Last year, Guitar Hero World Tour expanded the seminal franchise to include vocals and drums in addition to guitars and bass. A slew of new songs for the full band have since been released, but what about the tracks from the axe-only days of Guitar Hero? For those hoping to revisit those tracks, Activision has released Guitar Hero: Smash Hits. This full-priced retail game is packed with 48 songs drawn from previous GH games. We recently spent some time rocking with the Xbox 360 retail release of Smash Hits. This blog entry will tell you what to expect from Smash Hits, and whether or not it's worth the asking price.



Guitar Hero: Smash Hits sports the expected array of game modes, including Career (unlock songs and venues as you progress), Quickplay (select up to six songs at a time from the full tracklist), Head to Head (two players duel using their instrument of choice), Xbox Live (Band Quickplay, Band vs. Band, Head to Head, Downloadable Content), Music Studio, and assorted other options. It looks and plays pretty much exactly like Guitar Hero World Tour, with the exception of some graphical flourishes and new venues.

With no new features to speak of, Guitar Hero: Smash Hits is essentially a track pack. So is it worth the price? Well, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions are priced at $59.99: 48 songs for about $60 works out to $1.25 per song. This is a significantly lower price than you'll pay when purchasing downloadable tracks individually or in bundles, so in that sense it's a reasonably good value. However, there's no picking or choosing your favorites here. You get these songs, and these songs only:

Guitar Hero

• "Godzilla" by Blue Oyster Cult
• "More Than a Feeling" by Boston
• "Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple
• "Take Me Out" by Franz Ferdinand
• "Unsung (Live)" by Helmet
• "Stellar" by Incubus
• "I Love Rock N' Roll" by Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
• "Bark at the Moon" by Ozzy Osbourne
• "Cowboys From Hell (Live)" by Pantera
• "Killer Queen" by Queen
• "No One Knows" by Queens of the Stone Age
• "Take It Off" by The Donnas
• "Hey You" by The Exies
• "Thunder Kiss '65" by White Zombie

Guitar Hero II

• "Them Bones" by Alice in Chains
• "Beast and the Harlot" by Avenged Sevenfold
• "Mother" by Danzig
• "Monkey Wrench" by Foo Fighters
• "The Trooper" by Iron Maiden
• "Stop!" by Jane's Addiction
• "Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas
• "Laid to Rest" by Lamb of God
• "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd
• "Shout at the Devil" by Motley Crue
• "Heart-Shaped Box" by Nirvana
• "Killing in the Name" by Rage Against the Machine
• "Psychobilly Freakout" by Reverend Horton Heat
• "YYZ" by Rush
• "Trippin' on a Hole in a Paper Heart" by Stone Temple Pilots
• "Message in a Bottle" by The Police
• "Freya" by The Sword
• "Cherry Pie" by Warrant
• "Woman" by Wolfmother

Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s

• "Caught in a Mosh" by Anthrax
• "Play With Me" by Extreme
• "Electric Eye" by Judas Priest
• "Nothin' but a Good Time" by Poison
• "Round and Round" by Ratt
• "I Wanna Rock" by Twisted Sister

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock

• "Miss Murder" by AFI
• "Through the Fire and Flames" by DragonForce
• "Barracuda" by Heart
• "Rock and Roll All Nite" by Kiss
• "Cult of Personality" by Living Colour
• "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" by Pat Benatar
• "Lay Down" by Priestess
• "Raining Blood" by Slayer

Guitar Hero: Aerosmith

• "Back in the Saddle" by Aerosmith

So what do you think? There are certainly some classics in there, just as there are some not-so-classics. Though Smash Hits' appeal will vary from person to person, it's unlikely that anyone other than a true World Tour enthusiast will view this as a particularly good deal. Since the dawn of the full-band rhythm game, players have been able to pick and choose their own tracks from a large list of downloadable content. Shoppers accustomed to purchasing tracks individually or in small bundles will likely balk at the prospect of buying in bulk. Those who regularly consume large amounts of World Tour may appreciate the wholesale discount, but more casual rockers are advised to exercise patience. Smash Hits may never be broken out into more bite-size downloadable packages, but the price is sure to drop eventually, which will make this track pack much more appealing.

Despite the replayability of the excellent single-player and co-op campaign offered in Resident Evil 5 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3), sometimes simply killing the debatably undead grows tiresome. This is an entirely natural phenomenon, and one that developer Capcom has chosen to address by offering you the Mercenaries minigame, which lets you kill maybe-undead in a timed challenge for points. But what if you want more? What if you want to hunt down the most dangerous prey of all, your fellow man? Lucky you! Capcom has once again stepped in by offering the Resident Evil 5 Versus Mode DLC, allowing you to channel your bloodthirsty tendencies in a creative, anonymous, non-capital-crimey way.

CHRIIIIIIIIIIS!

Versus mode offers two distinct gameplay types--Slayers and Survivors--both of which can be played in solo or team versions. Slayers is essentially a competitive version of the Mercenaries minigame that supports four players. You play on one of the same eight levels as in Mercenaries with the exact same rule set. Each character is preloaded with different weapons, and you run around and rack up kills to build up your combo meter and score, picking up time and combo bonuses as necessary. You can fight the other players if you like, or you can try to ignore them and focus on the Majini that will spawn. If you're killed, you'll respawn instantly so you can get back into the action, and the round ends once the timer runs out.

Survivors is a Mercenaries take on the standard Deathmatch mode, which once again takes place on the same eight levels and supports up to four players. There's still a countdown timer, and Majini still spawn (albeit at a slower rate and in fewer numbers), but the main attraction is the player battles. In this game mode, you increase your score by damaging the other players, and your score is decreased whenever you take damage or die. There are no combo items this time around, and you start with only one weapon, though others can be found around the maps or are dropped by the Boss Majini that show up (though you otherwise get no points for killing them).

For both of these modes you have access to the same group of characters available in Mercenaries, including all three costumed versions of Chris and Sheva, and both versions of Jill and Wesker. Unlike in Mercenaries, though, you don't unlock additional characters by simply winning matches on the various levels--you've got to purchase them with the precious exchange points you earn by playing the game. What this means is that unless you've got an excess of points in your Internet wallet, you're going to be put at an immediate disadvantage once you start playing Versus mode because you don't have the 50,000 EP needed to buy the incredibly smug S.T.A.R.S. Wesker, who has indeed achieved complete global saturation thanks to how hideously overpowered his armament is (not to mention his special dash ability). But, as with Mercenaries, you earn points for playing, so keep at it and eventually you too will be able to play as Wesker and mash the assist button to hear his hilariously disdainful comments.

Poor performance indeed!

One of the most interesting aspects of the Versus DLC is figuring out how you should approach each of the levels and modes. There are a number of different strategies for you to use, whether it's as simple as finding the high ground with a sniper rifle and watching your back, as sinister as planting proximity bombs around blind corners in heavily trafficked areas, or as jerk-y as running to the health item stash and discarding everything but the few you keep for yourself so you're the only one who can heal. Despite the number of potential strategies, the gameplay in the Versus mode is the same as it is elsewhere in the game--you've got to stop to aim and shoot--which means that close-range gunfights sometimes devolve into stationary face-offs (which are as dumb as they sound).

Ultimately, the amount of fun and enjoyment you get out of the Versus DLC for Resident Evil 5 depends a lot on how much you like the Mercenaries minigame. Both Slayers and Survivors are based on the gameplay found in Mercenaries, though they have different goals and require separate strategies. If you've mastered Mercenaries and are looking for new challenges (and ways to show off, since Versus features its own leaderboards), you're definitely going to want to pick up Versus. But even if you're not a professional riding the wind of madness, this pack is only 400 Microsoft points or $4.99 on the PSN, so you may want to give it a shot.

Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures is the latest episodic game series from developer and publisher Telltale Games. We recently completed the first of the four planned episodes, Fright of the Bumblebees; however, you won't be seeing a proper review for Grand Adventures for some time yet. That's because it's not possible to purchase these episodes individually and so, at the time of this writing, we've played only 25 percent of the content we've purchased. Of course, we can give you our impressions of the first episode so you can see how the series is shaping up. Read on for our thoughts on Wallace & Gromit's first Grand Adventure.

Fright of the Bumblebees begins at a logical starting place: breakfast. It's Gromit's turn to prepare the morning repast, and as you guide him through this gadget-assisted ritual, you'll notice that his wry looks and exaggerated walking animation are adeptly replicated. While the game isn't claymation and lacks some of that medium's subtle delights, Fright of the Bumblebees captures the look and feel of the characters and their world. The elaborate contraptions, goofy neighbors, and cozy suburban feel of West Wallaby Street are all faithfully represented here. The top-notch voice acting rounds out the impressive presentation, which really nails the whimsical charm of Wallace & Gromit franchise.

Once breakfast is done, Wallace and Gromit go about their daily business: coming up with harebrained schemes to get themselves out of the messes caused by their previous harebrained schemes. This sort of action is very well-suited to the point-and-click adventure gameplay of Fright of the Bumblebees. The duo's existing problems and their new business plan provide more than enough activities that need puzzling out, and you'll do so predominantly by moving from area to area, collecting items, speaking with townsfolk, and figuring out what to use your items for. The map is pleasantly small--you'll visit only a few locations--and the narrow scope means you'll never be at a loss for what to do next. Your adventure proceeds at a good pace, and if you get hung up, there are good hints to help you get moving again.

Moving Wallace and Gromit (you alternate between them) around with the keyboard is easy, and you use the mouse for everything else. In addition to bringing items to different places and using them appropriately, there are a few one-off puzzles and action sequences that break up the pace nicely. It's not a difficult game, and though you'll probably run into a few head-scratchers, they're nothing a hint or some creative thinking can't solve. The game lasts a few hours and feels ideally suited for play across a few short sessions. The light difficulty and silly sense of humor can make longer sessions tiresome, but taken in chunks, Wallace and Gromit's first episodic outing is good wholesome fun.

Fright of the Bumblebees a great debut for Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures, and we're looking forward to seeing how the series progresses. Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures is also slated for episodic release on Xbox Live Arcade (release date TBA), where each episode will be released (and reviewed) individually.

According to a recent thread in our Men of War forum, the review that we posted for the game yesterday contained a number of factual inaccuracies. We're looking into it and, while we figure out our next course of action, the review has been pulled from the site. I'll update this entry when I have more information to share.

EDIT:Replacement Men of War review is now live.

Prince of Persia was one of my favorite games from last year, but even though I loved jumping across the beautiful environments, I was still hesitant about the idea of additional content. Unlike other expansion packs that create wholly separate missions from the main quest, Epilogue serves as a direct continuation of Prince of Persia, starting right after the controversial ending. The powerful conclusion to the first game did an excellent job of whetting my appetite for the inevitable sequel, so I wasn't sure how I would feel after Epilogue changed my understanding of the story. After finishing up the additional quest today, I can say that I am still extremely excited for where this story ends up. If you have yet to play through the main quest, please stop reading now; spoilers are all but impossible to avoid.

If you somehow forgot about the ending to Prince of Persia, let me quickly recap the events so you aren't completely lost: Elika died. In a noble (yet so foolish) attempt to save the world from Ahriman, she sacrificed herself at the altar of death. Kind of a bum-out way to end a 10-hour adventure, right? Well, the Prince agreed, and resurrected her at the cost of setting Ahriman loose to potentially take over the world. And that is exactly where Epilogue begins. The Prince is running away from a terrible dust storm (the meteorological embodiment of Ahriman, of course), carrying the princess's limp body and hurrying toward an abandoned temple. What could possible go wrong?

The story development is handled in a similar manner as the main quest. Whenever Elika has something important on her mind, the screen will prompt you to communicate with her. This system lets you learn as much--or as little--about the princess as you wish. There is one tweak, though, that makes character development much more powerful. In the main storyline, you can complete quests in whatever order you like. In this strictly linear temple, though, every important story development is triggered in a specific order, so the characters grow in a logical and convincing way throughout the journey. Be prepared to put up with the cold shoulder for the first hour or so; Elika is none too pleased that you rescued her from permanent slumber.

Like the story, the gameplay is largely the same as the source material, but it adds a few tweaks. The biggest difference is the linear nature of this temple. There is no hub world this time, and you don't have much chance to explore different parts of this building at your leisure. Light seeds have also been eliminated. Although this makes sense from a story perspective (the temple that the Light Seeds fueled was destroyed at the end of the first game), it mostly removes the exploration aspect that was so engrossing the first time around. There are a few frescos hidden just off of the beaten path, but they aren't prevalent enough to fully replace the joy of collecting balls of glowing light. Furthermore, considering that the entire adventure takes place in a temple, the enchanting vistas from the first game are gone. Sure, the temple looks really nice, but it's dank and uninviting and, unlike the fertile lands of the main quest, you can't even breathe life into this deserted ruin.

Even with those deviations from the formula, Epilogue is still a blast to play. The platforming is much more difficult this time around. The corruption puddles are placed in truly devious ways, requiring perfect timing to get from one platform to another. Certain sections impose a time limit on you, forcing you to run along walls and swing from poles much quicker than you ordinarily would, lest you end up consumed by the ever-present might of Ahriman. A purple power pad has also been thrown into the mix. This also imposes a time limit on your adventuring, creating magic walls that disappear if you don't use them quickly enough. These new features make the experience feel fresh, even though it's still predominantly the same as the original.

After every major platforming section, you will still be required to battle one of Ahriman's dark forces, and this is again the weakest part of the experience. You now have the ability to rush at your foe from afar, triggering a quick-time event that will momentarily give the upper hand to the winner. But there are only a handful of enemies that you can fight, so these battles become repetitive almost immediately. They certainly aren't bad--in fact, once you get in the rhythm of grabbing and stabbing these evil beasts, they can be flat-out fun--but they ultimately serve as distractions from the amazing platforming.

The Epilogue last about three hours and has enough content to justify the $10 price point. If you are still on the fence, though, ask yourself this one question: How important is the story to you? The ending to this Epilogue completely changes the events from the end of the main quest, so if you want to stay up to date on the Prince's struggles with Ahriman, you will certainly get more out of this addition than someone who just wants to jump and fight. Prince of Persia may not have needed DLC at all, but the incredible platforming and satisfying story make it worthwhile to go back for a few more hours.

If you're familiar with the Total War series, you are surely aware that Empire: Total War is a huge, slow-paced, ambitious game, full of nuance and gravity and all of the features, wonders, and shortcomings of a game this massive. As a result, it takes a while to review a product like this, and though we received our copy in the middle of last week, I still only feel like I am scratching the surface. So bear with me while I wade my through enough of it to provide a proper review. I am also working on Blue Dragon Plus and Drakensang, but both of those reviews are on hold for a short time while I let Total War take over my life.

In the meanwhile, I will be offering a couple of updates to let you know how well my empire is faring. Enjoy the look!

__________

I am playing the Grand Campaign as the Ottoman Empire, and started in 1700. Right off, I knew that the Greeks would be trouble. I wasted no time in declaring war on Venice, since they seemed to be an obvious route to keeping tabs on Austria, my mortal enemy. The problems started right away, however, as Vienna decided to pluck Athens from underneath me. I was able to get Athens back, and actually, all of Greece. Sadly, Patras, Morea proved to be a pain in the backside. Greek rebels rose up and pestered so often that I eventually decided to let them be for the time being while I whittled away at Russia and Persia.

I should have realized, however, that Austria wouldn't sit idly by, and they declared war on me just when it seemed I might be able to rid the map of Venice once and for all. It's now 1715, and I am trying to keep both Venice and Austria in check by blockading their ports and raiding trade routes with my naval forces. Without a proper income, I am hoping I can diminish their wealth, and fortunately, their navies aren't aggressive--yet.

The bad news is that with too many fronts spread about the map, my offensives on Russia and Persia haven't gone according to plan. With the Greeks more pain than I need, and France being all uppity with me every time I open negotiations, I decided to just give Greece to the British in return for an alliance and some technology. With trade routes blocked and Greece no longer a priority, I now have a far better flow of cash, and I can concentrate on technology and war.

Blocking ports and raiding trade routes is a great way to earn some extra cash while sabotaging your enemies.

1715:

I start with 9312 in funds, probably the most I have had to work with in a single turn yet. First, I use my Hashishin (assassin) to take out an iron mine in Austria. I need to cripple the economy if I have a hope of succeeding. I also recruit multiple soldiers to my nearby army. Zagreb was mine, and I intend to take it back from the Austrians.

I decide to attack the Russian city of Cherkassk. I have an Imam in there converting the population to Islam, so hopefully, keeping the city won't be too problematic, since the population will have already warmed to my presence. The assault goes well; I send melee troops into a garrisoned building, easily crushing the armed citizenry inside. Then, it's a matter of using camel nomads to off the rest. It was a snowy day, making it easier to forgive all sorts of AI weirdness--a pretty typical kind of oddity in Empire's real-time battles. Victory! The region is mine.

I also send in a small force to rid me of the Persian troops led by Shaheen Siyavushi outside Baghdad, and like an idiot, I let the battle autoresolve. I should know better--I have gotten quite good at exploiting the enemy AI in battle, so I regret taking the easy way out!

Finally, needing more income to feed my war plans, I build a cotton plantation in Egypt, an area completely unworried by military concerns. For now. End Turn.

Joy! A small Austrian army attacks troops I have holding on to a farm. No autoresolve this time--I will wait out the long loading time and do this myself. My azzars, well-positioned, take care of the Austrian pikemen. Heroic victory! And more joy--An enormous Persian army attacks a tiny force of 63 troops. This time I can retreat, so I run with my tail between my legs.

Some battles are easily won; some aren't.

1716:

Seems my carpet weaver's cottage in Erbil has been sabotaged. Call me unhappy. Well, I can get the Persians back by attacking their tiny army of Zamindari pikemen. Not willing to take the autoresolve route, I decide to send my camel nomads into the pikemen--it's my only option. I watch them struggle to get over a wall, and the pikemen are done, though I lose some cavalry in the process. And rather than let the routed enemy end the battle, I finish it out all the way.Good thing, because I kill their general. I get credited with a close victory for some reason.

Next Russian target? Astrakhan. I build up the army, recruit more units, and the troops in that direction. In the meanwhile, I could use some more friends about the world, but even the few nations friendly or at least indifferent that I am not already allied with are being babies. Sweden is cold--no surprise given their geography--but I don't need them anyway. Besides, we already have a trade agreement. I convince them to trade technologies, but they'll only do it with a payment of 430. I hope canister shot is worth it. Emboldened, I go to Prussia, my greatest ally. I throw in a stipend and everything, but they don't seem to want to offer me their square formation tech. Well, fine. I didn't want it anyway!

In the meanwhile, my army in Bosnia is eyeing Zagreb closely. I recruit some units and stay my course there. The plan? Take Zagreb, build up the army, and grab Venice once and for all. Over in Fort Hunedoara, I have a small army in need of a general, so I recruit one, and plan to build up that army. It's a nice feature in Empire: armies with generals can recruit new ranks, rather than needing to get new ones at a city. I regret not being able to build more this turn, but my armies are getting feeble.

Ending the turn.

Russia decided to attack a medium sized force led by Dolabci Musa Ismail. I don't hope for the best here; he's got a definite upper hand.But I get lucky, thanks to some lucky deployment positioning and good use of infantry to distract ranged troops.

Don't forget to use melee infantry to soak up the damage, lest your gunners end up the victim of charging cavalry

I hope you enjoyed the rundown on my current empire. Look for a review of Empire: Total War, with luck, by the end of the week!

View the first 15 minutes of Beneath the Ashes and Lara's gold bikini in action. (540p HD version here.)

With new expansions for Grand Theft Auto IV, Fable II and Fallout 3 , the GameSpot Reviews Blog has been awfully busy with downloadable content of late. Tomb Raider Underworld is the latest game to be given the DLC treatment, with 'Beneath the Ashes' adding a new level, a new enemy and six new outfits. The result is an expansion that offers some memorable set-pieces, but it's short at around two hours and does very little to fix the existing problems from Underworld.

Beneath the Ashes takes place under Croft Manor, which is now a burnt wreckage after the events of Underworld. Lara is following a lead from her father's journal, who buried a sacred artifact deep under the country estate to stop it getting into the wrong hands. This isn't just some dusty old monument either--it holds the power to control the Thralls, an ancient supernatural army of warriors. Lara being Lara, she decides to investigate, and this mini-adventure takes her from the basement of her home right down to the ancient monuments underneath.

Beneath the Ashes does a good job of maintaining the same balance of adventuring, puzzle-solving and combat from Underworld. The action takes place completely underground, but the new level isn't short on huge expanses to cover. This is where the game is at its best--gradually figuring out your way through an environment, and then being rewarded with some spectacular views along the way. The expansion also has some great puzzles, including the best use of Lara's grapple rope yet. Where it all falls down is on the combat--frequent encounters with Thralls and giant spiders are unwelcome distractions from the business of tomb raiding. The combat is fiddly, the enemies are weak, while Lara's ability to fit a shotgun, rifle and uzis into her tiny backpack mean that it's all incredibly easy.

Lara Croft fans who also have a Princess Leia fetish have their prayers answered by this DLC, as it adds six new costumes including a gold bikini. Putting aside the impracticality of spelunking in a swimsuit for a moment, the bikinis are nicely designed, and show off the work that's been put into designing the character. They also demonstrate the great dirt effects that gradually build up on her body, while the confined spaces allow you to 'appreciate' the subtle breast physics.

I had plenty of gripes with the core mechanics of Underworld, so I'm sad to report that they're still present in Beneath the Ashes. The camera is as unruly as ever, refusing to move around solid objects to offer a better view of the world, while it's even worse in confined spaces, of which there are many. You have to wrestle with the camera as it makes simple mistakes, moving underwater as you're doing something above, and there are even bugs, such as an underwater corridor where Lara never needs to come up for air.

Story and characters have never been Tomb Raider's strong point, but if you are into the lore of the series, you'll get something out of Beneath the Ashes. The level features Lara's Shadow character from Underworld, plus an interesting plot twist towards the end. You also get to read Lara's father's journal, which not only helps figure out the puzzles, but also fills in some of the Croft family history. And if you're not into any of the exposition but are lured by the possibility of achievements, then there are 125 points offer for completing the level and finding all the treasures.

Another problem with Beneath the Ashes is that it's a victim of bad timing, releasing just after The Lost & Damned has set a new benchmark for downloadable content. True, Tomb Raider's content is half the price of GTA's, but it also offers a lot less than half the value and entertainment. For what it is, Beneath the Ashes offers a good Tomb Raider level and some revealing outfits, but I'd certainly rather have seen new gameplay mechanics or environments. If you're a die-hard fan of Tomb Raider then you've probably already added this to your download queue, but everyone else is likely to feel a little short-changed.

If you read my previous post on the subject of Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned, you know that I had an opportunity to play through and was really impressed with the Johnny Klebitz storyline a few days before it was released on Xbox Live. I wasn't able to spend any time with downloadable episode's new multiplayer modes until the retail servers went live though, so in case you're still unsure whether or not to buy the new episode or you're just so busy with the new story that you've yet to use the multiplayer option on Johnny's cell phone, here's a quick video to bring you up to speed on the new modes that you're missing out on.

Hope you like it, and hope to see you online. Oh, and you can find a 540p version of this multiplayer impressions video here .