Guitar Hero 5 Review

By Keza MacDonald Published 11 September, 2009

Rocking all over again.

Version tested: Xbox 360

My favourite moment in Guitar Hero: World Tour - just ahead of the evening I finally conquered Joe Satriani with unholy backwards-run fretboard skills that I have never been able to summon again - was when Jimi Hendrix suddenly appeared on stage and tapped my painstakingly created avatar on the shoulder after an exemplary performance of The Wind Cries Mary. Naturally, she freaked out, jumped up and down a bit and ran backwards off the stage.

Five years ago, I could not have imagined a digital Jimi Hendrix appearing in a rhythm-action videogame. For me, the endorsement of real-life artists (even ones who aren't dead, like Paul, Ringo, Slash and Matt Bellamy) cements Guitar Hero and Rock Band as a legitimate way of enjoying music in the eyes of the wider world, as well as in my own.

Guitar Hero 5's celebrity appearances aren't quite as thrilling - Kurt Cobain, Bellamy and Johnny Cash are fine and all, but they're not Hendrix - but in every other respect the game takes significant steps forward. It would be easy at this point for Neversoft to release glorified song packs ad infinitum, but instead the developer is continuing to show respect to Guitar Hero followers by broadening and polishing the series without overcomplicating or changing it.

Immediately noticeable is the toned-down visual style. Guitar Hero 5 is not as bright, loud and shiny as World Tour and its predecessors. The performance animations have just a little bit of grain to them and the colour palette is calmer. Characters no longer look like they're coated in Vaseline, the lighting effects are better, the rockers' character design and animation remain exemplary: they still own the stage with guitar-smashingly vibrant, energetic performances. Guitar Hero's art style has come across as self-consciously extreme in the past, but that criticism no longer applies.

Party Play multiplayer, the biggest new gameplay addition, is a revolution. Put the disc in, and within about twenty seconds the game starts playing random songs. You can join in with any instrument, whenever you like, with one button press: no menus, no arguing over songs, no having to back out in order to change the difficulty. The game can act as a jukebox whilst you're sitting around talking, or painting your living room, until You Give Love a Bad Name pops up and you bellow for five minutes. Such frictionless fun makes Rock Band's nightmare signing in and out seem archaic.

'Guitar Hero 5' Screenshot 1

I'm no fan of avatars. Especially not when GH5's own creation tools are so much better.

There are other multiplayer modes, too, a wealth of them, mostly geared towards having between four and eight players competing online. All songs are unlocked from the start, whether in quick-play or competitive multiplayer, and you can play them in an impossible variety of ways. Momentum ups the difficulty every time you hit a section perfectly; Elimination kills the lowest-scoring player on any particular section; Streakers is all about maintaining your cool as your streak counter climbs steadily higher. Setlists can include multiple different modes, and you can change everything from the lobby without having to quit out and start again.

Guitar Hero 5 also remembers all of your settings - difficulty, band line-up, right- or left-handedness - in single and multiplayer, which makes picking it up for a few quick songs less fiddly. Once you've picked your line-up, it stays that way until you change it again, so you never find yourself looking at Johnny Napalm's ugly face instead of your own custom-created singer in Career mode. If you play regularly with the same people you barely have to spend any time in menus, ever. You're only ever about four button presses away from a song.

The character creation and customisation tools are still brilliant. You can adjust every tiny detail of your rock star and all their various instruments, even replicate the custom pickups and Floyd-Rose tremolo on your own real-life guitar. It's a little heartbreaking that the faintly ridiculous Gibson-Activision lawsuit will prevent the iconic manufacturer from ever backing a Guitar Hero game again, but you can create an identical replica with a different brand on the headstock.

'Guitar Hero 5' Screenshot 2

Whatever. You're not Hendrix, are you? [Keza's only young. She doesn't know better. - Ed.]

The single-player career has undergone a bit of a makeover. It's now unified across all instruments and across band and solo play. The tier system is familiar, but new venues unlock at a much faster pace; there are always at least ten or twenty songs to work on, so it's no longer possible to get stuck on one. It also doesn't suffer from the endless repetition that has always plagued Rock Band's World Tour mode, especially in the early stages.

Challenges add a new spin to songs in Career. Over and above the usual five-star rating system, there is an instrument-specific challenge for each that usually highlights a particular feature of the song. Guitar challenges might require you to tap all the solos, or use alternate strumming all the way through, or simply maintain a long streak. Vocalists might have to nail certain sections perfectly, or score as much as possible when in star power, and drummers might have to hit a certain percentage of kicks or perfect key drum rolls. You're rewarded with Gold, Platinum or Diamond depending on how well you do, bringing the possible stars to be gained from a song up from 5 to 8.

The Challenges make you really pay attention to a song's construction and add an extra level of challenge, both for high-end and intermediate players. You find yourself suddenly acutely aware of your note streak and your playing technique. Instead of trying to make it through a very difficult song, you can go back and attempt a Challenge on an easier one instead and still feel like you're achieving something. It adds breadth and variety to the solo gameplay; I wouldn't have thought there were this many ways to play a plastic guitar. Guitar Hero has always excelled on top-end difficulty, and this adds an extra layer for players who want more challenge without disadvantaging those who don't.

The actual gameplay differences between Rock Band and Guitar Hero are quite subtle, and only really relevant in the upper echelons of play. On Hard and Expert it becomes clear that Rock Band likes you to memorise simpler patterns and perform them flawlessly, whereas Guitar Hero prefers to have you barely managing your way through brain-melting note charts. The hit window for hammer-ons and pull-offs is more generous, the charts dance around the screen more. On Rock Band you can 98 per cent a song and still not achieve five stars because you broke your streak somewhere in the middle; Guitar Hero rewards you for your prowess more than your consistency, pushing the scoring balance more towards hit percentage than streak length.

Which one you prefer comes purely down to personal taste. Unless you just don't like Guitar Hero's way of doing things (and if you're any kind of rhythm-action player, you'll know by now) there is absolutely nothing to criticise about the note charts. Songs are transformed wondrously into challenging levels whose note patterns always, always feel like a true representation of what the music is doing. There's never a moment of disconnect, no awkward or artificially difficult sections that remind you that you're playing a plastic guitar. Neversoft is mastery of its tools is complete.

'Guitar Hero 5' Screenshot 3

The old Guitar Hero characters are looking better than ever. Or uglier, in Johnny Napalm's case.

The song selection itself, for me, strikes the right balance between long-overdue, well-known guitar classics (Smells Like Teen Spirit, Plug In Baby, Sympathy for the Devil), songs I'd never heard before in my life but quickly grew to enjoy (Streamline Woman, Young Funk), unexpected personal favourites (Du Hast, A-Punk, Wannabe in LA) and comic relief (Play That Funky Music, Hungry Like the Wolf). All of them are great fun for drummers and guitarists, but there are inevitably a few that most vocalists won't go anywhere near, and bass still isn't quite as accomplished as it could be.

It's a shame that all the songs have to be radio versions, too - "(blank) the unborn in the wooooomb!" growl Iron Maiden in 2 Minutes to Midnight, the Gorillaz' line about ass-cracks in Feel Good Inc is left unfinished, poor little Blink-182 can't even get "drunk" with their best friends in Rock Show - but otherwise they are, as is now expected, completely intact. Even all 13 minutes and 40 seconds of live Peter Frampton.

'Guitar Hero 5' Screenshot 4

WHOOOAAAA-uuhhhoohhh you're a LOOOADED GUNNN *splutter*

It's a relief that Activision hasn't seen fit to release a whole new set of instruments with Guitar Hero 5, letting us use the ones we already have instead, but on other compatibility issues the publisher has been less than generous. World Tour DLC is compatible with Guitar Hero 5, which is only to be expected, but only 35 of World Tour's on-disc songs work with the sequel, and you have to pay a premium to download them. It's not really acceptable, and is the only touch of cynicism evident in the game.

The four things that give Guitar Hero 5 a considerable edge over its competitors are the flexible, challenging difficulty, peerless customisation, music creation tools and, above all, frictionless, sans-menu multiplayer. As far as song selection goes, it's a matter of personal taste, but the sheer breadth of Guitar Hero 5's offering means that there has to be something you like. If anything, excessive breadth is the track list's weakness - there are bound to be so many songs you haven't heard of that familiarising yourself with them is a bit of a mountain to climb.

It would be terribly fashionable to be able to moan about how Guitar Hero is running itself into the ground whilst Activision counts its money, but there wouldn't be a scrap of truth in it. There's just nothing wrong with Guitar Hero 5: no horrible new art direction or gimmicky new features (3's guitar battles still haven't quite been forgiven), no backwards moves, no ill-advised changes to a winning formula. And yet, Neversoft has refused to let the series go stale, broadening the multiplayer and single-player options to give you more game for your money. Indeed, the developer is only creating problems for itself: how can Guitar Hero possibly get any better?

9 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
Picture of Keza.

About Keza MacDonald

Read more articles from Keza by visiting the Keza MacDonald archive page.

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Comments (70) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • bunglebonce #1 2 years ago

    There have been five of them already? Good grief.

  • Mayhem64 #2 2 years ago

    Will the ruckus over Cobain overshadow this release though? Still for all the competition between RB and GH now, it's nice that not only are they trying to one-up each other, but making both games better at the same time. Finally seeing sense on the instruments I hope too...
    Edited by 2 at 11/09/09 @ 11:41

  • XdarXideX #3 2 years ago

    Yeah! 9/10 sounds about right! At least, that's what I would have given it!

  • Beano #4 2 years ago

    What are the 35 songs than can be imported from GHWT?

  • cianchristopher #5 2 years ago

    9/10 is a good score. That's also what World Tour and Rock Band 2 and The Beatles: Rock Band got.

    I'm also happy they didn't release new guitars, cos my trusty World Tour axe is still going strong. But i seem to remember seeing a red version of the World Tour guitar online with Brian Bright talking about improved strum bars and digital sliders. What happened to that? Was it scrapped? Or is it only in the US this time?

  • andywilkie35 #6 2 years ago

    Sold! I prefer Rock Band but maybe this one will swing it back in GH's favour. Sounds excellent, can't wait to get stuck in tonight

  • Sonic_D #7 2 years ago

    I would get this if the tracklist wasn't so poor. The DLC on RB has been nothing short of brilliant, so I find it hard to pull myself away from it.

  • MiniAmin #8 2 years ago

    I wasn't interested in this before, however after reading the review i'm not surprised the game received 9/10. The last paragraph is an automatic rebuttal to people who'll shun the game just because the Guitar Hero series has been so prolific.

    Great, informative review.

  • spudsbuckley #9 2 years ago

    Played all the tracks in the first gig in career mode just now and i agree wholeheartedly with the review.

    The charting of the songs is much better than GH:WT and it easily as good as RB2 so far.

  • klem578 #10 2 years ago

    From all the reviews i've read, everybody seems to agree that GH5 is way better than GH:WT which is a good thing of course...

    This looks very yummy, in-game avatars , better tracklist that WT's horrid one ,it's more pick-up and play , various challenges , 4 player co-op being able to use the same instrument and so on so forth...

    Just a question though: EG mentioned that the note patterns are good in this , i really hope so as i think that Neversoft isn't as good in making good note charts as Harmonix, can anyone that played the game comment on this please?

    Consider this bought, kudos to Neversoft/Activision for not resting on their laurels :)
    Edited by 1 at 11/09/09 @ 11:56

  • sneetch #11 2 years ago

    @Mayhem64
    Will the ruckus over Cobain overshadow this release though?

    No. It will advertise it though.

  • spudsbuckley #12 2 years ago

    'Just a question though: EG mentioned that the note patterns are good in this , i really hope so as i think that Neversoft isn't as good in making good note charts as Harmonix, can anyone that played the game comment on this please?'

    Much better than the GH:WT ones so far. Close enough to the RB ones in quality.

  • MyAfroAndMe #13 2 years ago

    Good review, would be really interested to get my hand on this, but RB DLC will prevent me from doing so. With over 200+ songs in RB already and alot of the songs from this on their way to RB as much as I'd like to get this, I just can't justify it.

    Also why does it matter if new instruments are released? It wouldn't make the old ones obsolete.

  • Eighthours #14 2 years ago

    The pick-up-and-play is an absolute revelation that Rock Band needs to copy, yesterday.

    However the note charts still don't feel quite as good as those of Harmonix, imo (that being said, they're vastly better than those of Neversoft's early days with the GH series). It'll be interesting to compare the different charts of songs available in both GH5 and Rock Band 2 DLC.

  • klem578 #15 2 years ago

    @ spudsbuckley : Oops, just read your previous post...
    Thanks muchos mate for the info , bless you :)

    Guess i'll really have to buy this now.

    Cheers

  • Hesterumpe #16 2 years ago

    Are the new, updated drum set available yet? I haven't heard anything about it since it was announced some time ago. I still haven't forked out for a drum set (buh me.)

    About the review, minor nitpick: "Neversoft is mastery of its tools is complete."
    Great review otherwise, not much to say about the 5th in a series after all. But buh for speaking bad about Johnny Cash :)

  • Zamn10210 #17 2 years ago

    I'm still not convinced that the note charts are RB-standard. The only song I've seen is Smells Like Teen Spirit on YouTube but I can't say it reminded me much of how the song is actually played.

  • ZuluHero #18 2 years ago

    @bunglebonce

    Six actually. Rock the 80s is oft ommited.

  • Shadders #19 2 years ago

    Sounds like they've gone to lengths to improve gameplay, but I think I've now been spoilt by the Beatles' tracklist and this looks a bit rubbish by comparison.

    They can add all the smooth menu navigation they want, but it's the songs that determine how good these games are now.

  • siro #20 2 years ago

    They would get better (a lot) by allowing import of all old games. I wouldn't mind if it stays Guitar only for those songs, but that would be major to me.

  • Zebula77 #21 2 years ago

    I only really have one gripe with the GH series of games. As far as animation is concerned, I'm always bummed out that none of the guitarists have guitar straps. I dunno how they're holding their guitars up. Also, the animations for picking and fretting really isn't particularily good nor accurate. I know this is nitpicking, and matching thousands of notes to the correct fingering is probably way too much work, but as a professional guitarist it always jars me to see my favourite solo runs simply 'mimicked'.

  • Mark1412 #22 2 years ago

    And Metalllica and Aerosmith and Greatest Hits... not bad they're nearing Harmonix standard after only 7 games.

  • el_pollo_diablo #23 2 years ago

    Will this work with my GH3 guitar controller?

    Because I'm not buying a new one.

  • Vroom #24 2 years ago

    .. and AC/DC

  • Darren #25 2 years ago

    Do they release these new Guitar Hero/Rock Band games monthly by any chance? It seems like it to me... :o

  • swissorc #26 2 years ago

    Not surprising that EG shows no love to the wii not content with bashing every game not mario but don't even outline that the best version of something is not available on 360 where's the mention of roadie battle with ds connectivity hey EG? Seriously your 360 bias is becoming beyond a joke now

  • layleeloo #27 2 years ago

    Is a cracking game. Althought no different than all the others which is no bad thing. Been playing it for the last couple of days but have been unable to import my other GH tracks and downloaded tracks as their servers were not activated. Grrrrrr. haha

  • Zomoniac #28 2 years ago

    AC/DC was Rock Band.

    And... Keza is a girl?! I did not know that.

  • cianchristopher #29 2 years ago

    So to date we've had Guitar Hero, Guitar Hero 2, Guitar Hero: Rocks the 80's (all by Harmonix before they went off to do Rock Band), Guitar Hero 3, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith, Guitar Hero: World Tour, Guitar Hero: Metallica (all by Neversoft since Harmonix left), Guitar Hero: Greatest Hits (by Beenox) and now Guitar Hero 5 and before year's end (in US anyway) Guitar Hero: Van Halen (by Neversoft too, I believe). That's a grand total of 10 games in 48 months (or 1 game every 4.8 months, natch).

    We've had Rock Band, Rock Band 2, Rock Band: Unplugged, The Beatles: Rock Band and the upcoming LEGO Rock Band in 24 months. Also released in this timespan was AC/DC Live, but that was really more of a track pack than a spin-off (this is because AC/DC refuse to release their songs as downloadables - hence it is only available on disc, but can be imported into RB1 or 2).

    So that makes it 8 music games developed by Harmonix since 2005 versus 6 music games developed by Neversoft since 2007. TBH, they're both averaging out at basically the same rate of fire. And, now that Neversoft have had time to catch up on the basic mechanics, the two are pretty much indistinguishable (to me anyway). BUT, the biggest difference is in the treatment of DLC, and this is where Harmonix leaves Neversoft way, way, way behind!!! The DLC for the entire Guitar Hero franchise is *extremely* poor. A completely half-assed attempt!

    I suspect this is a policy decision at Activision as they feel they'll make more money from releasing full titles that are (almost) completely incompatible with each other rather than adding to the title incrementally with DLC to extend the lifespan. For shame!
    Edited by 2 at 11/09/09 @ 13:15

  • spudsbuckley #30 2 years ago

    Been playing it for the last couple of days but have been unable to import my other GH tracks and downloaded tracks as their servers were not activated.

    Still doesn't seem to be working ;(

  • paulf #31 2 years ago

    I think I'll be getting this today instead of the beatles which will have to wait because it doesnt have teen spirit nor sympathy for the devil
    Edited by 1 at 11/09/09 @ 13:10

  • Rubarack #32 2 years ago

    Activision seem to have gotten away lightly with a some stuff here, how much of a relief is it really that there are no new instruments when the WT ones break so easily? Have we seen an end to the obnoxiously in your face advertising of 3 and WT?

  • gjgjg #33 2 years ago

    RE:'For me, the endorsement of real-life artists (even ones who aren't dead, like Paul, Ringo, Slash and Matt Bellamy) cements Guitar Hero and Rock Band as a legitimate way of enjoying music in the eyes of the wider world, as well as in my own.'

    some would call it selling out in a less soulless but tacky way ;)

  • TOOTR #34 2 years ago

    Hungry Like the wolf? Comic Relief???? Take that back right now. Philistine! I LOVE that song.

    Not impressed with a radio edit of 2 minutes to midnight. What a bland sterile world we live in when they try and remove the teeth of Iron Maiden.

    Thank the gods we have masterpieces from non-bland non-sterile bands like Duran Duran to keep us on edge. :)


  • Dark_Stranger #35 2 years ago

    I have never understood the fasination with this type of game.

  • spudsbuckley #36 2 years ago

    I have never understood the fasination with this type of game

    And?

  • VicViper #37 2 years ago

    I was in GAME today, their giving GH:WT with solo guitar bundles for GH:5, maddness, to be honest I have had zero interest in this one, the DLC for rock band is going strong (The second PAX pack is amazing) so it hard to by another disc, and I am all instrumented up from previous GH. The GH guitars are just better.

    After DJ Hero I don't see myself getting anymore rythm games except for DJ Max interations. Something truly stellar needs to happen to genre to move it on a bit I think.

  • muscleblade #38 2 years ago

    Wonder how Band Hero turns out this November? Too many music games that for sure.

  • Balfa #39 2 years ago

    Will the ruckus over Cobain overshadow this release though?
    Well, consider I don't know what you're talking about, I'm going to guess "no"? :)

  • GuyNoir #40 2 years ago

    @"Will the ruckus over Cobain overshadow this release though? "

    Yeh!!!!, Beeb on the bandwagon "http://ne ws.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment... Go state appointed overseer's of all that's moral and descent, go!!!

  • b00n #41 2 years ago

    These are the songs you can import from GHTW:

    "About a Girl (Unplugged)" - Nirvana
    "Are You Gonna Go My Way" - Lenny Kravitz
    "Band on the Run" - "Wings
    "Dammit" - Blink 182
    "Demolition Man (Live)" - Sting
    "Do it Again" - Steely Dan
    "Everlong" - Foo Fighters
    "Heartbreaker" - Pat Benatar"
    "Hollywood Nights" - Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band
    "The Joker" - The Steve Miller Band
    "The Kill" - 30 Seconds from Mars
    "L'Via L'Viaquez" - The Mars Volta
    "Lazy Eye" - Silversun Pickups
    "Livin' on a Prayer" - Bon Jovi
    "Love Spreads" - The Stone Roses
    "The Middle" - Jimmy Eat World
    "Never Too Late" - The Answer
    "No Sleep Till Brooklyn" - Beastie Boys
    "Obstacle 1" - Interpol
    "One Armed Scissor" - At the Drive In
    "One Way or Another" - Blondie
    "Our Truth" - Lacuna Coil
    "Overkill" - Motorhead
    "Re-Education Through Labor" - Rise Against
    "Santeria" - Sublime
    "Shiver" - Coldplay
    "Soul Doubt" - NOFX
    "Spiderwebs" - No Doubt
    "Still Born" - Black Label Society
    "Stranglehold" - Ted Nugent
    "Sweet Home Alabama (Live)" - Lynyrd Skynyrd
    "Today" - Smashing Pumpkins
    "Toy Boy" - Suck Up in the Sound
    "Up Around The Bend" - Creedence Clearwater Revival
    "You're Gonna Say Yeah!" - Hushpuppies

  • RobotRocker #42 2 years ago

    Wait. 9? What the bloody hell have you been smoking EG?

    You havent mentioned the fact that Party Play is broken as hell since once you start it, you are locked to it. No switching songs. And if you imported World Tour. Its locked to your own console, you cant even bring your hard drive around to your friends house since it will just crash the game if you load it even while you are connected to live.

    Also, while Beatles RB was forced to chart guitar to other instruments due to the limitations of the material. GH Has no excuse. No, we dont want to play the Keyboard on Du Hast. Licence a better Rammstien song you idiots.

    Hell, lets get started on the charting. They charted the feedback in the intro of Smells like Teen Spirit WHICH IS A CARDINAL SIN. Or maybe the fact they made Sultans of Swing an absolute chore to play. YOU RUINED DIRE STRAITS YOU MORONS

    And thats not getting into the sheer bloodymindedness of Kurt Cobain and Johnny Cash being not only used likness wise, but not being locked to thier own songs is an absolutley insane oversight.

    Buy Rock Band 2. Get half the tracklist of this via DLC in the music store. Wait for the rest. Be overjoyed you never have to play this awful mess of a game AND STOP GIVING MONEY TO BOBBY KOTTICK YOU MORONS.

    /MAD AS HELL AND WILL NOT TAKE IT ANYMORE
    Edited by 2 at 11/09/09 @ 15:28

  • layleeloo #43 2 years ago

    @ boon. So you cant download them all? How come on those tracks? Like i said earlier I was trying yesterday but servers were not activated. Not tried it yet so dont know today. But seems strange why you can only import some? Any more info you can offer?

  • Nikanoru #44 2 years ago

    I too am wondering if this is gonna be like a monthly thing now. Is there any reason this shouldn't all just be an addon for the previous game? Oh right. Money. And yes, I'd ask the same question about Madden, etc etc. This is becoming much the same, or much worse if you ask me.

  • GaidenZero #45 2 years ago

    Personally speaking I think the the tracklist has been diluted too far these days, probably to widen the audience - which is understandable I guess. II and III were brilliant, brilliant games with great track lists (a shame II only had 4 master tracks but still the songs were good). But as soon as they made such a big deal about Oasis tracks being in GH:WT that was it for me - I didn't bother with it and I'm not going to bother with this.

    It's not that I don't want to hear new songs by artists I've not checked out before (thats a positive of the games, hearing new stuff)- but Oasis and Coldplay? I don't get the appeal - The heavy rock/metal tracks of II and III (and the greatest of the bunch GH: Metallica) are a much better fit for this game. Much more exciting to play. I know some decent tracks are in WT and 5 but not enough.

    It's the same with Rock Band: The Beatles - I can't think of a track which will be exciting to play - its just a handful of chords over and over which is dull.

  • spudsbuckley #46 2 years ago

    No one is making you buy the new versions.

  • Prox #47 2 years ago

    I have the original Rock Band instruments on PS3 - will they work with GH5?

  • spudsbuckley #48 2 years ago

    The guitar does, haven't tried the rest yet.

  • b00n #49 2 years ago

    I think the explanation from Activision was that they have to renegotiate rights to use songs from GHWT in GH5, which takes time and money, and also to adapt the song to the new features. Same reason why they charge you a little fee to do it. They 'promised' that other songs could be added in the future.

  • Chufty #50 2 years ago

    Guitar Hero FIVE? What a crock of cash-cow pat.

  • darc #51 2 years ago

    "It's a relief that Activision hasn't seen fit to release a whole new set of instruments with Guitar Hero 5, letting us use the ones we already have instead"

    But still not the Rock Band instruments, I assume?

  • midget2k8 #52 2 years ago

    i think this is one of the best in the series, only thing i hate about the reviews is that they say the setlist is crap because its not rock, so what not every song is with guitar is rock any type of song can have a guitar in it if u dont like the setlist then go play rock band because thats all rock cause it ROCK BAND this is GUITAR HERO not guitar rock hero. i do like rock band though and i do agree that neversoft should really stop selling a game every 3 months but i will still by them

  • knocker #53 2 years ago

    "YOU RUINED DIRE STRAITS YOU MORONS"

    That's really not possible.

  • cyber_nicco #54 2 years ago

    Okay, how about this. For someone who's NEVER played any of these rythm-music-guitar games on any platform, which would be the best game to buy - new or old? This would be someone who doesn't want to invest too much, as they don't know for sure if they like this sort of thing or not. Hopefully it would either include a lot of content, or have ways to still obtain content at reasonable prices. Oh, and it should be for the Xbox 360 or PS3 (no-backwards compatibility).

    :)

    edit/: Changed "contact" to content. Content, damnit!
    Edited by 1 at 11/09/09 @ 22:33

  • DUFFKING #55 2 years ago

    Cyber, the best is RB2. Good song list, you can import the RB1 songs for 500 points, huge DLC library, developed by Harmonix so you have the benefits of higher quality note charts too ;)

  • spudsbuckley #56 2 years ago

    I agree, Rock Band is the best 'jumping on' point for this whole genre.

    It's easier than GH for a start and the charting is great. GH is worth getting if you get into the genre a bit.

  • Mark1412 #57 2 years ago

    There's absolutely no argument, it's Rock Band unless you're someone who doesn't care which instrument they're playing with their guitar and whether or not they're playing something that at all resembles the song. If you don't care about music then hey, Guitar Hero's great fun.

  • hobbesthetiger #58 2 years ago

    Agree that Rock Band is definitely the better game, better track lists, more fun to play and better note charting. Having said that, there's not exactly a massive difference, but as someone who has RB2 and GH:WT, I much prefer RB2.

    Won't be rushing out to get GH5 despite the positive reviews.

  • The_Bloody_Kettle #59 2 years ago

    i think i'll get Beatles: Rock Band instead thanks.

  • cyber_nicco #60 2 years ago

    Great, thanks people. I always thought of Rock Band as one you needed to buy a whole set of instruments for. Can it just be bought and played with a guitar-controller?

    I guess I could just go and find that out myself, but this is so much more interesting...

  • Jonny5Alive7 #61 2 years ago

    Sounds like a good game. I think RB:Beatles will be the one to sell the most this time though, its inevitably getting a lot more press.

  • tomwhitaker #62 2 years ago

    @cyber_nicco Definitely Rock Band 2 as a game - the only problem is that most people think that the best guitar controllers are the Guitar Hero ones. Your best way in is to get Rock Band 2 for £25 from Shopto and then a Guitar Hero 3 or World Tour guitar bundle, cheap or second hand, for the wireless guitar.

  • Enzeru #63 2 years ago

    Personally I think the interface and everything around it, like the menus etc, are the best they've ever been, but I just can't approve of the song list. For me, it's way too many bands I've never heard of, and the bands that are there have usually used up their songs in the other GH/RB games, and therefore use other songs from the same albums that are less popular.

    Genre-wise, I think it shows all too well where Neversoft comes from, with their skate background. Instead of going a little bit for every genre, they've settled for some middle-ground, which personally I find boring. I cross my fingers for more diverse DLC!

  • Kafkaesque #64 2 years ago

    @RobotRocker - you are exactly the kind of penis the last paragraph of the review is aimed at. Thank you for emphasising the reviewer's point :)

    Good review, even better to read some balanced comments for a change. One superb element the reviewer neglected to mention is the joy of private parties online. For someone like me who typically plays with a combo of one guitar and one drums with mates online, you were at the mercy of randoms joining your sessions and dropping out in a sulk if they didn't get to play guitar on the first song, horribly irritating. Such a simple idea making inviting randoms into the band optional, and combined with being able to play any combo of instruments it's made playing with mates a much better experience. I have to say though, for all that the game mechanics have taken a big leap forward, I'm not really feeling the tracklist yet after my first session last night.

    With both this and RB Beatles coming out this week, it's been a great week for music games all round, the bar has been raised significantly by both.
    Edited by 2 at 12/09/09 @ 16:13

  • RobotRocker #65 2 years ago

    @ Kafkaesque

    Funny. The only way I would feel like a cock is if I bought this game.

  • joey_j #66 2 years ago

    incase this hasnt been mentioned yet, the red guitar is exclusive to GAME in the UK

  • skybluesam86 #67 2 years ago

    Kurt Cobain, Bellamy and Johnny Cash are fine and all, but they're not Hendrix

    Matt Bellamy *could* be. He's the closest thing to a modern day rock god, anyway.

    And Johnny Cash is equally as legendary as Hendrix.

  • skybluesam86 #68 2 years ago

    "YOU RUINED DIRE STRAITS YOU MORONS"

    That's really not possible.

    Agreed.

    The thing ruining Dire Straits is Dire Straits.

  • actionfitz #69 2 years ago

    shame i cant buy it for moral reasons.
    fuck you very much bobby kotick.
    fuck you and the horse you rode in on.

  • Notez #70 2 years ago

    "It would be easy at this point for Neversoft to release glorified song packs ad infinitum, but instead the developer is continuing to show respect to Guitar Hero followers by broadening and polishing the series without overcomplicating or changing it."
    - Overcomplicating and changing the series is what Neversoft has been doing from day one: guitar battles, overcharting, solo notes, open notes on bass, sloppier / broken engine
    - Also HOPO chords were added in GH5

    "You're rewarded with Gold, Platinum or Diamond depending on how well you do, bringing the possible stars to be gained from a song up from 5 to 8."
    - I guess you didn't get many 100% performances (6 stars)

    "On Rock Band you can 98 per cent a song and still not achieve five stars because you broke your streak somewhere in the middle; Guitar Hero rewards you for your prowess more than your consistency, pushing the scoring balance more towards hit percentage than streak length."
    - What? The mechanics are the same save for the band moments in multiplayer. Maybe the score tresholds are lower, but I don't see what you are getting at.

    "Indeed, the developer is only creating problems for itself: how can Guitar Hero possibly get any better?"
    - Maybe include the rhythm guitar charts again for songs that have them and focus on songs that are fun to play, not only to listen to - the whole is still not on the same level as GH2

    That being said there are many good things about GH5:
    - Focus mode (cheat), which removes all the unnecessary crap from the screen
    - Multiple instances of the same instrument possible (two lead guitars was more fun with an equally skilled friend than guitar / bass)
    - Somewhat fixed engine (you can strum HOPOs now without fear of breaking combo, but overstrumming them doesn't break combo either)
    - The multiplayer note track is finally the same size as in single player mode, meaning you can use the same hyperspeed setting for both and other players can use different values of hyperspeed
    Edited by 2 at 16/09/09 @ 09:28