Is this the wonky ninth album from a tired rockstar or a classic in the making?
Format: PS3 (version played), Xbox 360, Wii, PS2 Dev: Neversoft Pub: Activision
Out: 11/09/09 Players: 1-4, 2-4 online
Guitar Hero III was a great game, as was World Tour. But having dodged Guitar Hero Metallica, purchased and subsequently being disinterested in Greatest Hits, I began to wonder if the franchise is floundering.
Activision’s next move had to be a masterstroke, something to prove that the apparent oversaturation of the market is not simply an effort to capitalise on the popularity of the genre, but to provide fans of the game with as much material as possible. The announcement of Guitar Hero 5 looked promising – simple title, minimalist cover art, a sure-fire winner.
Prior to the main menu, a song appears on-screen with the option of jumping straight in to play it, removing the need to search through and find one first. At the main menu you find the usual suspects: quick play, career, online and so forth. Having realised that a lot of people like to head straight into quick play and choose their favourite songs, Activision have made all of the songs available from the outset. No longer do players have to toil through career mode if they do not wish to do so. It’s has been this way since Guitar Hero World Tour.
The variety of music in Guitar Hero 5 is excellent. It is without doubt the most cosmopolitan set list Guitar Hero has ever provided. 85 tracks featuring more pop, indie and folk than ever before. With songs from Duran Duran, Queen, Vampire Weekend, Gorillaz, Blur, Bob Dylan and King Crimson, gamers will find themselves not feeling over-encumbered with metal and hard rock this time around.
Even hip hop and soul make an appearance with the inclusion of a song by the Beastie Boys and Stevie Wonder’s ‘Superstition’. Songs of the metal, punk and hard rock genre still make an appearance nonetheless, with music from Iron Maiden, Blink-182, Children of Bodom, Thrice and Nirvana for the more alternative, or perhaps traditional, Guitar Hero gamer.
Artistically the game has slightly improved, but lacks innovation. The same ridiculously designed, exaggerated, stereotypical characters return to exasperate as they jump around on stage to a crowd who move around in complete idiotic synchronisation. Of course, this is a minor detail. Graphics are not something that really come into contention with a game of this nature. It is, and always has been, about playing the music.
Activision’s comprehensive character creator can always be used to create your own visual representation for use in-game. There’s new clothing and accessories available to unlock via career mode, along with unlockable rockstars, such as Johnny Cash, Matt Bellamy, Carlos Santana and, most controversially, Kurt Cobain. Career mode has improved somewhat with the addition of a new challenge based feature. Specific to each song that is played, there are set criteria to meet in order to achieve added bonuses, thus adding to the overall challenge.
So, is Guitar Hero’s latest iteration a sure-fire winner? The short answer would be, yes – a more diverse set list and cool new features alongside all of the familiar ones that diehard Guitar Hero fans are accustomed to. Loyal fans will therefore be pleased with the latest edition of the franchise and newcomers will be welcomed by its accessibility and musical variety. The fun, group orientated nature of music games is more significant here than with any previous Guitar Hero release.
Andy King
Tags: activision, guitar hero, Music, party
