GUITAR HERO 3 (XBox 360)

Guitar hero 3 is the latest installment in the guitar hero series. It fell just short of our expectations due to the anticipation build up, yet is still a great game that’ll keep you busy for hours. They’ve made a lot of improvements this time around, such as the animation being much better than the previous game, but stuck to the game’s roots very well. Also, with the addition of “boss battles” (face-offs against Rock’s greatest) a good amount of diversity is shown in the game-play. These battles consist of playing streaks to acquire weapons that are used against your opponent and cause him to eventually fail. The online play is really no different than regular game-play, just versus a real person.

The game has a great track list, and some bonus songs have actually been heard of. A plus to this is that many tracks are original and as performed by the band. The difficulty is much harder in this game, we found that beating the expert campaign was quite a challenge. The few final songs are near impossible to conquer, and will probably leave you with a sigh of frustration. All the meters have had an awesome makeover with a new text that will come across the screen when certain streak milestones are reached. There is a sad attempt at a story that should have just been left out. It only gives a minimal story explaining your band’s progress.

A co-op mode is also playable in which you and a friend, one as guitar one as bass, play the career mode, and upon completion unlock six extra songs. Co-op can only be played in career mode; no quick-play is available without the download of a specific patch.

This game is available on numerous platforms each with a varying bundle. The 360 guitar hero 3 guitar is superior to any from the previous games, just take a bit of adjusting to get used to. In-game advertising is also heavily present, with billboards and even axe dancers prancing across the stage while you’re playing. Ridiculous.

With all pros and cons in mind, this game is a great buy. A must have for any guitar hero fanatic, and never really loses your interest.

Grade: 8.5