The number of songs in Guitar Hero III is very impressive at 70 with over half of those master recordings.  Ofcourse, there are tracks during career and tracks you buy in the store.  I think I would’ve been content with just the Tenacious D track because I’m a big Jack Black fan.  However, for those of you with a wider taste in music, you’ll have the chance to enjoy some of the true legends of rock.  Guns N’ Roses, Aerosmith, Iron Maiden, Rage Against The Machine, The Rolling Stones and more are at your disposal.

A semi-disappointment this time around were the boss battles and ending song.  I totally dominated Slash.  For some reason I just didn’t get any feeling of accomplishment when defeating the “bosses” nor was I blown away by the final song.  Guitar Hero II’s final song was better and that just may be because it actually was a better song by a better band.  I can’t complain too much though because I dare not try either of them on expert or hard for that matter.

All of this shredding is done on what I feel will end up being the best wireless guitar ever made!  It’s such a huge improvement over the previous axes used.  I had both the wired Les Paul and the wireless so I was able to gauge the performance of the two and there was no lag at all on the wireless Les Paul.  The only downside is not having a rechargeable battery pack with the guitar.  I’m sure we all have rechargeable batteries but it sucks not having a rechargeable battery pack for the guitar.  You can up the level of customization on it beyond stickers by purchasing different faceplates for the guitar.

Xbox Live Extras

Perhaps the biggest addition to the game this year was the inclusion of online play via Xbox Live.  You can grab the best songs and compete or play cooperatively with a friend.  I’ve played a few rounds and it’s a great feeling partnering up on Xbox Live.  There was a slight delay that just made it nagging at times but overall it was a ton of fun.  This adds a lot to the replay value of songs when you can connect and play with people across the world.

The downloadable content has been coming in mixed with both free and priced songs.  Recently, RedOctane has tried to increse the content and pricing strategy by introducing single song packs and artist packs.  It’s still not quite right but it’s a step in the right direction.  There’s a free Halo theme download for crying out loud!  Who doesn’t like rockin’ out to the theme of Halo right?

Another cool thing added this round is the online creation of bands and such tracked right on the official website for Guitar Hero.  All you have to do is link up with the code given when you purchased the game.  It’s in the game.  Once you link up you can share and see your scores, favorite songs and groupies.