Guitar Hero World Tour

Developer: Neversoft
Publisher: Activision
Release Date: Oct. 26, 2008
Systems: PS3 (reviewed), PS2 Xbox 360, Wii
ESRB Rating: T
Official Web site

In a nutshell: Guitar Hero ... now with crappy drums!

0:00 I've played all the previous Guitar Hero games, but haven't even touched this one in previews. I'm especially excited to see how the drums hold up to those from Rock Band, one of my favorite games of all time.

0:13 Jumping the clock forward to account for the time it took to unbox and set up the drums and guitar. The setup is actually a touch more complex than that for Rock Band, although the drums already seem a bit sturdier.

0:14 I put the game in the system. The preview screen blares: "SHARE THE EXPERIENCE! Join together for the definitive rock & roll gaming experience in Guitar Hero World Tour." Jeez, what marketing major dropout wrote that?

0:15 Shocker ... there's a game update that needs to be installed. A 19 MB download delays the start of the game yet more.

0:17 Downloaded, installed and finally ready to go ... after some more loading, of course.

0:18 Logos, then the traditional animated opening. A Kenny G lookalike plays a clarinet on stage in front of a huge, bored-looking crowd. In the wings, a guy with an evil grin and a devil ring looks on. The music notes turn into a spiral that hypnotizes the crowd. A big-haired glam-rock singer gets the "GH" signal on his phone. A girl with a tiny cup of coffee gets the same on her watch. A blonde-haired guy in a white robe gets it in the forest. A pink-haired girl sitting in an airport also receives the call. They all rush to the stage and break the hypnosis with a concentrated blast of pure rock. WHOO!

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer