Guitar Hero III Review

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is the latest addition to what has become a hugely successful music game (rhythm game) franchise. If you thought the first Guitar Hero was cool, you'll fall in love with Guitar Hero III.

Guitar Hero III Review

There's not very much in terms of innovation in this edition of the Guitar Hero series and this is definitely a good thing. The formula is tried and true, so there was no reason for Activision to mess with it. In a nutshell, you are provided with a toy-like guitar that is decidedly smaller than a regular guitar. On the neck are five fret buttons of different colors. On the body is a strum bar and a whammy bar.

To play this game, you watch the falling set of notes on the screen, holding the appropriate fret button and hitting the strum bar in time with the music. This operates in much the same way as Dance Dance Revolution, except you're using a guitar rather than your feet. Among the single notes, you'll also find what are called "sustains". This is where you hold the fret button for an extended period, optionally hitting the whammy bar for bonus points.

The presentation and pricing in Guitar Hero III is absolutely top-notch. The graphics are definitely simple, but they need not be complex. You're not as interested in the eye candy as you are in the ear candy. That and the pseudo experience of being a rock star in your living room.

The Rhythm Game Genre Lives

Yes, the rhythm game genre is alive in well. Following in the footsteps of Guitar Hero 2, is wildly addicting and far too much fun for its own good. Another major selling point is that the video game is available on a variety of systems, including the Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, and the Nintendo Wii. The Xbox 360 and PS3 versions come with downloadable content, and most versions feature online play.

The Wii game comes with a few exclusive features. For example, when you miss a note, the "missed" sound comes out of the Wii Remote's speaker -- which is integrated into the wireless guitar -- rather than coming out of your television speakers. On the downside, the Wii version of Guitar Hero III only has mono sound. Activision is working to fix this.

Steep Learning Curve

This game is not for beginners. If this is your first time playing a rhythm game, you will likely have a hard time even on "easy" mode with Guitar Hero III. It does take some time to get used to and the more difficult songs are a lot more challenging than the initial few offerings. Thankfully, easy mode only takes advantage of three fret buttons. When you move up to medium, a fourth fret button is introduced. It is only in hard and expert modes that you need to use all five fret buttons.

When graduating from one difficulty setting to the next, it will feel like you took a quantum leap in difficulty. Medium is a lot harder than easy, and hard is a lot more challenging than medium. This isn't to say that the increase in difficulty is challenging, because the game is still fun to play. It motivates you, because you definitely get a sense of progression. The unlocking of new songs, outfits, guitars, and characters is quite motivating as well.

Excellent Song Selection

The Guitar Hero 3 playlist is spectacular. When they say that this game features the Legends of Rock, they mean it. Hits range from the oldies right up to songs that were released in 2007.

Some highlights include:

• Cherub Rock - Smashing Pumpkins
• Even Flow - Pearl Jam
• La Grange - ZZ Top
• Miss Murder - AFI
• The Number of the Beast - Iron Maiden
• Paint It Black - Rolling Stones
• Sabotage - Beastie Boys
• Talk Dirty to Me - Poison
• Rock and Roll All Nite - Kiss

Get Ready to Rock

Without a doubt, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is the best offering in the series thus far. A huge song selection, coupled with a fantastic gameplay mechanic and progressive difficulty settings, makes this title an absolute winner. In case you can't figure it out from this Guitar Hero III review, the game comes highly recommended to rhythm game fans and rock star wannabes alike.

Score: 9.0/10

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