Guitar Hero World Tour (Xbox 360, 2008)

I find this game to be a total success. It is so different from any other games since you are playing a music instrument (as real as it can get for people that love music but know nothing about playing real instruments like me...)

It completely got me from the beginning and I have been playing it for the past 3 weeks without loosing interest in it at all. Although it is true that you can finish it really quickly, i don't think the real fun relies on just finishing all the concerts. As you get better at it, you earn more money on each presentation and your rates go up. There are some concerts that you can only play if you buy them with the cash you have earned. There are also "encores" available to you at each concert if you manage to get at least 3 stars on all songs. And there is also the "5 golden stars" available for you only if you can finish the song without making a single mistake... pretty challenging from medium level on...

The multiplayer option is great as well so it does not lack the re-play factor at all. It offers you the chance to add friends by using their GH ids. The interface is not good but once you set it up you pretty much forget about this and focus on the game itself. You can choose to go head to head with your friends playing the same chores at the same time, play in cooperative mode or go to "guitar hero war" and choose from different special moves to make your opponent fail.

Comparing it to Guitar Hero III - Legends of Rock I like this one better starting with the guitar itself. I find it a lot easier to manage, the whammy bar is way better and easier to access and the huge star power button is a great asset. The sensitive buttons are pretty innovative and fun to play with also.

I wouldn't say the songs are all great since I am more of an alternative rock type of guy so I wouldn't choose many of them just by looking at the names. But the truth is that once you start playing you actually start enjoying each song because each one has it's own unique thing. Some needs you to move your fingers faster, others make you pay more attention on the rhythm changes, others are more focused on the chores repetition, etc. So don't think many songs are boring just because they are old or belong to some genre you don't usually listen to.

I would definitely recommend this game no matter if you have played some GH/Rock Band games before or if you are new to this type of games. You should also consider buying the complete set (drums, guitar, mic) to have fun with your whole family/friends.

Parents need to know that this is a sequel in the mega-popular Guitar Hero series. Some of the lyrics might raise an eyebrow as being sexually suggestive. Also, some of the female musicians that aren't wearing much clothes onstage.

Families can talk about whether these music games have hit its stride or its peak? Are the changes in games like the Guitar Hero and Rock Band series enough to justify the purchase or is it worth just downloading new songs each week?


GUITAR HERO: WORLD TOUR is the sequel to the best-selling video game of 2007 (Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock). This new version adds drums and vocals to last year's game that was all about playing on the guitar and bass, along with a tour bus-full of new modes and features. For the uninitiated, these music games let you play along to hit rock songs on a plastic guitar, a drum kit peripheral, or sing in a microphone, and you must hit the right note/drum at the correct time in order to rack up points. Perform well and the virtual crowd claps to the beat, but make too many flubs and you might just get booed offstage. When it comes to instruments, the Guitar Hero: World Tour drums has two raised cymbals along with the three main pads and bass drum pedal, resembling a real kit. The newly-designed wireless guitar looks and feels great, and offers extra buttons for improv play and special effects, if desired. The wired microphone provides clear sound for the singer in your group.

After you watch the first of many entertaining animated sequences, you can select from a number of single-player, co-op or head-to-head game modes. A new rock star creator lets you customize the look of your virtual musician before entering a lengthy Career mode that lets players swap instruments as they progress through the story (or choose to stick with one); the Band Career options allows you to join or host an online band with other players. Or why not compete in an online competition – four against four – to see how many points your band can collectively rack up against a rival super group? As with Guitar Hero III, players who dual guitars on the same TV can unleash "battle attacks" to trip up an opponent such as causing a string to break or flipping the left and right buttons.

I enjoyed this game as much as rock band 2. It plays well and has a few extra features not seen in RB2. The song list is good and will keep you entertained for quite awhile. The music editor is a nice addition and allows you to make your own songs but without any vocal tracks it makes the songs you create less interesting also alot of the songs end up sounding like a computer made them, they just seem to lack any soul. There are alot of songs other people made for download but most of them just try to play fast and put as many notes in it and make it as hard as possible instead of making a "good" song with a good groove. It is cool that they put this feature in the game although I don't really use it. Like rock band you can download more content so it is a game that can last for a long time. If you want a great music game GHWT and RB2 are great fun alone or with friends. I should also mention that you can use rock band instruments with this game and its how I played it so I can't comment on how well the official guitar, drums and microphone work but from what I have read online they all work well. I think these games need to add in some more variety instead of just saying "You Rock" if you finish the song. They should have multiple comments like " not bad", "keep practicing" , "amazing" ect. also it would be great if your band mates commented on how you did and even allow you to join different bands to achieve "legendary" status. They could also have fans reactions after the "show" and have that effect sales and turn out, these games just need more interaction to keep it from getting stale. Anyway, overall it is still some of the best fun you can have playing games and I recommend it.

I bought the whole band set brand new - drums, guitar, mic, everything. My friend has it and I fell in love with it the first night I played it! Everything worked perfectly fine from the start.
There are only a few complaints I have about this game.
One is that if you are playing with a friend(s) either via xbox live or in the same room, if one of you fails, you ALL fail. Unlike Rock Band, Guitar Hero does not allow you to go into overdrive (star power) to "save" your friends if they are losing. It's kind of a crappy deal if you want to keep playing the song!
Also, the storyline/actual game play isn't as good. If you're looking for a game that isn't really a GAME, and more like just playing music, then Guitar Hero is perfect. But if you are looking for more of a story line I would go with Rock Band. In RB2's Tour Mode, you can "travel" to different cities and countries, and different landmark places to play at, and by playing certain Music Sets, you unlock other aspects of the game. You also have a staff, and you unlock certain people by playing at different places. You get a certain number of fans and stars with every song you complete, and with every place you play at, you need a certain number of fans/stars accumulated.
It is also more fun on Rock Band to personalize your band character. Guitar Hero III has more extensive facial features to pick from, which is great, but RB2 has more of a wardrobe, more make up, accessories, shoes, and even tattoos. You can also make a band logo and personalize that too (with colors, size, etc.) on RB.
Guitar Hero III has great songs, but again, Rock Band 2 has more of a selection already on the game, as well as in their Music Download store. It took me a couple of hours just to go through all of RB2's available songs to download!
Don't get me wrong though, Guitar Hero III has a lot of great songs too, including Dez Moines, by The Devil Wears Prada; On Broken Glass, by Chimaira; Grave of Oppurtunity, by Unearth; including songs by Lacuna Coil, Dream Theater, No Doubt, Tool, Paramore, Ozzy Osbourne, The Doors, Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, and many more. So they both have their fair share of great music, but RB2 definitely includes more songs.
As far as instruments are concerned, from what I have seen with friends of mine who own RB2 instruments and other friends who own GH3 instruments, the GH3 instruments win the fight. I have seen more complaints about the Rock Band instruments - and that includes drums AND guitar. I have not had any problems with My GH instruments thus far (knock on wood) and have had them for about 6 months already. One of my friends has an instrument set from RB and although his guitar works fine, his drums are pretty much destroyed. They break through easily and are all taped up. I have heard about some problems with the cymbals with GH though. Not really sure about that too much.
As far as graphics, I would rate them about the same. Both have outstanding graphics.
Well there you have it. My completly unimportant opinion on Guitar Hero 3 World Tour vs. Rock Band 2. Thanks for reading!

Guitar Hero World Tour brings a whole new experience into music videogaming. Instead of only having a guitar, you get to rock out on the drums and microphone as well. I was a little leery at first when I saw the drum set. It does look rickety but it is very sturdy. You can bang on the drums and cymbals with the real drum sticks and not harm a thing and the stand hardly moves. The drum stand also has a height adjustment that makes it comfortable for anyone of any size to play it. Also both the guitar and the drum set are wireless! So you don't have to worry about people tripping over each others' cords and breaking your precious xbox 360 system or the controllers. The only thing that might be nice to see in the future is a wireless microphone, but it does its job and having one single cord is hardly anything to complain about when you're playing with an entire band of four people. Now, honestly, if you're looking for a more realistic feeling guitar, rock band would unfortunately be the better choice. The Guitar Hero controllers are definitely sturdy but they do have a toy-like feel to them. Especially if you're used to playing a real guitar and sliding your hand up and down a regular wood neck. The guitar hero guitar neck is slightly boxy although it does have rounded edges and its made of plastic with no shiny smooth covering over it either. One of the best things about all of the controllers (besides the mic) is that they have all the controls you need right on them, including the big round xbox menu button. (The microphone requires you to have a standard xbox controller also connected to choose difficulty and navigate through menus). On to the actual game... It's awesome. A great selection of songs from all different time periods. Young or old you can appreciate the rock 'n' roll in each and every song they put on this disc. Now the game does say 86 tracks are included but don't expect to be able to play all of them right away. That would be too easy. You have to play the career in single player mode in order to "unlock" the other songs for band and quick play. This should be no problem because isn't that what you bought the game for? All in all, great fun for a group of friends or an entire family to rock out with each other and have a good time.