Rock Solid- Guitar Hero 5 Review

At its core, the title retains all of the signature Guitar Hero elements. Colored tabs cascade down the screen, requiring players to hit the corresponding fret or pad on their virtual instruments. Virtuosos can still activate ‘Star Power’; a power-up that allows players to temporarily double their score multiplier. Veterans may notice minute, yet helpful, tweaks to the formula. Note highways now benefit from an increased width and Star Power is now a scarce commodity on the topmost difficulty levels, adding a strategic nuance to the game.

Luckily, the game’s main additions aren’t as subtle. As soon as players load up Guitar Hero 5, they may jump right into a performance, bypassing the typical network of menu screens. Additional virtual musicians may hop in, and even opt to change their difficultly levels without disturbing the initial player. Previous music games limited each player to a separate instrument, and while playing bass was agreeable, it didn’t have the power of lead guitar. Now, Guitar Hero 5 allows for any combination of instrumentalists; meaning having a band with a quartet of guitarists is now possible.

Players seeking friendly competition may enjoy GH5’s RockFest mode, with offers six variations for music duels. Eight player online and four player local matches may be decided on the accuracy percentage, notes streaks, or through elimination-based contests. I found ‘Do-or-Die’ the most compelling. In that mode, players that miss more than three notes in a song section are momentarily prohibited from gaining points, requiring gamers to quickly regain their composure.

GHStudio, the game’s music creation competent has returned with a number of significant improvements. Version 2.0 offers a much friendlier interface, allowing for easier navigation; virtual composers can now create a song using a single instrument. With improved sound samples, and longer song sizes and tracks no longer resemble curt MIDI pieces, a proficient producers can now develop more mature-sounding pieces. Those without the patience for competition may appreciate GH5’s Jam mode, where players can rock out using the title’s fourteen sound presets. Noodling around with dance, jazz, or rock riffs can be surprisingly addictive.

Following in the footsteps of Rock Band 2, GH 5 allows owners of the last two Guitar Hero games to import songs into the game. While the fees for transferring the songs are nominal ($3.50 for World Tour, $2.00 for Smash Hits), allowing less than half on each disk’s context into GH5 makes you wonder why Neversoft even bothered with this feature. With bands as diverse as Vampire Weekend, Kings of Leon, the White Stripes, and the Rolling Stones, the 85 songs on the Guitar Hero 5 disk is impressive, and represents an formidable cross-section of rock music.