Guitar Hero 5

Let’s get right to it — after all, Guitar Hero 5 lets you get right to it. You turn on the game, pick up a controller, and without so much as signing into a profile or creating a save file, you start to rock. Your friend picks up another instrument — any instrument — and joins in at their own skill level, without interrupting your flow. Phone ringing? Nature calling? Just pause your slice of the song while everybody else keeps rocking out, then maybe come back on drums…even if there’s already another drummer. No questions, no trouble, and no way we’re going back to the old standard. With this brilliant execution of a very simple idea — let everybody play what they want, however they want — GH5’s Party Play mode instantly reinvigorates the social fun of music games.

That’s hardly the game’s only trick. Completely revamped animations mean that iconic characters like Casey Lynch and Axel Steel look and move better than they ever have; fresh motion-capture data and a less severe art style make guests like Carlos Santana, Shirley Manson, and your created rockers cast off some of the “angry puppet” imagery of Guitar Hero: World Tour. If you prefer, your Avatars can rock out instead, even playing your personalized instruments from major manufacturers like Tama, Ibanez, and Paul Reed Smith. You’ll be spoiled by all the customization choices.

Interestingly, much of GH5’s success comes from what it doesn’t do. The game doesn’t require you to play lengthy predetermined sets in its career mode: we’re back to picking and choosing the songs you like and playing them one or two at a time — crucial for gamers with time constraints. GH5 doesn’t force you to create different career paths for different instruments, nor does it make you duel computer players; instead, you’re presented with optional challenges throughout your meteoric rise that’ll earn you more stars if you can tackle them (but won’t hamper you if you can’t). The notoriously unforgiving note tracks and star-power strings have been dialed down in difficulty, and GH5 doesn’t force you to beat down your opponents to win any of its enjoyable versus modes; it’s simply a matter of doing your best and being rewarded in several friendly competitions, either solo or as a team (up to eight can play online). We particularly like Momentum, where your difficulty constantly adjusts based on your performance — but they’re all fun.

And there’s no forced unlocking: all 85 tracks are ready to rock the minute you crack the shrinkwrap. The eclectic tracklist of rock, funk, pop, metal, and indie — ranging from King Crimson to Queens of the Stone Age — still contains some duds (Dylan and Frampton: boring) but with so many songs, you’ll see the glass as half full. You can overfill it if you want by adding existing GHWT DLC or (for a nominal fee, which was not disclosed at press time) importing tracks from the GHWT, GH Smash Hits, or Band Hero discs into your GH5 collection.

All this love, and we haven’t yet mentioned the revamped, easier-to-use music-creation suite, GHMix. Its created tracks still sound a bit MIDI-sterile, but new options like bending notes will give your DIY songs more life than they ever had before.

With a whopping six different Hero games on 360 this year alone, we wouldn’t blame you for losing track of which is which — let alone which ones are good. But if you’re into party gaming with tons of tunes and opulent options, this is the Guitar Hero to own — easily the best since Guitar Hero II, and the most flexible and friendly interactive jukebox the genre has ever seen. All the elements really came together in GH5; this is musical fun done right.