Guitar Hero III is another great guitar game in the series, which will have fans satisfied and newcomers challenged. This time, Guitar Hero III is being offered on all of the major consoles, but for this review, I will focus on the Wii version.

The first thing to talk about of course is the actual guitar you get with the game. For the Wii version, you are basically getting a shell, with which you plug your wiimote into. There is a cover on the back that snaps out and then you can plug in your wiimote directly to an attachment, similar to the nunchuck’s. It takes a bit to fit the wiimote in the holder, but once you figure it out it is not too bad and it fits very snugly in. Having the wiimote in the guitar itself offers many things. For one, the guitar does not have to have any addition sensors to key up star power, as the wiimote’s accelerometers take care of that. Also, the wiimote’s speaker and rumble are implemented. When you miss a note, a screeching sound will emit from the speaker, which is a nice little touch. Also, the rumble is used when you have gained star power to notify the player, and also during star power to give you the feeling of rocking out. Of course, the guitar is also wireless. Goody.

The guitar used for GHIII is a Gibson guitar, which I know nothing about as I am not a music/instrument buff. I just know that I have Guitar Hero II for the Xbox 360 and this guitar is very different. Well, not VERY different, but handles a bit awkwardly. I find the GHII guitar more comfortable. The Wii’s guitar feels a bit smaller, with the fret buttons being about the same, although they are shaped and colored differently. The whammy bar has been extended, which I do not like. For some reason, I know stretch my strumming hand out more, making it tire easily, which is not good. Aside from those features, the faceplate is detachable, along with the neck of the guitar, so now you can buy “cool” faceplates and put them on your guitar, as well as taking it apart to store or travel with easier. Overall, it is simply a different model guitar. If you have played Guitar Hero before, you know how it works; it is no different. There are not any additional buttons or anything of the sort. The Wii guitar does have an analog stick though, to use for navigating menus more easily.

Awwwwwww yeah. Rockin’ out. Just wait till I use that star power.

Now on to some gameplay. Again, this is Guitar Hero, so nothing major has been changed, although a few new features have been added, but the main game remains intact; colored notes come streaming down the screen which you have to see, and then hold the fret buttons while you strum. If you do well, your rock meter will go up and you will earn star power occasionally if you hit the right notes. If you string along a combo, you will earn more points; everything is the same in that respect. A new addition is that now your current note streak is shown along with the multiplyer, so you know how many notes you have hit consecutively. Also, when you hit a streak benchmark, in increments of 50, it is displayed on the screen. I believe for some reason that the board, that shows the notes, is a tad smaller in the Wii version than it was in GHII for the 360. This makes it a bit more difficult, but is not a hazard by any means. A major thing I feel is detrimental to the Wii version however is the poor graphics. The characters on-screen look very grainy and the “You Rock” message at the end of the song is just plain pixilated. I know the Wii is capable of much better graphics than this, as they look like PS1-PS2 graphics, which is pathetic. Of course, this does not really take away from gameplay, as all you need is your notes, which you can obviously make out, but it seems a little lazy on the developer’s part.

I believe the button presses’ timing has changed a little bit, as it is a bit more difficult to hit all the notes. I know my friends and I feel cheated at times when we know we hit a note but the game says otherwise; it just does not seem as sharp or crisp of a feeling, which I do not think is to be attributed to the guitar, but rather the game.

The biggest leap forward for the series is the inclusion of boss battles, where you go up against a rock legend in a guitar battle. This battle is not like tradition guitar playing, and you do not simply want to win the audience over. Instead, your goal is to make the opponent fail his song. In order to do this, you have to pick up items to make him or her mess up. These items are gathered like star power, so make sure to hit every note when the item comes up. You can hold a few items at a time, so timing when you send them over to your opponent is crucial, as he can easily recover from a single item blow. Strategy is key in later battles, as you cannot simply toss weapons when you get them or you will get blown away. If you do not make the boss fail by the end of the song, then he will destroy you with an amazing solo. It is also worth mentioning that of course, the boss can also get weapons, so be careful. These weapons range from giving you more notes to play, to making you have to hit the whammy bar numerous times before you can continue to play notes, while they still stream on down the screen.

A boss battle against dat Slash, yo. This is not the final version of the game, but it looks the same, except there is a cool looking meter in the middle to show you how far along the song you are so you can see how long until your impending doom.

In conjunction with the boss battles is an actual story or career mode. This is similar to the previous ones, except this time you are treated to anime-styled cut-scenes, which are voiceless, but nonetheless depict a story of your band going from the garage, to getting a record deal, and getting gigs around the world. It is not anything major, but a nice touch to give the game a bit more meaning.

There are various other modes to partake in as well, such as the Co-Op Campaign mode, or versus, or training, and even WiFi, which is nice to know seeing as how the Wii is a bit young in the internet gaming arena. However, the sad thing is that the Wii does not support downloadable content, so new songs will not be available, although personally, I do not feel this to be a major blow, as I have not gotten any of the GHII songs for the 360 due to the fact that most suck. But, if this is a major factor for you to extend the game, then you may want to go with another platform, as the others offer everything the Wii has and more.

Online menu and such. Haven’t played myself due to the fact that my online setup currently blows, so I can’t comment…sorry.

Once you have played through the Medium career mode or higher, you start earning cash, which can then be used to purchase things in the store, such as new songs, characters, guitars, clothing, and more. The game features over 70 songs, so there is going to be something for everyone. I feel thus far, that the soundtrack is adequate, although could have been better for my own personal tastes. There are a lot of great songs in there though, and they are fun to play regardless. I have found that GHIII is much more difficult than GHII. I am not the best of players, as Hard is too difficult for me, but I have heard that the difficulty has been ramped up in this addition, with easy being easier though, so if you are new to the series, do not fret, as easy is the perfect place to start. If you have not played, easy only gives you three notes to work with, with medium giving you four, and then hard and expert throwing all five at you…..darn you orange…grumble. But yes, start at easy, and work your way up.

Overall, it is another great game in the series, while it is simply more of the same. If you enjoyed any of the previous Guitar Hero games, then you will assuredly enjoy this one. If you want all the songs, and more and more, then your best bet is to get it not on the Wii, however, if you only have the Wii available to you, then by all means get it, as you are not truly missing out on anything; it is still a great experience.