I knew that I was in trouble. 2am in the middle of the week, and I had to be at work by sunrise. My fingers were already cramped from my tenth play through of the advanced tutorial, but once I opened one of the early songs, a DJ Shadow mix of “Fix Up, Look Sharp” by Dizzee Rascal, and It was hopeless for me. I was in love.

Unlike Guitar Hero, which I’ve played once (and promptly bought a real guitar in defiance), DJ hero allows me to abandon the crates of records, the thousand dollar mixer, the gigantic headphones, and pretty much all of the other essentials of a serious D.J.

With one box, one game, and just under $120 bucks, Activision’s DJ Hero is the company’s take on rhythm-game innovation.

Juiced on the type of adrenaline that can only come from bass and rhyme, I was actually electrified by the ability to enjoy hip-hop that I never thought I’d hear in a video game.

Not that Guitar Hero, or any of the other tens of music games dominating retail since 2007 was bad, it’s just that they never spoke to me: I love hip-hop. Activision’s taking a huge gamble in hopes that there’s enough of me out there to justify their expansion into urban territory.

And boy is DJ Hero a gamble.

Mixing all eras of Hip-Hop with ‘mash-ups’ of pop songs hand-selected by the world’s greatest DJs, and DJ Hero’s sole focus seems to be to make your body move. Whether you’re a hardcore gamer, a casual fan, or someone new to games entirely, does DJ Hero’s bizarre new turntable-come-hip-hop-gameplay have enough accessibility to seduce the masses? Or, is underground and, perhaps, under-appreciated, where hip-hop is destined to remain in video games?

The Props…
For starters, the track list is outstanding. Should Activision decide to sell the game’s soundtrack alone, they’d make a mint. Where the music grabs you with potent mixes of classic hip-hop and modern pop, the comprehensive tutorial does its best to translate the complex art of turntablism into game form.

Here are the basics: match the colored buttons on your turntable with the colors on the on-screen rhythm bar. Spin, shift, and slide your way to b-boy legend, by playing what’s essentially ‘simon says’ on screen. It’s a simple concept that has worked in about a dozen music games before it, but DJ Hero’s hip-hop scratching hook is that authentic spin that separates it from the pack.

Narrated by DJ Grandmaster Flash, the 10 part tutorial does a great job in holding your hand – and you’ll need it. Patiently teaching you the basics of cross-fading, scratching, rewinding, and the game’s Euphoria point booster, DJ Hero literally won’t allow you to get to the real game without training first. This is a good thing.

Even if you’re used to music-rhythm games, DJ Hero is a tough act to start. A turntable doesn’t have the natural feel of drums, nor the sex appeal of a guitar. Hunching over a mock turntable, and keeping the frenetic rhythm of pop-hop, might seem impossible at first. However, with practice and the propulsion of good music, you’ll get the hang of it without the awful feeling of screwing up.

Credit that with the fact that you don’t quite lose in DJ Hero. You’ll always complete a song. The only penalty for missing music cues (if you miss the corresponding colored buttons and commands), is a soft fade out of the audio until you get back into the beat. In this way, HERO makes replaying each track a little easier on the ego.

Satisfactory completion of a music set (usually 3 mash-ups) unlocks new DJs avatars, new equipment, and bigger party venues. However, the biggest reason to continue playing remains the hook that grabs you from the start: The Music.

Unlocking new mash-ups is a joy, and becomes a personal challenge as you begin practicing with the fervor and discipline of a fighting game. Make no mistake: you will practice. A lot. That said, the psychological reward of getting a perfect score in Hero’s 5 star rating system, is a satisfaction that can only be appreciated with GREAT music.

The Whack…
All isn’t great in paradise, though. To be blunt, DJ Hero isn’t cheap. Despite the fact that the turntable peripheral looks pretty damned close to the real thing, it’s extremely tough to justify the $120.00 retail price. Yes, the music is fantastic, and yes the game is fun. However, unlike other rhythm games, DJ Hero is ultimately a single player experience.

Let me qualify that. DJ Hero certainly has multiplayer. There are 10 specific mashup tracks that allow you to hook up Activision’s Guitar peripheral to ‘rock-infused’ DJ sets. But honestly, those mashups are kind of a mess. In split screen play, player one controls the turntable, while player two rudely interrupts with the awkwardly-mixed metal riffs. Perhaps with some fine-tuning and better music selection, Activision might smooth this ugly pairing in future games, but as it exists, it really feels like more of an afterthought – and sounds like a cacophony.

DJ Hero’s true multiplayer is really just an extension of the single player experience. You can take the game online to battle other mix masters, but as a party game in the company of casual novices, DJ Hero is a lot more fun to watch (and dance to) than actually play if you haven’t put in the work of practicing. By the time your friends get the hang of the game through the tutorial and easier tracks, your party will probably already be over.

The Quirks of Single Player
Don’t get me wrong, DJ Hero is a criminal amount of fun when you’re in the groove. Beyond hitting the proper buttons, DJ Hero has an interesting ‘freestyle’ button that allows at certain points, to affect the ‘effects dial’ and initiate various freestyle samples to incorporate into the mix.

The game claims that you can improvise, but that’s extremely misleading. You can hit the sample button as much as time allows, or play with fading the volume as much as you like – which, honestly, who wants to play with the volume? Where HERO really drops the ball is by completely omitting the ability to have an area where players can creatively freestyle scratch and fade on their own. While mastering HERO is fun, it’s often very linear. Once you learn the strokes through the game’s 90+ songs, you’re done. The game gets more complex on higher difficulty levels, but the longevity of the game would’ve been extended considerably if players could simply rack up points by doing whatever they wanted at certain cues.

There’s nothing worse than getting into the groove and really wishing that you could cut loose, but HERO doesn’t allow it.

So Basically, I’m Saying…
Ultimately, if you love hip-hop and pop music, I dare you to find a more epic gathering of DJ Luminaries. From DJ Shadow and DJ AM to DJ Jazzy Jeff, the music in this game is beastly, and will constantly take you out of your living room and into the club. DJ Hero is immersing, once you get past that learning curve. Trading off with a practiced friend is fun, but you’ll be the real life of the party if you show off your skills to a group of bystanders. The game will certainly keep their heads nodding.

The track list is the real show stopper. From N.E.R.D to The Jackson 5, Afrika Bambaataa to Public Enemy, and underground sensations like Wale to 80′s glam-rock groups like Foreigner, DJ Hero is an outstandingly good time…

…albeit 40 bucks overpriced.