When Guitar hero came out in 2005 for the play-station 2, it was a revolutionary move by combining the experiences of; Guitar Freaks, DrumMania, and Dance Dance Revolution. By bringing these popular eastern gaming experiences to the West, Harmonix gave western gamers something unseen; a rhythm game with popular music and a new peripheral that was very stylized.

Overall: 6.5
Presentation: 8.5
Graphics: 5
Sound: 7
Gameplay: 6
Replay Value: 6

The heritage of Guitar hero could be one of the most impressive in sales and brand recognition even while being compared with popular series’ such as Halo and Mario.

Now, Activision and Red Octane has released some of the most popular songs that made Guitar Hero a household name. Many believe that the Rhythm Game Genre is an over-saturated market, but Nostalgia should not be underestimated.

Most of the songs in the original games were covers, and now Activision released them as master tracks. Also, there is the band play functionality, so older Guitar Hero Songs are compatible with the drums and microphone. Songs like “Smoke on the Water” and “Bark at the Moon,” delivers a nostalgic admiration for players who desire to imitate their favorite band.

The song list, like most Guitar Hero games, could be very obtrusive. Most players will enjoy certain songs, and not others. This is my main gripe, since some songs will appease some families, but not another. The mixture of Metal, Classic Rock, and Pop can seem cluttered.

Smash Hits is a great addition for those who haven’t played a previous iteration of GH, and the addition of the instruments will lure veterans of the series. Unfortunately, these additions we’re enough to keep my interest.

Presentation:

Great and charming venues and special outfits for each venue, with sharper visual style from World tour (models, guitars etc), and over-all the good known graphics from the Guitar hero series. There is even a nice reference for Guitar hero 2 and 3.

Technicality:

Even though there is no problem on the technical part of the game, the noting charts aren’t impressive and the new developer for the series, Beenox Studios, has no relation to any guitar hero games before. Extremely obscure note charts uncover rookie mistakes and the volume is quieter overall.

Sound:

Over-all a solid soundtrack with 48 tracks from 4 different games. One notable bad song choice. “The cowboy from hell” performed by Pantera. The sound quality is really bad.

Gameplay:

Weird note charts can be a real factor for this type of game and from its fun factor.

Replay value:

Good soundtrack over-all but no DLC support for Smash Hits, which is disappointing, and I don’t think the online component is a motivating factor.

Conclusion:

Guitar hero: Smash hits may seem like a song pack for the old games, that’s not an entirely false statement, but a great soundtrack, good visuals, and the ability to play as a band aren’t enough for most people. But the song list is good enough to bring fans of different genres to the game, although they might not enjoy every song.

The game is rated T for teens, meaning its alright for most teenagers to listen and or to play the game, there are some heavy metal songs with more violent songs, but if your kid/nephew/family member ever played a guitar hero game before, it should be fine. If you are concerned with the lyrics, then I suggest checking the set list although there is a censorship for swear words.

• Pantera – “Cowboys From Hell (Live)”
• Franz Ferdinand – “Take Me Out”
• Queens Of The Stone Age – “No One Knows”
• Joan Jett & The Blackhearts – “I Love Rock N’ Roll”
• Boston – “More Than A Feeling”
• White Zombie – “Thunder Kiss ’65″
• Blue Oyster Cult – “Godzilla”
• Helmet – “Unsung (Live)”
• Queen – “Killer Queen”
• Incubus – “Stellar”
• Ozzy Osbourne – “Bark At The Moon”
• Deep Purple – “Smoke On The Water”
• The Donnas – “Take It Off”
• The Exies – “Hey You”
• Avenged Sevenfold – “Beast And The Harlot”
• Rage Against The Machine – “Killing In The Name”
• Rush – “YYZ”
• Lynyrd Skynyrd – “Free Bird”
• Foo Fighters – “Monkey Wrench”
• Iron Maiden – “The Trooper”
• Nirvana – “Heart-Shaped Box”
• Lamb of God – “Laid To Rest”
• The Police – “Message In A Bottle”
• Wolfmother – “Woman”
• Kansas – “Carry On Wayward Son”
• Stone Temple Pilots – “Trippin’ On A Hole In A Paper Heart”
• Warrant – “Cherry Pie”
• Alice in Chains – “Them Bones”
• Danzig – “Mother”
• Jane’s Addiction – “Stop!”
• Reverend Horton Heat – “Psychobilly Freakout”
• The Sword – “Freya”
• Mötley Crüe- “Shout At The Devil”
• Pat Benatar – “Hit Me With Your Best Shot”
• Living Colour – “Cult Of Personality”
• Heart – “Barracuda”
• Kiss – “Rock And Roll All Nite”
• AFI – “Miss Murder”
• DragonForce – “Through The Fire And Flames”
• Slayer – “Raining Blood”
• Anthrax – “Caught In A Mosh”
• Extreme – “Play With Me”
• Judas Priest – “Electric Eye”
• Poison – “Nothin’ But A Good Time”
• Ratt – “Round and Round”
• Twisted Sister – “I Wanna Rock”
• Aerosmith – “Back In The Saddle”

Tags: Reviews