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The real battle of the bands is about to begin, and Activision's Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock has fired the first shot. We were recently lucky enough to get our hands on a GH III "Demo Kit" for the Xbox 360 and spent some time putting the just released demo as well as the new Gibson Les Paul guitar through the paces.

First of all, the guitar included in this specific kit is somewhat of an anomaly - it's wired. I suspect it was designed as a retail demo unit, so it has a few small differences. The wire alone isn't a big deal, if it weren't 2 - 3 feet shorter than the one on GH II's Xplorer (an extension is pretty much a requirement). The demo Les Paul also has a big bold and gaudy "Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock" faceplate instead of the standard black one. Of course, neither of these issues matter since this guitar isn't even going to be made available for purchase or included in any packages.

Getting back on track... the guitar itself I feel is an improvement over the Xplorer. The shape is more comfortable, it feels more solid (and less cheap), and best of all it's quieter. The strum bar is much less clicky and springy and the whammy bar is just a little longer and much easier to reach and position. The fret buttons are back to the half rounded shape and the feeling of them has changed. Jumping back and forth between the Xplorer and the new model makes it pretty obvious that the new guitar's frets have somewhat more resistance to them and are less sloppy in comparison. The buttons basically have more of a spongy feel with less play and height. Even though I'd classify myself as a more casual GH player (i.e. suck at expert), I wasn't sure if I liked the change at first. But after running through a few Guitar Hero II songs along with the demo GH III set with both Xbox 360 guitars, I realized I definitely preferred the feeling of the new Les Paul. I found myself actually scoring better with it as well.

The demo itself is pretty much as you would expect from looking at screenshots and videos of the game. The 5 songs included are "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" as made famous by Pat Benatar, "Lay Down" by Priestess, "Even Flow" by Pearl Jam, "Rock You Like a Hurricane" as made famous by the Scorpions, and "The Metal" by Tenacious D. It's a decent mixture spanning a few decades and genres and it's obviously just a teaser. The singers in the cover songs sound surprisingly authentic so far, so those who usually have an issue with it should be satisfied with the quality. Besides the ability to play the songs at any difficulty level in both single and multiplayer (locally only), the demo includes the usual practice/training mode and options. As for difficulty, it may be my imagination, but the game seems a little more forgiving in regards to timing, at least in this Xbox 360 version. Easy and Medium also seem to be easier in general, although the opposite appeared to be true for hard/expert.

I spent time playing GH II right before III to make an accurate comparison and I have to say I'm not liking the interface in III all that much. The setup screens have nice splash art and all, but they kind of lack the chaotic yet intuitive feel in II. I'm hoping the final version is different, but based on the amount of options and sections grayed out or not available in the demo, it doesn't look like it will be. When playing the songs themselves, the background visuals are really very similar to before and the characters seem to be sporting a little bit more detail - not that you have much time to look at either while you are playing. The in-game screen layout is also generally the same but with some small changes that I also kind of dislike so far. The star power meter is now represented by light bulbs curving over the "Rock" meter instead of a power-up bar. At a glance out of the corner of your eye, it not particularly obvious how full the meter is. A similar facelift was given to the score and multiplier counter in the lower left. What was a nice and clearly obvious indicator has been replaced with something that's a little more distracting and difficult to focus on. I know they tried to fancy up the interface to fit within the new style, but they've sacrificed some functionality as a trade-off. The note chart is thankfully just as easy to read as before, with a couple of useful enhancements such as more obvious "glowing" hammer-on/pull-off notes as opposed to simply being circled in white. The whammy and star power effects seem to have been simplified for some reason. My only really complaint within the game is the variable squelch sound when you flub a note. In II it is pretty loud and consistent, and there was no mistaking when you screwed something up. In III, there were times I clearly missed notes and barely even picked up on the audio cue. The squelch level seems to actually vary in regards to the song and section when it happens, and it's hard to determine if it's like that by design.

Harmonix did such a great job designing GH I and II, so it's hard not to pick out the small annoyances now that the series has been handed off to Neversoft; not to mention their own Rock Band right around the corner. All of the nitpicky issues with the demo will probably be forgivable with time, especially with the amazing song set and online options the retail game is packed with. Stay tuned for additional impressions and a review from the GA Staff over the next couple of weeks.

• Same Old Song and Dance (by Aerosmith)
• Helicopter (by Bloc Party)
• Stricken (by Disturbed)
• Monsters (by Matchbook Romance)
• Before I Forget (by Slipknot)
• Kool Thing (by Sonic Youth)
• When You Were Young (by The Killers)
• Devil Went Down to Georgia (as made famous by Charlie Daniels Band)
• Sunshine of Your Love (as made famous by Cream)
• Holiday in Cambodia (as made famous by Dead Kennedys)
• Cliffs of Dover (as made famous by Eric Johnson)
• Hit Me with Your Best Shot (as made famous by Pat Benetar)
• Black Magic Woman (as made famous by Santana)
• Story of My Life (as made famous by Social Distortion)
• Pride and Joy (as made famous by Stevie Ray Vaughn)
• The Seeker (as made famous by The Who)
• Black Sunshine (as made famous by White Zombie)
• Miss Murder (by AFI)
• Minus Celsius (by Backyard Babies)
• Sabotage (by Beastie Boys)
• Hier Kommt Alex (by Die Toten Hosen)
• Through Fire and Flames (by Dragonforce)
• In the Belly of a Shark (by Gallows)
• Welcome to The Jungle (by Guns N' Roses)
• Avalancha (by Heroes Del Silencio)
• Take This Life (by In Flames)
• Number of the Beast (by Iron Maiden)
• Ruby (by Kaiser Chiefs)
• Closer (by Lacuna Coil)
• Cult of Personality (by Living Colour)
• One (by Metallica)
• Knights of Cydonia (by Muse)
• Mauvais Garcon (by NAAST)
• Even Flow (by Pearl Jam)
• Lay Down (by Priestess)
• Bulls on Parade (by Rage Against The Machine)
• 3's and 7's (by Queens of the Stone Age)
• Suck My Kiss (by Red Hot Chili Peppers)
• Generation Rock (by Revolverheld)
• Raining Blood (by Slayer)
• Cherub Rock (by Smashing Pumpkins)
• Radio Song (by Superbus)
• The Metal (by Tenacious D)
• I'm in the Band (by The Hellacopters)
• Anarchy in the U.K. (by The Sex Pistols)
• Reptillia (by The Strokes)
• Paint It Black (by The Rolling Stones)
• My Name is Jonas (by Weezer)
• Slash's Original Boss Battle Recording
• Tom Morello's Original Boss Battle Recording
• School's Out (as made famous by Alice Cooper)
• Paranoid (as made famous by Black Sabbath)
• Cities on Flame (as made famous by Blue Oyster Cult)
• Slow Ride (as made famous by Foghat)
• Barracuda (as made famous by Heart)
• Rock and Roll All Nite (as made famous by Kiss)
• Mississippi Queen (as made famous by Mountain)
• Rock You Like a Hurricane (as made famous by Scorpions)
• La Grange (as made famous by ZZ Top)

Features:

• Crank it up to 11 and get ready to rock - Featuring over 70% master recordings, spanning over 40 years of music across many rock genres, Guitar Hero fans have the opportunity to shred to one of the greatest compilations of music ever. Adding to the track list are some of the most legendary European anthems with a vast array of downloadable content post-launch. From Metallica to Muse and Rolling Stones to Rage Against the Machine, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock offers up a truly legendary set list.
• Truly exclusive music - Multiple tracks that can only be found in the game include guitar icons Slash and Tom Morello contributing original guitar riffs for their boss battles. Also, the Sex Pistols re-entered the studio for the first time in 30 years to re-record "Anarchy in the U.K." providing Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock an original recording not available anywhere else. Additionally, Living Colour re-recorded their Grammy Award winning "Cult of Personality" adding a solo that left legendary guitarist Vernon Reid grunting.
• An authentic look and feel - Improving the graphics from the ground up have created a more intense visual element giving guitar heroes the sense of performing on their own rock stage. Slash, Tom Morello and Bret Michaels spent hours in motion capture suits so that their movements and styles were translated perfectly to their in-game characters. Venue light shows have been coordinated for each song along with choreographing the animations for each band member. Ultra-detailed textures in the fictional characters and multiple outfits give the option of customizing the guitarist to meet everyone's inner grunge, punk, metal or anything in between.
• Rock this way - The arcade-inspired battle mode adds a new dimension to the Guitar Hero franchise. The idea isn't necessarily to hit the most notes, but rather hit the right ones and learn the nuances of using the power-up attacks. With Guitar Battle, Star Power sequences are replaced with Battle Power sequences. Hit every note in the Battle Power sequence and receive a power-up that can be used to attack the competition.
• You've got to beat the best, to be the best - Battle mode lends itself to the boss battles featuring Slash and Tom Morello. After defeating a boss, unlock them as a playable character and continue to the encore for the set list, which is a master recording of one of their most legendary songs. After defeating Slash, the next performance is "Welcome to the Jungle" and Slash stays on stage to play with the gamer. Likewise for Tom Morello and the hard-hitting "Bulls on Parade."
• It takes two - Taking the co-op experience to the next level is the new Co-op Career mode giving guitar heroes the chance to progress through their career with a friend. Since not all songs play well for both the lead and bass tracks, only the best songs are pulled from the single player career mode with six co-op career exclusive encore songs.
• Rockin' around the world - Compete head-to-head in any of the competitive game modes online to prove who the most legendary guitar hero really is. Or, for those looking for a more friendly experience, shred to a few tracks on the lead or the bass in co-op online.
• Dude, where's my wire? - Wireless guitars on the Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii will have the Gibson Les Paul guitar shape, while the PS2 will be receiving a new design in the Gibson Kramer Striker shape.
• Axe innovation - All guitars will have detachable necks for easier portability as well as storage. Adding a new level of personalization to the Les Paul Guitar controllers are interchangeable faceplates giving guitar heroes the opportunity to show their style via their instrument.

• Now that's a Guitar! - The Wii Gibson Les Paul guitar controller has a void in the guitar for the Wii Remote to snap into and connects to the Wii Remote via the Nunchuk port. By using the Wii Remote, the guitar controller utilizes the wireless technology and accelerometer.
• That's Wii terrific! - Adapting the Wii Remote's technology, Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock uses both the rumble feature and the speaker on the Wii Remote. The rumble can be felt shaking the guitar when rocking out with Star Power. The speaker comes in handy when playing multiplayer as "clinks" are heard through the Wii Remote as opposed to being ported through the TV speakers.