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Guitar Hero 3Legends of Rock
2007/11/30
I just can’t do it. Even if I slog through the whole night – the step on to the next level, hard, will be denied to me eternally in Guitar Hero. One more button, hit the keys even faster. It is the same as with most guitar players in a mediocre rock band, they have their successes, but never even get the first few notes of a dream-theatre-song right. The good thing is: It doesn’t bother me. Not a bit. I don’t care if I screw up a solo, because I fervently cantillated the chorus, activated the star-power by mistake, or knuckled down (literally) into the riff. It does not matter, because Guitar Hero is based on one of the best gaming principles: fun.
Fans saw exactly this gaming principle endangered. On the one hand, there was the worry that the handover of the sacred Guitar-Hero guitar to Neversoft could entail a loss of quality – on the other hand, it was clear, especially after the rather lame quasi add-on Guitar Hero Rocks the 80s, that the original developers of the game at Harmonix were not keen on their own creation anymore. Neversoft had to prove themselves, and deliver exactly the right mixture of innovation and tried and tested stuff avoid displeasing or boring the plastic-neck wringer. A delicate task.
This much in advance: Neversoft have done their homework. The entry to Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock is at once familiar. The comic aesthetics were kept and even extended a bit. Familiar characters are on board again: Axe wielding veteran Axel Steele as well as the black metal monster Lars Ümlaut. Of course, there are a few new characters to choose from for your new alter ego to grace the stage. These stereotypes are still virtual hand puppets without special characteristics and no particular abilities – this could be a chance for the future. Add some individuality to the game by particular idiosyncrasies of the characters that affect the guitar play.
Tried and tested stuff in the career mode as well: As with the predecessors a band is founded, named and led to fame. First, the backyards and cellar-clubs are worked, then the first video and finally the brave quartet even lands in hell. After every set of four songs, the next location that wants to be graced with four new songs turns up. If you drive the crowd crazy with a good performance, you get your fee – the better the more dough to buy outfits, characters or even songs. However, the progress of your career doesn’t depend only on the successful completion of the songs. Three finalists bar the way to the rock nirvana. You have to win in a guitar duels, first against Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, then Slash of Guns’n’Roses and finally against the Prince of Darkness himself.
Especially these boss fights are a challenge – and far more difficult than the particular level. It takes some practice to bash the notes properly and force the opponent to his knees. Luckily, some accessories, which you receive when you hit the correct note, are at hand. They are triggered the same as the star power in the songs: yank the guitar up and the adversary plays at a higher level of difficulty, can’t press a certain button for a short time or must jiggle the tremolo. Unfortunately this works in both directions, and especially The Horned One is hellishly difficult.
Also new is the online mode, where human adversaries can make the necks of their guitars glow in separate rooms – or you can use friends-codes to clarify who is the most adept at the six buttons in your circle of friends. As long as your neighbour is also equipped with a Wii compatible Les Paul, you can play additional songs in the co-op mode. If only one guitar is available, sadly these songs can’t be used. Apart from that, more songs are supposed to be available via an online shop in future.
MK
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