New Guitar Hero record set; no music harmed

From the Okay, But Is That The Best Use Of Your Time? files, the Guinness world-records people want you to know that there's a whole new collection of gamer scores in print, ready for videogame fans to look upon and despair.

There's also a new world record to wonder at, though you are allowed to wonder about the sense of setting the record itself if you prefer. Danny Johnson, a 14-year-old from Grapevine, Texas, set a Guitar Hero record Wednesday morning for his 973,954 score -- a 99% completion rate on Expert Level -- for shredding along to "Through the Fire and Flames" by DragonForce.

If you know the song, you can appreciate that Johnson's dexterity is not to be sneezed at -- it's a difficult track. But as good as he is, his technique is a reminder that Guitar Hero doesn't play like a guitar. (My colleague Tim Conneally points out that it's essentially a drumming game with hands in a different position; I agree but prefer my own description, Dance Dance Revolution for hands.)

Without Guitar Hero to divert him, would Danny Johnson be a Robert Johnson in the making? Or would he have turned his attention to another videogame? And does the dissimilarity of the guitar and Guitar Hero skill sets help the next time you end up in a conversation with someone convinced that violent videogames make gamers violent?

The Guinness World Record Gamer's Edition 2009 is available immediately.