The great musical divide is what some are calling this upcoming battle of the bands on Xbox 360.  Guitar Hero III and Rock Band are going to release soon and create an interesting choice.  How will you decide to unleash your inner rockstar?  Will you stick to the proven band or change venues for the new kid on the block?

I wanted to let you know that I’m right there with you and your frustration so I’ve decided to pit the two against each other.  I hope this helps in figuring out which is the best title for you to shred guitar or dance to the beat of a different drum.  I gathered as much information as I could to throw these two titles in the octagon.  After reading this you’ll see my choice for unleashing your innner rockstar.  (or I’m sure you’ll just skip to the end)

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock

Publisher: Activision, RedOctane
Developer: Neversoft Entertainment
Price of the game: $59.99  Price of the game with accessories: $99.99
Accessories: Gibson Guitar’s Les Paul Wireless Guitar
Modes: Practice, Career, Battle Mode
Online play: Yes
Wireless: Yes
Songs (era): Various (not sure of the era)
Release date: October 28, 2007

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock isn’t being made by the fine folks at Harmonix who brought you previous Guitar Hero titles.  Will this be a bad thing?  I doubt it as RedOctane is still on board.  It’s a “music” title though so the competition, as well as the comparison to Rock Band, is inevitable.  That’s where I come in to hopefully help clean up some confusion.

The one question mark with GH3 is the fact that it’s being developed by Neversoft Entertainment.  What’s the last title from Neversoft that you rocked out to?  Exactly.  They aren’t exactly known for their amazing music titles.  Again though, with RedOctane still on board to guide the title I’m expecting good things.

The best part about Guitar Hero III is that you can do all of your rockin’ with one guitar.  You don’t have to depend on your friends to have an additional piece of the puzzle to have the best experience on Xbox Live.  It’s simple yet effective especially for those not playing the stock market.  The wireless guitar lets you jam from anywhere and however you want.  You’ll also be able to customize your guitar this time around with different guitar face plates.  

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Trailer

Rock Band 

Publisher: Electronic Arts, MTV Games
Developer: Harmonix
Price of the game: $59.99  Price of the game with accessories: $169.99
Accessories: Fender Stratocaster Guitar, Drum set, Microphone
Modes: Quickplay, Solo Tour, World Tour, Band Co-op, Head-to-Head, Practice
Online play: Yes
Wireless: No
Songs (era): 60’s 70’s 80’s 90’s 2000’s
Release date: November 20, 2007

It’s the stepchild of Guitar Hero.  It’s like Sigourney Weaver in Alien: Resurrection when the uber baby Alien comes after its mother.  Guitar Hero in this case is ofcourse Sigourney Weaver and Rock Band is the big bad Alien baby thing that’s coming to kill that from which it was born. 

Having Harmonix on board to deliver Rock Band is a huge plus for the title.  Harmonix brought fans the Guitar Hero series so you know they’re well prepared to deliver on how well Rock Band plays.  The one question mark is if they can match the performance of the guitar with the drums and microphone.  If they can do that then fans are in for a wild, enjoyable ride.

The band aspect of Rock Band is pretty intriguing along with the assortment of modes to play.  You can form a band of friends who also have the game and rock out online together.  (you’ll have to have some rich friends apparently)  How many of your friends will buy the game and just the drums to play as your drum boy?  Or only buy the microphone to sing vocal?  The image of forming your own band is tempting, but I don’t suspect people will purchase the game and only one accessory.  What’s the point of not owning them all?  Everyone wants to play lead guitar in a rock band at some point ya know.  And it’ll prove difficult to mail Rock Band accessories across the world to let Jimmy play lead while Sarah sings for the next match.

It’s called Rock “Band” not Rock Solo for a reason.  I think someone behind the scenes is counting on this whole “band” thing a bit ya think?  (cha-ching)

I don’t have much media on Rock Band because EA isn’t sharing.  I’ve asked for a few things but no such luck.  The last thing I heard was that Peter Moore secured all Rock Band accessories to fine tune his skills.  So Peter, throw me a bone here.  (Edit.  I finally got some media for Rock Band and I’ve included the latest trailer and screenshots)

Rock Band Trailer

Video: Rock Band Trailer

Pre-release Champ: Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock 

It came down to price for me.  Despite the given unknown with developer Neversoft Entertainment, Guitar Hero III will cost less to get the full experience.  Couple that with the fact that I want to try the other hot titles releasing this holiday and you have your winner.  Buying Rock Band would probably make a severe dent in my hopes of also scoring BioShock, Mass Effect, Halo 3, GTA IV and others. 

I’m sure Rock Band will be enjoyable but for average people like myself it may have priced itself out of my “affordable” range.  I suppose I shouldn’t worry about the price though because just thinking about the premium downloadable content in store for both scares me.  What say you?