parts really hit too, you absolutely should make more video essays like this. If there was one more thing I would’ve like you to mention, it would be GHWT:DE, that’s would’ve been nice, and just throw in Trombone Champ at that point, that would’ve been funny. Thanks for making this video, Jason. It came out at the perfect time for the community.

I would said the same as your video about competitive Guitar hero, I love this format! Your voice and the editing is top notch! Keep it up!

Fantastic video essay Jason!!

I can’t believe your changing content,I’ve been watching your videos for decades now! I love you Jason! Keep up the work!

Jason, this video was amazing!!! I love the optimistic ending, it's nice to have a feel-good ending to an essay like this c: Also - You may not be aware, but I was the main force behind writing the blog posts back when I was a community manager in the CH team. I'd be happy to talk more about them / my knowledge of the inside workings of that team, though it's been a couple years since I stepped down. If you ever want to revisit the CH / StrikeLine topic specifically, feel free to hit me up :)

Loved watching this video. Gonna make a grown man cry and go through so many emotions here. I appreciate you giving us some info on things. Keep it up ❤️

Awesome video, Jason. Excited to see you go over GH Live

This is seriously good stuff, even more so being your first video essay!

Top video. I'm confident everything will reach new heights because there is so much stuff with this game that just hasn't been invented yet.

we NEED more content like this!! you are filling a gap in the 5 fret community that i didnt know we needed!!

thanks 4 the captions jason love u

AMAZING video Jason! Definitely well thought out and researched :) I truly believe, with the reach we have thanks to CH and those that helped spread the word, that 5 fret rhythm games (and the communities within) wont be going away! Also, thank you so much for the mention :D Truly didnt expect it, and it really is an honor to have been a part of the ground that was broken for GH and eventually CH streaming :)

Great video! I'd love to see a follow up about anyone still making new plastic instruments

This is great to see!

Amazing video essay! Please continue to do more. Also as an aside, can we get a laughter compilation? Hearing you at 9:25 was awesome LMAO

I really enjoyed this video. Please do more like these. Maybe even do some videos on like the guitar hero/Rock band handheld games.

Good video Jason. Your narration really kept me engaged for the whole thing. You should definitely do more videos like this. In terms of the future, I hope Clone Hero is around for a very long time to come. I remember 2 or 3 years ago, I went out and bought my first gaming PC for the sole single reason to play Clone Hero and dive head first into the community. In the time since I have found a home in the Clone Hero “world.” While 1 or 2 of these projects do indeed have potential, I hope clone hero stands tall and strong. 🤘🏻

I am a huge, huge fan of both this genre of games, and of video essays. Bless you JP

Damn. I’ve casually been a fan of Acai and you, so I had no idea the grand scale of Clone Hero stuff going on, good and bad. Great work, my guy. Brought me up to speed, and had me looking to the future. Now, to get a damn controller.

Great video! It was you who got me into charting and playing Clone Hero.

Great video! An addition to the subject could’ve been the RB3/RB4 customs as they provide a better experience to play co-op with friends and family locally if you know how to jailbreak your console. Unfortunately the developer working on the RB4 customs tool passed away a couple of years ago but I hope someone can pick up the project and continue developing it.

All and all i think you described the situation, pretty clear and good what the situation is, and was quite nice to get at little bit of background as well as what is upcoming in the future 🙂 Really nice video and it would be fun to have more of this in the future 🙂 Really enjoying your videos so hope you continue to make amazing videos like this and lots of the other in the future as well 🙂

Dude! You said this was your first video essay format, but made it like you knew how to do it! You should make more videos like this! Great job man!

Loved the video, hope to see more like this.

Quality video! It's nice to see most of the games being presented and showed off for what they are! I'm interested in Downbeat!

Dig the format, do more plz!

Great video my dude. Yes more please!!

Let me just say bro, I didn't even know Fret Smasher existed until you brought it up here. I've been playing it for the past few days and I've been absolutely loving it so far! You are the best!

great video, loved it man

Awesome video, Jason!

I've just recently gotten into clone hero, but I cannot wait to see what other alternatives exist

Great work Jason!

Also, I really enjoyed this style of video and I'd love to see more!

Please make more videos like this, I just simply love this 🤩❤️‍🔥

Great video Brother, I have been playing CH in my offtime for the last 2 years. it was you, Acai and UKOG that spawned my interest in that style of game again in the first place after not playing one since Rock Band 3. I'm definitely nervous for their future and how big they will be with the whole DMCA issue on twitch as you know but its exciting at the same time that theres so much potential hidden within thats yet to be found

I just got access to Fret Smasher earlier today! Loving how the game plays a lot, and how customizable it is just from the default without downloading anything, and of course the song chart drag and drop is always of course a huge convenience, allowing to simply copy/paste your clone hero library to Fret Smasher with no issue

This video is so good! Keep it up and don't work yourself too hard!

9:26 Momma, I'm on a certified hood classic video!!!! Thanks Jason for playing my chart. That made me so happy :)

Thanks for this Awesome Video Maybe there will be a nice and easy Plug and Play way to bring in new Players in the close future

I saw some glimpses of Programmatic Heads Up Display Fudgery in Downbeat and FS, and, acknowledging my bias in the matter, I do hope that gets expanded on!!

That modifier where each lane has a different note speed is awesome. I can't wait to give that a try one day.